English metaphoric expressions based on names of animals = các lỗi diễn đạt ẩn dụ tiếng anh dựa trên tên loài vật

24 Chapter III : A study on the English metaphoric expressions based on names of animals .... Metaphoric expressions based on names of animals are formed on the basis of the similarity

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I would also like to acknowledge my special thanks to all the teachers

of Foreign Languages Department for their comprehensive lessons as well

Table of contents

Page

Acnowledgements i

Table of contents ii

Part A : Introduction 1

1 Rationale 1

2 Aims of the study 2

3 Scope of the study 2

4 Methods of the study 3

5 Organization of the sudy 3

Part B : Development 5

Chapter 1 : Theoretical background 5

1.1 Word 5

1.2 Word meaning 6

1.3 Semantic change 8

1.4 The use of word 9

Chapter II : Metaphor 10

2.1 The general view of metaphor 10

2.2 Characteristics 12

2.2.1 Metaphor is implicitly of the form “ X is like Y” in respect of Z” 12

2.2.2 An association may be built not only between two physical objects but also between a concrete object and an abstract one 12

2.2.3 The association with the original meaning considerably weakened and is gradually erased 13

2.2.4 In general, metaphorical change of meaning is often observed in idiomatic compounds 13

2.2.5 Metaphors are frequently found in the informal strata of the vocabulary, especially in slang 13

2.3 Classification of metaphors 13

2.3.1 According to the types of similarity 13

2.3.1.1 Shape 13

2.3.1.2 Position 14

2.3.1.3 Function 14

2.3.1.4 Movement 14

2.3.1.5 Size 15

2.3.1.6 Behaviour or characters 15

2.3.1.7 Colour 15

2.3.1.8 Duration of time and space 16

2.3.1.9 Climate 16

2.3.2 According to time 16

2.3.2.1 Living metaphor 16

2.3.2.2 Faded (trite) metaphor 17

2.3.2.3 Dead metaphor 17

2.3.3 According to parts of speech 18

2.3.3.1 Noun 18

2.3.3.2 Ajective 18

2.3.3.3 Verb 18

2.3.4 According to the types of names 19

2.3.4.1 The names of the parts of human body are a great source for metaphor 19

2.3.4.2 The names of animals are also widely used as metaphors 19 2.3.4.3 A number of proper names are used as metaphors 19

2.3.4.4 The concrete is transferred to the abstract 19

2.4 Distinction between metaphor and simile 20

2.4.1 Similarities 20

2.4.2 Differences 20

2.5 Distinction between metaphor and metonymy 22

2.5.1 Similarities 22

2.5.2 Differences 22

2.6 A brief comparison of Polysemy, Metonymy and Metaphor 23

2.7 Difference between Metaphor and idiom 24

2.8 Summary 24

Chapter III : A study on the English metaphoric expressions based on names of animals 25

3.1 Introduction 25

3.2 Syntactic features 26

3.2.1 Nouns 26

3.2.2 Adjectives 27

3.2.3 Verbs 28

3.2.4 Adverbs 29

3.3 Semantic features 29

3.3.1 Names of animals which are used metaphorically vary from general words for animals to particular kinds of animals 29

3.3.2 Metaphoric expressions based on names of animals are formed on the basis of the similarity between animals and people or phenomena 29 3.3.2.1 In terms of behaviour 29

3.3.2.2 In terms of movement 31

3.3.2.3 In terms of colour 31

3.3.2.4 In terms of shape 32

3.3.2.5 In terms of size 32

3.3.2.6 In terms of time relation 32

3.4 Usage of the metaphoric expressions based on names of Animals 33

3.4.1 In informal language 33

3.4.1.1 A general view 33

3.4.1.2 Idiomatic use 35

3.4.1.3 Use in slang 37

3.4.2 In formal language 38

3.4.2.1 In journalism language 38

3.4.2.2 In literary language 38

3.5 Function of the metaphoric expressions based on names of Animals 39

3.5.1 Language extending function 39

3.5.2 Attitudinal function 39

3.5.3 Emphatic function 41

3.5.4 Actualizing function 42

3.6 Summary 43

Chapter IV : Some suggessions for translating English metaphor based on names of animals into Vietnamese equivalents 44

4.1 Some difficulties in translation 44

4.1.1 Some changes in translation 45

4.1.2 The rhetorical change from English metaphors into Vietnamese simile 45

4.1.3 The translation of English metaphoric verbs based on names of animals into Vietnamese equivalents 45

4.1.4 Some changes in usage 45

4.1.5 Different names of animals used to refer to the same things in English and Vietnamese 46

4.2 Some suggestions for the translation 46

4.3 Some suggested samples of exercises 47

Part C : Conclusion 51

Reference 53 Appendix

Part A Introduction

1 Rationale

There are many aspects of language that one might be interested in One might study how it is acquired, how it reflects the nature of society, or how it is used in literature or in propaganda of various kinds “English metaphoric expressions based on names of animals” has been chosen for the study for the following reasons

Firstly, metaphoric expressions play an important role in a language both in written and spoken forms They are an important part of a language Using metaphoric expressions in communication is the most effective and interesting way because they contain not only the literal meanings but the figurative and expressive meanings as well They make the language more beautiful and more dynamic

Secondly, metaphoric expressions give us many difficulties in communication The listeners and readers also find it really hard to understand metaphoric images because their meanings can not often be deduced from the individual components They often fail to use correctly English metaphor, fail to insightfully understand it It makes Vietnamese learners confused and embarrassed, for it combines normal existing words in a new sense, and brings forth new expressions English metaphoric expressions are figurative expressions with quite different meanings

