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1、A Comparative Study of Metaphors of Love between English and Chinese Culture Contents Introduction 2. Metaphor 3. The sameness reflected in love metaphor in English and Chinese 3.1 The homogeneity in love conceptual metaphor-human beings the same mode of thought 3.1.1 Love is a journey 3.1.2 Love is
2、 a war 3.1.3Love is a durable bond between two people. 3.2 Love metaphor in love poets - the same appealing to love 3.2.1 Loves philosophy 3.3.2 Loves honeyed words 3.2.3 Loves departure 3.3 Love metaphor shown in physiological change 4. The differences reflected in love metaphors in English and Chi
3、nese 4.1 The different sex concepts in love metaphors in Chinese and English 4.1.1 The different symbols for sex 4.1.2 Chinese sex- implication vs. English sex -open, sexual desire 4.2 The differences caused by religious beliefs 4.3 The differences caused by geography and the root of history 4.4 The
4、 different economy development Conclusion References.21 1 1. Introduction Metaphor is a common phenomenon; people use it a lot in ordinary life. Metaphor is conceptualized; it is a matter of language as well as a way of thought. Because metaphor is pervasive in our life and is based on our thought,
5、it affects our emotions, . No matter it is in eastern countries or in western countries, love is one of human beings most fundamental and beautiful feelings. So there are many love poets and proverb. Love has become the source of poet and fiction. American poet pointed out that poets are metaphor. M
6、etaphor is a way to probes into the world, to know the world and to express the world, and help mankind to cognize likeness and unify of nature and mankind, taking mankind from limited known realm to the infinite that hasnt been known, from the isolated points to the existent integer. Metaphor is an
7、 important tool for cognition and imagery thought. The English-to-Chinese metaphor comparison can let us understand more about the cultural differences, such as the traditional customs, the concept of value, habitually thinking mode. The research on metaphor can be traced back to 2000 years, the age
8、 of Aristotle. the traditional metaphors were the regular forms of logistics, and regarded just as rhetoric . However, it has become a lot of peoples study. And some influential theories were produced, such as comparison view, incoherence view, interaction view, conceptual metaphor theory. So we can
9、 divide it two kinds, one rhetoric(the traditional view) ,the other the cognition of metaphor(the modern view) In recent years, 16 passages have been written on the comparative study of the metaphor of love between English and Chinese. The following ones are their research directions: the comparativ
10、e study of the metaphor of feeling between English and Chinese, the comparative study of the metaphor of space, the comparative study of the metaphor of time. Feeling, especially love, is human beings most important experience. Peoples cognitive-psychology and feeling interact each other, so love me
11、taphor has 2 become the hot topic. In recent years, there are some scholars who have done research on love conceptual metaphor. They concentrate on the differences and the similarities between Metaphors of Love between English and Chinese Culture. Metaphor is a rather complicated matter, concerning
12、cognitive-linguistics as well as psychology. But some experts just regard it as rhetoric. Metaphor is the carrier of culture, is the mode of our thought. This paper discusses the similarities and differences between the love metaphor in English and Chinese to probe into humans mode of thinking and c
13、ulture influence to love metaphor under the process of cognition. 2. Metaphor The word “metaphor came from Greek. “Meta” means “across” and “phor” or “pherian” means “carry”. Metaphor is not only a language phenomenon, but also a tool for people to perceptual and conceptualizes the situation around
14、themselves. Its essence is cognition, in which people use some experiences in a certain area to illustrate the others. Metaphor is human beings mode of thinking. In the thinking process, people connect the source domain and the target domain together through the imagination of the natural similariti
15、es between the two. Metaphor is the product of our body, experiences, brain and mind. We often use of thought of metaphor unconsciously. (1999 6 G Lakaff Johnson, 1987; Lakaff ” 7 The author likened the lover to rose and told us that we should set high value on time and catch the opportunity to gain
