A Semantic Analysis of Experiential Construction in Hokkien

Abstract

In this article the author discusses the analysis of the experience of construction and the subject of experiencer (dative) in Hokkien. In Semantic studies, experiential construction is a process or method used to form meaning that has experiencer as a human participant who accidentally experiences a mental or physical state. The concept of experience explains 5 subdomains of experiential verbs, namely bodily sensations (thirst, hunger, pain, itching), emotions (anger, pleasure, fear), desire (want), cognition (thinking, knowing, remembering), and perception (see, feel, hearing), as well as forms of experiential adjectives, namely curious, clever, forgetful, and confused. Each language has terms that are bad, good, and neutral emotions and can be described through symptoms outside the body, such as red and pale. This research is a qualitative descriptive study and was compiled using the Natural Semantic Metalanguage (NSM) theory. The author analyzes the data in this article by using data collection methods from respondents with referring, engaging, and proficient techniques. The research data is taken from written and verbal sources. The experiential construction in Hokkien may use both transitive and intransitive experiential verbs in experiential assignment as object and or subject datives. In Hokkien, subject experiencer is taking the position of direct subject, while the object experiencer is taking the position as dative subject.