Thirdly, metaphor is a very interesting but difficult topic Metaphoric expressions are the most effective devices in literary works The more fluently and accurately Vietnamese learners can use metaphors, the more successfully they can deal with the language of Shakespeare Knowing and understanding metaphor is an important step to master this language Metaphor is also used a lot

in idioms Each language has its own idioms Moreover, idioms reflect distinctive features of each language, so they can be the bridge linking the souls

of different nations Thus, it opens doors to friendly feelings on the part of both

native and non-native speakers, which leads to global mutual understanding in cultures, customs, tradition and behaviors as well

Lastly, the reason why this subject is chosen for the study is derived from our own interest We would like to take the names of animals as the source of metaphoric expressions because it is thought that animals are quite familiar with human beings Some animals we have good relationship with, but some kinds of them we have to keep ourselves away from because they are very dangerous and some animals themselves keep away from us However, basing on the name of any animal, people can imagine its image as well as its behaviors in their minds Thus, the names of animals are used metaphorically quite often and naturally The above reasons have inspired us to choose the subject entitled “English metaphoric expressions based on names of animals”

2 Aims of the study

The study aims at giving a basic knowledge of words, metaphors as well as specific analysis of English metaphoric expressions based on names of animals and to some extent, explaining how language is enriched

The first aim of the study is to help English learners improve their knowledge of English metaphor in general, also English metaphoric expressions based on names of animals in particular

The second aim is to help the teaching and learning of metaphor Teachers will have some techniques to teach Learners will have some suggested exercises

to practice and learn

The last aim is to satisfy the author’s interest in metaphor We have done the study with our great pleasure, therefore we would like to share our interest with all those who are also attracted by this term

3 Scope of the study

The study only focuses on English metaphoric expressions based on names

of animals Through this small study, readers are given much valuable knowledge on very interesting angle of metaphor, also can encounter many

problems with metaphor Therefore, the investigated issues in relation to the graduation paper are as follows:

- Presenting some theoretical backgrounds on semantics and its transference

- Describing and analyzing the metaphor as one kind of semantic transference with the particular focuses on English metaphoric expressions based

on names of animals The scope of the investigation is limited to only some names of animals that are used commonly

- Drawing out some difficulties that Vietnamese learners of English are facing; particularly, difficulties in translating the English metaphoric expressions into the Vietnamese equivalents

- Giving some suggestions on how to overcome the difficulties

4 Methods of the study

In order to gain the given aims, the study is based on the two main methods: descriptive based method; analytical and systematic methods Also, some additional methods that are used in each step of the study are:

- Searching, reading and reviewing books, materials and references ralated to the study on the process of studying

- Collecting metaphors referring to names of animals in English and Vietnamese

- Classifying metaphors according to their semantic features using systematic method

- Drawing out similarities and differences

- Suggesting a number of exercises

5 Organization of the study

The study consists of three main parts:

Introduction presents the rationale, aims, scope, methods and organization of

the study

Development reviews the literature on semantics and its transferences

Chapter 1 Theoretical background

Chapter 2 The metaphor

Chapter 3 A study on the English metaphoric expressions based on names

Part B Development

Chapter 1 Theoretical background

It is surprising to note that the present English vocabulary consists of over 600,000 words, which in old English period, was composed of only 30,000 words As being said, language develops parallel with the evolution of humankind The vocabulary of a language is always in a state of constant development Almost every new object or phenomenon in human society and activity, as soon as it appears, finds its place in the vocabulary As human society develops, a great many new words are needed to express new ideas, new conceptions and new wants Vocabulary is the most flexible part of language, so

it can serve as a mirror of the change of language in human beings The development of vocabulary is first of all reflected in the development of semantic structure of the words New words or new meanings of old words appear, some old words and meanings drop out of the language and coexist with the new ones Some words that exprienced a period of changing meaning seem to coincide with some others already in use in a meaning and as a result, they form synonyms of each other

Thus, the English word, its structure, formation, meaning and history have become the subject matter of the linguistic science called lexicology (Hoang Tat Truong, Basic English lexicology, 1993, p.2) Semantics or semasiology is considered one of five essential branches of lexicology

According to Hoang Tat Truong (1993, p.2-4), semantics focuses on the meaning of the words (the lexical meaning) because the grammatical meaning is studied in grammar From the characteristics of semantics, we can see that words and meanings of words play an important role in language study

1.1 Word

Words are very ambiguous, difficult entities to be defined It is significant that many scholars have attempted to define the word as a linguistic

phenomenon Yet none of them can be considered totally satisfactory in all aspects According to Arnold (1986), “the word has many different aspects It has

a sound form because it is a certain arrangement of phonemes, it has its orphological structure, being also a certain arrangement of morphemes, when used in actual speech, it may occur in different word forms, different syntactic functions and signal various meanings” So, it is difficult to define the term

“word” in linguistics However, from the study on the understandings about the word, we can know about the nature of the word “Word” is the smallest independent, fundamental and meaningful unit of a language The word is a dialectical unity of form and meaning, a smallest indivisible unit of language used for the purposes of human communication and capable to form a sentence

by itself

According to G.B Anstrushina (1985, p.6), the nature of the word can be presented as follows: firstly, the word is a unit of speech which serves the purposes of human communication Secondly, the word can be perceived as the total of the sounds which comprise it Thirdly, the word, viewed structurally, possesses several characteristics

