Topic Topic An analysis of metaphors relating to upper parts of human body in English and Vietnamese By Trần Thị Thu Hiền K17B >K18C 1 Introduction It is common knowledge that one of the most important functions of language is to name the world or express human thoughts through a system of concepts However, the concepts expressed through language do not exist in isolation from each other Rather, they exist associatively in the language and make up a giant network with many interconnections and a.
Topic: An analysis of metaphors relating to upper parts of human body in English and Vietnamese By: Trần Thị Thu Hiền _ K17B ->K18C Introduction It is common knowledge that one of the most important functions of language is to name the world or express human thoughts through a system of concepts However, the concepts expressed through language not exist in isolation from each other Rather, they exist associatively in the language and make up a giant network with many interconnections and associations among the various subparts A good example of these interconnections involves metaphor, the understanding of one concept in terms of another One interesting idea in the language use is that the human beings,first of all, got to know their own body and gave names to its parts Later in the process of cognition of the world they began comparing the surrounding objects with their own body and finding common features Hence the names of parts of human body are transferred to denote many other things or parts of things in the real world In such a way, things or parts of things in the real world are personified to possess the same names with the parts of human body For example in English, the word “foot” refers to the lowest part of the human being and later on it is metaphorically used to refer to the lowest part of many things, for instance, “the foot of the mountain” Not only English but many other languages also make use of metaphors in such a way In Vietnamese, many words denoting parts of human body are also used metaphorically For example, the word “chân”, equipvalent to the word “foot” in English is also used as a metaphor to refer to the lowest part of the mountain or hill: “chân núi/ chân đồi” However, the way individual words are used is not always the same in the two languages For example, the word “eye” in English is metaphorically used to refer to the hole of the needle, “eye of the needle” Whereas, in Vietnamese the word “mắt” is not used in such a way But instead in another case, it is metaphorically used to refer to holes of a woven basket, “mắt rổ” Examining the examples above it is obvious that in both English and Vietnamese, the words denoting parts of human body are used metaphorically but the way each word is used is varied in two languages This can be explained that the way metaphors are utilized is due to people’s life experience, worldview or people’s cognition of the outside world In the boarder terms, it is also due to the language users’s culture For this reason, metaphors are varied from one language to another Development 2.1 Metaphors in English 2.1.1 What is metaphor? The term metaphor that comes from Greek means “transference” As it is stated by Vo Dai Quang (2003: 33), metaphor is “word meaning transference based on similarity between two things as regards function, character, size, shape, age, colour, etc.” This is clearer in the definition given by Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (1995: 734) in which metaphor is defined as “the imaginative use of a word or a phrase to describe somebody/ something as another object in order to show that they have the same qualities and as to make the description more forceful” This definition is not as detailed as the above-mentioned definition about the association of similarity but it takes the use and the effect of metaphor into consideration From the linguistic point of view, metaphor is defined as “an extension in the use of the word beyond its primary meaning to describe referents that bear similarities to the word’s primary referent” (Language- its structure and use, 1994) In general, metaphor discussed above is viewed from different angles To put it simply, it is the way we call one object by the name of another because we compare these objects and find some common features between them There is a necessity here to distinguish metaphor from simile and metonymy because they are closely related Firstly, metaphor and simile are forms of comparison In both ways, we compare two unlike things together However, metaphor is the hidden comparison and simile is the open comparison Secondly, metaphor and metonymy are two kinds of transference of meaning That is, one object is named and understood in terms of another But metaphor is based on the association of similarity and metonymy is based on the association of contiguity So it is obvious that metaphor are related to simile and metonymy but it is quite distinguished from them And how metaphors function in language and how they are subclassified will be presented below 2.1.2 Functions of metaphors The first function of metaphors discussed is to name things This is only the technical means to use the ready-made vocabulary to give names to other things basing on the resemblance between them These metaphors are of almost no or very little rhetoric value but they can reflect the way in which things in the world are viewed together These metaphors are only intended to give names to things basing on the experience with the existing vocabulary The second function of metaphors is to cognize or conceptualize things Here the metaphors not give new names to things but conceptualize them in