A Comparison Study of English and Chinese Animal Idioms and Three Core Cultural Values (Take 12 Chinese Signs as Examples)

• Main Authors: Wan-wen Liao, 廖婉彣
• Other Authors: Ho-fang Yu
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2011
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/84669301827916226943

碩士 === 南華大學 === 歐洲研究所 === 99 === 　　During the developing process of human history, “language” is the symbolized and delivering tool animated by human beings who express perceptions or feelings of local subjects and matters through individual communications. 　 　　Among all language forms, animal idioms are vivid, interesting, and significant ones. They include abundant human thoughts, contain cultural values, represent interdependences between human and animals, and carry essentially historical meanings which are renewed, combined, maintained, and lasted through human interactions and generation changes in the elapsing time and historic progress. 　 　　Thus, “Animal Idiom”, “Human Thought”, and “Culture” are inseparable while a great diversity of animal idioms is caused by multicultural backgrounds, distinctive folk activities, varied manners and customs, plentiful point of views, and distinct religious beliefs. 　 　　To absorb and comprehend the connotations from animal idioms, one of the objective ways is to collect different animal idioms, trace historically related records and documents, and make them into comparisons. Hence, with curiosities and a thirst for knowledge, the author intends to explore and analyze distinctions and similarities between English and Chinese animal idioms by representatively taking 12 Chinese signs as examples for briefly demonstrating three cultural core values defined by the author.