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Sentimental. What does Sentimentality mean? Meaning Sentimental Man

Sentimentality is special kind sensual mood when external events and impressions influence to a greater extent a person’s feelings and emotions, practically without affecting the mental sphere, the tendency of the psyche to increased receptivity and daydreaming. A feeling of sentimentality can manifest itself as touch, tenderness, delight or empathy in moments that do not cause such reactions in the majority of others, and in its extreme manifestations it can be expressed in increased tearfulness or cloying enthusiasm, bordering on ignoring shortcomings.

The presence of such a worldview does not negate the fact that a person can be aggressive, angry, cynical and skeptical, since sentimentality has a selective meaning and does not apply to all life events. A person can be overly touched by animals and empathize with them, while hating people; he can be moved by a film, but remain indifferent to the events in the store line. Most often, this feeling and sentimental character lends itself to criticism, both in society and in literature, and in society borders on weakness, recklessness and stupidity.

What does sentimentality mean?

Being a property of the psyche, sentimentality is innate quality, but at the same time its expression and direction can be adjusted, since the prerequisites are exclusively increased sensitivity. When such sensitivity is combined with logical reasoning and accepted responsibility, it takes on the image of sympathy and complicity, helping to better understand people’s behavior, but if it is deprived of the control of reason, then what remains is an exclusively sensual, uncontrolled sphere of sentimentality. In such a state, a person will empathize with others, but also easily succumbs; his experiences are usually devoid of effective activity to change the situation.

In perception different people Sentimentality can take on completely different meanings - for some it is a sign of humanity, but for others it is stupidity and inadequacy. This division is caused by the fact that this personality quality immerses a person in the full experience of any feeling that has arisen, to one hundred percent saturation, while absolutely not involving the mental sphere. No matter how it may seem, sentimentality is akin to sympathy, they are radically different, since the main focus of sympathy is on another person, his needs and problems. In the case of sentimentality, all attention is directed towards oneself and one’s experiences; a person seems to revel in one’s feelings, leaving unattended what caused them.

Striving for constant living and enjoying the experience of feelings, a sentimental person easily catches the mood of others and joins in, while he may not completely share the reasons that caused such a state, but this is not the main thing. Roughly speaking, going to a funeral is absolutely stranger, and finding himself among those crying, a sentimental person can also sob avidly with everyone present. The difference is that for others the sadness will remain for a few more days, but for such a sensitive nature it can be lost when confronted around the corner with other experiences and stories.

Pity during sentimentality arises quickly and sharply, so much so that a person may not hold back his tears, but the moment of relief comes just as quickly.

Sentimentality is not an active motivating feeling; this is due both to its transience and to the direction of the vector of attention on one’s own experiences. In a combination of such factors, a person can remain cruel in principle, even just crying over the fate of a stray dog (in ten minutes he will most likely forget about it or maybe even kick it, but he certainly won’t go to the store to buy the dog a sausage).

Sentimentality has a destructive effect on the establishment social contacts, and on the health of the person himself. Such sensitivity can cause irritation among people around you, and lack of action can cause misunderstanding. The person himself usually tries to restrain unnecessary manifestations, and even more so tears, which leads to the appearance of psychosomatic diseases or exacerbation of chronic conditions.

Sentimentality in women

The feeling of sentimentality is more characteristic of women and has a completely biological justification for this. Since the woman always remained in the house and had to monitor the slightest changes not only in the surrounding space, but also in the condition of the offspring, the developed sensitivity was fixed on hormonal level. It was this increased compassion and the ability to vividly experience someone else’s pain as one’s own that ensured the survival of the offspring for many years. Even now, such sensitivity helps maintain health and relationships.

It is natural to consider cases when it is sentimentality that destroys relationships and success in a career stands alone, and here we will talk about increased sentimentality, which makes sense to reduce a little.

When assessing your condition, remember that it is your success and inner sense of self that are the markers normal level sentimentality. Women are more sensitive and show their emotions more often, this is normal and moreover, a woman who tries to constantly keep everything to herself eventually turns into stone statue or acquires huge amount diseases, the basis of which will be excessive stress.