terms of another Here, metaphors operates between two domains, one domain is conceptualized in terms of another The last function of metaphors mentioned here is to symbolize things This function is commonly thought to be the conventional function of metaphors Metaphors of this group reflect the imaginative and creative way individuals judge and comment things, which can make their language more expensive and more persuasive They are very popular in poetic language On the whole, metaphors carry three major functions in language which are naming, cognitive and symbolic functions Basing on that, metaphors relating to parts of human body are the first group which are utilized to give names to things in the world 2.1.3 Kinds of metaphors Metaphors, like any other stylistic devices, can be classified according to their degree unexpectedness As it is stated by Nguyen Hoa (2004: 109), basing on the degree of unexpectedness, there are three main types of metaphors namely living metaphors, faded metaphors and dead metaphors Metaphors which are unexpected and quite unpredictable are called living metaphors In these metaphors the word has an unusual metaphorical sense that are easily recognized by the hearer They are created and used by individuals The metaphors of this type are also called creative or poetic metaphors as discussed above and are especially used in literature and poetry They are not common in everyday language usage Sometimes, they are called genuine metaphors because it is the common sense when people talk about metaphors and they have great rhetoric effect on the hearer Faded metaphors are those which have lost their freshness because of long and traditional use and become habitual in daily language usage Metaphors are so common in everyday language that they are sometimes not felt as metaphors These metaphors can cause polysemy of so many words in language Among the functions discussed, they are attached to the naming and cognitive functions Dead metaphors are those whose metaphorical sense is not felt at all because they have lost their indirect meaning and are only used figuratively These metaphors are not many in language In fact, they are difficult or almost impossible to be recognized as metaphors Generally, there are three main types of metaphors which are living, faded and dead metaphors Basing on these, metaphors relating to parts of human body are called faded metaphors because they are the means of everydat language to give names to things in the world This will be clarified with illustrations in the following parts 2.2 Metaphors relating to parts of human body in English and Vietnamese First of all, it is necessary to recall the metaphors are an integral part of language and thought and metaphors relating to partsof human body are a good example for this These metaphors can reflect how people think and reason about things in the world and how they are related to parts of human body These metaphors, as mentioned above, are faded metaphors which are used to give names to things in the surrounding and become part of ordinary language In fact, both English and Vietnamese make use of these metaphors What is in common in both languages is that both English and Vietnamese people understand parts of human body well but the way they relate hem to name other things is not always the same When the words denoting parts of human body are used in metaphors, one or several certain semes or semantic features are transferred will be carefully discussed in both English and Vietnamese in this part The words denoting parts of human body in the two languages which are discussed in this study are grouped in terms of their position on the human body under the heading, upper parts 2.2.1 Metaphors relating to “head” in English and “đầu” in Vietnamese It can be seen that the word “head” in English and “đầu” in Vietnamese are popularly used in metaphor The metaphors relating to them are mostly based on the similarity of function and position These are some basic metaphors Firstly, the word “head” in English refers to the leader of a group or an organization For the head containing the brain of the human beings has the function of controlling other parts of the human body Similarly, as the leader of a group or company also controls the whole group or organization so that kind of person is labeled the head of the group or organization Ex: English: “He had also worked for a time in business in Paris and as head of modern languages at London grammar school.” (Alice Deignan: 7) The word “head” in the example above refers to the leader of the modern language department In this way, the word “head” refers to many other referents for example, “head of the class, head of the school, head of the college/ university, head of the company/ factory, head of the delegation, head of othe government, head of the state/ country, …etc However, in Vietnamese, the word “đầu” is not used in such a way It should be noted here that in both English and Vietnamese, the words denoting to the head are also used as a verb and adjective in metaphors but this is not supposed to be mentioned or discussed this in this study Secondly, the word “head” in English and “đầu” in Vietnamese are both used to refer to other referents on the basis of similar position When people take parts of human body into consideration, they always consider the head as the first, highest and foremost part of all in comparison with the other parts especially the foot So, the first referents that they metaphorically refer to are the first and more important part of a place or a thing Take the following examples Ex: English: Place the pillow at the head of the