論文既是探討問題進行學術研究的一種手段，又是描述學術研究成果進行學術交流的一種工具。下面是小編整理的關於論中西方文化中動物象徵意義的差異論文，歡迎大家閱讀。
論中西方文化中動物象徵意義的差異論文 篇1
1Introduction
“Language and culture，intrinsically dependent on each other，have evolved together through the history.”(Claire Kramsch，1998)“On one hand，language as an integral part of human bEing，permeates his thinking and way of viewing the world，language both expresses and embodies cultural the other，language，as a product of culture，helps permeate the culture，and the changes in language uses reflect the cultural changes in return”.(Claire Kramsch，1998)Language is the base of entire culture，and it is only in language that culture can be wellpresented and handed down from generation to the other hand，language is influenced and shaped by culture;it reflects uage reflects characteristics of culture and predicts the developing orientation of culture.
2Comparison of the Symbolic Meanings of Animals in Chinese and Western Cultures
2.1Similar Symbolic Meanings of Animals
As the ecological environments of human life are roughly similar，people in China and the West will naturally produce the same or similar association，giving the same significance of the animal words when they understand animals from the basic attributes of the example，in Chinese，fox is the synonym for cunning and people use such phrases like as cunning as “a fox”，“old fox” to describe a person，they often consider him or her sly and English speaking countries，fox is also associated with this kind of meaning.
2.2Different Symbolic Meanings of Animals
A few of animals have the same or similar symbolic meanings both in China and the West，but it is well known that the majority of animals are different in the symbolic meanings because of the different cultural ，I’ll give several peculiar animals to testify my view.
2.2.1Dragon and Phoenix
Dragon has come to be regarded as the symbol of China and the Chinese，and China is called huge dragon of China，the traditional symbols of royalty are the dragon and dragon stands for the emperor and the phoenix for the des，as an aus a dragon，that is，to be successful.
To Westerners，however，the dragon is often a symbol of regard the dragon as a fierce monster that destroys some other things;therefore，in thEir opinion，it must be destroyed.
2.2.2Bat
To Chinese，the “bat” is a symbol of good fortune，wellbeing，and happinessall positive reason for such associations is probably that the name of the creature is pronounced the same as the word“fu” the traditional design shows the bat and the deer together is very popular in China，because the words pronounced is the same as “fu lu”—good fortune，happiness，wealth and position.
In the Western countries，the bat is usually associated with negative qualities.“As blind as a bat”，“carry as a bat”，“He’s a bit batty”typical expressions of the negative may be even ion of the bat often evokes the image of an ugly，sinister，bloodsucking may be caused by the “vampire bat”。
3Factors Leading to the Different Symbolic Meanings of Animals
There are many factors affecting cultural differences，which would cause different symbolic meanings of animals between China and the factors are as follows：
3.1Diversity in Spiritual Culture
3.1.1Belief Systems
In the Western tradition people believe the universe is created and controlled by a divine and the universe are separate therefore，there are laws of nature that must be such a view of the universe，people in the West developed a dualistic world r goal of life is to be more objective and g is considered scientific method is usually their approach to problems in le are considered as equal to one ver，people in China regard the universe as a harmoniously selfoperating organism in which each part is related to other parts in a system of this view of the universe，Chinese developed a holistic world hold man and nature are interrelated;man is a part of nature and man’s goal of life is to keep harmony with ility is highly efore，their attitude toward life tends to be more subjective.
3.1.2Pattern of Thinking
From the pattern of thinking，Chinese pattern of thinking is not the same as the ese pattern of thinking is the threedimensional type，while the Western pattern of thinking is streamlined.
3.1.3Value Systems
Most Western countries value individualism and people strive hard to achieve individual identity in terms of possessions and achievement in their a place high value on the group harmony and cooperation are preferred，rather than competition.
