Contents
Acknowledgements …….…….…….…….…….…….…….…….…. Abstract …….…….…….…….…….…….…….…….…………. … 摘要………………………………………………………………………………. 1. Introduction……………………………………………………….. 2. The general view of colour terms in English and Chinese ……...
2.1 Colour terms with cognition in English and Chinese…………………….. 2.2 Colour terms with culture in English and Chinese…………………………
i ii iii
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3. Semantic equivalence of red in English and Chinese…………….
3.1 Exact equivalence…………………………………………………………. 3.2 Partial equivalence………………………………………………………... 3.3 No equivalence…………………………………………………………….
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4. Reasons for the semantic similarities and differences of red in 11 English and Chinese………………………………………………….
4.1 Reasons for the semantic similarities of red in English and Chinese……..
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4.2 Reasons for the semantic differences of red in English and Chinese……… 13
4.2.1 Difference in aesthetic habit……………………………….………… 14 4.2.2 Difference in historical background….…………………….………...
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5. Conclusion ……………………………....................……………... 17 Bibliography …………………………………………………….…… 18
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1. Introduction
According to Geoffrey Leech (1981: 9), ―There are seven types of meanings: conceptual meaning, connotative meaning, social meaning, affective meaning, reflected meaning, collocative meaning, and thematic meaning.‖ And he combined connotative meaning, social meaning, affective meaning, reflected meaning, collocative meaning into ―associative meaning‖. So besides the literal meaning, colour words have affluent associative meanings. Different nations endow them with different cultural connotations. The comparative study of the sense of red in both English and Chinese will be a bridge for both English and Chinese learners to understand the similarities and disparities; otherwise, these disparities can cause ambiguity and lead to misunderstanding.
―Obviously, connotations are apt to vary from age to age and from society to society‖ (Ibid: 12). Compared with conceptual meaning, associative meaning is unstable because associations vary considerably according to culture, historical period, and the experience of individuals. So it is quite necessary to make a comparison between associative meaning of red in English and that in Chinese.
There have been a lot of studies about the meanings of different colours, the way to translate some phrases with colour terms, and the relationship between colour and culture. Many of them focus on several colours, and some focusing on one colour term only list lots of examples without comparing them in different languages, so it‘s meaningful to make a comparison between the sense of red in English and that in Chinese. If we know the similarities and differences in the sense between these two languages, we can learn the second language better, thus achieving the cross-culture communication.
The thesis is about to analyze some examples of red terms in both English and Chinese, try to find the similarities and dissimilarities between them in terms of
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semantics, and find out the factors that cause these semantic similarities and dissimilarities from the perspective of cognition and culture.
2. The general view of colour terms in English and Chinese
Colours are closely related to people‘s life. Colour is an important field from which people can recognize the world. Let us see the following example: (1)菩萨蛮·大柏地
赤橙黄绿青蓝紫，谁持彩练当空舞？ 雨后复斜阳，关山阵阵苍。
Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet.
Who is dancing, waving this coloured ribbon against the sky? The sun returns slanting after the rain.
And hill and pass grow a deeper blue. (包惠南 2003: 128)
In Example(1), Chairman Mao uses seven colour terms to describe the colours of a rainbow in the sky after a summer storm. They are identical with the seven colours that are used to describe the rainbow in English Encyclopedia.
Without colours, there will be no colourful life. Nature provides us with many beauties, such as the rising sun, the white moonlight, the blue sea, and the green wheat wave. They are all that we should cherish.
2.1 Colour terms with cognition in English and Chinese
Language has two meanings. One is its conceptual meaning while the other is its associative meaning. When we use colour terms to describe the colour of a certain subject, their conceptual meaning is applied. When we associate colour terms with abstract concepts, their associative meaning is applied. ―Theory of Semantic Feature-cancellation‖ (王寅 2001: 308) makes it possible for us to use words which are supposed to describe concrete things to express abstract concepts.
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Cognitive semantics views meanings as a mental phenomenon which is based on body experience. They are the result of interaction between human being and the real world. The process of the forming of meanings is the process of conceptualization. And the process of conceptualization is a cognitive one which is based on body experience. (Ibid: 181) The cognitive process is a very complex one. The cognition of colours is a visual cognitive process. All the visual information is carried to the cortex over the major visual pathway. The discussion of colour terms will take one on a journey from the eye to the cortex. One‘s brain serves as a colour processor.
The cognition of colours also involves one‘s subjectivity. Thus, one colour reflects not only objective feature but subjective feature as well. The subjective feature is usually formed through synesthesia, which means whether the colour makes you feel warm or feel cold.
As Geoffrey Leech (1981: 235-26) put it, ―The relative uniformity of colour semantics in different languages has much to do with the uniformity of the human apparatus of visual perception.‖ Whatever language a person speaks, he is apt to regard ―certain focal colour stimuli‖ as more important than others. Among many colours, red is the easiest to perceive.
2.2 Colour terms with culture in English and Chinese
―Culture is an integral whole which embraces knowledge, beliefs, moralities, laws, customs and other abilities and habits a man has acquired as a member of society.‖ (quoted in陶丽 2006: 17)
Language is a part of culture. Language is a mirror, in front of which culture is reflected. The difference of the ―inner content of the nation‖ (解海江and 章黎平 2004: 263) is a fundamental factor causing different understanding of cultural connotations of colours. People in different cultures may have totally different understanding of the associative meaning which the same colour conveys.
Cultural associative meaning is determined by one nation‘s custom, geography,
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and religion. The same colour may give rise to different association in one‘s mind. This is caused by cultural difference. The similarity is the result of cultural commensurability and mutual penetration of culture. In most cultures, red is related to enthusiasm and unrestraint. But there exist great differences in custom, geography, and religion between different nations. First, colour terms in Chinese embody feudal hierarchical culture. In many dynasties, certain colours were used by certain people. They represent different social status. Second, colour terms embody western religious culture. As the symbol of purity, white reveals the religious complex of the western people. So a bride in western countries wears a white dress instead of a red one. Third, a nation has a preference for certain colours. We Chinese people consider red as a beautiful colour. A good case in point is that we use 红颜 to describe a pretty girl. While red is not so popular among the English people, its positive meaning is used less than that in Chinese.
3. Semantic equivalence of red in English and Chinese
3.1 Exact equivalence
The view of the world is ―a culture‘s orientation toward God, humanity, nature, the universe, life, death, sickness, and other philosophical issues concerning existence‖ (quoted in陶丽 2006: 47). How one views the world will affect his perception toward the world---the process by which he attaches meanings to social events he encounters in his environment. It helps people interpret and evaluate what is right and wrong, what is good and bad, what to do and not to do, and so on.
That‘s the same in colour perception.
Both in China and English-speaking countries, red is usually associated with celebrations and joyful occasions. In China, people usually use red things to create happy atmosphere to a wedding, a birthday and important festivals. Red is prevalent on a traditional Chinese wedding. People stick red 喜喜 on windows and doors, use
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