Why do definite articles seem implicit in English?

I was thinking about the translation for "life" (as in everyday living) in french which translates "vie". However, in spoken language you would always refer to "la vie" in french and never to "the life" in English.

How and why did English seem to make determiners implicit (or French explicit)?

Why do determiners seem implicit in English?

Because the definite article the is mainly used to explicitly identify or specify nouns that are countable such as regular nouns; dog, face, heart which is beating in a body and boy, etc. and collective nouns; family, nation, people, etc. It doesn't mean that countable nouns take only the definite article.

Other uncountable nouns are called a mass noun which includes an abstract noun. A mass noun doesn't take the indefinite article a or an as it is uncountable and they sometimes take the definite article when it is specified or restricted. There are exceptions when they are used as a regular/countable nouns, e.g., "she is a beauty" which means "she is a beautiful woman" and "honesty is a virtue" which means "honesty is one of many virtues", etc.

Let's compare some examples using the sentences in the comment posted by @WhatRoughBeast.

(1) The sadness was unbearable. vs I feel a sense of sadness.

The reason the definite article is used for the former is the sadness is felt by a specific person. The word sadness in the latter refers to the condition of being sad which is not specific nor restricted and is just a concept.

(2) The life of a soldier is full of hardship vs Life is full of hope.

The reason the definite article is used for the former is the life is restricted/modified by of a soldier and it is specific and different from your and my life. Life and hope in the latter are a mass noun which doesn't require the definite article because of the same reason as explained above for sadness (not specific nor restricted).

(3) The death of so many children sent a political shock through the country. vs I am scared of death.

The reason is same as No (2). The death in the former is restricted/modified by of so many children and death is not specific in the latter. Everybody is afraid to die and death applies to everyone who can't see nor experience it. It is as abstract as it gets.

The heart of a human being vs They had change of heart.

The heart in the former means a human organ and it is a countable noun. We have only one heart. However, the word heart in the latter is an abstract noun which means one's mood or feeling. That's why it doesn't take any article.

The above explanation could never fully explain the rules related with English nouns. It was intended to help you understand why the mass (abstract) noun sometimes takes the definite article. For more detailed information, please read the Wikipedia article on Concrete nouns and abstract nouns or you can Google many sources.

Concrete nouns refer to physical entities that can, in principle at least, be observed by at least one of the senses (for instance, chair, apple, Janet or atom). Abstract nouns, on the other hand, refer to abstract objects; that is, ideas or concepts (such as justice or hatred). While this distinction is sometimes exclusive, some nouns have multiple senses, including both concrete and abstract ones; consider, for example, the noun art, which usually refers to a concept (e.g., Art is an important element of human culture) but which can refer to a specific artwork in certain contexts (e.g., I put my daughter's art up on the fridge).

Note: There are exceptions which need to be learned on a case-by-case basis.