Imagining Neo-Emotions: Historical Perspectives

Abstract

Neo-emotions are invented terms that express emotional experiences that are novel or that have not previously been labeled. This article considers the utility of the concept of neo-emotions for the study of the past, exploring concepts of novelty and historical change within the history of emotions; the limits of emotion words for the study of emotional life; and the ways that neo-emotions point to the place of creativity and play in the development of new emotions. It suggests that the prominence of neo-emotions in the 21st century reflects current philosophical and scientific ideas about how emotions operate, which do not apply in all societies. Despite this, the concept of neo-emotions requires historians to look again at past emotional practices and the place of play in the development of new emotions.