16、 your lovers heart. If not , you will get nothing with the time flying away , because your lover may alter her mind or she will have grown old. It has the same connotation as that in the Chinese poem: “劝君莫惜尽缕衣 , 劝君须惜少年时. 有花堪折直须折, 莫待无花空折枝.” Both of the poems contain the metaphors that almost have the
17、 same meanings. We should set out to chaste our lovers as soon as possible and make our lovers stay with us. If not, our lovers will wither like a flower, and we will feel regretted. 3.3.2 Loves honeyed words In Robert Burns one of famous poem-A Red, Red, Rose: “Tilla the seas gang dry, my dear, And
18、 the rocks melt wi the sun; And I will love you still, my stear, While the sandso life shall run.” In the poem, the author used the way of symbols. The concrete rocks, sea, land, sun and sandso were symbolized as loyal and constant love. In 西楼曲:“海枯石 烂两鸳鸯，只合双飞便双飞。 ” In Wang Shi Pus 西厢记：“这天高地厚情， 直到海枯石
19、烂日” 。 We can see that no matter it is in the western countries or in the eastern countries, the lovers swearing to each other is surprisingly similar. It shows to 8 us that human beings are after the most beautiful and permanent love. 3.2.3 Loves departure Love is beautiful. But loves departure may
20、cause sadness or missing to the lovers. What does loves departure mean here? It doesnt mean breaking up. It mean though bodies are separated for a short time, the lovers love each other deeply, or spiritually for ever. John Donne is one of the most English outstanding Metaphysical poet. In his famou
21、s poem - A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning: “ Moving of th earth brings harmes and feares, Men reckon what it did and meant , But trepidation of the sphere, Though greater farre , is innocent Our two souls therefore, which are one Though I must gve endure not yet A breach, but an expansion Like gol
22、d to ayery thinness beat” The author likened the damage from the earthquake to the separation of the commonplace love. Though the departure of him and his wife was bitter, the love between them was not damaged at all, because their souls are one. Until here, it seems it is the end. But the author us
23、es another metaphor: “ If they be two, they are two so, 9 As stiffe twin compasses are two, Thy soul the fixed foot, makes no show, To move, but doth ,if the other doe . And though it in the center sits, Yet when the other far doth rome, It leaves, and hearbens after it , And grows erect, as that co
24、mes home.” The author likened the movement of compasses to the departure of lovers. If two people love each other deeply, a transient departure for their bodies , one will move around the other as the compasses move. Their souls are one and their love is faitful and constant. They will have a good e
25、nding. In one of Chinese poems-Qin Guans 鹊桥仙： “ 纤云弄巧， 飞星传痕， 银汉迢迢暗度。 ” Here in the poem, the meteors in the sky shuttle forth and back between the herd- boy star and the weaving-girl star to transmit the missing for them. Magpies fly there early and build up a bridge over the Milky Way. So the lovers
26、 also have waited for a year can meet each other. 3.3Love metaphor shown in physiological change 10 It is an important way to construct the mutual love concept by the way of describing human beings physiological change. For example: 1)Temperature I felt hot all over when I saw her. / 牵着情人的手,一股暖流涌上心头
27、 . 2) Heart rate change His heart was throbbing with love 一看到心中的她,他的心就开始狂跳了 3) Blush There was a glow of love in her face. 你的一封情书,看到我的脸红心儿跳. Alnormalarity He was blinded by love. 我被她的美迷得神魂颠倒. Human beings the same physiological characteristic and similar experiences make the same love metaphors in E
28、nglish and Chinese. The cognition and the expression of love that are based on physiological phenomena show the languages general characteristic. 4. The differences reflected in love metaphors in English and Chinese 11 Though many the same love conceptual metaphors appear in English and Chinese, the
29、 they own their respective cultures. Different kinds of cultures bear different kind modes of thought, which cause different love metaphors 4.1 The different sex concepts in love metaphors in Chinese and English 4.1 .1 the different symbols for sex 1)Arse In western countries in ancient time, the fr
30、uit of a meddler tree can be used for eating when it is ripe enough. It is called open arse traditionally for it can be used for easing constipation. In Romeo and Juliet (Act 2, Scence1, P33P38) Mercator said a sentence including the word. Shakespeare used a pun , indicating a females reproductive o
31、rgans. But he wrote it as “open et cetera” ambiguously at that time ; another kind of fruit ,green pear are likened to male reproductive organ. The following is the text: “If love be blind, love cannot hit the mark, Now will he sit under a meddler tree? And wish his mistress were that kind of fruit.
