跨文化視角下中英動物禁忌語對比研究

1、Chinese Abstract2English Abstract31. Introduction41.1 Research Background41.2 Literature Review42. An Overview of Taboo Language on Animals72.1 A Brief Introduction to Taboo Language72.2 The Classification of Taboo Language72.3 The Summary of Taboo Language on Animals83. A Comparative Study of Taboo

2、 Languages on Animals between Chinese and English93.1 “羊” and “Sheep” and “Goat”93.2 “龍” and “Dragon”103.3 “貓頭鷹” and “Owl”113.4 “貓” and “Cat”124. The Causes for the Different Taboo Languages on Animals between Chinese and English from Cross-culture Perspective134.1 The Difference of Religious Believ

3、es134.2 The Difference of Political Systems144.3 The Difference of Thinking Patterns154.4 The Difference of Historical Cultures and Geography165. Conclusion17References19跨文化視角下中英動物禁忌語對比研究 摘 要隨著全球經(jīng)濟(jì)的不斷發(fā)展和國際交往的日益頻繁，跨文化交際日趨重要。語言作為溝通的橋梁，在跨文化交際中起著重要作用。同時，語言又與文化有著密不可分的聯(lián)系。然而，巨大的文化差異是造成跨文化交際障礙的主要原因。其中,禁忌語是一

4、個關(guān)鍵的影響因素。在跨文化交際中,如果不了解和遵守對方文化的禁忌語習(xí)慣,就很容易產(chǎn)生誤解,甚至導(dǎo)致交際失敗。由于禁忌語這一語言的獨特性，近年來受到中外學(xué)者們的高度關(guān)注，并取得了一些成果。語言禁忌是存在于不同民族間的一種普遍的文化現(xiàn)象，它與人們的語言行為與社會交際息息相關(guān)。而動物禁忌語作為禁忌語的一個分支，具有其獨特性，在與他人交際過程中需格外重視。由于中西方的歷史文化、思維方式和政治體制等方面的不同，人們根據(jù)動物的外貌、習(xí)性和生理等特征所賦予它們的情感和喻義也不同。例如，有些動物詞匯在漢語中寓意吉祥，而在英語中卻屬于禁忌語。同樣，在英語中寓意吉祥的動物詞匯，在漢語中也可能象征著不吉利。如今，隨

5、著經(jīng)濟(jì)全球化的迅速發(fā)展，跨文化間的交流日益頻繁。了解動物的禁忌意義在交際過程中的重要性也隨之越來越突出。本文將從跨文化視角對英漢動物禁忌語進(jìn)行對比研究，分析中西文化差異，這對跨文化交際具有一定借鑒意義。關(guān)鍵詞：禁忌；動物詞匯；文化差異；跨文化視角A Comparative Study of Taboo Language on Animals in English and Chinese from the Perspective of Cross-Culture AbstractWith the continuous development of the global economy and t

6、he increasing frequency of international contacts, cross-cultural communication becomes more and more important and necessary. Language as a bridge of communication plays an important role in cross-cultural communication. Meanwhile, language is strongly associated with culture. However, huge cultura

7、l differences are the main cause of barriers to intercultural communication. And taboo is an important factor. In cross-cultural communication, if one does not understand and avoid the taboos of other countries, it is easy to cause misunderstandings and even lead to communication failures. Due to th

8、e uniqueness of taboo language, it has attracted great attention from Chinese and foreign scholars in recent years.Taboo language is a universal cultural phenomenon. It is closely related to peoples language behavior and social communication. Taboo language on animals, as a branch of taboos, is uniq

9、ue. Due to the differences between Chinese and Western cultures, people give animals different emotions and metaphors according to their appearance, habits, and physical characteristics. For example, some animal words are endowed with auspicious meanings in Chinese, but are negated as taboo in Engli

10、sh. Similarly, animal words that imply auspiciousness in English may also signify unluck in Chinese. Nowadays, with the rapid development of economic globalization, intercultural communication is becoming increasingly frequent. The importance of understanding the significance of taboo language on an

