The Similarity and Discrepancy between English Idioms and Chinese Idioms

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The Similarity and Discrepancy between English
Idioms and Chinese Idioms
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Reference Books

• 1.A Comparative Study of English and Chinese
  Idioms ??? ? ????????? 1999.6
• 2.???????????? ?? ? ??????? 2000?12?
• 3.?????? ??? ???????? 2005?7?
• 4.?????????????????? ??? ?????? 2008?1?
• 5.????????????? ??? ?????? 2006?11?
• 6.??????????? ?? ?????????? 2006?27?

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Introduction

• Without idioms, it may still be a long way before
  a language becomes the treasury of a culture or
  even a nation. Just as the distiled water is of
  purer quality, the distiled product of a
  language---idioms, are of finer features.
• In fact, idioms are by all means the
  crystallization of a language due to its long
  history and also, the telling demonstration of
  wisdom of a nation.
• Wisdom, as it is, takes many forms, so it is
  quite a good idea to discuss the similarity and
  discrepancy of the wisdom between English idioms
  and Chinese idioms.
• In terms of similarity, the article will deal
  with the beauty of language itself, contents,
  forms and the rhetoric devices. The discrepancy
  will be foucused on how culture has rendered
  distinctive features to idioms of this two
  nations.

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Similarity

• First, both the English and Chinese idioms are
  descriptive in their aim to convey meanings.
• For instances, in English idioms, there are
  drink like a fish, as busy as a bee, eat
  like a horse.
• In the same manner, Chinese idioms are also known
  for their hit-the-point magic. Some idioms go
  like ??????,????etc. These idioms, though in
  different language, do an excellent job in adding
  vivid images and stir further imagination from
  readers.

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• Senond, both the EC idioms reflect the very
  beauty of its language.
• Firstly, the use of alliteration is pervasive.
  E.g nothing venture, nothing have, in for a
  penny, in for a pound, as cool as cucumber
  ??,??etc.
• Its counterparts are also of frequent usage
  fair and square,A friend in need is a friend
  indeed, East and west, home is the best,
  wealth is better than health ??,??.
• Secondly, superposition?? is frequently emplyed.
  step by step, an eye for an eye and a tooth
  for a tooth ???,???etc.
• The idioms bearing the upper features sound more
  rththmic and feels much briefer, giving a full
  display of the beauty of both English and Chinese.

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Corresponding

• One gifted scholar once said that between two
  languages, generally, chances are against it that
  there is a equivalence of phrases and sentences,
  only a few exceptions. Idioms are just one of
  those One of the reasons to this are that huaman
  beings live on the same planet, confined to the
  same objective restrictions.
• E.g to strike while the iron is hot????
  Like father, like son??????? Birds of a
  feather flock together????,???? the onlookers
  see most of the games????.
• From these, it can be learned that there is a
  common bond in the sameness of the thoughts and
  emotions in human being of defferent parts in the
  world.

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Rhetoric Devices

• The rhetoric devices in EC idioms tell the same
  story and achieve the effecs all the same.
• personification. E.g a walking dictionary,
  riches serve a wise man but command a fool. ,
  walls have ears In chinese, there are ????,
  ????,????,etc.
• Contrast. E.g Art is long, Life is short, An
  optimist sees an opportunity in every calamity A
  pessimist sees a calamity in every opportunity.
  ????, ????. The use of contrast make the
  difference or opposition seem sharper and
  clearer.

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• Hyperbole. Idioms are rich in hyperbolic
  expressions full of emotional saturation which
  achieve the effect that is not real, yet better
  than reality. E.g Cowards die many times before
  their deaths, An unfortunate man would be
  drowned in a tea-cup. ??????? , ????.
• Rhetoric devices used in the idioms add lust to
  the beauty of language, besides, they reveal to
  us that as far as literature is concerned, there
  are no boundary in idioms from different nations.
  

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Discrepancy

• Language is a carrier of the culture in each
  nation. Fundamentally, the descrepancy between
  EC idioms is the result of cultural reasons.
• Chinese Culture emphasize on argriculture which
  has raised generation after generation and is
  what our welfare is attached to.
• Growing up in this land-foucused notion, chinese
  people have long been dedicated to their
  hometown, add to the fact that the weather is
  also land-friendly, they are able to feed
  themselves, as a result, the thoutht of expansion
  and invasion of other nations is never of their
  concern.

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• Whereas the western history started when the
  ancestors discover and fight for their habitat by
  sailing in the sea, western people have a complex
  of marine culture.
• During those tough periods of the struggle on and
  off the sea, western people formed their strong
  sense of controlness and invasion by force to
  expand their territory. Thus the western culture
  is marked by their appreciation for competition
  and enterprise.
• The above differences leads to the cultural
  differences. They are geographic position,
  individual values, social mentality, ways of
  communication and expression.

