Vinh university Foreign language department ***** NGUYễN thị hảo English metaphoric expressions based on names of animals (Các lối diễn đạt ẩn dụ tiếng Anh dựa tên loài vật) Graduation thesis Field: Semantics Vinh, May 2008 Acknowledgements This study would not have been in form without the help from my teachers, my parents and my friends I wish, first of all, to express my deep gratitude to M.A Ngun ThÞ Kim Anh, my supervisor, who gave me valuable advice, guidance and suggestions in the process of my writing Her advice and inspiration encourage me lot I would also like to acknowledge my special thanks to all the teachers of Foreign Languages Department for their comprehensive lessons as well as their encouragement Finally, I am very grateful to my parents and my friends who are always by my side in order to help and courage me VINH, MAY 2008 Nguyen Thi Hao Table of contents Page Acnowledgements i Table of contents ii Part A : Introduction 1 Rationale Aims of the study Scope of the study Methods of the study Organization of the sudy Part B : Development Chapter : Theoretical background 1.1 Word 1.2 Word meaning 1.3 Semantic change 1.4 The use of word Chapter II : Metaphor 10 2.1 The general view of metaphor 10 2.2 Characteristics 12 2.2.1 Metaphor is implicitly of the form “ X is like Y” in respect of Z” 12 2.2.2 An association may be built not only between two physical objects but also between a concrete object and an abstract one 12 2.2.3 The association with the original meaning considerably weakened and is gradually erased 13 2.2.4 In general, metaphorical change of meaning is often observed in idiomatic compounds 13 2.2.5 Metaphors are frequently found in the informal strata of the vocabulary, especially in slang 13 2.3 Classification of metaphors 13 2.3.1 According to the types of similarity 13 2.3.1.1 Shape 13 2.3.1.2 Position 14 2.3.1.3 Function 14 2.3.1.4 Movement 14 2.3.1.5 Size 15 2.3.1.6 Behaviour or characters 15 2.3.1.7 Colour 15 2.3.1.8 Duration of time and space 16 2.3.1.9 Climate 16 2.3.2 According to time 16 2.3.2.1 Living metaphor 16 2.3.2.2 Faded (trite) metaphor 17 2.3.2.3 Dead metaphor 17 2.3.3 According to parts of speech 18 2.3.3.1 Noun 18 2.3.3.2 Ajective 18 2.3.3.3 Verb 18 2.3.4 According to the types of names 19 2.3.4.1 The names of the parts of human body are a great source for metaphor 19 2.3.4.2 The names of animals are also widely used as metaphors 19 2.3.4.3 A number of proper names are used as metaphors 19 2.3.4.4 The concrete is transferred to the abstract 19 2.4 Distinction between metaphor and simile 20 2.4.1 Similarities 20 2.4.2 Differences 20 2.5 Distinction between metaphor and metonymy 22 2.5.1 Similarities 22 2.5.2 Differences 22 2.6 A brief comparison of Polysemy, Metonymy and Metaphor 23 2.7 Difference between Metaphor and idiom 24 2.8 Summary 24 Chapter III : A study on the English metaphoric expressions based on names of animals 25 3.1 Introduction 25 3.2 Syntactic features 26 3.2.1 Nouns 26 3.2.2 Adjectives 27 3.2.3 Verbs 28 3.2.4 Adverbs 29 3.3 Semantic features 29 3.3.1 Names of animals which are used metaphorically vary from general words for animals to particular kinds of animals 29 3.3.2 Metaphoric expressions based on names of animals are formed on the basis of the similarity between animals and people or phenomena 29 3.3.2.1 In terms of behaviour 29 3.3.2.2 In terms of movement 31 3.3.2.3 In terms of colour 31 3.3.2.4 In terms of shape 32 3.3.2.5 In terms of size 32 3.3.2.6 In terms of time relation 32 3.4 Usage of the metaphoric expressions based on names of Animals 33 3.4.1 In informal language 33 3.4.1.1 A general view 33 3.4.1.2 Idiomatic use 35 3.4.1.3 Use in slang 37 3.4.2 In formal language 38 3.4.2.1 In journalism language 38 3.4.2.2 In literary language 38 3.5 Function of the metaphoric expressions based on names of Animals 39 3.5.1 Language extending function 39 3.5.2 Attitudinal function 39 3.5.3 Emphatic function 41 3.5.4 Actualizing function 42 3.6 Summary 43 Chapter IV : Some suggessions for translating English metaphor based on names of animals into Vietnamese equivalents 44 4.1 Some difficulties in translation 44 4.1.1 Some changes in translation 45 4.1.2 The rhetorical