11、imals in communication is also becoming more and more prominent. This thesis will make a comparative study of taboo language on animals in English and Chinese from cross-cultural perspective, and analyze the differences between Chinese and Western cultures, which will have a certain reference signif

12、icance for cross-cultural communication.Key words: taboo; animal words; cultural differences; cross-cultural perspective1. Introduction 1.1 Research BackgroundTaboo is a cultural and social phenomenon often found in Chinese and Western cultures. It is reflected in all aspects of social life. From pe

13、rsonal life to social life, taboos are almost everywhere. As an important part of human society, taboo has various forms. From personal life to social life, taboos are almost everywhere. As an important part of human society, taboo has various forms. Language taboo is a universal cultural phenomenon

14、 that exists among different countries. It has a lot to do with peoples language behavior and social communication. With the booming of the global economy, globalization and informatization, the exchanges between different countries and religions are more frequent. As the most widely employed langua

15、ge in the world, English is also an important tool in improving the language quality in China. Nowadays, most Chinese students start learning English since elementary schools. However, as an English learner, we can easily find that cultural differences in different countries could interfere with peo

16、ples communication and ultimately influence communication result. Taboo language on animals, as a branch of taboos, is unique. Thus, we should be careful while talking to others. Mastering these cultural differences will not only improve our language communication skills, but also assist us grasping

17、 the social psychology and social customs of English-speaking countries. Then we can better comprehend the culture and make intercultural communication more effective. 1.2 Literature Review1.2.1 Previous Studies on Taboos and Animal Words AbroadEarly foreign academics mainly researched taboos in ter

18、ms of anthropology, sociology and ethnography. Famous British anthropologist and folklorist James George Frazers The Golden Bough and Austrian psychoanalyst Sigmund Freuds Totem and Taboo are very representative. The Golden Bough expounds the origins of witchcraft and religion, which is the foundati

19、on of modern anthropology. In Totem and Taboo, Sigmund Freud (1913) deeply analyzed the nature of taboos and the essence of taboo culture through a large number of examples, and also explained the causes of taboo phenomena. It created a precedent for taboo research, which was a classic work in this

20、field. With the further development of sociolinguistics, a greater number of sociolinguists and researchers have done an in-depth analysis as well as research on the phenomenon of taboo words. Representative works include Dont Do It: A Dictionary of the Forbidden, Sociolinguistics, and An Introducti

21、on to Sociolinguistics. Among them, Sociolinguistics discusses the definition, meaning and function of language taboos in details. Starting from the social attributes of language, it discusses languages and language taboos in a sociological way. John Bens, who is a linguist, further explains in Tabo

22、o or Not Taboo that taboos are closely related to religions and social customs. It combines the language habits of modern society, and replaces, changes, expands, and renews taboo words in old English, which is highly theoretical. Psychologist Timothy Jay (2000) gives a comprehensive description of

23、the vocabulary and expressions of taboos in Why We Curse: a Neuro-Psycho-Social Theory of Speech. It takes English taboos as its main content and illustrates them from different taboo perspectives.British biologist Charles Robert Darwin proposed the theory of biological evolution through careful obs

24、ervation, data collection, and extensive research on living organisms in nature in the middle of the nineteenth century. From the perspective of human evolution, animals are the earliest creatures that appeared on earth, and humans are the highest stage of animal evolution. Animals are an important

25、part of human life. Famous British linguist Geoffrey Leech (1981) proposed associative meaning in his monograph Semantics: The Study of Meaning. Associative meaning is the association aroused or the implication given by the language symbol, or the impression to readers by its connotation or denotati

26、on. There are also many studies on the comparative analysis of animal words by associative meanings. Language is the carrier of culture, and vocabulary is the most basic element of language. Due to the differences in natural environment, historical culture, social consciousness and religious traditi

27、on, the same animal word can reflect a richer cultural connotation and associative meaning in Chinese and English. People and animals are in frequent contact. In the process, people may find that certain characteristics of animals are similar to people or other things. Humans use imagination to desc