32、 As maids call meddlers, when they laugh alone. O Romeo! That she were. O! that she were. An open et cetera, thou a poperin pear” 2) BAG It is short for baggage. In 16th century, it has the meaning of military outfits. So its extended meaning was consoling women who went along with an army. So they
33、were 12 always regarded as army outfits. 3)BOX The word is commonly regarded to be originated from America. It also has a long history in English. In Alls Well that Ends Well 皆大欢喜 （Act2, Scence3, P282 P284）. Shakespeare spoke without reservation: “ .He wears his honor in a box unseen. That hugs kick
34、y-wicky penis here at home. Speaking his mainly marrow in her arms.” 4)SEED Metaphors from agriculture can be seen in Bible everywhere made by imperial order. Alexander Cru den (亚力山.克鲁登) mentioned in A Complete Concordance to the Old and New Testament in 1769 that religion focused on the real intent
35、ion of seminal fluid, which is the thin , warm ,bold and uninhibited disposition. The disposition is to make male heir to continue the family line. Next ,we have to look at its symbol, namely the result as a father that it can produce. It mainly pointed out the sex meaning of the word from Chapter 1
36、5 to Chapter18 in 利末记: “And if any mans seed of copulation go out from him, then he shall wash all his flesh in water, and be unclean until even. And every garment, and every skin, whereon is the seed of copulation, shall be washed with water, and be unclean until the eve. 13 The woman also with who
37、m man shall lie with seed of copulation, they shall both bathe themselves in water and be unclean until the even.” 5)FIG As D.H 劳伦斯 mentioned in Women in Love that fig was always the symbol of sex for female reproductive organ. It was quite meaningful that what Eve gave Adam to eat was not a common
38、apple ,but a fig as the Jew scholarship pointed out. But in china ,there are different symbols for sex ,such as “鱼”, “春”, “绿”. 4.1.2Chinese sex- implication vs. English sex -open, sexual desire In the poem of To His Coy mistress, Andrew Marvell persuaded his lover to give her chastity to him when sh
39、e was young, to put out the fire of his lust for sex. Besides the author pointed out repeatedly that youth would disappeared, because they had stood beside the “stone”, which is the metaphor youths passing away. So the author said: “Now therefore while the youthful have, Sits on thy skin like mornin
40、g dew, And while thy willing soul transpire. Now let us sport us while we may; And now like amorous binds of prey. Rather at once our time devour Than languish in his slow- chapped power. Let us roll all our strength and all. Our sweetness up into one ball: 14 And tear out pleasures with rough strif
41、e Though the iron gates of life. Thus , though we cannot make our sun Stand still, yet, we will make him soon.” In the poem, the lust, the strength, the sweetness is likened fluid. In that case the author and his lover can dissolved into each other and became a mighty torrent to burst the iron gate
42、of life prison. Their lust will be liberated. John Donne was a poet from Mystical School. In The Flea, the fleas taking in mens and womens blood as the metaphor of sexual love is the debating basis. That is , the flea ,which takes in mens and womens blood is the church and marriage bed where men and
43、 women hold their marriage ceremony, and where men and women combine together. In this way, the man forces his girl to accept his love: “ Oh, stay, three lives in on flea spare, Where we almost yea, move than married, This flea is you and, and this Our marriage bed, and marriage temple is . Just so
44、much horror, When thou yieldst to me , Will waste as this fleas death tooth life from thee.” Both of the poems above describe “sex”. But none of the words in the poems 15 mentioned sex directly. The poems used metaphors. That changed the rough topic into a topic with poetic flavor.束定芳 ,2000:104 Beca
45、use of Chinese people implicit and introvert characteristic, Chinese people appear to be quite obscure and indistinct when they mention love, special sex. In that case, metaphor plays an important role in the expression of sex. For example: in Ming Zhens 偶见 ， “交鸾凤，春事无涯。 ”诗经.野有死 ， “有女怀春，吉士诱 之。 ”“春， 动
46、也。鸟兽孕宁，草木华生，万物咸遂。 ”（艺文类聚 ， Chapter3）. Animals begin to oestrus in spring; grasses and wood sprout out in spring. That tells us that “春“has the indicated meaning of breeding. So the connection between “spring” and “sex” come into being naturally. In The Yuan drama , 西厢记 when the author describe the s
47、ituation that Cui Ying ying and Zhang Sheng met each other privately, he used “春” to the effect. “春至人间花弄色” 。 “春从何处来， ” “ 春意透酥胸，春色横眉黛。 ” 4.2 The differences caused by religious beliefs English people have faith in the Christian religion, which affect the national literature and language greatly. At t
48、hat time, the Christian religion carried out the policy of asceticism and that believers should be as loyal as possible to God. So when people want to show their love to their lovers, they will show love to God, because God was regarded as the same position with their lover. In the sentence “Thy Pro
49、testant to be” in To Anthea, the author likened himself to a Christian believer and made a fetish of God as he did to his lover. In the sentence, “and marriage temple is” in The Flea, the flea was likened to the church of marriage. In the sentence, “My hearts the sacrifice” in Hidden Flame, lovers suffering in mind was compared with the Christian believers hardships. “Next ,lets have a look at another two metaphors. 16 Love is God-L.Wallace Love is my religion-