语言学论文语用学 11页

ComparisonbetweenChineseandEnglishIdiomsAbstract:IdiomsexistinbothChineseandEnglish,andtheyhavebeenusedfrequentlyforalongtime・Furthermore,idiomsarefixedphrasesextractedfromlanguageoverlongtimeofusage.Althoughtheyareformedinshortphrases,forexampleidiomsknownas"成语inChinese,whichhasonlyfouroreightletters,theirmeaningsareexuberantandconnotative.Therefore,theanalysisoftheidiom'susageandtheculturaldifferencesitreflectsissignificanttoeverylanguagelearnerandtranslator.Keywords:idiom;culture;comparison;differences1TheoreticalFoundationoftheIdiomDefinitionsofChineseIdiomsAccordingto"ModernChineseDictionary”，"ChengyuMisfixedphrasesorshortsentenceswhichareconcise,havingbeenacceptedbycommonpeoplethroughyearsofusage.Accordingto“Cihai",“Shuyu"(Idiom)isfixedphrasesorsentencesofalanguage,whichcannotbemodifiedarbitrarily.Itmustbeinteipretedasasemanticunit.Itincludessetphrases,proverbs,maxims,locutionsandtwo-partallegoricalsayings,etc.DefinitionsofEnglishIdioms"LongmanDictionaryofEnglishLanguageandCulture'5hastwodefinitionsofidiom:(1)aphrasewhichmeanssomethingdifferentfromthemeaningoftheseparatewordsfromwhichitisformed;(2)\nthewayofexpressiontypicalofapersonoragroupintheiruseoflanguage(SummersR,1998:657)."TheNewOxfordEnglishDictionary'5definesthatidiomis:(l)agroupofwordsestablishedbyusageashavingameaningnotdeduciblefromthoseoftheindividualwords;(2)aformofexpressionnaturaltoalanguage,person,oragroupofpeople(PearsallJ,2001:908).TheRhetoricofIdiomsIdiomisthedistillateofthenationlanguageabstractedbypeopleduringalongpractice.Therearethreemainfeaturesofidiomrhetoric:abundantcomparisons,vividwordsandlivelycontrasts.First,simileisadirectcomparison,inwhichsubject,referenceandindicatorofresemblanceareallpresent.SuchastheChineseidiom“轻如鸿毛"andtheEnglishidiom“aslightasafeather".Second,metaphor—useofawordorphrasetoindicatesomethingdifferentfromtheliteralmeaning.Forexample,theChineseidiom"口若悬河Jitdoesiftmeantheriverhangonthemouth,butmeanssomeonewhospeakseloquentlyandvolubly.Third,metonymy一meanscorrespondenceorpartialsimilaritybetweentwothingsthatarecompared.Forinstance,"犬马Z劳”meanstoseversomebodyfaithfullylikethedogorthehorse,"beinthepipeline"meansthatifaplanisinthepipeline,itisbeingdevelopedandwillhappeninthefuture.Fourth,analogyistocomparetwothingsorpeoplesothatdifferencesaremadeclea匚“口蜜腹剑literallymeanssomeoneis\nhoney-mouthedbutdagger-hearted・Thatistosaythepersonistreacherousandhypocritical."Tobitethehandthatfeedsone"alsousesthecontrast.Itmeanstotreatsomeonebadlywhohashelpedyouinsomeway.Fifth,exaggerationsuchas"垂涎三丿Lexaggeratedmeansadroolwithgreatenvy."AstreamoftearsMmeanssomeoneisreallyheart-broken<1・4ComprehensionofIdioms1A.1TheComprehensiveDifficultiestotheLanguageLearnersIdiomshavethestrongidiomaticity,thatistosay,theidiomisaphraseorsentencewhosemeaningisnotclearfromthemeaningofitsindividualwordsandmustbelearntasawholeunit.