When trying to listen to your man’s reproaches for increased tearfulness, remember that the hormonal system affects not only our appearance, but also on behavioral and emotional manifestation. By trying to reduce their sensitivity (or its manifestations) to that of a man, women go against nature. It makes sense to learn to realize this quality differently than constantly crying into your own strong shoulder. Perhaps these will be meetings with girlfriends, or perhaps, when you feel that you have become hypersensitive, watching a melodrama alone will help relieve these feelings.

Sentimentality in men

Men's sentimentality causes a lot of controversy, and they are conducted both in women's circles and with various combinations of representatives of different sexes. The idea that a man should be an indestructible rock that will not move or cry, no matter what happens, continues to exist. Showing courage and logical assessment of the situation are key masculine qualities, but softness, indecisiveness and tearfulness are rightfully given more for women. Here it was not only public opinion that worked on the distribution, but nature itself.

Sensitivity and sentimentality are regulated hormonal levels, which is why with age, when male hubbub decreases, men become more sensitive and softer, for some this may be due to an initial imbalance. But all the other excesses were introduced by upbringing and the classic “boys don’t cry.” The truth is that men are not as insensitive as they appear to be. In addition, such a performance usually turns out to be of no use to anyone. Most women want more sympathy and warmth from their chosen one, and out of two candidates they will choose the one who, being touched, will take home a stray kitten, and not the one who will drive it away. A woman will not be next to a very courageous and strong, but heartless man who is unable to sincerely experience the pain of other people. The only good news is that this stereotype is conditionally imposed and efforts are being made to implement it.

It is necessary, on a social and personal level, to give men permission to express their sentimentality, since most often we're talking about precisely about her lack in life. It’s another matter if male sentimentality begins to exceed even female sensitivity. Such cases are quite rare, but they do occur and then it is possible to say that the man is in an unstable condition or is going through a period of crisis, perhaps he received a serious injury. Take a closer look at your partner and if you notice sharp increase level of sentimentality, be as careful and delicate as possible. If nothing serious happened and you initially see such a man, then there is a high probability of developmental and educational problems - perhaps he is simply accustomed to using an exaggerated expression of feelings for manipulation. Women are really touched by men’s tears and experiences; this can quickly bring them closer together or force a woman to take actions to save the man’s fate.

Before reacting to something like this from your sensitive-sentimental part, you should try to include a logical analysis of the situation and fully evaluate what is happening. Cases of manipulation and artificial enhancement of sensitivity are truly rare, and men try to hide their manifestations.

How to get rid of sentimentality

By completely erasing sentimentality from your life, you turn into an insensitive and rather cruel person. The inability to empathize will clearly reduce the circle of your contacts and reduce the number of people who treat you well. It makes sense to reduce or get rid of excessive sentimentality when it begins to interfere with building adequate relationships and spoils your well-being.

To better control these manifestations, you will have to get to know your sensory sphere in detail. To do this, set aside a certain time period every day when you will immerse yourself in your own world and get acquainted with the feelings that exist there. There is no need to try to cover everything that has happened to you in your life; focus on the present moment and track the feelings and thoughts that appear now. It is important not to go into the direction of only sensory or only mental experience, but try to perceive all this at the same time. Such training with the next situation that touches the strings of the soul will help you notice not only an emotional outburst, but also the arguments of the mind regarding the situation. In addition, the ability to navigate your feelings will also help you not to become immersed in other people’s feelings, because knowing your own nuances, you can already understand when it is sincere pity for a person, and when it is a similar situation and your own unshed tears. In the first case, it is important to help another; in the second, it is necessary to take care of yourself and make the events of the past less traumatic by living through them, possibly in the presence of a psychotherapist.

An important point is to learn to distinguish between situations when it is appropriate to show increased sensitivity and when it is not. If you are at work, then your tears are unlikely to be appropriate, just like with your family during a joyful event. It is necessary to learn to notice these impulses, but not in order to restrain them and store them in a dark box, accumulating your own internal tension, but in order to communicate with them in a more complete way. the right time. You can set aside special times for this or simply take advantage of moments when you are alone to fully release what has accumulated inside. Then you can cry and laugh, scream and beat pillows - the main thing is that the feelings are poured out completely. The more often you carry out such events, the easier it will become to control periodic attacks, since the more pent-up emotions, the higher the likelihood that they will erupt in an unrecoverable avalanche at the most inopportune moment.