3.2Diversity in Behavior Culture
3.2.1Social Rituals
Chinese people always like to ask the person’s name，age，unit and earnings，who he or she e Westerners quite hate this kind of people who like to ask the other’s age，income，and other personal private matter.
When Chinese people recEive gifts，they often let them on the edge，and don’t gaze at the gifts(for fear other saying they’re greedy) the contrary，Westerners will open the gifts in the front of the guests and express their satisfaction when they receive gitality is a kind of Chinese quality.
3.2.2Customs and Habits
In western countries，many people like ish people view dogs as human being’s best English expressions with the dog can be found，such as：a lucky dog，a clever dog，a top dog;every dog has his day;Love me，love my dog;He works like a dog.
To Chinese people，however，the dog is derogatory le have negative attitudes to the animal dog，such as rubbish，ern customs and habits are different from Chinese ones in many is hard for English speakers to understand why servile follower is a pejorative term in Chinese.
3.3Diversity in History Background
Chinese history differs from British and American have their own historical cultures，which reflect the national a is an ancient country with 5000 years’agricultural ancient time，agriculture is the fundamental trade，so people are all familiar with farming and they have lots of vocabularies about des，the animal cattle are the main farm labor，which do much farm work for equently，Chinese people cherish a deep affection for the is known to all，the English people，traditionally，is a nomadic wandered from place to place，looking for pasture for its animals and had no fixed like horses and they are good at es play more important roles than cattle in are not only as the main entertainments，but also as the main transportations for their lives.
4Conclusion
