Analysis of Factors Influencing College Student On Autonomous English Learning 影响大学生英语自主学习的因素分析

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本科毕业论文（设计）题目（中文）：影响大学生英语自主学习的因素分析（英文）：AnalysisofFactorsInfluencingCollegeStudentOnAutonomousEnglishLearning学院医药化工学院年级专业12化工学生姓名学号1232210028指导教师完成日期2008年4月23 AnalysisofFactorsInfluencingCollegeStudentOnAutonomousEnglishLearningWrittenbyZhangDongyeSupervisedbyProfessorWangHuiminAThesisSubmittedtoTaiZhouUniversityinPartialFulfillmentoftheRequirementsfortheDegreeofBachelorofArtsinEnglishEducationForeignLanguagesCollege,ShanghaiNormalUniversityApril200823 AcknowledgementsThisthesisisdedicatedtoalltheteacherswhohavetaughtmealot,especiallytomysupervisor,whohashelpedtoworkouttheoutline,givingmeenlighteningadvicethroughoutthewholeprocessofthepresentthesis.Toher,Ioweaprofounddebtofgratitude.Theworkwouldnothavebeenpossiblewithoutthehelpofmyroommatesandfriends,whogavemealotofencouragementwhenIwasataloss.Wediscussedalotandmovedforward.Iamparticularlyindebtedtomyfatherandmother,whoencouragedmetopersistandgavemethebesttheycouldoffer.Withoutallthesupport,Icouldnothavecompletedthistoughwork.AbstractColourtermsareabundantinbothEnglishandChinese，suchasred,yellow,andblue.Inthisthesis,IhaveattemptedtomakeacomparisonbetweenthesenseofredinEnglishandthatinChinesebystudyingtheexamplescollectedfromallthematerialsavailable.Thethesisisdividedintothreeparts.InChapterOne,IrelatecolourtermswithcognitionandcultureinEnglishandChinese.InChapterTwo,IlistalotofexamplesrelatedtoredinEnglishandChineseandanalysethemfromthreeaspectsintermsoftheirsense:exactequivalence,partialequivalence,noequivalence.InChapterThree,Ifindoutthefactorsthatcausethesesemanticsimilaritiesanddifferencesofredfromtheperspectiveofcognitionandculture.23 ThroughacomparativestudyofthesenseofredinEnglishandChinese,IshedlightonthethreekindsofequivalentrelationshipofredtermsinEnglishandChinese.ThethreekindsofequivalentrelationshipindicatethatthereexistsimilarityanddifferenceinredtermsbetweenEnglishandChinese.Bothsimilarityanddifferenceareattributedtocognitivebasisandculturalinfluence.Ifpeopleknowthemwell,theycanachievebettercross-culturecommunication.Keywords:thesenseofred;semanticequivalence;similarity;difference;cognition;culture摘要在这个科技日益发达的社会，自主学习能力变得越来越重要。近30年来，语音教育界对自主学习也越来越重视。本文分为三个部分。在第一章中，我谈到了颜色词与认知和文化的关系。在第二章中，我列举了中英文里有关红色词语的许多例子，并且结合三种语义对等关系对它们进行了分析：英汉语义的完全对应，部分对应和不完全对应。在第三章中，我从认知以及文化的角度，阐释了导致这些红色词语在中英文里语义相似和不同的原因。通过对中英文中红色词义的对比研究，我揭示出红色词语在中英文里的三种对应关系。这三种对应关系表明在英汉两种语言里，红色词语的语义确实存在着23 相似性和差异性，而这些相似性和差异性都源于认知的基础和文化的影响。关键词：红色语义；语义对应；相似；差异；认知；文化ContentsAcknowledgements…….…….…….…….…….…….…….…….….iAbstract…….…….…….…….…….…….…….…….………….…ii摘要……………………………………………………………………………….iii1.Introduction………………………………………………………..12.ThegeneralviewofcolourtermsinEnglishandChinese……...22.1ColourtermswithcognitioninEnglishandChinese……………………..223 2.2ColourtermswithcultureinEnglishandChinese…………………………33.SemanticequivalenceofredinEnglishandChinese…………….53.1Exactequivalence………………………………………………………….53.2Partialequivalence………………………………………………………...63.3Noequivalence…………………………………………………………….84.ReasonsforthesemanticsimilaritiesanddifferencesofredinEnglishandChinese………………………………………………….114.1ReasonsforthesemanticsimilaritiesofredinEnglishandChinese……..114.2ReasonsforthesemanticdifferencesofredinEnglishandChinese………134.2.1Differenceinaesthetichabit……………………………….