As you practice such control, develop sensitivity to your emotional sphere, and if tears come from serious and real pain, then you shouldn’t endure it and hold it back. When a loved one dies, a loved one leaves, you are fired from work, or when your child has taken the first step, the examination results are good, an important project is approved - crying, screaming with joy, fighting in hysterics, hugging everyone who passes by is a normal and adequate reaction regardless of the situation and your location. It all depends on the relevance and real importance of the situation; there are living people around you who will understand and support your experiences regarding something important, but are unlikely to be accomplices of your more far-fetched experience.

Hello dear readers! Question from Elena: please tell me - what is sentimentality? Apparently I’m a sentimental person, but I don’t think this is very good. Is sentimentality a manifestation of love or something else? How should we feel about this?

Basic sentimentality can be both positive feelings and values, and negative ones, those that make a person vulnerable and that contribute to the accumulation in his soul negative emotions, suffering, pain.

In good understanding, Sentimentality is the ability to subtly feel and appreciate something truly positive, including memories and experiences. This also includes moderate spiritualization of some material things with which important memories and bright feelings are associated with a person (joy, etc.).

The ability to feel and appreciate subtly is good! But in this matter it is difficult to avoid extremes. After all, sentimentality can be based on bright feelings, on pure love, and maybe on attachments, on the inability to let go of something (for example, your past) or on pity, which is often a substitute for love.

Thus, if a person truly loves, he values both the feelings and values of other people. And if his sentimentality is based on ordinary affection, he values “his own”, but he may not give a damn about the feelings and values of other people. Because the basis of attachment is the most common egoism, which, by and large, is enemy No. 1 for true love.

Pity is also a 100% negative quality that should not be confused with Empathy and Compassion. A person has compassion for the soul, for the light that is in another person or animal. Compassion is a deep understanding of the suffering of another, but not pandering to his weaknesses. And a person feels sorry for problems, evil, negativity, stroking them, justifying them, and thereby feeding and strengthening them.

Here's some insight into sentimentality I found on the Internet. From Nabokov:

“We must distinguish between sentimentality and sensitivity. Sentimental man maybe in everyday life extremely cruel. A sensitive person is never cruel.”

A sentimental person is ready to cry at the sight of a sick dog and, at the same time, will remain deaf and indifferent to the suffering of millions of people, if only he does not see this suffering. Often sentimentality has nothing in common with love, but is only a painful impressionability that replaces love.

On the negative side, sentimentality may be based on deeply buried internal grievances, pain, self-pity and the usual habit of suffering, beautifully called nostalgia and sentimentality. This often happens to people who accumulate their disappointments with life and themselves. People who are not used to solving their problems and becoming stronger, who do not want to look into the future and build it, but prefer to live in the past, suffering for it.

The recommendation is this: don’t be deceived! With the desire and sufficient honesty with oneself, each person can determine whether his sentimentality is based on positive bright feelings or ordinary self-pity, some kind of attachment and suffering! The latter definitely destroys a person and blocks his future and the new opportunities that may enter his life.

And if we speak from the point of view of human qualities, then it is better to develop not Sentimentality, but ordinary human Kindness, which is true strength, in contrast to sentimentality, which often hides a bunch of internal weaknesses and human vices that make a person vulnerable.

Good luck to you dear reader! If you have any questions, write to me!

Best regards, Vasily Vasilenko

4 comments – post a comment

I have a certain sentimentality, but this is in relation to my family and places of childhood...

This is normal, the main thing is that it does not become a problem)

You are talking too exaltedly and exaggeratedly. Pity is a normal feeling. It’s normal to feel sorry for the weaknesses of other people and your own, people are not perfect, they consist of advantages and disadvantages. And selfishness is not so bad either.

Since you, I reason, are people who are accustomed not to remove their shortcomings and become stronger, but to justify them.