According to understanding the differences of the symbolic meanings of animals in Chinese and Western cultures，language learners can use the animal expressions in an appropriate and correct way，also they can avoid misunderstanding in communication and reading，and reduce mistakes in ’s more，language learners can understand clearly the reasons why different countries have different cultures from the aspect of the symbolic meanings of this paper does not completely reveal the whole reasons，English learners should insist on reading a lot of books and publications to achieve the foreign language learners，this study is helpful for language study and culture communication.
論中西方文化中動物象徵意義的差異論文 篇2
從文化發展的角度講，人類借用動物的特點對客觀世界進行感知與描述的過程不僅體現了語言發展的豐富性，同時賦予了不同動物以吉凶、善惡、美醜等不同的象徵意義。人們往往透過大量的神話、傳說、史詩、寓言、童話、成語、諺語和俗語等賦予動物一定的象徵意義。但在東西方文化漫長的發展過程中，由於地理環境、文化背景、風俗習慣、宗教信仰等因素影響，在其語言構建中動物詞彙形成了不同的象徵意義。
1.中西文化中具有相同或類似象徵意義的動物
所謂相同或類似象徵意義是指中西方動物的象徵意義內涵上、表現的文化形象上，即字面上、內涵上等效或基本等效。這種相同或相似是一種文化重疊的現象，這種文化重疊的產生主要是由於人類及其賴以生存的外部環境在某種程度上存在着相似性，受這些外部環境的影響整個人類社會文化背景或多或少的存在着某些共性。這些共性使得中西文化中有些動物的象徵意義出現形似、意似甚至神似的現象。
鸚鵡能模仿人類說話，因此無論在中國文化中，還是在西方文化中，鸚鵡都象徵着人云亦云、缺乏主見。宋代釋道原在《景德傳燈錄》中寫道：“如鸚鵡只學人言，不得人意。經傳佛意；不得佛意而但誦，是學語人，所以不許。”這就是中文中“鸚鵡學舌”一詞的出處。英語中parrot-fashion和parrot-like都表示人云亦云或者機械性重複的意思。再比如，在中西方文化中狐狸的形象都與狡猾、奸詐和詭計多端聯繫在一起。《晏子春秋》中的“城狐社鼠”、《敦煌變文集》中的“豺狐之心”、《中山狼》中的“虎黨狐儕”都帶有這樣的含義。英文中的“as sly as a fox”“a fox may grow but never good”“play the fox”也都帶有類似的含義。
2.中西文化中具有不同象徵意義的動物
中西文化中相同的事物擁有不同象徵意義的現象，也被稱作象徵意義的非對應性。在一些情況下，雖然是同一種動物，但卻在中西文化中被賦予不盡相同甚至截然相反的象徵意義。這類象徵意義上的非對應性最能表現出中西方兩種文化在觀察世界和表達思想方式上的差異，極其鮮明地體現兩種不同文化的特色。
在中西方的文化裏，狗的象徵意義截然相反。在中國人的傳統觀念裏，狗多被賦予卑躬屈膝、仗勢欺人、惡勢力爪牙的負面象徵意義。雞鳴狗盜、狗仗人勢、狗尾續貂、狗眼看人低等一系列詞語都與這種負面的象徵意義有密切的關係。而在西方社會中，狗一直是以人類忠實的.朋友的形象出現，除去一些比較特殊的情況，狗的象徵意義都比較良好。“Love me”“love my dog”“as faithful as a dog”“a good dog deserves a good bone”這些表達都帶有比較正面的含義。
