1、中西文化差异中西文化差异ppt As a part of culture,language is the carrier,the accumulation,and reflection of culture in the mean time.Language and the cultural information it contained show people the nations culture background.It can well be perceived by the comparative study of the Animal Signs cultural connot
2、ation in Chinese and English.Same animal words,different connotations in Chinese and English CulturesSince Chinese and English focus on different aspects of the characteristics of the animal,the connotations of animal words in the two cultures are not always the same.In another words,sometimes the m
3、eanings are quite different.In China,there are many folks about how the mouse became the leader of the Twelve Animal Signs.The most popular folk is that the God held a running race and the one who first reached the finishing line would be the leader.On the way,the mouse persuaded the ox to let him o
4、n its back by tricks.When the ox was about to reach the finishing line,the mouse slid from the oxs nose and he became the winner.老鼠过街，人人喊打 When a rat runs across the street everybody cries,kill it!From the folk,we can see how shrewd the mouse is in human beings mind.On the other hand,mouse lives in
5、obscure corner to secretly eat peoples food.So the word mouse is always associated with derogatory sense,such as timid,suspicious,and narrow-minded.In English,the word mouse doesnt have so many negative meanings as the Chinese character 鼠does.At the very beginning,it was the symbol of timid and weak
6、ness,which has the same cultural connotation with that in Chinese.In modern cartoon films,mouse is the brave fighter to defeat the cat.Therefore,the mouse now shares the image of bravery,smart,loveliness,such as Mickey Mouse in Mickey and Donald Duck,Jerry in Tom and Jerry,and Stuart Little.Dragon s
7、hares the image of authority and inviolability in Chinese culture.In feudal society,the emperors always declared themselves to be the sons of dragons.All the things they used were with the designs of dragons and were named with dragon。But to the westerners,associations with dragon are all negative.I
8、t is the personification of monster that has awful appearance.It is said that the dragon is a huge lizard which have wings and squamae,and it can breathe out fire.Dragon is the symbol of vileness in that it may do harm to the people by burning and deluging peoples houses as well as eating people and
9、 other animals.To most Chinese,dog is considered as an unpleasant animal that has derogatory connotation.No Chinese would like to be called a dog.So when to admire someone the expression you are a lucky dog should be changed into you are so lucky.狗咬吕洞宾,不识好人心Dont bite the hand that feeds you 狗头军师inep
10、t adviser 狗急跳墙even a worm will turn A man driven to desperation can do anything However,dogs are differently treated in English-speaking countries.They are mans best friends,In English family,dog is regarded as a family member that has its own kennel,food,grave and so on.Love me,love my dog.爱屋及乌Ever
11、y dog has his day.凡人皆有得意日love me love my dog爱屋及乌clever dog 聪明的人like a dog with two tails 无比高兴lucky dog 幸运儿 bull dog 硬汉子top dog 优胜者 lucky dog 幸运儿 Language reflects culture,and the similarity of language is determined by general character of culture.We Chinese people and westerners live in the same gl
12、obe,and we must have,more or less,something in common,such as geography,attitudes towards natural phenomenon,even feelings towards some animals,so we have similar associations of some animals with the westerners.According to Chinese legend,in the contest which decided the sequence of the twelve anim
13、als in the Twelve Animal Signs,the pig ended up last because of its laziness.Pig is regarded as a dirty,ugly,lazy,greedy and clumsy animal in Chinese eyes.Zhu Bajie,who is a famous pig image in Journey to the West puts these characteristics into full play.Also,Zhu Bajie is always used to derogate pe
14、rson who is eager to eat.pig-headed刚愎自用 to be a pig about something 贪婪to make a pig of oneself 大吃大喝to teach a pig to play on a flute 对牛弹琴 ox is considered as hard-working animal to the Chinese.Phrases contained ox have positive associations,such as老黄牛，猛牛，壮牛.In China,people are willing to compare the
15、mselves to 牛,just as LuXun said“俯首甘为孺子牛”.In westerners mind,the horse is a symbol of strength and stamina,which is just like牛 in Chinese.Therefore,in some cases,the word牛in Chinese are usually translated to horse in English.talk horse吹牛 horse power力大如牛 work like a horse像牛一样踏实肯干You can pull a horse to a river,but you cannot make him drink.牛不喝水强按头