1.2 Word meaning

According to N.N Norozova (1985, p.4), the word can be considered as a unit/means of communication by its possessing a meaning Therefore, among the word's various aspects, meaning is certainly the most important Word meaning

is what a word/sentence means, i.e what the word(s) used are conventionally held to mean According to Hoang Tat Truong (1993, p.92), “meaning of a word reflects reality or express human conceptualization of reality, as it were” Every word combines lexical and grammatical meanings There exists a close relationship between the grammar and the lexicon of a language The grammar of

a language and its vocabulary/lexicon are complementary The vocabulary must

be encoded in grammatical structure so as to operate as means of communication and as an important thought The same lexical meaning is shared by different grammatical forms of one word

Eg: Friend - Friendly

In this example, “friend” and “friendly” share a lexical meaning but differ

in grammatical meaning One is noun, the other is adjective

Grammatical meaning is the meaning recurrent in identical set of different words and it unites words into big groups with their own grammatical features

For instance, the grammatical meaning of “chair, table, board…” is nouns

Lexical meaning is the realization of concept or emotion

For example: when we hear the word “dog”, our concept is realized and the

image of a dog occurs to our mind

According to Hoang Tat Truong (1993, p.54-57), lexical meaning is considered in terms of components and types

In terms of components, lexical meaning is classified into denotational and connotational meanings

- Denotational meaning denotes conceptual and referential meanings (what

it refers to) It is understood by convention of members of society For instance,

the word “cat” indicates a common animal with four legs, which are often kept

by human beings as pets

- Connotational meaning conveys the speaker's attitude, emotion and so

on It is the pragmatic communicative value the word acquires by virtue For

instance, “dad” is more friendly than “father”

In terms of types, lexical meaning consists of the direct meaning and the indirect meaning

- Direct meaning is the meaning that directly denotes something without

comparing it or associating it with other things We do not need a context Direct meaning is also called literal meaning

- Indirect meaning is the meaning that indirectly denotes something To

understand it, we have to compare or associate it with other things, i.e we need a context Indirect meaning is also called figurative or transferred meaning

For example: On hearing the word “skirt”, we are most likely to think of a

type of clothes That is the direct meaning But when we put it in the sentence

“He is always running after the skirt”, the word “skirt” refers to a woman That is

the indirect meaning

Indirect meaning affects the use of figures of speech, such as metaphor, metonymy, hyperbole, and so on It makes languages richer and more abundant

The older a word is, the better developed its semantic structure is

Thus, what are causes of development of new meanings?

Firstly, it dues to linguistic factors, such as changes taking place in connection with:

- Ellipsis

E.g Daily newspaper = daily

Mass media = media

Mineral waters = minerals

- Discrimination of synonyms

E.g In Middle English, “deer” was the general word for animal, but when

the word “beast” appeared, it had the meaning “a hoofed animal of which the

males have antlers” However, later the word “animal” was borrowed, “beast”

denotes all animals with four legs

new created objects, new notions, and new phenomena and they must be named

So, the new words appear

1.4 The use of word

There is a fact that a limited number of words must serve to cover an unlimited number of things A word can represent a great number and variety of facts This leads to confusion and misunderstanding So, what must we do?

According to Wittgenstein, we should not look for the meaning of a word,

we should look for its use Meaning of an expression is determined by its use in the language

Hayakawa in his “Language in Thought an Action”, says that:

If we can get deeply into our consciousness the principle that no word ever has the same meaning twice, we will develop the habit of automatically examining contexts, and this enables us to be aware of the fact that any word may have a whole list of uses, what is being said may not represent what they assumes it does

Chapter 2 Metaphor

2.1 A general view of metaphors

Metaphors are comparisons that show how two things that are not alike in

most ways are similar in one important way Metaphors are a way to describe something Authors use them to make their writing more interesting or entertaining “Metaphors” have an emotive force and aesthetic dimension that has long been recognized Metaphors can be found popularly in languages Almost every scholar wishes to understand something about what metaphors are and how metaphors are created Linguists have paid a great deal of attention to the matter of metaphors Accordingly, there appear a lot of different theories of metaphors Linguists have their own ways of defining this term, however, they

share some same senses of meanings

In language, a metaphor is a rhetorical trope defined as a direct comparison between two or more seemingly unrelated subjects In the simplest

case, this takes the form: “The [first subject] is a [second subject]" More generally, a metaphor describes a first subject as being or equal to a second

subject in some way Thus, the first subject can be economically described because implicit and explicit attributes from the second subject are used to

enhance the description of the first This device is known for usage in literature, especially in poetry, where with few words, emotions and associations from one

context are associated with objects and entities in a different context

Metaphor comprises a subset of analogy and closely relates to other

rhetorical concepts such as comparison, simile, allegory and parable

In Aristotle's explanation produced in the poetics “metaphor consists in

giving the thing a name that belongs to something else, the transference being either from genus to species, or from species to genus, or from species to species,

or on ground of analogy”(4,174)

The metaphor, according to I.A.Richards in The Philosophy of Rhetoric

(1936), consists of two parts: the tenor and vehicle The tenor is the subject to

which attributes are ascribed The vehicle is the subject from which the attributes

are borrowed The corresponding terms to 'tenor' and 'vehicle' are ground and figure, or the terms target and source (George Lakoff) For example, in the

sentence “a book is food for thought”, “a book” is the tenor, and “food for thought” is the vehicle

The metaphor is sometimes further analysed in terms of the ground and the tension The ground consists of the similarities between the tenor and the

vehicle The tension of the metaphor consists of the dissimilarities between the tenor and the vehicle (Source: www.google/metaphor)

In “An introduction to functional grammar”, Halliday (1994, p.340) states

that “A word is used for something resembling which it usually refers to called

a metaphor”