bed, Vietnamese: Đặt gối đầu giường (English-Vietnamese Dictionary, 1993: 779) Obviouly, the head of the bed is taken as the first and more important part rather than the opposite end as we often lie and place our head on this part This is one of the productive use of the words “head” and “đầu” in both languages Additionally, the word “head” and “đầu” are also used to refer to the abstract thing that is at the highest position in a system or a class Take the English example first: Ex: English: He is at the head of his profession (English-Vietnamese Dict, 1993: 779) In this example, he is the best and ranks the first in the profession Similarly, in Vietnamese, it is also used in such a way Ex: Vietnamese: Anh đỗ đầu bảng (Từ điển Tiếng Việt, 2003: 299) In the above sentence, the person passes the exam with the highest marks and holds the highest position in the list of the students who took the exam This use of both words “head” and “đầu” is so various in communication that cannot be taken into account here Furthermore, in Vietnamese, the word “đầu” is used to denote an abstract thing such as time concepts It refers to the first period in a duration of a time or process of an event while in English, the word “head” is not used in this way Ex: đầu mùa, đầu tuần, đầu tháng, đầu năm, đầu thập kỷ, đầu thiên niên kỷ, đầu kỳ học đầu tiết học, …etc In general, metaphors relating to the head are many in both English and Vietnamese and these metaphors mentioned and discussed above are basic and common in both languages 2.2.2 Metaphors relating to “face” in English and “mặt” in Vietnamese Firstly, the face is seen as one side on the head so in both English and Vietnamese it is used to refer to the sides of things Take the following examples Ex: English: A cut diamond has many faces, Vietnamese: Một viên kim cương cắt có nhiều mặt (English-Vietnamese Dictionary, 1993: 584) So each face of the diamond mentioned in the examples is one side of the diamond as the face is one side of the head However, in some cases, English and Vietnamese words denoting the face not share the same referent Ex: English: The ream climbed the North face of the mountain (English-Vietnamese Dictionary, 1993: 584) In this case, the face of the mountain here is one side of the mountain To convey this meaning, in Vietnamese, we can use the words “sườn núi” or “lưng núi” (this will be discussed in the part discussing use of the world “back” and “lưng”) The basis for this will be discussed just below Addition to that association, in position, the face is situated on the from side which is considered the main side of the head so it also has similar position to many things in the world For example, it is possible to say as in the following examples Ex: English: There is a crack on the face of the clock, Vietnamese: Có vết nứt mặt đồng hồ (English-Vietnamese Dictionary, 1993: 584) The face of the clock here refers to the front part of the clock that shows the time So both English and Vietnamese share this feature Moreover, the face is on the head, that is, it is on the top of the human body, so it is also used to refer to part at the top of many things Ex: English: They disapperared from the face of the earth, Vietnamese: Chúng biến khỏi mặt đất (English-Vietnamese Dictionary, 1993: 584) The face of the earth here is the top level of the earth on which we are living Another important aspect in the metaphorical use of the words denoting the face in two languages is that both languages make use the words to denote abstract meanings As the face is the expression of our mood or feeling and through the face, we can possibly know what people think or how they feel So it is metaphorically used to refer to the general appearance of something Ex: English: Developments that have changed the face of the society (Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, 1995: 431) The face of the society here refers to the aspect or appearance of the society through which we can possibly see its internal characteristics In Vietnamese, it is possible to say “bộ mặt xã hội” to imply the similar meaning This meaning is also common in both languages Furthermore, as mentioned, the face is one side of the head so it is used in abstract meaning to denote aspects of something Ex: English: The many faces of criminal activity (Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, 1995: 413) In the above example, the word “faces” here refers to different aspects of the activity In Vietnamese, it is possible to say: “Nhiều mặt hành động phạm tội” Moreover, the face, as one side of the head, is often constrasted with the back side of the head Thus, the word “face” is also metaphorically used to refer to one of the two sides or aspects of the thing Ex: English: … the acceptable face of Soviet foreign policy (Alice Deignan: 7) The acceptable face of the policy here is one aspect in contrast with the other aspect that is the unacceptable face In Vietnamese, the word “mặt” is also used in a similar way Ex: Vietnamese: Mặt trái lối viết Thuần liệu có dẫn đến nguy “cưa sừng làm nghé không? Nhà văn Hồ Anh Thái gọi bạn “Hồng Tử Bé” văn chương tuổi học trị.” (Thể thao văn hóa, 16/7/2004) In this sentence, the word “mặt trái” that means the negative side is contrasted with the positive side of the writing style of the writer Basing on what has been mentioned, there are many similarities in the metaphorical use of the words denoting the face in English and Vietnamese 2.2.3 Metaphors relating to “eye” in English and “mắt” in Vietnamese It is also possible to find some common features in the metaphorical use of the words denoting eyes in the two languages First of all, as our eyes are