貓頭鷹在中國也被稱爲夜貓子，在古代因其夜間叫聲淒厲，被稱爲“惡聲之鳥”，其叫聲曾被歸爲四大難聽聲音之一，因此很不受歡迎。通常情況下貓頭鷹帶有不太好的象徵意義，往往和厄運、凶兆聯繫在一起。中文中就有“夜貓子進宅，無事不來”“不怕夜貓子叫，就怕夜貓子笑”這樣的俗語。而在西方社會貓頭鷹則有一種完全不同的象徵意義。希臘神話中，智慧女神雅典娜的愛鳥就是一隻貓頭鷹，這隻貓頭鷹被認爲可以預示事件，因此古希臘人把貓頭鷹視爲雅典娜和智慧的象徵。受古希臘神話的影響，西方文化中貓頭鷹經常以智者的形象出現在童話故事中，甚至在J·K·羅琳的魔法小說《哈利·波特》中，貓頭鷹成爲了魔法師最重要、最受歡迎、能夠通曉人類語言和情感的一種寵物。
蝙蝠的“蝠”字與祝福的“福”字同音，蝙蝠的諧音爲“遍福”，寓意幸福如意延綿無邊，因而在中國傳統文化中具有美好的象徵意義。《尚書·洪範》有言：“五福：一曰壽，二曰富，三曰康寧，四曰攸好德，五曰考終命。”所以在明清時期，在很多器物、字畫和建築上都會出現五隻蝙蝠的形象，寓意五福臨門。在西方社會，蝙蝠因其醜陋的外形和晝伏夜出的習性，給人以恐懼和厭惡的感覺，因而被賦予邪惡和黑暗的象徵意義。
諸如此類的例子還有很多，比如：喜鵲在中國文化中象徵着喜悅、好運；而在西方文化中喜鵲則象徵着混亂和吵鬧；在中國文化中孔雀象徵着喜慶吉祥，而在西方文化中孔雀卻是驕傲的象徵；一提到愚蠢，中國人立刻就會聯繫到豬的形象，而西方文化則會聯想到火雞。
3.中西文化中空缺的動物象徵意義
所謂空缺的動物象徵意義是指由於歷史背景、風俗習慣、動物分佈等原因，某些動物在特定文化中存在某種象徵意義，而在另外一種文化中卻幾乎沒有象徵意義。
在中西文化中這種動物象徵意義的空缺是一種比較常見的現象。比如，中國文化一直將鴛鴦視爲愛情的象徵，以鴛鴦比作夫妻。漢代司馬相如爲卓文君作《鳳求凰》，其中就有“何緣交頸爲鴛鴦，胡頡頏兮共翱翔”的詩句。唐代詩人盧照鄰更是留下了“得成比目何辭死、願做鴛鴦不羨仙”的千古佳句。再比如，龜在中國文化中與麒麟、龍、鳳凰合稱爲四瑞獸，一直是吉祥長壽的象徵，有避邪擋煞、消災避害、鎮宅納財的寓意。商周時代常用燒灼龜甲的方式來占卜吉凶，漢代象徵皇權的九鼎也飾有龜紋。但是以上兩種動物在西方文化中卻幾乎沒有任何象徵意義。
中國文明早期屬於典型的農耕文明，因此文化中海洋和海洋生物的提及相對較少；早期西方文明屬於典型的海洋文明，因此文化中對海洋和海洋生物的提及相對較多。鯨魚就是一種在西方文明中帶有象徵意義的海洋生物。《舊約》中曾經記載，先知約拿在一次海難中被鯨魚吞入腹中，這位有勇有謀的先知憑藉堅強的意志和上帝的保守，在鯨腹中呆了三天三夜，竟然安然無恙，成功脫險。因此鯨魚在西方文化中象徵着母性、再生、志向遠大、勇往直前，並帶有自由的象徵意義。
4.中西方虛構動物象徵意義的差異
無論是中國文明還是西方文明，都存在許多虛構的動物，龍和鳳凰就是非常典型的代表。儘管都存在這兩種虛構的動物，但在中西方文化中這兩種動物無論是在外形方面，還是在象徵意義方面都有着極大的不同。根據中國的民間傳說，龍有鹿的角，駱駝般的頭，兔子般的眼睛，蛇一樣的頸部，鯉魚般的鱗片，雄鷹般的爪子，老虎般的腳掌和公牛般的耳朵。在中國文化中，龍被視爲神聖的動物，具有掌控風雨的能力，是權力、威嚴和神聖的象徵。龍還是皇室的象徵，視皇帝爲真龍天子，皇室器皿、服裝、裝飾、建築上也多用龍作爲裝飾圖案。民間將龍視爲中華民族的祖先，因此中國人自稱“龍的傳人”。學術界一般認爲西方龍的傳說起源於對蛇的崇拜，但是經過希臘神話、《貝奧武夫》等宗教著作和文學作品的描繪和傳播，龍被塑造成了一種長着利爪和蝙蝠狀翅膀，能夠噴吐毒氣和火焰的怪物，其象徵意義也變成了邪惡、殘暴和貪婪。
在中國傳統文化中，鳳凰是傳說中的百鳥之王，雄爲鳳，雌爲凰。西漢的司馬相如就有一首著名的琴曲《鳳求凰》。按照郭璞《爾雅·釋鳥》的記載，鳳凰的特徵是：“雞頭、燕頷、蛇頸、龜背、魚尾、五彩色，高六尺許。”鳳凰身披五色，象徵着仁義禮智信五德，也象徵天道五行。在中國文化中，鳳凰是喜慶、太平、人才、幸福的象徵。鳳凰在英語中對應的phoenix一詞來源於希臘語，是一種生活在阿拉伯荒漠的神鳥，體大如鷹，有金、紅兩色羽毛，豔麗無比。西方文化中鳳凰也被稱爲不死鳥，其源頭可以追溯到埃及神話中的貝努傳，不死鳥每隔五百年左右，便會採集各種有香味的樹枝或草葉，並將之疊起來後引火自焚，最後留下來的灰燼中會出現重生的幼鳥。鳳凰，或者說不死鳥，是重生、復活、完美甚至愛情的象徵。
中西文化在動物象徵意義上的差異，實際上體現的是兩種文化的差異，它受到了歷史、習俗、價值觀念、宗教信仰等諸多因素的影響。人們往往透過大量的神話、傳說、史詩、寓言、童話、成語、諺語和俗語等賦予某些動物以一定的象徵意義。在中西方文化中，這些動物的象徵意義傳遞了不同的歷史、地理、生活習慣、美學觀點、心理特徵等文化資訊，具有極其豐富的文化內涵。