change from English metaphors into Vietnamese simile 45 4.1.3 The translation of English metaphoric verbs based on names of animals into Vietnamese equivalents 45 4.1.4 Some changes in usage 45 4.1.5 Different names of animals used to refer to the same things in English and Vietnamese 46 4.2 Some suggestions for the translation 46 4.3 Some suggested samples of exercises 47 Part C : Conclusion 51 Reference 53 Appendix Part A Introduction Rationale There are many aspects of language that one might be interested in One might study how it is acquired, how it reflects the nature of society, or how it is used in literature or in propaganda of various kinds “English metaphoric expressions based on names of animals” has been chosen for the study for the following reasons Firstly, metaphoric expressions play an important role in a language both in written and spoken forms They are an important part of a language Using metaphoric expressions in communication is the most effective and interesting way because they contain not only the literal meanings but the figurative and expressive meanings as well They make the language more beautiful and more dynamic Secondly, metaphoric expressions give us many difficulties in communication The listeners and readers also find it really hard to understand metaphoric images because their meanings can not often be deduced from the individual components They often fail to use correctly English metaphor, fail to insightfully understand it It makes Vietnamese learners confused and embarrassed, for it combines normal existing words in a new sense, and brings forth new expressions English metaphoric expressions are figurative expressions with quite different meanings Thirdly, metaphor is a very interesting but difficult topic Metaphoric expressions are the most effective devices in literary works The more fluently and accurately Vietnamese learners can use metaphors, the more successfully they can deal with the language of Shakespeare Knowing and understanding metaphor is an important step to master this language Metaphor is also used a lot in idioms Each language has its own idioms Moreover, idioms reflect distinctive features of each language, so they can be the bridge linking the souls of different nations Thus, it opens doors to friendly feelings on the part of both native and non-native speakers, which leads to global mutual understanding in cultures, customs, tradition and behaviors as well Lastly, the reason why this subject is chosen for the study is derived from our own interest We would like to take the names of animals as the source of metaphoric expressions because it is thought that animals are quite familiar with human beings Some animals we have good relationship with, but some kinds of them we have to keep ourselves away from because they are very dangerous and some animals themselves keep away from us However, basing on the name of any animal, people can imagine its image as well as its behaviors in their minds Thus, the names of animals are used metaphorically quite often and naturally The above reasons have inspired us to choose the subject entitled “English metaphoric expressions based on names of animals” Aims of the study The study aims at giving a basic knowledge of words, metaphors as well as specific analysis of English metaphoric expressions based on names of animals and to some extent, explaining how language is enriched The first aim of the study is to help English learners improve their knowledge of English metaphor in general, also English metaphoric expressions based on names of animals in particular The second aim is to help the teaching and learning of metaphor Teachers will have some techniques to teach Learners will have some suggested exercises to practice and learn The last aim is to satisfy the author’s interest in metaphor We have done the study with our great pleasure, therefore we would like to share our interest with all those who are also attracted by this term Scope of the study The study only focuses on English metaphoric expressions based on names of animals Through this small study, readers are given much valuable knowledge on very interesting angle of metaphor, also can encounter