In “Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary” (Jonathan Crowther 1995, p.734), “A metaphor is the imaginative use of a word or phrases to describe somebody or something as another object in order to show that they have the same qualities and to make the description more forceful”

As presented by Kirszner and Mandell in “The Brief Holt Handbook”, “A metaphor also compares two essentially dissimilar things, but instead of stating that one thing is like another, it equates them”

According to I.Arnold (1986, p.64), “a metaphor is a transfer of names based on the association of similarity and thus is actually a hidden comparison It presents a method of description which likens one thing to another by referring to

as it were some other one” For instance, a cunning person is referred to as a fox

A woman may be called a peach (a greatly admired woman), a lemon (an unsatisfactory woman), a cat (a spiteful or malicious woman), a bitch (a spiteful woman) etc

Metaphor can also be defined as the use of a word or phrase denoting one kind of idea or object in place of another word or phrase for the purpose of suggesting a likeness between the two Thus, in the biblical Book of Psalms, the writer speaks of God's law as a “light to his feet” and “a lamp to his path”

2.2 Characteristics

In “The English word” by I.Arnold (1986, p.64), some characteristics of metaphor can be presented as follows:

2.2.1 Metaphor is implicitly of the form "X is like Y in respect of Z"

In the formula, X is the tenor of metaphor, which is described in the metaphor Y is the vehicle of metaphor, which represents the image that carries a description and serves to show the tenor Z stands for the ground of the metaphor, that is the similarity between the tenor and vehicle, in a metaphor is implied, not expressed

E.g All the world's a stage,

And all the men and women merely players;

They have their exits and their entrances

(William Shakespear, As you like it)

This well-known quotation is a good example of a metaphor In this

example, “the world” is compared to a stage, the aim being to describe the world

by taking well-known attributes from the stage In this case, “the world” is the tenor and “a stage” is the vehicle “Men and women” are a secondary tenor and

“players” is the vehicle for this secondary tenor In the above example, the ground begins to be illuminated from the third line: “They all have their exits and

entrances”

2.2.2 In metaphor, an association may be built not only between two physical objects but also between a concrete object and an abstract concept

Eg The noun “eye” means “a part of the body” Its meaning has developed

into a new one: hole in the end of a needle The noun “bar” has the original

meaning “barrier”, developed into some figurative meanings such as: social bar, color bar, and racial bar Thus, here, there is an association between a concrete object and an abstract concept

2.2.3 The association with the original meaning is considerably weakened

and is gradually erased

E.g The noun “star” on the basis of the meaning “heavenly body”

developed the meaning “famous actor” or “actress” Yet, very soon, the ironical

colouring was lost, and furthermore the association with the original meaning is

considerably weakened and is gradually erased Nowadays, the word is applied

not only to screen idols, but also to popular sportsmen (football stars)

2.2.4 In general, metaphorical change of meaning is often observed in

idiomatic compounds

E.g The noun “drop” has, in addition to its meaning as a small particle of

water or other liquid, the meanings ear-rings shaped as drops of water (diamond

drop) and candy of the same shape (mint drop) In the compound words

“snowdrop” and “bluebell”, both these meanings are also based on resemblance

The meaning of the second constituents underwent the same shift of meaning

2.2.5 Metaphors are frequently found in the informal strata of the

vocabulary, especially in slang

According to G.B Antrushina (1985, p.14), all slang is metaphor Each

slang metaphor is rooted in a joke, but not in a kind of amusing joke Slang is

derived from colloquialisms Most slang words are metaphors and jocular, often

with a coarse, mocking, cynical coloring

E.g A redheaded boy is almost certain to be nicknamed “carrot” or

“ginger” A person who is given to spying and sneaking gets the derogatory

nickname of “rat” Both these meanings are metaphorical

2.3 Classification of metaphor

2.3.1 According to the types of similarity

2.3.1.1 Shape

E.g Cut the dead heads of the roses

The word “head” means literally a part of the body Metaphorically, it

means thing like the head in form or position Some following examples are

other metaphoric expressions: the head of a nail, the head of hammer/ axe, the

head of a cabbage

Similarly, the word "tooth" may be used metaphorically as in the example: the teeth of a saw Literally, it means each of the hard white bony structures in the jaws, used in biting and chewing things Metaphorically, it is the tooth-like part or projection

2.3.1.2 Position

E.g Our house is at the foot of the mountain

Literally, the word “foot” means end part of the leg below the ankle

Metaphorically, it means lower part or end We have other examples using the

word “foot” such as: the foot of the page, the foot of bed, the foot of the stair,…

2.3.1.3 Function

E.g Diet and exercise are the key to good health

The head of the class

Literally, the word “key” means piece of metal shaped for moving the bolt

of a lock Metaphorically, it means set of answers to problems, for examples:

knowledgement is the key to success, the key to a difficulty, the key to a mystery, the key to whole movie was her hyprocrisy

2.3.1.4 Movement

Consider these two examples:

1 To worm: to worm oneself into someone's favour

to worm one's way through the bushes

2 The caterpillar of a tank

There are some words applied to talk about ways of moving They are used metaphorically to refer to things which related to economics (such as prices),

companies and governments and wheher they are successful Sometimes they are also used to implicated people's lives and how they are progressing

E.g The country is suffering from galloping inflation, the value of its

money has halved in the past six months

When a horse gallops, it moves very fast This word is used metaphorically

to indicate levels or amounts which increase very quickly, often in a way that is difficult to control This idea is most common in journalism

2.3.1.5 Size

E.g He is elephantine but he looks like lovely!