Anna basis

There are people who can be moved to tears because of yet another melodrama, and for some, even touching personal circumstances do not evoke emotions. What is the reason for such different reactions to events? The point is a person’s personal qualities, or rather, one trait that forces him to take everything too close to his heart and constantly identify himself with strangers and events, worrying for no serious reason. This mental property is called sentimentality - increased receptivity and daydreaming. For such a person, impressions received from the outside world affect the feelings, and not the mind and thoughts. So it turns out that a sentimental person sheds tears from reading a book, watching the news or sad story that happened to strangers.

In a certain sense, this trait refers to hypersensitivity, which, even under insignificant circumstances, greatly changes. Such individuals show tenderness, empathy, and tearfulness for any reason. They do not remain indifferent even in situations that do not awaken feelings in other people. Some consider sentimentality to be a type of pity, when a person identifies himself with a disadvantaged object and acutely experiences the emotions inherent in it. However, these concepts should be separated: if pity is compared with chronic disease, then sentimentality is a short and instant attack of illness, followed by inevitable relief.

Is sentimentality good or bad?

It is better to consider each character trait from different angles, from the point of view of necessity and value for a person’s life. Therefore, many people wonder: is being sentimental good or bad? It is impossible to give a definite answer, besides, everything in life is relative. However, it is worth speculating on this matter so that everyone can draw the right conclusion for themselves.

Is it bad when a person is able to heartily empathize with others? Individuals endowed with this quality fully share the sadness and joy of those around them. And how nice it is when, at a wedding ceremony or when being discharged from the maternity hospital, loved ones do not hold back their tears. Perhaps sentimentality in a person is nothing more than a sign of a living, unossified soul. After all, in modern society people are closed and lonely. It is no longer customary to go on a visit without an invitation, to simply help women carry a heavy bag home, and even to give a compliment to a colleague is considered unnecessary by many. Everyone is fixated on their own problems, and openness and naturalness are considered strange and suspicious.

One thing is clear that sentimentality is not a negative character trait, but in a sense important and rare. However, one should not assume that people with this quality are weak. History shows that some famous writers and cruel rulers were sentimental individuals and were touched in certain situations. It follows from this that this trait character does not apply to all spheres of human life. Some people are moved to tears by animals, although when communicating with people such a person can show firmness and even mercilessness.

Excessive sentimentality

As it says folk wisdom: everything is good in moderation. It is believed that excessive sentimentality has an adverse effect on the individual and the people around him. However, everything is individual and everyone determines the boundaries of the manifestation of feelings. For some, it is common to squeal with joy at a long-awaited meeting or burst into tears at a sad movie, but for some people such behavior will seem like weakness, and they will hold back their emotions in any circumstances. There are situations when emotions go off scale and a person is no longer able to control them, displaying them in absurd and inappropriate ways. In such cases, we are talking about excessive sentimentality.

As a rule, this property mentality is inherent to a greater extent in women. However, the stronger sex also develops sensitivity over time, this is due to a decrease male hormones And age-related changes in the body.

Excessive sentimentality can manifest itself in different ways: constantly or in certain situations. If a person is used to keeping emotions to himself, but sometimes gives them a way out in original ways, it doesn't harm him state of mind. It's more difficult for people endowed with hypersensitivity, who for some reason cannot openly show feelings. For example, when there is a difficult situation at home or at work, and expressing your feelings seems inappropriate. Constantly holding back strong emotions inevitably leads to a psychological breakdown in an unexpected situation. at the moment. Particularly susceptible to this are people who consider tears to be a sign of weakness, and who think that ladies and gentlemen always behave with restraint and under no circumstances “lose face.”

Nature is much smarter than a person, and it was not in vain that she awarded certain personalities with certain character qualities. In fact, it is useful for sensitive people to “let off steam,” otherwise contact with the world of emotions may be disrupted. In this case, increased sentimentality is manifested by constant tearfulness or painful sensitivity. So, a girl can constantly cry at the slightest trouble, leading to bewilderment and annoyance of loved ones. In extreme cases it even happens inappropriate behavior, when a person is so immersed in extraneous events and problems, deeply feeling and experiencing them, that it interferes with normal everyday life and takes him away from his own goals.

