Zalost

Humans are complex social and emotional beings that defy the logic and rational that we
claim to hold so dear. While it is difficult to definitively say that all humans in all societies feel
the same emotions, linguists know that culturally salient words in one language may not have a
direct translation into another language based on the differing cultural backgrounds. One such
example of this is the Russian world zalost, an interesting word vital to Russian culture that has
no direct English translation or concept.
Anna Wierzbicka defines zalost through her emotional meta-language as follows:
Zalost
X thinks something like this:
Something bad is happening to Y
Because of this, Y feels something bad
I would want it didnt happen [i.e., I wish it hadnt happened]
Because of this, X feels something good toward Y
If X could, X would want to do something good for Y
Wierzbicka herself has trouble defining this concept beyond this meta language, though she
along with Irina Levonitna and Anna Zalizniak certainly try to give an accurate description.
Zalost is the combination of pity and love, but also has elements of being the uncontrollable and
immediate response of the soul to the suffering of others (Levonitna 317). Physically, zalost can
be accompanied by sensations of discomfort, wearisome anxiety, and spasmodic contractions
inside the body which may be painful and cause tears (Levontina 318). This word has
somewhat changed in meaning over time, as traditional Russian often interchangeably utilizes
zalost and ljubit, which means to like, love, but during the Soviet era there was an emphasis on
the pitying portion of zalost. This contrasts highlights an internal debate within the language
itself about the true meaning of the word which many Russians feel is vital to their culture.
Feelings of maternal love are often classified under zalost, and there is often a somewhat divine
element within the word, as expressed by the Russian religious philosopher Vladimir Solovev in
1966, when he classifies zalost as the root of an ethical attitude towards other human beings
and towards living creatures in general (Wierzbicka 168).
As seen through these textual examples, understanding the Russian cultural concept of
zalost is extremely difficult, especially when the English-Russian language barrier is taken into

consideration. English speakers struggle with the concept of zalost because Anglo-Saxon culture,
especially that seen in America, does not have the brutally tragic history seen in Russia. The
history of Russia is much longer and bloodier than that of the United States, and this likely
contributes to presence of zalost, as Russian people have historically caused and witnessed more
anguish than Americans. Life in America is easier in a variety of ways, as the rich and fertile land
made agriculture profitable and easy, and there has yet to be a massive starvation of the people
even in the worst of times. Russia, by comparison, is colder with worse soil, whilst political
coups and mass starvations plague the country on a fairly regular basis. This difference in the
history of the two countries helps explain why Russians are more prone to be aware of the
suffering of their fellow man. This is not to say that Americans do not understand the suffering of
human kind, but that they seem to believe that suffering is temporary and something to
overcome.
Native English speakers conceptualize love and pity differently than their Russian
counterparts. Pity is not seen as a positive emotion in English, especially in American culture.
Dramatic actors often exclaim, I dont want your pity when they encounter a personal crisis,
and this sentiment fits quite nicely into the do-it-yourself can-do attitude of the American public.
Americans will avoid pity at all costs, and go to great lengths to avoid telling others about
situations which might elicit pity. Here lies a major issue with the conceptualization of zalost, as
pity cannot be associated with any other positive emotions because the sheer negativity and
degradation that arises from pity are unconquerable to an American native English speaker. Love
is seen in quite the opposite way; English speakers believe sentiments like love conquers all
with the intent that love is a consuming force that helps individuals overcome obstacles. With
these two definitions in mind, we can begin to see where there might be problems with zalost. If
you love someone, in Anglo-Saxon culture, you do not want to see them enter a situation that
would afterwards require pity. A large part of American culture is focused on keeping a happy,
upbeat demeanor which would be ruined by an event that would elicit pity from others. Russian
culture does not have this problem, and indeed seem to believe that pity is a large part of the
human experience, hence the religious notions affiliated with zalost.
English speakers do not have a specific word for the feelings of zalost because our
culture does not acknowledge and embrace the intersection of love and pity in the way that
Russian culture does. Russian culture seems to believe that is is perhaps even more desirable to

receive zalost from another than to offer it because it is felt for all undergoing moral and
spiritual anguish whether the experiencer knows those individuals or not (Wierzbicka 169).
Americans try desperately to understand their emotions and classify them, but the closest English
comes to understanding zalost is through compassion. However, even this is not a good
translation of zalost because compassion implies that the the experiencer puts himself mentally
in the place of the suffering person but does not imply an impulse to do something as seen
with the more altruistic zalost (Wierzbicka 168). Russians are more likely to feel zalost because
they are more likely to acknowledge the suffering of the world as a permanent thing. Americans
tend to classify suffering as temporary, and believe that things can be fixed for the better.
Zalost is a beautiful concept that is central to Russian culture, but it has no English
equivalent. This discrepancy arises because English-speaking culture does not feel that the
intersection of pity and love is culturally salient, and they do not want to waste time on an
emotion that cannot be acted upon. Especially in America, the emphasis on happiness and the
bright side of life leads to an aversion to pity, which helps to play a key role in zalost. Whilst
English speakers may experience the combination of thought processes that comprise zalost, they
do not express this in their everyday lives because to them, it is not an important emotion.

Citations
Levontina, Irina B., Anna A. Zalizniak. Human emotions viewed through the Russian
language. Emotions in Crosslinguistic Perspective. Ed. Jean Harkins, Anna Wierzbicka.
Boston: de Gruyter, 2001. 317-320. Print.
Wierzbicka, Anna. Semantics, Culture, and Cognition: Universal Human Concepts in CultureSpecific Configurations. New York: Oxford University Press, 1992. Print.