Literally, “elephantine” means of or like elephants Metaphorically, it

means very large, clumsy

Similarly, “midget” which is to indicate small biting insect, is used

metaphorically to refer to something or people extremely small, such as a midget submarine

Green is the colour of grass, of trees or of leaves in spring and summer

Plants grow on the earth, and so “green” is used metaphorically to refer to issues which relate to the earth, the environment and nature “Green issues” are issues

which concern saving the environment, avoiding pollution, and helping to protect

plants and animals “Green activities” are activities which are designed to

achieve these aims

E.g The company has achieved some green issues

2.3.1.8 Duration of time and space

E.g Long distance long speech

Short part short time

The transference of space relations upon/ on psychological and mental concepts is a good source of metaphors concerned with understanding

2.3.1.9 Climate

Heat, hot , cold, are words used to denote temperature They are also used

metaphorically to talk about emotions and personalities Words associated with

high temperatures, such as heat and hot, are used to show strong, often negative emotions Words associated with medium, pleasant temperatures, such as warm and warmth, are used to talk about friendly, caring people Words associated with low temperatures, such as cold and cool, are used to refer to unfriendly

behaviour

E.g “In the heat of youth”: indicate someone's animation/ ardo(u)r/

fervency

“In the heat of an argument”/ “in the heat of the moment”: denote

anyone is angry or upset and not thinking properly

2.3.2 According to time

2.3.2.1 Living metaphors

Living metaphor is one kind of metaphors, which is felt or created and used

by an individual when words or phrases are used in metaphorically unusual

meanings

E.g She has an acid tongue She can raise laugh at other people's expense

An acid fruit or drink has a sour and sharp taste, often in a way that people

find unpleasant “Acid” is metaphorically used to describe speeches or

comments, which are cruel, unfriendly, or critical

2.3.2.2 Faded (trite) metaphors

Faded metaphor is one kind of metaphors, which lost its freshness because

of long and traditional use and became habitual For instance, “dying capitalism”,

“fruitful effort”, “golden youth”, “to fall in love” It is difficult to recognize them

as metaphors because they convey very little emotion They are used so often that their meanings have become familiar to speakers, they have lost the freshness, strong and emotional associations they used to own They are now sleeping or half-dead metaphors which are only aroused again in special circumstances It is also necessary to note that the meanings of faded metaphors are registered in dictionary

2.3.3 According to parts of speech

Metaphor can be embodied in all the meaningful parts of speech However, the majority of metaphor can be found in the forms of nouns, adjectives, and verbs

2.3.3.1 Noun

We can find many metaphors lied in the nouns, such as: the childhood of

the earth, the anger of the tempest, the heart of the mystery, the key to understanding etc

“A cloud” is the word which shows a mass of water vapour that floats in the

sky Clouds are usually gray or white, and they often bring rain or dull, cold weather Cloud is used metaphorically to refer to an unpleasant event which spoils a situation It is also used to talk about things that conceal a situation or make it difficult to understand When it is applied in this idea, it occurs in the

structure “a cloud of something”

E.g A cloud of grief descended on the country

2.3.3.2 Adjective

We can meet many metaphors based on adjectives, such as: cool reception,

tepid support, lukewarm congratulation, mechanical smile, foxy eye etc

The adjective “light” is the opposite of heavy and of dark Therefore, it has

two main metaphorical meanings One is to describe things that are cheerful or not serious, and the other is to describe things which are to do with intelligence

or understanding

E.g She went out with a light heart

Although the problem was concealed, it was brought to light

2.3.3.3 Verb

When you boil something, it becomes hot and is in bubbling motion The word is used metaphorically to talk about very strong negative emotions

E.g "He is boiling with rage" : It means that he is so angry or strongly feel

that he is difficult to control his behavior

There are also many metaphors using verbs: to nail the killer, to chain to a

job, to build an atmosphere, to spark the passion etc

2.3.4 According to the types of names

2.3.4.1 The names of the parts of human body are a great source for metaphors

E.g The leg of a table

The mouth of a river

A body of information or knowledge

In one's eyes

Your body is your physical parts, including your head, arm, legs, and all your internal organs This idea of using these words with their functions is used metaphorically to refer to something which speakers want to say

2.3.4.2 The names of animals are also widely used as metaphors

There are many names of animals which are transferred to the human beings For instance, you can call a greedy, rude, unpleasant, or unkind person a pig; a cunning person a fox; a hard-working person a busy bee; a foolish person a donkey; a clever person a whale etc

2.3.4.3 A number of proper names are used as metaphors

This kind is often derived from familiar names, long uses or typical characteristics in famous literary works, paticularly, in Shakespeare's play For

example: He is an Othello (a jealous person); Falstaff (corpulent, jovial,

impudent person); Bohemians (unconventional people); Don Juan (attractive profligates)

2.3.4.4 The concrete is transferred to the abstract

Metaphors are generally offered to elucidate their referent's sense or significance They are most useful and most successful in this respect when they associate an familiar and/ or concrete with something unfamiliar and/ or abstract

For example, A game of chess may be characterized as a battle of wits; a leading

citizen may be described as a pillar of the community

2.4 Distinction between metaphor and simile

2.4.1 Similarities

People have defined metaphor and simile in different ways However, generally speaking, it has been said that metaphor and simile have resemblances Metaphor and simile are two of the best known tropes and are often mentioned together as examples of rhetorical figures Both metaphor and simile draw a comparison between two things

E.g He was as brave as a lion (simile) (1)

He was a lion in the battle (metaphor) (2)