(NidaEugene,2000:105)Therefore,sometimesidiomishardtounderstandbylanguagelearners,especiallyforthosesecondlanguagelearners.It，snotverydifficultforlanguagelearnerstounderstandtheidiomwhichiscomposedbysimile.SuchastheChineseidiom"轻如鸿毛"andtheEnglishidiom“aslightasafeather^,theyarecomposedbysimile.It'seasyforustoassociatethefeatherwiththelightthing.Butiftheidiomiscomposedbymetaphororotherkindsofrhetoric,therewillbesomedifficultiesforustolearn.SuchastheChineseidiom“青梅竹马冷theliteralmeaningisgreenplumsandbamboohorse,anditseemsthattheyhavenonerelations.Actually,thisidiomisusedtodescribethemostmatchingcouple.Thegreenplumsstandfortheperiodwhenboysandgirlsplaytogetherandthebamboohorsestands\nforthechildhoodgamestheyplayed.Soasthesecondlanguagelearners,iftheydorftknowthedeepmeaningofthisidiom,theymustbehardtoimagewhattheidiomstandsfor.AsanEnglishpoet,AlfredLordTennysonsaid,"Words,likenature,halfrevealandhalfconcealthesoulwithin.”(AlfredLordTennyson,2001:569)The"halfconcealed^isjusttheconnotativemeaningofwordsmaybemoreimportantthanwhatisrevealed,likethedenotativemeaningofwords,especiallyforthoseculturally-loadedwordslikeidioms.Idiomshaveacloserelationshipwiththeculturetowhichitisattachedthattheytrulyreflectthevaluesandphilosophyoflifeofthepeopleinthatcultureandarerichinculturalconnotations.1.4.2TheComprehensionoftheExoticIdiomsTherearesomeexoticidiomsintheChineseidioms.Suchas"以眼还眼"comesfromtheEnglishidiom“aneyeforaneye”.ThisidiomwhichcomesfromtheBiblemeansthatifsomeonedoessomethingwrong,theyshouldbepunishedbyhavingthesamethingdonetothem.AndanotherChineseidiom"诺亚方舟"，“Noah'sark"alsocomesfromtheBible.TheEnglishidiom"AnAchilles9heel"meansasmallfaultinapersonorsystemwhichmightcausethemtofail.ThisidiomisfromGreekmythology.Achilleswasamanwhowaskilledwhenhewasinjuredonhisheel,becausethiswastheonlypartofhisbodywherehecouldbeharmed.Therefore,idiomscanbeaneffectivetooloflearningculture.\nAndlearningcultureitemslikeidiomscanbeoneofthegoodexamplestolearnbothlanguageandculturesimultaneously.Learningidiomscanalsomakeuslearnmoreabouttheknowledgeofculturalbackground.2CompareChineseIdiomswithEnglishIdioms2ASimilaritiesbetweenChineseandEnglishIdiomsAshumancivilizationhasdevelopedinasimilarway,bothEnglishandChineseidiomsaresimilarinbasicmoralconceptsandvalueviewpoint,whichhasformedacommonbaseforbothcultures.Theirsimilaritiesareasfollows:First,inbothEnglishandChinesewehavealikeidiomstoexpressthehard-working,braveandindomitablehumannatureandthegoodwillandforgiveness.Alsotherearemanyidiomsinbothlanguagestopraisethepioneeringspirit.Forexample,"既往不咎,Letbygonesbebygones”，"心安理得,Havepeaceofmind^^,"有志者,事竟成,Wherethereisawill,thereisaway，；“有始有终，FrombeginningtoencT：etc.Second,thoseidiomsinbothEnglishandChinesetoexpressveritiesaresame.Suchas“眼见为实，SeeingisBelieving",etc.Third,thesameimaginationinbothEnglishandChinesehasthesamecomparisonintheidiom.Forinstance,“轻如鸿毛，Aslightasafeather”，“冰清玉洁，Beasclearascrystal'；etc.Theabovesimilaritiesareessentialtotheinterculturalcommunication.Differentculturesmayconflictinmanyaspects,butmustagreeonbasicmoralsandvaluepoints・Onlybyagreeingon\nbasicmoralsandvaluepoints,canculturalconflictsbelimitedinatolerablelevelandinterculturalcommunicationcarriedout.2.2DifferencesbetweenChineseandEnglishIdioms2.2.1DifferencesinAnimal-relatedIdiomsAnimalsarefriendsofhuman.Theyhavesomanylinkswithhumanbeingsandhumanlanguages.Beforethearrivalofmoderncivilization,sometimeseventoday,thebasicnecessitiesinhumanlifesuchasfood,clothingandtransportationandsoonareobtaineddirectlyorindirectlyfromvariousanimals-Amongallkindsofanimals,dogsareparticularlyvaluableinprotectingproperty,findingthingsandhuntingquarries.Pigeonshavelongbeenusedtodelivermessages.Ofcourse,someanimalscanalsodoharmfulthingstohumanbeings,suchaswolf,mice,etc.,butnomatterwhattheydo,whethergoodorbad,animalsarecloselyrelatedwiththedailylifeofhumanbeingsincludingeverydayspeechandanimal-relatedidiomsarecomeintobeing.DoginmostoftheEnglishidiomsymbolizesthelayfolkas"guy".Thereisnoderogatorysenseinit,suchas“aluckydog幸运儿二"loveme,lovemydog爱屋及乌冷“helpalamedogoverastile助人渡过难关etc.Ofcourse,thereisalittlederogatorysenseofdogusedinidiomstodescribetheuseless,woefulthing.Forexample,“adoginthemanager占着位子不做实事",“leadadog'slife过着可悲的生活冷etc.Onthecontrary,inChineseidiomdogisusedtodescribebeggarliness.Therefore,mostofthedogrelatedChineseidiomisderogatory,like\n“狗急跳墙一acorneredbeastwilldosomethingdesperate”，"狗尾续貂一awretchedsequeltoafinework,incongruous^,"蝇营狗苟一shamelesslyseekpersonalgain：andotherslike"狗血喷头，狗仗人势，狗咬狗，飞tc.2.2.2DifferencesinColor-relatedIdiomsTherearemanyidiomsrelatedtocolorbothinChineseandEnglish,suchasblack（黑）andwhite（白）;Blackactuallyisthecompleteabsorptionofalllight,whilewhiteisoppositetoblack.Therefore,inidiomsBlackandWhitealsostandontwoextremepoints.Astheoriginalmeaningoftheblackandwhite,theyhavethesameexpressioninbothChineseandEnglishidioms,suchas“blackandwhite黑白分明","inblackandwhite白纸黑字'「turnblackintowhite颠彳到黑口二etc.Buttherearesomedifferencesintheirtransferredmeaning.InEnglishidiom,blackisusedtodescribeatrocity,deathandominousthing,like"blacksheep害群之马","ablackday不吉利的口了二etc.Butsometimeblackalsohasacommendatoryusage,suchas"abusinessintheblack盈利的事业二WhiteinEnglishidiommeanschastity,integrityandelegance,forinstance“awhitelie善意的谎言"，"thewhiteday良辰吉日"，andtheyhavethe“whitewedding.InChineseidiom,blackisonlyusedtodescribeincorrect,badandcriminalthing,forexample,“心黑手狠一heartlessandcrueF\etc.WhiteinChineseidiomisunlikeitsusinginEnglishidiom.It\nrepresentsdreariness,poorandbereavement,forexample,"Cl手起家一startsomethingfromscratch”，"一穷二白一poorandblank”，"红白喜事一weddingandbereavement”，etc.（潘红，2005:209）223DifferencesinNumeral-relatedIdiomsNumber,asanimportantpartoflanguage,isembodiedwithdifferentculturalbackground.Idiomswithnumbersarethecentralcoreandcreamoflanguages,reflectingthewisdomofhumankind.Theyhavestrongethnical,historicalandregionalcolors,reflectingtheculturedifferenceofdifferentnationalities-ToanalysisnumbersinbothChineseandEnglishidioms,IfindthatthesubstantivemeaningofnumberinbothChineseandEnglishidiomsissame.Forexample,"一尤'一意一whole-heartedly^,“onethingleadstoanother一一环扌l~l一环二Furthermore,inEnglishidiomsmostofthenumbers,exceptthenumberthreeandseven,areusedasasubstantive.It^sthebiggestdifferencebetweenChineseandEnglishnumeral-relatedidiom.BecauseexpectthesubstantivemeaningofnumbersinChineseidiom,therearemanyabstractivemeaningofnumbersusedinChinese.First,theabstractivemeaningofnumberinChinesealwaysexpresses"more”or"less".Forexample,one,halfand“寸①areusedtoexpress"less”，like"—无所长一havenospecialskill","手无寸铁一unarmed,\etc.Whilethree,five,sixandnineareusedtoexpress"more”，nothingtosayhundredandthousand,suchas"三头六臂,三令五屮，成百■上T",etc.Second,thenumbertenandonesometimesmeans“wholeoralF\such\nas“I•全I•美一beperfectineveryway",“一如既往一justasinthepast".Third,twonumbersinthesameidiomusuallyexpressatransformationoraproportion,suchas"三长两短——unforeseenaccidents，；"十拿九稳一beverysureofsuccess'："百无一是一havenomeritsatalF\Fourth,someidiomsarecustomarilybeused,suchas“一退六二五一denyallresponsibility^^and"不管三七二十一一regardlessoftheconsequences".（吕叔湘，2002:198）Theyarecomefromthecustomofthecountingframewhichweusedinancientforcountingnumbers.Insummary,fromwhatisdiscussedabove,weknowthatnumbersplayimportantrolesinhumancultures.TheyhavestrongconnotationsinbothEnglishandChinesecultures.224DifferencesinMythology-relatedIdiomsTherearenumerousidiomsrelatedtomythsinEnglishandChinese.InEnglishidioms,idiomsofmythicaloriginsaremainlyfromGreekandRomanmythology,whichoriginatingfromtheirworshipofthenaturebyGreekandRomanancestors.Similarly,inChineseidioms,mythologyisgenerallyofChineseorigin.TheseidiomsreflecttheformationofChineseCultureintheprimitivestage.Theyshowafullscopeofprimitiverecognitionoftheworld.Take"dragon龙^forexample,dragonisafrequenterinbothChineseandEnglishMyths,sotherearemanymythicalidiomsrelatedtodragon.However,theassociatedmeaningofdragonand龙areopposite.InEnglish,dragonconnotes"aterriblefire-breathing\nmonster59or"agiantthateatsman”.Accordingthefamouslegend"Beowulf：adragonthathadthreeheadsandcouldbreathefireguardedtreasureforthe"devils"・Sodragonisalwaysassociatedwithdevil・Inthemedievaltimes,"dragorTwasassociatedwith“sirTanditwasthesymbolof“heresy：Nowadays,thereistheidiom"chasethedragon—meanstakedrugs"，sowecanseehowevilthedragonisinthewesterners9view.TheoppositeassociatedmeaningofdragoninChineseisalwaysacommendatory.First,weseedragonisthetotemoftheChinesepeople.Wecallourselvesthedescendantsofdragonproudly,suchas"龙的传人"and"龙子龙孙Second,dragoninChineseisassociatedwith"emperor5\becauseemperorsalwaysnamethemselvesas"真龙天子一thegod'ssonnotthedevil's二Third,dragonisassociatewith“talent",suchastheidiom“龙牛龙子，虎生豹丿L—meanstalentedpersonasdescendantsmustbeprominent^.Fourth,dragonisalsoassociatedwith"goodluckandsuccess11,suchas"龙凤呈祥一meansgoodluck",and"望子成龙一meanspeoplehopetheirchildrencangetsuccess”，etc.3:ConclusionThroughthecomparisonbetweenChineseandEnglishIdioms,theirdifferencesandsimilaritiesareobvious・Thisismeaningfulandhelpfulforeverylanguagelearnersandusers・\nReferences:111AlfredLordTennyson.Poems[MJ.CambridgePress.200L[2]NidaEugene.Language,cultureandtranslation[M]-ShanghaiForeignLanguageEducationPress,2000.⑶PearsallJ.TheNewOxfordEnglishDictionary[MJ.OxfordUniversityPress,2001.|4]SummersP.LongmanDictionaryofEnglishLanguageandCulture[M]•LongmanPressJ998.⑸辞海编辑委员会.辞海[M]・北京:商务印书馆,1989.⑹胡文仲.英美文化辞典[M].上海:外语教学与研究出版社，1995.李娅玲.英语成语屮色彩词汇的文化特征[J].怀化师专学扌艮,1999(12).吕叔湘现代汉语大辞典[M].北京:商务印书馆,2002.潘红•英汉国俗词语例话[M]•上海:上海外语教育出版社,2005.