…………144.2.2Differenceinhistoricalbackground….…………………….………...155.Conclusion……………………………....................……………...17Bibliography…………………………………………………….……181.IntroductionAccordingtoGeoffreyLeech(1981:9),“Thereareseventypesofmeanings:conceptualmeaning,connotativemeaning,socialmeaning,affectivemeaning,reflectedmeaning,collocativemeaning,andthematicmeaning.”Andhecombinedconnotativemeaning,socialmeaning,affectivemeaning,reflectedmeaning,collocativemeaninginto“associativemeaning”.Sobesidestheliteralmeaning,colourwordshaveaffluentassociativemeanings.Differentnationsendowthemwithdifferentculturalconnotations.ThecomparativestudyofthesenseofredinbothEnglishandChinesewillbeabridgeforbothEnglishandChineselearnerstounderstandthesimilaritiesanddisparities;otherwise,thesedisparitiescancauseambiguityandleadtomisunderstanding.23 “Obviously,connotationsareapttovaryfromagetoageandfromsocietytosociety”(Ibid:12).Comparedwithconceptualmeaning,associativemeaningisunstablebecauseassociationsvaryconsiderablyaccordingtoculture,historicalperiod,andtheexperienceofindividuals.SoitisquitenecessarytomakeacomparisonbetweenassociativemeaningofredinEnglishandthatinChinese.Therehavebeenalotofstudiesaboutthemeaningsofdifferentcolours,thewaytotranslatesomephraseswithcolourterms,andtherelationshipbetweencolourandculture.Manyofthemfocusonseveralcolours,andsomefocusingononecolourtermonlylistlotsofexampleswithoutcomparingthemindifferentlanguages,soit’smeaningfultomakeacomparisonbetweenthesenseofredinEnglishandthatinChinese.Ifweknowthesimilaritiesanddifferencesinthesensebetweenthesetwolanguages,wecanlearnthesecondlanguagebetter,thusachievingthecross-culturecommunication.ThethesisisabouttoanalyzesomeexamplesofredtermsinbothEnglishandChinese,trytofindthesimilaritiesanddissimilaritiesbetweenthemintermsofsemantics,andfindoutthefactorsthatcausethesesemanticsimilaritiesanddissimilaritiesfromtheperspectiveofcognitionandculture.2.ThegeneralviewofcolourtermsinEnglishandChineseColoursarecloselyrelatedtopeople’slife.Colourisanimportantfieldfromwhichpeoplecanrecognizetheworld.Letusseethefollowingexample:(1)菩萨蛮·大柏地赤橙黄绿青蓝紫，谁持彩练当空舞？雨后复斜阳，关山阵阵苍。Red,orange,yellow,green,blue,indigo,violet.Whoisdancing,wavingthiscolouredribbonagainstthesky?Thesunreturnsslantingaftertherain.23 Andhillandpassgrowadeeperblue.(包惠南2003:128)InExample(1),ChairmanMaousessevencolourtermstodescribethecoloursofarainbowintheskyafterasummerstorm.TheyareidenticalwiththesevencoloursthatareusedtodescribetherainbowinEnglishEncyclopedia.Withoutcolours,therewillbenocolourfullife.Natureprovidesuswithmanybeauties,suchastherisingsun,thewhitemoonlight,thebluesea,andthegreenwheatwave.Theyareallthatweshouldcherish.2.1ColourtermswithcognitioninEnglishandChineseLanguagehastwomeanings.Oneisitsconceptualmeaningwhiletheotherisitsassociativemeaning.Whenweusecolourtermstodescribethecolourofacertainsubject,theirconceptualmeaningisapplied.Whenweassociatecolourtermswithabstractconcepts,theirassociativemeaningisapplied.