many problems with metaphor Therefore, the investigated issues in relation to the graduation paper are as follows: - Presenting some theoretical backgrounds on semantics and its transference - Describing and analyzing the metaphor as one kind of semantic transference with the particular focuses on English metaphoric expressions based on names of animals The scope of the investigation is limited to only some names of animals that are used commonly - Drawing out some difficulties that Vietnamese learners of English are facing; particularly, difficulties in translating the English metaphoric expressions into the Vietnamese equivalents - Giving some suggestions on how to overcome the difficulties Methods of the study In order to gain the given aims, the study is based on the two main methods: descriptive based method; analytical and systematic methods Also, some additional methods that are used in each step of the study are: - Searching, reading and reviewing books, materials and references ralated to the study on the process of studying - Collecting metaphors referring to names of animals in English and Vietnamese - Classifying metaphors according to their semantic features using systematic method - Drawing out similarities and differences - Suggesting a number of exercises Organization of the study The study consists of three main parts: Introduction presents the rationale, aims, scope, methods and organization of the study Development reviews the literature on semantics and its transferences Chapter Theoretical background Chapter The metaphor Chapter A study on the English metaphoric expressions based on names of animals Chapter Some suggestions for translating English metaphoric expressions based on names of animals into Vietnamese equivalents Conclusion provides a brief summary of the study and some suggestions for further research References Appendix Part B Development Chapter Theoretical background It is surprising to note that the present English vocabulary consists of over 600,000 words, which in old English period, was composed of only 30,000 words As being said, language develops parallel with the evolution of humankind The vocabulary of a language is always in a state of constant development Almost every new object or phenomenon in human society and activity, as soon as it appears, finds its place in the vocabulary As human society develops, a great many new words are needed to express new ideas, new conceptions and new wants Vocabulary is the most flexible part of language, so it can serve as a mirror of the change of language in human beings The development of vocabulary is first of all reflected in the development of semantic structure of the words New words or new meanings of old words appear, some old words and meanings drop out of the language and coexist with the new ones Some words that exprienced a period of changing meaning seem to coincide with some others already in use in a meaning and as a result, they form synonyms of each other Thus, the English word, its structure, formation, meaning and history have become the subject matter of the linguistic science called lexicology (Hoang Tat Truong, Basic English lexicology, 1993, p.2) Semantics or semasiology is considered one of five essential branches of lexicology According to Hoang Tat Truong (1993, p.2-4), semantics focuses on the meaning of the words (the lexical meaning) because the grammatical meaning is studied in grammar From the characteristics of semantics, we can see that words and meanings of words play an important role in language study 1.1 Word Words are very ambiguous, difficult entities to be defined It is significant that many scholars have attempted to define the word as a linguistic 10 - Metaphoric expressions based on proper names Although the study is implemented with much effort, errors are unvoidable Thus, we would be grateful to receive any suggestions and comments as well as advices from all of you to improve this study 57 REFERENCES In English Antrushina, G.B., Afanasyeva, O.V.,& Morozova, N.N (1985) English Lexicology Moscow: Vyssaja Skola Arnold, I.V (1986) The English Word Moscow: Moscow Press A.S Hornby (1995) Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary Oxford University Press B¸, VÜnh (1999) English-Vietnamese Idioms Dictionary NXB Gi¸o Dơc Bertram, A (1997) Prowl of cherries and other delicious sayings USA: NTC Publishing Group Cowie, A.P, Markin, K & McCaig, I.R (1993) Oxford Dictionary of Current Idiomatic English Vol.2 Oxford University Press David Burke (2001) How to speak & understand American Slang Hå ChÝ Minh: Hå ChÝ Minh Press David Crystal Encyclopaedia of language Deignan, A (1999) English Guides Metaphor Hå ChÝ Minh: Hå ChÝ Minh City Press 10 Fass, Dan (1988) “Metonymy and metaphor: What’s the difference?” Morristown, NJ, USA: Association for Computational Linguistics Retrieved on 20 August 2006 11 Haliday, M.A.K (1994) An Introduction to Functional Grammar London: Oxford University Press 12 Hoà, Nguyễn (2004) Understanding English Semantics NXB Đại Học Quốc Gia Hà Nội 13 Hùng, Nguyễn Mạnh (2000) English Lexicology NXB Gi¸o Dơc 14 Hurford, J.R (2001) Semantics - A Course Book Cambridge.Cup 15 Jacson, H (2002) Lexicology London and New York Press 16 Jones, P.W Test Your English Idioms Hå ChÝ Minh: The Youth Publisher Press 58 17 Kim, Nguyễn Bá (1999) Oxford Pocket English Idioms Hà Nội: Hµ Néi Press 18 Kopp, B.M Using Metaphor In Creative Writing, from the website: www.Google/Metaphor.com 19 Mednikova, E.M (1978) Seminars in English Lexicology Moscow: Vyssaja Skola 20 Mordie, MC.W (1988) English Idioms and How to Use them Oxford University Press 21 Murphy, M.T (1987) Test Yourself In English Idioms Penguin English 22 O’Dell, M.Mc.F (2004) English Idioms In Use Hå ChÝ Minh: Hå ChÝ Minh City Press 23 Palmer, F.R (1971) Semantics Cambridge University Press 24 Phông, Bïi (1995) Dictionary of Vietnamese-English Idioms And Proverbs Explained NXB Khoa Häc X· Héi Hµ Néi 25 Reeves, G (1969) Idioms In Action Newbury House Publishers 26 Seidl, J & McMordie, W (1988) English Idioms Oxford University Press 27 Sinclair, J & Hanks, P (1990) English Language Dictionary Collins, Lon Don Gasgow 28 Thµnh, L· (1995) Dictionary of Current English-Vietnamese Idioms NXB Khoa Häc Kü ThuËt 29 Tr-êng, Hoµng TÊt (1993) Basic English Lexicology.NXB Tr-ờng Đại Học S- Phạm Ngoại Ngữ Hà Nội 59 In Vietnamese Ch-ơng, Việt (1996) Từ Điển Thành Ngữ, Tục Ngữ, Ca Dao Việt Nam NXB Đồng Nai Đang, L-ơng Văn & Lực, Nguyễn (1993) Thành ngữ tiÕng ViƯt NXB Khoa Häc X· Héi Hµ Néi Hành, Hoàng Văn.(1994) Kể chuyện thành ngữ, tục ngữ tiếng ViƯt NXB Khoa Häc X· Héi L©n, Ngun (1994) Từ điển tục ngữ Việt Nam NXB Khoa Học XÃ Hội Quế, Phan Văn (1996) Ngữ nghĩa thành ngữ, tục ngữ có thành tố động vật tiÕng Anh NXB Hµ Néi Websites http://www.metaphors.com http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/metaphor www.askjeeves/idioms.com http://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/metaphor http://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog/JAKONL.html?show=catalogcopy http://sil.org/linguistics/glossaryoflinguisticterms/ 60 APPENDIX No Animal metaphors Animal Animal Meaning One who is extremely aggressive sexually passions / A strong sexual feelings Animal instincts Antsy Restless Ape A person who imitiate another or something clumsily Ass Fool Batty Be crazy Have bats in one’s Be crazy belfry Bear A rude person A bear garden A noisy and crowded place 10 Bearish(in economics) People are uncertain about future prices, so they are more likely to sell shares than to buy them 11 Beastly unpleasant 12 Beaver (vulgar) Vagina 13 Bird Woman or girl 14 Like a bird Easy, not very difficult 15 Little bird Nameless informant 16 To fly a bird Do not interfere one’s business 17 An early bird Someone who starts work earlier than others 18 Bird legs Very thin legs 19 Bird of passage Person who travels habitually 20 Bird of ill/ omen Someone who brings bad news 61 21 A bird’s eye view General view from above 22 A rare bird Someone or something of a kind that one seldom sees 23 A queer bird Strange person 24 To be for the birds Said of anything inferior or of an absurd situation (doesn’t work) 25 The birds and the bees The basic information about sex and reproduction 26 Bitch 1.Person who is behaving aggressively or unpleasantly (esp, about a woman) A situation which people find very