Figurative Meanings of Animal Words in English and Chinese Culture and Their Translation

陳曉聰

【中圖分類號】H315.9

1. Introduction

Ludwig Andreas Feuerbach， the Greman materialistic philosopher， once said that animals were indispensable to human beings and the reason why human beings became human beings was due to their close relationship with animals. Human beings and animals are both the products of natural evolution. Language is the result of human labor and social activities. Language is human specific and it is the major factor that distinguishes human beings from animals. So far animals are still close friends of human beings. Now that animals play an important role in human lives， the animal words in human languages will bear the deep socio-cultural imprints in the course of being used by human beings.

Culture is also a historical phenomenon. Each generation inherits the culture established by its forefathers and makes its own contributions to the development of culture， therefore different nations have different cultures. Chinese people and English people have some similarity in their thinking modes ， so there exists the same animal words with the same or similar figurative meanings. However， there also exists differences between English and Chinese cultures and these differences lead to different connotations of animal words in English and Chinese languages. As a result， Chinese and English people have different figurative meanings to the same animal words or use different animal association vehicles to express the same or similar figurative meanings.

2. Comparison of animal words in English and Chinese

2.1 Same animal association vehicles and similar figurative meanings

As all human beings live in the similar environment， Chinese people and English people nearly have the same knowledge of animals. Therefore， they have the same or similar figurative meanings to animal words. For example， there is an English term “as cunning as a fox”. Similarly， Chinese people can understand the figurative meaning of this term “as cunning as a fox”. This example shows that in English “fox” can be used to describe somebody who is cunning and dishonest. This example indicates that English and Chinese languages and cultures endow “fox the same figurative meanings.

Wolf（狼） is a kind of greedy， savage and cruel animal. In Chinese there exists such expressions as “豺狼當道”（meaning a world full of evil doers）， “如狼似虎” （meaning ferocious ）， “狼子野心”（meaning immorally ambitious）. Similarly， the animal wolf is also used to described someone who is greedy and cruel in western culture. There are English terms such as “a wolf in a sheeps clothing”or “a wolf in lambs skin ”， “wake a sleeping wolf ”， “hold a wolf by the ears ”， “keep the wolf from the door ” etc.

The animal ass in English and Chinese has the same connotation and figurative meaning “foolish， stupid”. In Chinese the expression “笨驢” is used to indicate a fool or an idiot. In English， there are set phrases and idioms that include the animal word ass e.g.“ass in grain ”， “an ass in a lions skin ”， “all asses wag their ear”， “asses bridge ”， “act the ass ”， “make an ass of oneself ”， “sell you ass ” etc. All these phrases imply the meaning foolish.

2.2 Same animal association vehicles and different figurative meanings

Different living conditions have caused varied states of mind and ways of thinking， so Chinese and English people have different ideas and attitudes to some animals. The figurative meanings of the follwing animals are different in English and Chinese languages and cultures.

The figurative meaning of the word dragon is completely opposite in Chinese and English. Dragon is not a real animal but an imaginary one. In China， dragon is the symbol of the Chinese nation. In the ancient time， Chinese people worshiped dragon to beg for rain. The Chinese feudal emperors were often referred to as “sons of dragons”. The emperors would wear clothes with designs of dragons. Chinese people always call themselves descendents of the dragon and are very proud of being the descendents of the dragon. However， in Western peoples minds， the dragon is an evil monster with a large tail and wings and claws， breathing out fire and smoke. It symbolizes evil and bad luck. Do you know the meaning of the following sentence “We are really frightened of the maths teacher. She was a real dragon.”？ The word dragon here is used as a metaphor to describe someone who is badtempered. Let us have a look at the Chinese term “望子成龍”（meaning to expect ones son to become an outstanding person）. We can see that the figurative meaning of dragon is very different in English and Chinese.

The animal bat is considered as an evil animal in the eyes of the western people. It is always associated with darkness and sin. Western people are afraid of the bats because they think that bats are blood-sucking animals. Therefore the animal bat contain derogatory sense in western culture. The English terms “as blind as a bat”， “as crazy as a bat” reflect a glimpse of derogatory meaning of the animal bat in western culture. However， the connotation of the animal bat is commendatory in Chinese culture. The animal bat is a symbol for felicity in the eyes of Chinese people because the Chinese letters 蝠（bat） and 福（felicity） are homophones.