28、ribe these characteristics of animals, and make meaningful conversion on different concepts. Scholars Cabanillas and Martinez discuss the metaphor of poultry, and analyze its reasons and semantic changes. Spanish professors Almudena Fernndez Fontecha and Rosa Mara Jimnez Cataln analyze the semantic

29、derogation of animal metaphors from a cognitive perspective. They compare and analyze English “fox” and “vixen”, “bull” and “cow” and the corresponding Spanish “zorro” and “zorra”, “toro” and “vaca”. It is concluded that the phenomenon of sexism in animal metaphors is very obvious. In animal metapho

30、rs, there are much more gender discriminations against females than males (Fernndez Fontecha & Jimnez Cataln, 2003 (35): 775). There are few studies on animal taboos in foreign countries, hence the author of this thesis will make a tentative study on animal taboos from cross-cultural perspective on

31、the basis of the previous studies.1.2.2 Previous Studies on Taboos and Animal Words in ChinaChina has had records of taboos as early as the Zhou Dynasty. Later, in the strict feudal society, each dynasty recorded in details the scope and objects of taboo words. The Example of Historical Taboo publis

32、hed by famous Chinese historian and educator Chen Yuan in 1962 was the first monograph on linguistics in China. More than 80 examples have been cited in the book to analyze and explain the types, methods and applications of taboos in different dynasties, as well as problems related to taboos. Due to

33、 the unique nature of taboo language, some Chinese specialists and academics in linguistic field have paid close attention to Chinese taboo language and achieved some results. Scholars have studied the taboos in English and Chinese in terms of sociology, anthropology, ethnography and history. China

34、introduced a series of theories on taboos such as The Golden Bough and Totem and Taboo in the 1980s, which promoted the theoretical research of taboo cultures to some extent. In 1980, Chinese linguistic Chen Yuans Languages and Social Life-Sociolinguistic Notes was the first Chinese publication invo

35、lving “Tabu” (陳原, 1980). In 1986, Chen Jianming, vice-president of the National Spoken Chinese Research Association, explored the language taboo phenomenon by studying the relationship between language and society in his book New Exploration of Language, Society and Culture, and he studied new chang

36、es in language by analyzing subtle points. Professors Deng Yanchang and Liu Runqing published Language and Culture: A Contrastive Study of English and Chinese Languages and Cultures in 1989, which compared Chinese and English taboos and discussed the differences between Chinese and Western cultures

37、(鄧炎昌, 劉潤清, 2004).Animals play an important role in human life, so various animal-related words in both English and Chinese come into being. Domestic scholars make a contrast between the taboo language on animals in English and Chinese. Scholar Wang Yanlin conducted a comprehensive analysis of taboos

38、 in Pragmatic Comparison of English and Chinese Taboos, and also pointed out that animal taboos are part of taboos. Postgraduate Liu Yan mentioned the taboos on animals in Cultural Differences between Chinese and English Taboos and Teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language, and indicated animals had di

39、fferent interpretations in English and Chinese cultures such as “dog”, “chicken” and “dragon”. Many scholars also compare and analyze animal words from the perspective of cultural connotations. Since Chinese and English are two languages with great cultural differences, the comparison and analysis o

40、f some special linguistic phenomena can help people understand and grasp the cultural connotations of these two different languages. Scholar Ding Wei (2009) analyzed the cultural connotations and differences of the same or different animals in English and Chinese languages. Many scholars have done v

41、ery detailed researches on animal words, but only general researches on taboos. This thesis tries to make a comparatively more detailed study on the special language phenomenon of animal taboos in combination with the related research done by the above scholars from cross-culture perspective.2. An O

42、verview of Taboo Language on Animals2.1 A Brief Introduction to Taboo LanguageTaboo, as a complicated cultural phenomenon, exists in our society today. The common name for this cultural phenomenon in the international academic community is “taboo”. Some people have transliterated it as “tabu”. Taboo

43、 is derived from the Central Pacific Polynesian dialect. In the eighteenth century, British navigator James Cook found that some local words were only allowed to be used by certain groups in the Polynesian Islands of the Central Pacific. This phenomenon was locally called “taboo” and its English tra

