This open toolkit guides learners to express emotions through simple signs by observing and transforming the structural logic of Oracle Bone Script.

1. Cultural Context

Oracle Bone Script represents one of the earliest human attempts to record inner states and external experiences through simple visual structures. Its use of body parts, actions, and situational scenes to express abstract meanings reflects how ancient people bridged concrete reality and emotional perception, offering modern learners a lens to understand how cultures transform lived experiences and emotions into symbolic language.

2. Learning Objectives

• Successfully creating an effective emotional symbol that integrates the structural logic of oracle bone script
• Learn the writing structure of the Oracle Bone Script.
• Understand how Oracle Bone Script uses structure, actions, and scenes to transform emotions into visual forms.

Why must the oracle bone script be the starting point? Why must we use the structure of oracle bone script to create emotive symbols?

• Innovative emotive symbols need not be confined to contemporary emojis alone.
• Oracle Bone Script offers us fresh perspectives on emotive symbolisation. Beyond mere facial expressions, we can also extract symbols from actions, scenes, and everyday life to convey our emotions.

3. Workshop Structure

Duration: 20 minutes

Step 1 (2 mins): Guess

What emotions do these patterns represent respectively?

Image 1 Oracle bones representing emotions

Answer: happy, like, fear, jealous.

Step 2 (3 mins): Tracing and Observation

Learners who use electronic devices for creation:

Import or copy the copybook into your drawing tool.

Learners who use papers and colour pens for creation:

Print the copybook.

Image 2 The copybook of oracle bone script

During this process, you need to think about this:

How did humans express emotions in the past?

From a structural perspective, did they use straight lines, dots, or geometric shapes?

From a formal perspective, can the patternization of emotions be conveyed through actions and scenarios?

Step 3 (3 mins): Read the interpretation of the Oracle Bone Script structure.

We can observe that the character “like” and “jealous” in the oracle script is depicted through actions or body parts.

Jealousy: It starts in the body. When people are jealous of others, the heart below will deform and twist, thereby expressing jealousy.

Like: On the top is an abstract drum, and below is a smiling mouth, showing a series of actions of beating the drum and smiling.

“Fear” and “happy” are expressed through specific scenes.

Happy: A string is tied to a wooden object, and they believe that music can bring happiness.

Fear: A terrifying person is holding a knife. At that time, people were afraid of this scene, so it was used to express fear.

Like, Happy = Outward, Open, Ascending, Diffusion: Expresses “the outward expression of pleasant emotions.”

Fear, Jealous = Inward, Contraction, Alertness, Obstruction: Expresses “the inward contraction and defense of negative emotions.”

Emotion = A mechanical structure (expansion or contraction)

All four words convey the nature of emotion through “the direction of force” and with the human body as the main form, rather than through drawing faces or expressions.

Step 4 (3 mins): Adding colour to or slightly altering the structure of oracle bones.

Image 3 Example of colouring the oracle bone script

You could try adding colours representing emotions to the oracle bone script, such as orange and red for happiness.

Image 4 Example of changing the structure of the oracle bone script

You could try altering the structure of the oracle bone script, such as transforming straight lines into curves.

Now, you may select one of the four characters above, alter its structure, and add colour.

Consider why this colour represents this emotion？ Why did you choose this particular graphic?

Step 5 (4 mins): Symbolize your emotions in the form of oracle bone script.

Please express your emotions using the structure and expression form of the Oracle Bone Script.

Small tips: structure ––– dots, curves, line, circle, closed pattern.

expression form ––– specific scenes? (using “ghost” to express fear?) actions? (using “jump” to express happiness?)

You need to choose one emotion.

You can use colour pens, white paper, or your electronic drawing tools to make the drawing.

Image 5 Example of symbolizing emotions

 

Step 6 (1 min): Present your creative ideas in simple terms.

Step 7 (4 mins): Sharing and Reflection

Objective: To understand the polysemy of symbols and their expressive effects

Randomly select 3 to 4 people to show the symbols, and ask the others to guess what emotions they represent.

Let the creator reveal the answer.

Reflective Questions

What did you notice?

What did you notice about the way they created?

Which symbols are the easiest to understand?

What would be different if another shape were used?

Languages, Feelings, and Signs © 2025 by Airui Lei is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

Oracle bones representing emotions © 2025 by Airui Lei is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

The copybook of oracle bone script © 2025 by Airui Lei is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Example of colouring the oracle bone script © 2025 by Airui Lei is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Example of changing the structure of the oracle bone script © 2025 by Airui Lei is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Example of symbolizing emotions © 2025 by Airui Lei is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

(The cover © 2025 by Airui Lei is licensed under CC BY 4.0)