round and small in shape, in both in English and Vietnamese, the words “eye” and “mắt” refer to the rounded and small spot on a potato from which a new plant can grow Ex: English: Eye of the potato, Vietnamese: Mắt khoai tây (English-Vietnamese Dictionary, 1993: 581) In addition to this, in Vietnamese, the word “mắt” is used to refer to many small and rounded-shaped things on the peel of many kinds of fruit and things But in English, the word “eye” is not used in these cases, for example, “mắt nai, mắt dứa, mắt võng, mắt lưới, mắt rổ, mắt xích, …etc” However, the word “eye” in English is figuratively used to refer to the eye-shaped spots on the tail of the peacock Ex: English: Eye of the peacock’s tail (Vocabulary, 26) Moreover, the word “eye” is also used to denote the eye-shaped pieace of mental used together with a hook for fastening clothes Ex: English: Hook and eye of the dress (Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dict, 1995: 410) Secondly, on the basis of the quality of quietness and peacefulness when we see into a person’s eyes and the central position when we see around, in both English and Vietnamese, the words “eye” and “mắt” both figuratively refer to the calm centre of the storm or cyclone Ex: English: Eye of the storm, Vietnamese: Mắt bão (English-Vietnamese Dictionary, 1993: 581) Similarly, on the basis of the central position of the eyes when we see around, the word “eye” in English also refers to the centre or point from which the wind blows Ex: English: Eye of the wind (English-Vietnamese Dictionary, 1993: 581) There is a very interesting thing when English people use the word “eye” metaphorically basing on its function When we open our eyes and see, the world around us is bright and clear Similaryly, when the sun rises and opens on the day, the world is also bright So English people calls the sun “the eye of the day” in a figurative meaning In addition, as our eyes function as organs of sight used to see or to observe, English people also call the private spy, who has function of observing others secretly to get information, the private eye However, Vietnamese does not share these interesting features with English Hence, unlike the metaphorical use of the words denoting the face, there are many distinguished features of English in the use of the word “eye” in comparison with the word “mắt” in Vietnamese Basing on what has been discussed in this part, it is possible now to have a full or at least very clear view on the basic metaphors relating to upper parts of human body in English and Vietnamese It can also be seen that there exist both similarities and differences in the metaphorical use of the words denoting parts of human body in two languages This reflects the way English and Vietnamese people view the world and relate parts of their body to name things in the world as well as their habit of using the language the posses 3 Conclusion On the whole, the findings about the similarities and differences in the metaphors relating to parts of human body has clearly shown the common and distinguished features in the way in which English and Vietnamese people think and view the world surrounding them In both nations, people all understand parts of their body well in shape, position, function, etc and then relate these features to the features things in the world to name them by using the names of parts of the body However, the specific cases they use a certain word about a part of human body to denote things are not always the same as they think and view the world differently Additionally, people in each nation have their own way and habit of using the language creatively so this leads to the differences in the metaphors in the two languages For these reasons, the existence of similarities and differences in the metaphors relating of parts of human body in English and Vietnamese are reasonable and understandable Also, it can be inferred that metaphors relating to parts of human body are a very productive means of creating new meanings that enrich the vocabulary both languages The interesting thing is that so many parts of human body and parts of things in the world can share the same names This inspires a Vietnamese linguist, Dr Nguyễn Văn Chiến, to state that: “Metaphor is one kind of personification” because everything in the world is not viewed in isolation but in the association with human beings That is, things in the world are always seen in the assoiative eye of the human beings References Quang, Vo Dai (2003) Semantics Vietnam National University, College of Foreign Languages Crowther J (1995) Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary Oxford University press Hoa, Nguyen (1998) An introduction to Semantics Vietnam National University, College of Foreign Languages Alice Deignan (unknown year) English Guides Metaphor Collins Cobuil Hồ Hải Thụy, Chu Khắc Thuật, Cao Xuân Phổ (1993) English-Vietnamese Dictionary Nhà xuất TP Hồ Chí Minh Hoàng Phê (2003) Từ điển Tiếng Việt Nhà xuất Đà Nẵng McCarthy M (1995) Vocabulary Oxford University Press ... illustrations in the following parts 2.2 Metaphors relating to parts of human body in English and Vietnamese First of all, it is necessary to recall the metaphors are an integral part of language and thought... thought and metaphors relating to partsof human body are a good example for this These metaphors can reflect how people think and reason about things in the world and how they are related to parts of. .. leads to the differences in the metaphors in the two languages For these reasons, the existence of similarities and differences in the metaphors relating of parts of human body in English and Vietnamese