unpleasant and offensive 27 Buck (extremely Dollar popular) 28 Buck up To cheer up 29 Buffalo To trick 30 Buffaloed Tricked 31 Bug Virus, cold To annoy 32 As snug as a bug in a Extremely comfortable rug 33 Work out all the bugs To remedy all the problem 34 Dumb bunny Stupid person 35 Ski bunny Woman or girl who wears the latest fashion when going skiing 36 Bullish(in economics) People feel optimistic about future prices, so they want to buy shares 37 Bull shit (vulgar yet Nonsense extremely popular) 38 Bull-headed Stubborn 62 39 A bull in china shop A clumsy person 40 A social butterfly Someone who never has a stable job or activity 41 As gaudy as butterfly Gaudy and colorful 42 (Have) get butterfly in Feel physical discomfort in one’s stomach one’s stomach beacause of nervousness 43 Calf A young man 44 Cat Spiteful/ malicious woman 45 A bag of cats A bad-tempered person (Irish informal language) 46 Cat call A whistle targeted toward a pretty woman or girl indicating excitement about her beauty 47 Catnap A shot nap 48 Copy cat One who emulates another person’s actions 49 Pussy cat Term of endearment such as “honey, sweetheart, darling, etc.” 50 Scaredy cat To be a coward 51 An old cat Someone who is very wise and cunning 52 A wild cat Something that is not careful or risky 53 A fat cat Powerful capitalist 54 Rain cats and dogs Rain very hard 55 Let the cat out of the Reveal the secret by accident bag 56 Play cat and mouse To keep someone in suspense and game -ith someone 57 uncertainly, play ith one’s feeling Be like a cat that stole Look very pleased with or proud of the cream 58 Chick Human female, usually between the ages 63 of 16 and 25, i.e., old enough to date and nubile (This term is offensive to Canada women, but NOT offensive to American women) To lose one’s courage 59 To chicken out 60 Chicken shit (vulgar Coward yet popular) Petty, small 61 Chicken Scared/frightened person 62 Spring chicken youthful 63 A chicken and egg Situation in which it’s not obvious to say situation that something is superior or inferior 64 Clam Dollar 65 To clam up To keep quiet 66 Cock Penis (I include this because there are some non-native English speakers who’ve pronounced Coke as Cock, and it was very embarrassing) 67 Cow Reasonably fat people 68 Till the cows come A very long time home 69 Holy cow! Denoting surprise and amazement 70 Bend (turn) the crab Fail 71 Stone the crows An expression of surprise, dismay 72 To eat crow Someone who suffers humiliation 73 Cuckoo Be crazy 74 Blue devils Disappointment, gloomy 75 Dodo Dummy/ idiot 76 Dog (more dog Bad man, ugly woman metaphors) 77 Yellow dog cowardly 64 78 Black dog To be in the sulks 79 Dogged Someone who is very persistent and refuse to give up even when there are a lot of oppositions An unpleasant thing which affects someone over a long period of time 80 Dog-eat-dog A situation that there is a cruel competion among persons involved 81 Dog-tired To be really tired 82 Gay dog A lively person 83 A dog’s breakfast / A mess, a thing done badly dinner Out of one’s good graces 84 In the doghouse 85 Go home and kick the Relieve one’s stress or anger, by hurting dog an innocent party 86 Let sleeping dogs lie Let bygones be bygones 87 Dog one’s trail To follow (sb) 88 Top dog Best person (at doing sth) 89 Underdog The weaker party in a competition 90 A sad dog Useless person 91 A lame dog Business/person that is going to fail 92 Dog days The hottest days of the summer 93 Dog-eared pages Pages with one corner folded down 94 Dog gone it! God damn it! 95 The tail wagging the Situations in which a small part controls dog or decides the developement of whole thing 96 Donkey A foolish person 97 Duck Stick your head down like a duck fishing in a pond/lake 65 98 Dead duck Certain to get into trouble or reprimanded 99 Sitting duck Vulnerable to attack 100 Bottom dweller Scavenger, freeloader 101 Eagle eyes Name given someone who is very alert 102 A fly in the ointment A difficult or something unpleasant which prevents or spoils total satisfaction or enjoyment 103 A fly on the wheel Someone who feels himself the most important person 104 Not harm/hurt a fly A person who is especially gentle and good - natured 105 White