44、nsliteration was taboo or tabu, which means “sacred” and “untouchable and offensive”. James introduced the word into English, with the meaning of “prohibited”, “disallowed” and “forbidden”. “Taboo” was first recorded in the ancient book Hanshu Yiwenzhi in China. It means that it is a general agreeme

45、nt that does not allow people to do, to use or to talk about. Taboos were originally passive precautionary measures taken by the ancients for fear of supernatural forces or superstition. It used to play the role of norms and constrains like laws in ancient social life. Nowadays, many taboos have gra

46、dually disappeared with the elimination of the mystery and superstition of the prohibited objects, but many taboos still remain and affect peoples lives.In the process of communication, in order to avoid embarrassing phenomena, people deliberately avoid mentioning certain words. These “avoidable” be

47、haviors are taboo phenomena in language. In order to avoid ambiguity and language barriers, we need to take evasive measures and make the whole communication process appropriate and reasonable. These evasive language content are called taboos. Li Hongru (2011), vice-president of Chinese Language and

48、 Philosophy Research Association, pointed out that language is a symbolic system that is handed down from generation to generation, including morphology, syntax, and vocabulary. It exists in the consciousness of all members of a particular linguistic community, and is a social product of the communi

49、ty conventions. And speaking is all about the specific content spoken or understood by the speaker. Taboo is a linguistic phenomenon peculiar to peoples communication process. It hides in the brains of the people of the nation and is a grammatical rule that people need to follow together. It is also

50、 an important speech activity. In order to have a better communication, people should try to avoid taboos in terms of language, thought and behavior. 2.2 The Classification of Taboo LanguageTaboo, a various and complicated language phenomenon in both English and Chinese, is rooted in our daily life.

51、 Taboo words include all the words that cannot, dare not or be unwilling to speak directly in verbal communication. It mainly manifests in the names of someone people should avoid, taboo words at the lexical level, and taboo topics at the discourse level. So we divide taboos into name taboos, word t

52、aboos and topic taboos. And taboo language on animals belongs to word taboos.Name taboos refer to the points that one has to pay attention to when addressing others. With the basic establishment of the feudal system, a taboo system of names had been gradually formed. When addressing or writing the n

53、ames of the emperors and elders, people should be careful not to offend them and touch upon the taboos. Using homophones and synonyms is one of the common ways to avoid taboos. For instance, since the Emperor Qin Shihuangs name was “贏政”, in order to avoid the word “政”, “正月” was changed to “端月” inste

54、ad, and “正月” (the forth tone) should be pronounced as “征月” (the first tone). For the word taboos, one has to be clear about the words that should not be used in certain circumstances. For example, it is known to the Chinese that the number“6”and “8”have been twoof the most favouritenumberssince the

55、ancient times, which are homophones for smoothness and wealth respectively.Therefore,there are blessings such as “六六大順”(everything goes smoothly) and “八方來財”(wealthcomes in all directions)in Chinese. In contrast, Chinese people are generally reluctant to use the numbers “4”and “7”because they are hom

56、ophones for “death”and “anger”in Chinese, so not using them might be a better choice.Topic taboos mean the topic that people do not want to mention and should be avoided. In cross-cultural communication, it is better for people to avoid talking about personal privacy and other topics, such as people

57、s age, income and religion.2.3 The Summary of Taboo Language on AnimalsIn The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Language, British contemporary linguist Crystal (1987) believes that taboos refer to specific behaviors, things, and phenomena that the public tries to avoid. In a broad sense, it is related to th

58、e expression. People must observe the corresponding rules in language communication, and consciously avoid taboo conversations for any parties. As an objective existence in nature, animal words are regarded as an important part of human language and play a very important role in human communication.

59、 They reflect both the individual features of different social cultures and the similarities between different societies. In addition to an accurate description of the physical characteristics of animals, these animal words also reflect different emotions and metaphors given by people from different cultural backgrounds. They carry specific cultural and historical connotations of