“TheoryofSemanticFeature-cancellation”(王寅2001:308)makesitpossibleforustousewordswhicharesupposedtodescribeconcretethingstoexpressabstractconcepts.Cognitivesemanticsviewsmeaningsasamentalphenomenonwhichisbasedonbodyexperience.Theyaretheresultofinteractionbetweenhumanbeingandtherealworld.Theprocessoftheformingofmeaningsistheprocessofconceptualization.Andtheprocessofconceptualizationisacognitiveonewhichisbasedonbodyexperience.(Ibid:181)Thecognitiveprocessisaverycomplexone.Thecognitionofcoloursisavisualcognitiveprocess.Allthevisualinformationiscarriedtothecortexoverthemajorvisualpathway.Thediscussionofcolourtermswilltakeoneonajourneyfromtheeyetothecortex.One’sbrainservesasacolourprocessor.Thecognitionofcoloursalsoinvolvesone’ssubjectivity.Thus,onecolourreflectsnotonlyobjectivefeaturebutsubjectivefeatureaswell.Thesubjectivefeatureisusuallyformedthroughsynesthesia,whichmeanswhetherthecolourmakesyoufeelwarmorfeelcold.AsGeoffreyLeech(1981:235-26)putit,“Therelativeuniformityofcolour23 semanticsindifferentlanguageshasmuchtodowiththeuniformityofthehumanapparatusofvisualperception.”Whateverlanguageapersonspeaks,heisapttoregard“certainfocalcolourstimuli”asmoreimportantthanothers.Amongmanycolours,redistheeasiesttoperceive.2.2ColourtermswithcultureinEnglishandChinese“Cultureisanintegralwholewhichembracesknowledge,beliefs,moralities,laws,customsandotherabilitiesandhabitsamanhasacquiredasamemberofsociety.”(quotedin陶丽2006:17)Languageisapartofculture.Languageisamirror,infrontofwhichcultureisreflected.Thedifferenceofthe“innercontentofthenation”(解海江and章黎平2004:263)isafundamentalfactorcausingdifferentunderstandingofculturalconnotationsofcolours.Peopleindifferentculturesmayhavetotallydifferentunderstandingoftheassociativemeaningwhichthesamecolourconveys.Culturalassociativemeaningisdeterminedbyonenation’scustom,geography,andreligion.Thesamecolourmaygiverisetodifferentassociationinone’smind.Thisiscausedbyculturaldifference.Thesimilarityistheresultofculturalcommensurabilityandmutualpenetrationofculture.Inmostcultures,redisrelatedtoenthusiasmandunrestraint.Butthereexistgreatdifferencesincustom,geography,andreligionbetweendifferentnations.First,colourtermsinChineseembodyfeudalhierarchicalculture.Inmanydynasties,certaincolourswereusedbycertainpeople.Theyrepresentdifferentsocialstatus.Second,colourtermsembodywesternreligiousculture.Asthesymbolofpurity,whiterevealsthereligiouscomplexofthewesternpeople.Soabrideinwesterncountrieswearsawhitedressinsteadofaredone.Third,anationhasapreferenceforcertaincolours.WeChinesepeopleconsiderredasabeautifulcolour.Agoodcaseinpointisthatweuse红颜todescribeaprettygirl.WhileredisnotsopopularamongtheEnglishpeople,itspositivemeaningisusedlessthanthatinChinese.23 