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• Geographic Position. Most idioms bear the
  characteristic of its surrounding environment.
  Take Britain for example, because it is an island
  country, British people are fond of sailing by
  and off the sea, which is well expressed by many
  idioms like take some down a peg??, steer
  clear of??.
• Whereas in an argricultural country like China,
  many of our idioms has the flavour of land.
  ????,????,etc.
• Biological Environment breeds differece in
  idioms. As to the expression which means things
  that pop up everywhere, English use mushroom as
  in the spring up like mushroom, while Chinese
  refer them to Bamboo as in the ????. Both are
  vivid descriptions under each biological
  features.

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Honesty Vs.Aggressiveness

• Simplicity and Honesty have always been an innate
  temperament of chinese people. They worship
  politeness and sincerity and are ashamed by doing
  any wrongness to others, even they have good
  reasons. As a result, they regeard golden means
  as the highest cause. So there are idioms like
  ????,????,etc.
• Aggressiveness shaped westerners' idea of
  pragmatism. They believe, beyond doubt that they
  are entitled to achieve goal by all means. There
  are idioms like All is fair in love and war, A
  bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.

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Symmetry

• Because Chinese people have long placed emphasis
  on man proposes, god disposes, and they seek
  for the notion man in nature and nature in man
  which unfold our ideal that antithesis and
  wholeness are the inner features of every
  creature.
• Therefore, it goes the idea that nothing is
  perfect without being present in paris. E.g
  ????,????,????.
• In contrast, western culture prefers to break
  through symmetry. Their poems are more in modern
  stylewithout strict observance to requirement of
  rhythm and number of characters.
• Of course, there are some exceptions, such as
  ups and downs, more haste, less speed, but
  these are minor compared with those majority free
  forms.

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Number

• Considering yin and yang that make up
  everything in chinese culture, one area of idioms
  that cannot be mentioned more is the number.
  Because of the yin and yang theory, the even
  numbers are the chinese people's favourite. They
  are firmly convinced that even numbers bear
  auspicious meaning and will bring them foutune
  and falware.
• Chinese people have common wish that good fortune
  oneday will come in pairs as in ????.
  Youngsters often wish that everything will be ok
  by saying ????Businessmen commuting from place
  to place have ???? on their lips to wish for a
  smooth journey. Also, when the elders are darn
  proud of ????, they take pride that they
  offsprings are all over the world.

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• However, in western world, people are expecially
  fond of odd numbers, resulting from they belief
  that the world is composed of three parts sea,
  land and sky, while the nature are composed of
  animals, plants and minerals. Even in human, it
  is the trinity of body, soul and spirit. In
  addition to their beloved number 3, number 1 and
  7 also have sth to commend themselves.
• Westerns tend to add 1 to big numbers, for
  example, a thousand and one job, one thousand
  and one thanks, 1 here indicates more, deeper,
  and stronger in degree.
• Number 7 is westerners' another favourite child,
  for the simple reason that it takes God 7 days to
  creat their world. Idioms like seven virtues,
  A man may lose more in an hour than he can get
  in seven.

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Colour

• Idioms are colourful. Their targeted meaning has
  also been affected by the surrounding tradions,
  mentality, religion, and values.
• Despite the fact that a single colour can trigger
  diversified associations in peoples mind, one
  thing is certain, the primary colours in the two
  nations are generally the same.
• They are red, orange, yellow, green, blue,
  indigo, violet.(???????). But this sameness is
  only at the superfacial level, exploring deep, we
  can find the whole truth. The following graph is
  just one brief glimpse of the most palpable
  distinctions.

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• Black in both languages indicates illegalness and
  sadness. Black list ???
• white in English indicates innocence and honesty
  while in Chinese, it means voidness and nothing.
  White hands??
• Though green in both languages indicates
  freshness, only English use it to modify memory
  To keep one's memory green????

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• Red in Chinese bear commentory meanings such as
  auspicion,foutune,vigor,revolution,etc. whereas
  in Enlish, it often indicates aggression,cruelty,j
  eopardy and wrath
• Red flag/ red hands/ in the red/ see red
• ???/????/??/??.

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• Chinese people associate white with death and
  funeralEnglishmen see sincerity,solemn and
  purity in white.
• White lies?????
• Monarch in China wears in yellow, while their
  counterparts in English wears in purple.
• Born in the purple?????????

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• Green in Chinese is associated with spring,hope
  and birth. In English, it means inexperienced and
  jealousy.
• Green hand, green-eyed, be green at??/??/?..???

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Conclusion

• The discrepancy between English and Chinese
  idioms lies deep in the cultural difference. This
  article should be an enlightment to us all that
  when learning English idioms, we are supposed to
  bear the cultural background in mind so as to
  acquire better learning.
• Moreover, the study of both E/C idioms shed
  lights for our studying of the thinking mode of
  both languages, which is of central essence for
  our learning purpose.

2008?12? ???