The man's bravery is the same as the lion's strength (1) And when people use the metaphor “He was lion in the battle”, they also mean that in the battle, the man is so brave (2) Both metaphor and simile draw a comparison between two things that are not really alike but seem, in the writer's mind, to be alike in some significant ways

Usually, simile and metaphor could easily be interchanged For example, remove the word “like” from William Shakespear's simile “Death lies on her, like

an untimely frost”, which retains exactly the same meaning

Some describe similes as simply a specific type of metaphor (Joseph Kelly's

The Seagull Reader, 2005, p.377-379) Most dictionary definitions of both

metaphor and simile support the classification of similes as a type of metaphor, and historically it appears the two terms were used essentially as synonyms

2.4.2 Differences

Metaphors and similes are one of the forms of comparison, but different from an ordinary ones Metaphors and similes bear the differences both in expression and in construction

The difference in the expression between metaphors and similes can be recognized easily A simile creates a comparison between two things by using

“like” or “as” meanwhile a metaphor does not use either A simile states that A is like B and a metaphor states that A is B or substitutes B for A We can see this more clearly through the following examples

As similes: Your eyes are like the sun

He ran like the wind

My love is like a red, red rose (Robert Burns)

As metaphor: You are my sunshine

He is an ox

You are a tulip (Robert Herrick)

It is clearly seen that in the above examples, the word “like” is used in simile, whereas it is not used in metaphor Even so metaphors are exactly a kind

of comparison, too However, metaphors could be turned to similes; referring to the above examples on metaphors which could be written as follows

You are like my sunshine

He is like an ox

You are like a tulip (Robert Herrick)

And the examples now are called as “similes” since there is the appearance

of “like” in each example

Moreover, a very important thing is that metaphor is a direct or hidden comparison while simile is an indirect and open comparison

Apart from the different expression, metaphors and similes differ in construction A simile could be said as a metaphor

Johnson was a bulldog in argument (metaphor)

Johnson is like a bulldog in argument (simile)

Johnson is as tenacious as a bulldog in argument (simile)

It is noted that a metaphor speaks of something as if it were something else while a simile tells us that something is like something else In both the above examples, one of the characteristics of a bulldog probably “tenacity” is attributed

to Johnson

Another difference is that in practice, often used metaphors can turn into dead metaphors as listeners come to learn metaphorical meanings by rote rather

than making sense of seemingly nonsensical assertions, whereas a simile, for it explicitly calls attention to the loss of metaphors Thus, similes can retain metaphorical nature more consistently than metaphors

2.5 Distinction between metaphor and metonymy

2.5.1 Similarities

Metaphor and metonymy are both figures of speech where one word may be used in place of another Both of them are the transference of names

E.g He is really a fox (metaphor)

He is always running after the skirt (metonymy)

Here “a fox” and “the skirt” have the transference of meanings (names)

from one object to another object A cunning person is commonly referred to as a

fox, so in the first example “a fox” is transferring of meaning from the name of animals to the human beings And in the second one, “the skirt” is also

transferring of meaning from the item of clothing to a woman or a girl

2.5.2 Differences

Metonymy is the transference of meaning from one object to another based

on the contiguity of notions while metaphor is the transference of names based

on similarities A metonymy is a figure of speech where one substitutes one word with another directly related word (from the same family or “domain”) It may share attributes For example, “this farm needs 20 hands (workmen)” “Hand” is the symbol of workers Therefore, it is used instead of “workmen” Here is no similarity between “hand” and “workmen”, so it is metonymy while “hand of the clock” is used metaphorically because there is similarity in function of hand (part

of body) and hand (of the clock): to point at something Or, it may simply be associated, such as “let the courts decide”, where “court” is a metonym for

“judges” or “juries”

Unlikely metaphor, metonymy never leaves its domain

Metaphor and metonymy, though quite different in their mechanism, can work together seamlessly

For example: “Lend me your ear”

- Metonymy only: “ear” means “attention” (because we use ears to pay

attention to someone's speech)

- Metaphor only: the speaker wants the listener to grant the speaker

temporary control over what the listener hears

- Metaphor and metonymy: First, analyze the verb phrase “lend me your

ear” metaphorically to mean “turn your ear in my direction”, since we know that literally lending a body is nonsensical Then, analyze the motion of ears metonymically - we associate “turning ears” with “paying attention”, which is what the speaker wants the listeners to do

2.6 A brief comparison of Polysemy, Metonymy and Metaphor

A “ship” is a vehicle used to transport material across water It is a noun, and is literal in its use

“Ship” has become a verb, meaning “(to) transport” Because it shares it’s the same root (etymology) with the noun “ship”, it is a polyseme Since it

substitutes a word (“transport”) that is part of the same domain, it is also a

metonym It is still its domain, so it is not a metaphor When the noun version of “ship” leaves its domain and substitutes a vehicle in

the domain of air or space, it becomes the metaphor “airship” or “spaceship”

Since “ship's” figurative meaning shares its etymology with “ship's” literal

meaning, it, too, is a polyseme Since, as a metaphor, it is no longer in its original

domain, it cannot be a metonym

Here is an approximation of the differences between metonym, metaphor and polyseme:

● A metonym is an introspective (inward looking) equation: one item within

a domain replaces another in the same domain, as if equal

 A metaphor is an extrospective (outward looking) equation: one item

within a domain replaces another in a different domain, as if equal

 A polyseme is a retrospective (backward looking) equation: one item has

multiple meanings with equal etymologies

2.7 Difference between Metaphor and Idiom

This is just a brief guide to the difference between idiom and metaphor, something which shows up very often as a source of confusion

The Cambridge dictionary offers this definition of idiom: “A group of

words whose meaning considered as a unit is different from the meanings of each word considered separately.”