elephant A very costly possession that is worthless to it owner and only a cause of trouble 106 Elephantine A large and clumsy person 107 Ferret To search busily for something in an enthusiastic but not in organized way 108 Fishy Suspicious 109 A big fish A very important person 110 A pretty kettle of fish Situation in which one feels embarrassed and does not know what he should 111 To teach fish to swim Do something that is not necssary 112 Fox A beautiful woman A cunning person 113 Foxy Sexy/beautiful 114 Old goat A lecherous old man 115 Scapegoat An object of (unfounded) blame 116 Play the goat Behaving in a silly way 117 Silly goose (used fool affectionately) 118 Goose egg Zero mark, nothing 66 119 A wild goose chase A search, investigation that has no chance to succeed 120 Hare off To move as quickly as posible 121 Ham A show-off 122 Hen-pecked A man who lets himself be completely dominated by his wife 123 Hog Greedy person 124 To hog something To take over something To behave in a greedy or impolite way 125 Hogwash Nonsense 126 Hoggish Greedy 127 Road hog A driver who dominates the road 128 Charley horse A cramp in one’s leg 129 A one horse town The town that is sad, has no important event 130 A willing horse A person that works cheerfully 131 Horse around To play in a foolish way (esp, about children and teenagers) 132 Disnosaur (derogatory) Very old person 133 Horse around To prance and joke 134 Horse’s ass (vulgar) Fool 135 Horse shit! (exclaim- Nonsense! vulgar) 136 Horsefeathers! Nonsense! (exclaim) 137 Kid Human child 138 Lion A brave man 139 Lionhearted Generous 140 Lion’s share The largest and the best part 141 Yellow-bellied lizard Coward 67 142 Monkey A ill-mannered person 143 Monkey business Dishonest, fraudulent behavior 144 Grease monkey A mechanic 145 Monkey around To prance and joke 146 Monkey suit Tuxedo 147 Monkey’s uncle An expression of astonishment 148 Mouse Timid, shy 149 Mousy Shy and reserved Grayish 150 Moose Big, athletic person (usually male) 151 Mule A person who is paid to transport illegal drug or a dealer 152 Owl Night person 153 Wise owl A very knowing and perceptive individual 154 Pet A theory or subject which someone strongly believes in and supports 155 Pet project A project that is interested in 156 Pig Dirty person/greedy person (Bristish) 157 Pig out To eat a lot (not good for health) 158 Pigheaded Stubborn 159 Pigeon One who is easily swindled 160 Pigeonhole To categorize or group 161 Stool pigeon An informant 162 Rabbit ears antenna 163 Dirty rat A contemptible person 164 Rat A contemptible person Tattler/cheat (usually for men) 165 Rat fink A contemptible person 166 Rat race Daily work routine 167 To rat To report someone to the authorities 68 168 Shark Hustler 169 Sheepish Embarassed 170 Shrew Nagger, complainer (esp, about a woman) 171 Shrewish A spiteful, aggressive and bad-tempered woman 172 Shrimp Small person 173 Skunk Disliked person 174 Snail Physicall slow person 175 Snail’s pace Very slow pace 176 Snake/ serpent Cunning person 177 Squirrelly Untrustworthy 178 Tiger Aggressive person (good meaning) 179 Turkey Dummy/ idiot 180 Turtle Physically slow person 181 Urchin Trouble-maker (esp, used for children) 182 Weasel Avoider 183 Weasel out of (doing Use cunning to avoid some responsibility something) 184 Weasel words Using hidden expressions to someone 185 Whale A very fat person A clever person 186 Whale of An extraordinary 187 Wolf Aggressive person (bad meaning) 188 Wolf down To eat something in a hurry 189 Worm Lowest, most-hated person 190 Bookworm Person who likes to read a lot 69 trick 70 71 ... Chapter A study on the English metaphoric expressions based on names of animals Chapter Some suggestions for translating English metaphoric expressions based on names of animals into Vietnamese equivalents... the particular focuses on English metaphoric expressions based on names of animals The scope of the investigation is limited to only some names of animals that are used commonly - Drawing out some... 3.3.1 Names of animals which are used metaphorically vary from general words for animals to particular kinds of animals 29 3.3.2 Metaphoric expressions based on names of animals are formed on