How to get rid of excessive sentimentality

When increased sensitivity disturbs personal peace and prevents you from living normally and sleeping soundly, you should study information on how to get rid of excessive sentimentality. This will help restore contact with the world of emotions and get rid of unnecessary worries about any reason. Recommended range special exercises related to working on the correct and relevant expression of emotions:

"Here and now." Several times during the day, distract yourself and ask yourself the question: how am I feeling at the moment? And in your mind go through all the emotions you experience. It is better to perform such actions as carefully as possible, to delve into and identify minor shades and subtleties of the state of mind.
You should find out how many words expressing feelings a person uses in everyday life every day. During the period of time allotted for this exercise, you need to increase this number at least twice.
“Empathetic guesses” are fantasies about how others feel. The exercise can be performed anywhere: on the bus, at work, at home. Moreover, it is even worth asking household members about the correctness of the assumptions. Older children should be involved in such activities school age, it will benefit them: against the backdrop of an exciting activity, the vocabulary of feelings will also be replenished.

It is worth understanding that it is not always necessary to suppress emotions: in the circle of loved ones and alone, it is better to take off the mask of indifference and express true feelings. There is no need to shy away from close communication, because it is extremely important for people to share moments of despondency and happiness with others. It will be useful to identify situations that contribute to the manifestation of strong emotions, imagine them and concentrate on the feelings. This will help you more accurately determine your reactions and understand what to expect in the next moment. Thanks to this training, suppressed feelings will not accumulate and will not cause another nervous breakdown.

Still, it’s nice to meet sincere people who are capable of touching emotions and empathy. Sentimentality, shown in moderation, brings bright and rich impressions into everyday life, allowing you to acutely feel sad and sad things. Isn't that what life is all about? And what do closed, gloomy and stingy people say about expressing their feelings - who cares!

March 31, 2014, 09:25

And thoughts. This is a predisposition, an emotional and value orientation towards the manifestation of such feelings as: enthusiasm, tenderness, touch and empathy for an issue that does not cause a strong emotional reaction in others. IN extreme manifestation- tearfulness, excessive and cloying sensitivity.

Sentimentality can be selective, for example directed towards animals but not towards people. It can be combined with cynicism or aggressiveness. For example, Fyodor Karamazov in Dostoevsky is “angry and sentimental.” Close, but different from sentimentality, a personality quality can be called compassion.

Accusations of sentimentality

Sentimentality is often seen as negative quality, accusations of sentimentality are not uncommon in literary and socio-political criticism. Examples:

Notes

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Synonyms:

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See what “Sentimentality” is in other dictionaries:

sentimentality- and, f. sentimental, ale adj. 1. Property, quality of sentimental. Sentimentality of relationships. BAS 1. || Excessive sensitivity, sentimental attitude towards someone or something. ALS 1. Sensitivity is irritable, tender, tearful, cloying... Historical Dictionary Gallicisms of the Russian language

SENTIMENTALITY- this is the emotional promiscuity of people who are incapable of any feelings. Norman Mailer We must distinguish sentimentality from sensitivity. A sentimental person may be privacy extremely cruel. A sensitive person... ... Consolidated encyclopedia of aphorisms

sentimentality- sensitivity, tenderness, softness, beauty, sweetness, sentimentality, tearfulness, touching, sweetness, sentimentality Dictionary of Russian synonyms. sentimentality sensitivity; sentiments (colloquially ironic);… … Dictionary of synonyms

SENTIMENTALITY- SENTIMENTALITY, sensitivity or excessive tenderness in expressing feelings; tearful emotion, tenderness... Modern encyclopedia

SENTIMENTALITY- sensitivity, excessive tenderness in expressing feelings, tearful emotion, tenderness... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

Sentimentality- Sentimentality. Sentimental (sweetly sensitive; sentimental). Wed. There will be many people who will accuse me of excessive sentimentality, unnecessary outpourings that no one needs, accuse me of unnaturalness and a desire for... Michelson's Large Explanatory and Phraseological Dictionary (original spelling)

SENTIMENTALITY- [se] (or sentimentality), sentimentality, female. 1. units only distracted noun to sentimental in 1 value. “Since I am kind to the point of sentimentality, I cannot be happy alone.” Dostoevsky. 2. Sentimental act; sentimental... ... Dictionary Ushakova

