1. Similarities in syntactic and semantic features between idioms and proverbs denoting colour in English and Vietnamese
a. Syntactic features
Firstly, it is obvious that nearly all the structures of idioms and proverbs are within the form of fixed - phrases, which cannot be changed. As an example, we can see the phrase "The green-eyed monster", which is a noun phrase structure that means "jealous". If we modify it a touch bit into a sentence like this: "The monster has green eyes" then people will understand it is talking about a monster with green eyes. Therefore, the structure of those expressions cannot be changed alternatively or it will destroy the entire meaning that it wants to precise.
Secondly, in both languages there are quite a few idioms and proverbs in the form of noun phrases. Moreover, both English and Vietnamese have the same structure "N/ NP + N/ NP" in noun phrases. In addition, the structures of simple sentences and comparative sentences of the two languages are quite similar.
b. Semantic features
Semantically, both English and Vietnamese have idioms and proverbs with literal meaning and also figurative idioms and proverbs - attached to rhetorical devices.
Despite the differences in culture, people, and nature, the idioms and proverbs denoting colour in both languages have a similarity that all of them express five main concepts: the colour tone of something, life experiences, human alluding, behaviours and sensations, and ultimately a particular conception.
The first is that the similarities, dismissed those characteristics, we are able to see the sameness in the colour tone concept in a number of the subsequent idioms and proverbs:
• (As) white as a sheet / ghost: Trắng bệch như ma, trắng như tờ giấy
• Red as a beetroot: đỏ như gấc
• Đen như cột nhà cháy: As black as pitch
In addition, there are also some idioms and proverbs in both languages that carry a symbolic meaning of a specific colour, such as the subsequent cases:
• Black indicates an item: "Black box" in English and "Hộp đen" in Vietnamese.
• Black and white indicate one thing that has been officially created: "giấy trắng mực đen" is the same as "in black and white ".
• Red is used as a warning: "Red alert" means "Báo động đỏ" in Vietnamese.
• Green shows weakness through the external expression: "Green about (or around or at) the gills" mean "Xanh như tàu lá chuối".
2. Differences in syntactic and semantic features between idioms and proverbs denoting colour in English and Vietnamese
a. Syntactic features
First, from the above data table, we are able to see that the idioms and proverbs denoting colour in English are distributed quite evenly in all eight basic syntactic structures. But in Vietnamese, there are not any idioms and proverbs
with the structure of adverb phrases and prepositional phrases. This is probably due to the difference in the syntax rules of Vietnamese and English. Idioms and proverbs in Vietnamese particularly and Vietnamese literature generally often consider adverbs and prepositions as complements to extend the authenticity and verification of sentences, so with phrases that cannot be forced as idioms and proverbs, these above words make it impossible to specific all the meaning in it.
Secondly, although all the structures of idioms and proverbs are within the form of fixed - phrases, which cannot be changed, in English, there are also idioms and proverbs of colour that may change a bit like "The wide blue yonder" to "The wild blue yonder" or "Green about the gills" to "Green around (at) the gills", without changing its meaning.
b. Semantic features
In both languages, there exist some idioms and proverbs that do not have the identical colour words but have similar meanings and concepts. For instance, the white colour in the sentence "Show the white feather" represents weakness, lack of courage, but in Vietnamese, this meaning field is shown in green or yellow (xanh như đít nhái, mặt vàng như nghệ).
Although there are some similarities, the colour idioms and proverbs in both languages still have some differences that are mainly due to the influence of culture, lifestyle, or natural conditions.
Different from the proverb "Red sky at night, shepherd's delight; red sky in the morning, shepherd's warning" - expressing the experience of the ancients about the weather, which has the equivalent meaning in Vietnamese is "Ráng vàng thì nắng ráng trắng thì mưa". The proverb "A green Yule makes a fat churchyard" refers to the phenomenon of erratic weather when the winter is not cold, but harmonious and warm, which is harmful to people. Despite of the searching effort, there was really no such an idiom or proverb have a similar meaning to it in Vietnamese. Maybe this is because of the tropical climate of Vietnam that nearly all ordinary people can hardly see snow or feel the freezing
cold just like the West. However, we have some proverbs that also refer to erratic weather phenomena such as "Đầu năm sương muối, cuối năm gió nồm".
Another special thing is that while English idioms and proverbs are mostly social in nature, Vietnam is sort of rustic when there are many idioms and proverbs denoting colour pertaining to the agriculture like "Xanh nhà hơn già đồng", "Mạ úa cấy lúa chóng xanh".
Finally, the difference that must be mentioned when comparing and contrasting the idioms and proverbs of these two cultures is that the use of rhetorical devices such as metaphor, metonymy, simile, and personification, etc.
For example, in the idiom "Xanh vỏ đỏ lòng", metaphor is used to compare the image of a watermelon which has the green outer skin and the red flesh inside, with the case that the external manifestations are completely contrary to the essence. In English, there is not a single sentence that carries the complete meaning of the above idiom. However, we can use these two expressions "You can't judge a book by its cover" and therefore "A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing" to precise it.
3.4. Summary
With the two completely different East - West cultures, the comparison idioms and proverbs in colour between two languages English and Vietnamese are be faced with many difficulties. Therefore, the very fact that the criteria for comparison are divided into two main factors, namely syntax and semantics, will help us have a more complete view of both the outer form and therefore the inner meaning of those phrases.