An analysis of similarities and differences of associative meanings of animal words between Chinese and English language and their causes

王馮麒

【Abstract】Animal words not only have conceptual meaning but also have rich associative meaning. This paper analyzes similarities and differences of conceptual meaning and associative meaning of animal words in Chinese and English language and probes into the causes of these differences. Thus， it can help us to further study animal words and avoid communication barriers caused by cultural differences.

【Key words】Chinese and English language； animal words； associative meaning； causes

1. Introduction

G. Leech distinguished seven kinds of vocabulary meaning： conceptual meaning， connotative meaning， social meaning， affective meaning， reflective meaning， collocative meaning and thematic meaning. In addition to the conceptual and thematic meaning， the remaining five are included in the associative meaning. Conceptual meaning refers to the literal meaning of words， while associative meaning reflects affective， implicational and social cultural connotation. Most conceptual meaning of animal words is similar in Chinese and English language. Due to different cultural background， Chinese and English animal words have different associative meanings. This paper analyzes the same， similar， different associative meaning of animal words， the phenomenon of lexical gap and the causes of these phenomena， helping people for effective language learning.

2. Contrastive analysis of associative meaning of animal words between Chinese and English language

Influenced by beliefs， customs and living environment， Chinese and English nations have similar and different association towards animals. This paper discussesassociative meanings of animal words in the two languagesfrom the following four aspects.

2.1 Basically the same

People always have the same or similar understanding of the world， thus different nations may have a common understanding on the properties of some animals. Therefore， the associative meanings of Chinese and English animal words are basically the same.

“Hu Li” （fox） is cunning and suspicious. To the attributes and associations of foxes， Chinese and English people are consistent. For example， there are “l(fā)aohui li”， “xianghu li yi yang jiaohua”， and “hujiahuwei” in Chinese， and the corresponding English expressions are “an old fox”， “as sly as a fox”， and “The fox assumes the majesty of the tiger.”.

This kind of Chinese and English animal words have the same conceptual and associative meanings， which will not affect peoples understanding and using of different languages as well as intercultural communication.

2.2 Partly the same

The phenomenon of polysemy caused the associative meanings of animal words parts overlap. For instance， “bailingniao” （lark） is a symbol of cheerful in both Chinese and English nations. But in Chinese culture， lark is used to represent “people who sing well”， while English does not have such meaning. Similarly， in British culture lark is regarded as “bit of adventurous” or “unpleasant type of activity”， etc. Therefore， we should pay much attention to the polysemy in language learning， avoiding overgeneralization.

2.3 Opposite

Different cultural background between Chinese and English will cause opposite connotations of animal words. For example， “l(fā)ong” （dragon） is the symbol of dignity in Chinese culture. The Chinese dragon is a magic animal thatcan cloud and rain. Thus， the feudal emperors proclaim themselves as “real dragons”. What is more， there are many phrases related with “l(fā)ong” in Chinese， such as “wangzicheng long”and “sheng long huohu” etc. However， in Western countries， dragon is a monster that is mouthful fire-breathing. The Bible regards dragon as a symbol of evil， like the sentence “This woman is a dragon.”means “This woman is fierce and disgusting.”

The same animal word in different languages may have different associative meanings. Thus， it is important to have a correct understanding of different cultural connotations of animal words.

2.4 Lexical gap

Lexical gap refers to lack of corresponding meaning in languages. Some animals only in a particular nation will have a particular associative meaning. For example， “yuan yang” （mandarin duck） symbolizes conjugal love of husband and wife in Chinese culture， but there is no any special meaning in English.And there are expressions of “yuan yang pei”in Chinese.Also some animals have special cultural connotation in English， such as “goat” associates“scapegoat”； and “black cat” cause the association of the devil in Christian countries. In English， the idiom“bell the cat” means “risk for others”.

3. Analysis of reasons of the differences in animal words associative meanings between Chinese and English languages

There are differences in production activities， customs and religion beliefs between Chinese and English nations， thus the words expressing the same rational concepts will inevitably generate additional cultural meanings. The following analyzes the main reasons for the different associative meanings of animal words between Chinese and English.

3.1 The influence of production activities

Labor creates the world and language too. Different peoples will take the way closely related with their production activity to express the same concept. For instance， the roles of “cow and horse” are different in eastern and western culture. In China， cow is strong and hardworking， whose associative meaning include： great strength （niujin） and work hard and devote quietly （laohuangniu） etc. British people use horse to cultivate land early， thus “horse” has the meaning such as “efficient and robust” etc. Therefore， when expressing the same meaning the Chinese commonly use “cow” and the English use “horse” much， such as “zhuang de xiangtouniu” （as strong as a horse）.

3.2 The influence of folk customs

Influenced by folk customs， Chinese and English nations have different associative meanings of the same animals. In the eyes of the Chinese， “xi que” （magpie） is the good sign of happy event. It predicts that great rejoicing will happen. While the British compare “magpie” to people who love collecting chores and disgusting chatterboxes. In addition， in the era of Britains Queen Elizabeth， in order to resist the anti-government of Roman Catholic only eating fish on Friday， Jesus has the habit of not eat fish on Friday. Therefore， to eat no fish becomes the symbol of faithful.

3.3 The influence of literary works

Literature affects cultural meaning of animal words deeply. The famous Chinese poetry edifies peoples thought and sentiment. For example， Du Mus poem “Qiong sings like the wave swallow， which is deeper and colder than water.” （Qiong namely cricket） and the “autumn insects have forever passions” of Yuan Haowen vividly expresslonelyof crickets. Similarly， in the British culture， the images of animal words reserved through previous works also have distinctive national colors. For example， Shakespeare mentioned the idiom of “as merry as a criket” （happy like the cricket） in HenryⅣ； Dickens shaped a little fairy cricket in A Cricket On the Hearth. Visibly， there is no sentiment color of the cricket image in the Britishs view. It brings peace and happiness to people.

3.4 The influence of religious beliefs

Chinese and English people have different religious beliefs， so the animal image language is different. Buddhism influences China deeply， but its influence on the meaning of Chinese animal words is not obvious. However， influenced by the Christian classic—Bible， “sheep” and “goat” have different associative meaningsin English. “Sheep” is the symbol of “docility and kindness”， while “goat” is the represent of “l(fā)ewd and evil”， thus there is idiom of “the sheep and the goats” （good person and bad person）.

4. Conclusion

Culture is closely related to language. Language is a mirror of culture. The simple animal words can reflectabundant Chinese and English culture. Similarities and differences of conceptual and associative meaning of animal words in Chinese and English profoundly embody the two different cultural background and beliefs. Therefore， mastering abundant cultural connotation and associative meaning of animal words can help us have effective language learning， deal with the relationship between language and culture well and achieve intercultural communication successfully.

References：

[1]Leech.G，Semantic[M].Harmondsworth：Peguin Books，19，81.