And Cambridge gives us this definition of metaphor: “An expression that

describes a person or object by referring to something that is considered to possess similar characteristics.”

Very often, an idiom has no association to metaphor, being simply a phrase that becomes adopted by language as if a single word These idioms are not readily confused with metaphor, though there are times when an idiom is also

a metaphor or metaphor system A good example is the “carrot and stick”

The “carrot and stick” idiom refers to the use of enticement and

punishment to motivate a horse or donkey The carrot was dangled before the animal as a lure, while the stick was used to reprimand stubbornness Without knowing the relationship between carrot and stick, the group of words seem out

of place in a sentence, which is central to its identification as an idiom

2.8 Summary

In brief, this chapter presents the readers a detailed description of metaphor including its definition, characteristics, types and distinction between metaphor and other types (simile, metonymy, polysemy, metonymy and idiom) We have attempted to embrace both the theory and examples In the chapter, we would like to focus on analyzing of metaphor to understand it more clearly

Chapter 3: A study on the English

metaphoric expressions based on names

of animals

3.1 Introduction

Metaphors are very common in daily language But, informal language also likes to use metaphors They are regarded as one of the most effective devices to make your speech or writing more vivid, alive, and convincing However, it is not easy to understand a metaphor The effectiveness of a metaphor depends on the correct identification of the topic, image and point of similarity Whenever a metaphor is used, reader or listener will have more insightful understanding about what has been being mentioned to Metaphoric expressions based on names of animals are expressions used widely in our real life The widespread of these metaphoric expressions are due to three main reasons: the close relationship between people and animals, the functions of metaphor and the requirement of languge use

An animal metaphor is a word, phrase, or sentence that expresses a resemblance or similarity between someone or something and a particular animal

or animal class “True” metaphors are single words, such as the noun tiger, the verb hog, and the adjective chicken Phrasal metaphors combine true metaphors with other words, such as blind tiger, hog the road, and chicken colonel Other animal metaphors take the form of similes, such as like rats leaving a sinking

ship and prickly as a hedgehog Still others take the form of proverbs, such as Don't count your chickens before they hatch and Let sleeping dogs lie The horse

is the animal most frequently referred to in metaphors, followed closely by the dog The Bible is the most prolific literary source of animal metaphors, followed closely by Shakespeare

Firstly, it is the fact that people and animals have a close and long lasting relationship The history of humanbeings was evolved from anthropoid ape Thus, the human species were originated from animals We are now considered

as high-level animals In the first period of human beings, we lived among animal world So, we did not only witness the animals' behaviours but we were also partly influenced by their behaviours Although we are now living in a modern life - a much more civilized world than ever before, we have never been totally cut off from the animals' world This is shown in the way we communicate every day by using many expressions based on behaviours of animals to describe what we want to refer to

Secondly, due to functions of metaphor, we could describe more clearly and emphatically than in literal language The animals' world is an animate world with various kinds of animals and various kinds of behaviours Thus, by using metaphoric expressions based on names of animals, the language become more abundant, more alive and active

Thirdly, humans' language is varied and developed, so these metaphoric expressions meet the requirement of language use Using expressions based on names of animals is the most useful way to show humans' emotions or feelings

In formal situations, they use beautiful words to talk to each other However, in daily language, especially in informal situations, people usually use bad words to express their unpleasant feelings or attitudes, sometimes the strong disapproval, anger or insult

Language becomes more vivid and clearer due to figurative methods By using animal metaphors in modern English, people can express their own attitude towards something figuratively and shortly Moreover, this way of expressing, sometimes, can excite a profound impression on readers and listeners

3.2 Syntactic features

The metaphoric expressions based on names of animals can be found in the forms of nouns, adjectives, verbs, and adverbs However, they are popular in nouns, adjectives, verbs; the expressions as adverbs are rare

3.2.1 Nouns

Names of animals are used as nouns in metaphoric expressions mainly to

indicate people, such as ant, bee, early bird, pussy cat, pigeon, sex kitten, rat

etc Ants are used to refer to someone who is anxious and worried (e.g Do you

have ants in your pants or what?) Bee is used more usually to talk about a

wonderful person (e.g They are the bee's knees ) Early bird is used to a person

who gets up early in the morning (e.g You're such an early bird!) If you call

someone dumb bunny, you mean that they are really stupid (e.g What a dumb

bunny!) A cool cat is used to refer to someone who is unflappable (e.g She's a cool cat) A lame duck is used to talk about a person or enterprise that is not

successful and has to be helped (e.g What a pity! He is a lame duck) If a person

is called a wolf, it means that he’s a real sexually aggressive person (e.g Be

careful He's a real wolf) Some animal names (“jackass”, “wolf”, “beast”, “pig”,

“chicken” and “bull”) were used primarily for males, whereas other animal names (“tigress”, “vixen”, “shrew”, “bird”, “bitch”, “cow”, and “peacock”) were used primarily for females

Besides, the expressions are used to indicate other things, situations or

phenomena such as dog, dead duck, bull market etc Some people use the noun

dog to refer to something which is of very poor quality (e.g The new movie is a

dog) A dead duck is refered to a plan that is called off or failed (e.g If you still

do that, you are a dead duck) A bull market is a situation in which a lot of

people are buying shares and values are going up (e.g During the bull market in

property, there are a large number of stock investors) Bear markets and bull

markets are so ingrained now as part of the basic financial vocabulary that many

people forget that they're actually animal-based metaphors “Bear” is to indicate

“go down” while “bull” is to talk about “go up” A small rise after a large fall is a