3.SemanticequivalenceofredinEnglishandChinese3.1ExactequivalenceTheviewoftheworldis“aculture’sorientationtowardGod,humanity,nature,theuniverse,life,death,sickness,andotherphilosophicalissuesconcerningexistence”(quotedin陶丽2006:47).Howoneviewstheworldwillaffecthisperceptiontowardtheworld---theprocessbywhichheattachesmeaningstosocialeventsheencountersinhisenvironment.Ithelpspeopleinterpretandevaluatewhatisrightandwrong,whatisgoodandbad,whattodoandnottodo,andsoon.That’sthesameincolourperception.BothinChinaandEnglish-speakingcountries,redisusuallyassociatedwithcelebrationsandjoyfuloccasions.InChina,peopleusuallyuseredthingstocreatehappyatmospheretoawedding,abirthdayandimportantfestivals.RedisprevalentonatraditionalChinesewedding.Peoplestickred喜喜onwindowsanddoors,useredlinens.Thebrideisdressedinredfromheadtofeet:reddressesandredshoes.Thatnotonlybringshappyambiencetothewedding,butalsomakespeoplerecalltheirhappydaysaftertheirmarriage.Whentheirbabyisone-monthold,thehostfamilywillsendredeggstotherelatives,friendsandneighbourstocelebratethecomingofthenewlife.Underfestivecircumstances,theeldersendtotheyoungredpacketswithmoneyenclosedtoprayforhappinessandhealth.Similarly,bossessendtotheiremployeesredpacketswithmoneyenclosedtoprayforprosperity.Besides,Wehaveaveryfamoustrademarkforacigarette,thatis,红双喜whichisasymbolofgoodfortune.Oncalendars,wecanfindthatholidays,suchastheSpringFestival,areprintedinred,whileordinarydaysareinblack.InEnglish,redisalsousedforcelebratingevents.Ithastheculturalassociativemeaningofhappiness,suchasinredletterday.Importantdaysareprintedinredoncalendarsratherthaninblackforordinarydays.Forwesternpeople,aredletterday23 meansadaywhenagoodeventhappens.InChina,wehavethecustomtorolloutaredcarpettoextendourwarmthtosomeimportantguests,thatis,to“rollouttheredcarpettohonoravisitingheadofstate”,or“togivesomeonetheredcarpettreatment”.Forexample,(2)Amothersaid,‘Itwasarealredletterdayformewhenmysoncamehomefromthreeyearsinthenavy.Werolledouttheredcarpettowelcomehimhome.’(我儿子在海军服役三年了。他回家的那天，对我来说真是一个大喜的日子。我们把他当贵宾一样来欢迎。)(宋伟华2006:109)Fromthecase,wecanfindthat“torollouttheredcarpet”canalsobeappliedtoanordinaryperson.Besides,“topaintthetownred”means“tocelebratewildly,toenjoyoneselftoone’sheart’scontent”.Likewise,inthewest,onChristmasDay,SantaClauscomestodispatchpresentstoinnocentchildren.Heisinred,makingthedayfullofmysteryandhappiness.What’smore,thereexistsbasicsimilarityinconceptualmeaningofredinEnglishandChinesesuchasblood-red(血红色),orange-red(橘红色),redwine(红葡萄酒).3.2PartialequivalenceButintheprocessoftranslatingonesourcelanguageintoanothertargetlanguage,themeaningmaychange,especiallywhencolourtermsareinvolved,althoughthetranslatortrieshisorherbesttobefaithful.Thereexistsacloserelationshipbetweencolourandemotion.Thiscanbewellillustratedbythefollowingexample:Mr.Brownhasbeenfeelingbluelately.TheactualinformationthissentenceconveysisthatMr.Brownhasbeenverydepressedlately.Onlywhenweknowitsconnotationscanweunderstandacolourtermcorrectly;otherwise,wewillfeelveryconfused.Likewhite,redisalsoassociatedwithcertainemotions,angerandembarrassmentincluded.ThesetwokindsofemotionexistbothinEnglishand23 Chinese.Let’sseeanexample.Herfaceturnedredwhenbombardedwithsuchanembarrassingquestion.Wecaneasilyguessthemeaningofredandthemeaningofthissentence,forthereisanChineseequivalenceforit——脸红.Thereherfaceturnedredbecauseshefeltembarrassedandshefeltsobecauseoftheembarrassingquestion.InEnglish,wecanuseeitherturnredorbecomered-facedtoshowone’sembarrassment.ButwemustknowthatinEnglishtherearemanyexpressionstodescribeaperson’sfaceturningred:toblush,toflush,toredden,tocolourup,etc.