Abstract In connection to literature, negative empathy is a sophisticated form of narrative empathy with fictional characters portrayed as markedly evil and seductive at the same time. Several studies on narrative engagement have explored negative empathy mainly from a theoretical perspective. Conversely, empirical approaches have rarely delved into the dynamics of the linguistic construction of the texts studied. To fill this gap, this paper employs computational techniques to investigate the language of a corpus of novels whose characters are particularly apt for the arousal of negative empathy. More specifically, this study uses Sentiment and Emotion Analysis to explore the lexical representation of emotions and to locate fluctuations in the emotional content of the texts. The ultimate aim is to assess both the potential and the vulnerabilities of Sentiment Analysis for detecting emotional shifts in a literary text and thus for revealing the intensity of its emotional content, which may facilitate the readers’ morally challenging engagement with negative characters. 

Exploring the potential of sentiment analysis for the study of negative empathy

The year’s work in stylistics 2022

In this paper we present our attempt at validating a self-report instrument developed in the field of empirical literary studies to capture absorption experiences, namely the Story World Absorption Scale (SWAS, Kuijpers, et al. 2014). We used the SWAS as the foundation for a tag set, that targets mentions of absorption in online book reviews. Online book reviews posted on social media platforms are a relatively new form of reader testimonials that can be of use to researchers from different disciplines to investigate reading experience and evaluation, as well as social discourse about reading. This paper discusses the annotation tag set, which was developed through an iterative process, presented alongside a series of inter-annotator agreement studies that show the validity of our annotation process. Finally, it will discuss the validation and reconceptualization of the Story World Absorption construct, where we consider instances of systematic disagreement during annotation and discuss new categories that we added to the tag set that indicate areas where absorption theory may need to be refined. 

pdf/validation-of-the-story-world-absorption-scale-through-4mvwnlr3kg.pdf

Validation of the Story World Absorption Scale through annotation of online book reviews

Abstract This article introduces the special issue by outlining the current state of research into the role of textual-linguistic features in eliciting narrative empathy. Firstly, we address the complexities around defining the term ‘narrative empathy’ and provide some definitional criteria. We then review the ways in which the role of language in narrative empathy has been studied to date in narratology, literary studies, empirical study of literature and stylistics. Based on this review, we argue that stylistic approaches allow for the much-needed exploration of specific linguistic techniques that may contribute to narrative empathy, while also taking into account other contextual factors to address the local nature of reading effects. Finally, we summarise how the contributions to this special issue showcase the affordances of stylistic analysis for the study of narrative empathy and offer new insights into the ways narrative empathy is elicited during the reading process. 

Introduction: stylistic approaches to narrative empathy

Abstract Within the field of Holocaust Studies the last decade has witnessed a turn to the figure of the perpetrator, who had hitherto received little attention due to ethical, legal and psychological reasons. A similar turn can also be observed in connection with the study of empathy. In this context, the concept of “negative empathy,” intended as a sharing of emotions with morally negative fictional characters, has become an increasingly discussed topic. For research in this area, the novel The Kindly Ones (2006) by Jonathan Littell takes up a privileged position in light of its intrinsic literary quality and due to its commercial and critical success. This novel recounts the memories of an SS-officer, Maximilian Aue, who participated in the Shoah. We have carried out an experiment using some passages of this novel to test the empathic reactions of (104) readers. Passages were presented under either of two conditions: as a fictional text or as part of an autobiography. Results showed that fictionalization has a significant effect on moral disengagement; readers who read the narrative presented to them as fictional experienced higher levels of moral disengagement compared to readers in the autobiography condition. Moreover, higher levels of moral disengagement led to significantly higher levels of empathy for the protagonist of the novel.

Operationalizing perpetrator studies. Focusing readers’ reactions to The Kindly Ones by Jonathan Littell

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Operationalizing perpetrator studies. Focusing readers’ reactions to The Kindly Ones by Jonathan Littell