SENTIMENTALITY- SENTIMENTALITY, and, female. 1. see sentimental. 2. Sentimental act, sentimental expression. Put aside sentimentality. Ozhegov's explanatory dictionary. S.I. Ozhegov, N.Yu. Shvedova. 1949 1992 … Ozhegov's Explanatory Dictionary

SENTIMENTALITY- (from French sentiment – feeling) receptivity, dreaminess. In his prod. “Naive and Sentimental Poetry” (“ber naive und sentimentalische Dichtung”, 1795) Friedrich Schiller wrote that naive poetry has all its roots in... ... Philosophical Encyclopedia

SENTIMENTALITY- SENTIMENTALITY, SENTIMENTALITY (French, from sentiment feeling). False direction of sensitivity, cloying sensitivity, tearfulness. Dictionary of foreign words included in the Russian language. Chudinov A.N., 1910. SENTIMENTALITY See... ... Dictionary of foreign words of the Russian language

Books

Barchester Towers, Anthony Trollope. Barchester Towers is the second and most famous novel in the Barchester Chronicles series. A novel in which truly Victorian sentimentality coexists with evil, caustic criticism...

Or excessive tenderness in expressing feelings; tearful emotion, tenderness.

Modern encyclopedia. 2000 .

Synonyms:

See what “SENTIMENTALITY” is in other dictionaries:

This is the emotional promiscuity of people who are incapable of any feelings. Norman Mailer We must distinguish sentimentality from sensitivity. A sentimental person can be extremely cruel in private life. A sensitive person... ... Consolidated encyclopedia of aphorisms

Sensitivity, tenderness, tenderness, good-naturedness, sweetness, sentimentality, tearfulness, touching, sweetness, sentimentality Dictionary of Russian synonyms. sentimentality sensitivity; sentiments (colloquially ironic);… … Dictionary of synonyms

Sensitivity, excessive tenderness in expressing feelings, tearful emotion, tenderness... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

Sentimentality. Sentimental (sweetly sensitive; sentimental). Wed. There will be many people who will accuse me of excessive sentimentality, unnecessary outpourings that no one needs, accuse me of unnaturalness and a desire for... Michelson's Large Explanatory and Phraseological Dictionary (original spelling)

- [se] (or sentimentality), sentimentality, female. 1. units only distracted noun to sentimental in 1 value. “Since I am kind to the point of sentimentality, I cannot be happy alone.” Dostoevsky. 2. Sentimental act; sentimental... ... Ushakov's Explanatory Dictionary

SENTIMENTALITY, and, female. 1. see sentimental. 2. Sentimental act, sentimental expression. Put aside sentimentality. Ozhegov's explanatory dictionary. S.I. Ozhegov, N.Yu. Shvedova. 1949 1992 … Ozhegov's Explanatory Dictionary

- (from French sentiment – feeling) receptivity, dreaminess. In his prod. “Naive and Sentimental Poetry” (“ber naive und sentimentalische Dichtung”, 1795) Friedrich Schiller wrote that naive poetry has all its roots in... ... Philosophical Encyclopedia

- (from the French sentiment “feeling”) mental property, receptivity, daydreaming. A mood in which all external impressions act primarily on feelings, rather than on reason and thoughts. This is a predisposition, emotionally valuable... ... Wikipedia

SENTIMENTALITY, SENTIMENTALITY (French, from sentiment feeling). False direction of sensitivity, cloying sensitivity, tearfulness. Dictionary of foreign words included in the Russian language. Chudinov A.N., 1910. SENTIMENTALITY See... ... Dictionary of foreign words of the Russian language

Books

Barchester Towers, Anthony Trollope. Barchester Towers is the second and most famous novel in the Barchester Chronicles series. A novel in which truly Victorian sentimentality coexists with evil, caustic criticism...
Lecture “Taffy – the angel of Russian literature”, Dmitry Bykov. In pre-revolutionary Russia, Nadezhda Teffi was the “Queen of Humor,” each of her stories became a bestseller, and her popularity was so great that there were even Teffi perfumes and candies. IN…