“dead cat bounce”

3.2.2 Adjectives

Animal-based adjectives are used to describe the behaviour, character or

actions of people such as dogged, catty, piggy, pig-headed, tigerish, foxy,

kittenish, mousy, shrewish, wolfish, batty etc If you describe people’s character or actions as bull-headed or pig-headed, you mean that they refuse to

change their mind about something, even when it is that they are quite wrong

(e.g I thought that he was the most bull-headed man I'd ever met) If you say that

someone is hoggish, you mean that they are greedy (e.g Don't be so hoggish and

share with your brother) The adjective mousy is only used to refer to the woman

or girl who is mincing or sour and scornful (e.g She's sort of mousy) When you

use the adjective tigerish to describe someone, you mean that they are cruel and

aggressive (e.g That is a innocent child He is very tigerish)

Apart from that, the adjectives based on names of animals are also used to describe characteristics of situations, or feeling of people If someone says that

they are very dog-tired, they mean that they are very exhausted (e.g I'm going to

bed I'm dog-tired) If in some situations, you say that you are buffaloed, you

mean that you are tricked (e.g I can't believe how I was buffaloed into buying

this!) In economics, if the market is bullish, people feel optimistic about future

prices, so they want to buy shares (e.g After may, most people are still bullish

about the company's prospect); if the market is bearish, people are uncertain

about future prices, so they are more likely to sell shares than to buy them (e.g

Vietcom bankers up to now still remain bearish)

3.2.3 Verbs

The metaphoric verbs based on names of animals are usually used to refer

to the ways people act or behave These expressions are mainly based on the similarity of behavior or movement between the animals and people such as:

dog, wolf down, hog, fox, pig out, horse around, rat on, monkey around/ about, hounds, ferret out, hare off, weasel out/ of etc If someone bugs to

another, it means that he/she annoys that person (e.g Stop bugging me!) If you

chicken out, you mean that you lose your courage (e.g He chickened out at the

last minute) If someone horses around, he/she plays in a foolish way, usually

with other people Hourse around is used especially to describe the behaviour of

children and teenagers (e.g This is a dangerous place Not the place for these to

be horsing around) If you ferret somewhere for something, you search busily

for that thing, in an enthusiastic but not in organized way (e.g His enthusiasm is

clear as he ferrets for specimens) If one person bird-dog another, that person

follows his/ her object persistently (e.g He's always bird-dogging me)

3.2.4 Adverbs

This type is very rare

E.g It’s raining cats and dogs (it’s raining heavily)

Ok Let’s talk turkey (Okey Let’s talk frankly)

I’ll be there in two shakes of a lamb's tail (I’ll be there immediately)

3.3 Semantic features

3.3.1 Names of animals which are used metaphorically vary from general words for animals to particular kinds of animals

General words for animals are: animal, beast, brute, prey etc These

words are usually used to refer to humans’ behaviours, characters or actions, and

in this way often showing speakers’ disapproval In terms of particular kinds of

animals, names of animals vary from domestic animals such as: pet, dog, cat, kitten, chicken/ hen, duck, goose… to farm animals such as: cow,bull, buffalo, sheep, lamp, horse,… to wild animals such as: vermin, mouse, rat, weasel, ferret, shrew, hare, squirrel, rabbit, fox, wolf, monkey, bear, ape, dinosaur… There are two common grammatical changes: some of names of

animals are used as verbs, and adjectives when they are described figuratively

3.3.2 Metaphoric expressions based on names of animals are formed on the basis of the similarity between animals and people, objects or phenomena 3.3.2.1 In terms of behaviour

A majority of the metaphoric expressions are formed mainly on the

similarities of behaviour between animals and people A fox is used to indicate a

person who is clever, but often does things in a deceitful or secretive way (e.g I

can not guess her action She is a sly fox) If a person is called a rat, it means

that he/ she is a contemptible person Rat is used more commonly to talk about

men than women (e.g Don't believe him He is a dirty rat!) The word snake is

used to refer to a dangerous and spiteful person (e.g I overlook you You are a

real snake) A typical example that we can see clearly about similarity between

animals and people is through the word ape Ape is an animal that is in the habit

of imitiating humans’ actions Thus, the verb ape is used to refer to a person who

imitiate another or something clumsily (e.g He makes me annoyed He apes

everything that I did)

Normally, when someone gives a metaphoric expression, he/she often bases

on resemblance between names of animals and referents It means that if the animals are good ones, their referents have good behaviours and vice versa, if the animals are bad ones, their referents have also bad characters However, in some cases, this is not true The animals are good ones but their names are used to

indicate bad behaviours Dog and bitch are two typical examples

“Dogs” are very common pets They are friendly, affectionate, and loyal

animals They are beloved much Dog, nevertheless, is used metaphorically to talk about bad things Dog is usually used to refer to something which has poor

quality The use is applied in informal language (e.g You shouldn't buy this

trade-mark It is a dog to use)

If in a situation that there is a cruel competition among persons involved,

you will say that is dog-eat-dog (e.g It is dog-eat-dog Be terriful!)

In everyday language, we usually meet the word dogged If someone is considered as dogged, it means that he/she is very persistent and refuse to give

up even when there are a lot of opposition (e.g Although they are opposed by

many people, they are dogged to hold the wedding)

Dogged is also used to refer to an unpleasant thing which affects someone

over a long period of time (e.g Her job has been dogged by headache over the

two past year)

Why do people use dog metaphorically like that? This is a cultural and long

habit