“Manyobjectsthatwouldbelabelledbythe‘red’terminonelanguagewouldnotbelabelledbythe‘red’terminanother:accordinglythe‘red’terminonelanguagewouldnotbeinfalliblytranslatedbythe‘red’terminanother”(GeoffreyLeech1981:235).Somethingsandobjectshaveonlyoneortwowaysofexpressioninonelanguage,whileinanotherlanguage,theycanbeexpressedinseveralways.Thatistosay,theyhavemoresubtledifferencesinanotherlanguage.Letusseewherethesedifferencesarefromtheexamplesbelow.(3)“我有什么心事呢？”盛淑君满脸飞红地抵赖。（周立波：《山乡巨变》）“WhatcareshaveIgot?”sheblushedasshedeniedthem.(4)他和甫两个虽然已经喝了半瓶黑葡萄酒，可是他们脸上一点也不红……（茅盾：《子夜》）HeandWangHo-fuhadgotthroughhalfabottleofportbetweenthem,buttheirfaceswerenotflushedintheleast.(5)周仲伟的脸上立刻通红了，真像一根“红头火柴”。（茅盾：《子夜》）ChouChung-wei’sfacereddenedlikeoneofhisownred-tippedmatches.(quotedin宋伟华2006:109-10)InExample(3),wecanknowthattoblushisusedwhensomeonefeelsembarrassed,toflushinExample(4)isusedintheexciting,happy,orinebriatedsituation.ToreddenandtocolorupinExample(5)arecommonlyusedinmostcases.SowhenwetranslatethesephrasesfromChinesetoEnglish,wemustconsidercarefullywhichwordtouse.23 Thoseareallaboutembarrassment.Thenwhataboutanger?InChinese,wesay气得脸红脖子粗.InEnglish,wecanusetheexpressiontoseered,ortowavearedflag.Theyarepartlyequivalenttoeachother.Also,wecan’tdirectlytranslatethetoseeredinto见红，whichmaycausemisunderstanding,becauseinChina,itimpliesawoman’sbleedingwhensheisgivingbirthtoababy.Neithercantowavearedflagbedirectlytranslatedinto挥动一面红旗.Ifitisthustranslated,wewillhavedifficultyinunderstandingthewholemeaningofatextinwhichitisused.Letusseethefollowingexamples:(6)Heclenchedhisfistandwentveryred.(7)Ifoundhewasredwithanger.(8)Whenhecriticizedmywork,Ireallysawred.(9)Themerementionofhisenemy’snameislikewavingaredflagtohim.Ifwearenotfamiliarwiththephrase—tobered,wecanguessitsmeaningtosomeextentbecausethecontextshavealreadybeensethere.WecanknowredinbothExample(6)andExample(7)impliesanger.ButwhatonearthisthemeaningofsawredinExample(8)andwavingaredflaginExample(9)?Bothofthemsuggestanger.Theformermeanstobecomeveryangrywhilethelattermeanstocausequickangerinsomebodybydoingsomethingoffensive.3.3NoequivalenceBesidesthesetwokindsofrelationshipIhavementionedaboveintermsofred,therealsoexistsnoequivalencebetweenEnglishandChinese.Letusseesomeexamples.WeChinesesay红糖，butinEnglishitequalsbrownsugar.WeChinesesay红茶，butinEnglishitequalsblacktea.红榜istranslatedintohonorroll;红豆istranslatedintolovepea;红运,goodluck;红利,dividend.RedruininEnglishrefersto火灾inChinese；aredbattle,血战；redtape,官僚作风.Ablueskyreferstoaskywhosecolourisblue,butaredskyisnotrelatedtoaskywhosecolourisred,but23 referstocolourfulcloudsinthesky.LetusseeExample(13):(10)Redskyatnight,shepherd’sdelight,Redskyinthemorning,shepherd’swarning.早霞不出门，晚霞行千里。(quotedin蒋林2002:26)Redskycan’tbedirectlytranslatedinto红天.Ifitistranslatedinsuchaway,weChinesecan’tunderstanditclearlybecausewedonothavesuchanequivalenceinChinese.Tounderstanditbetter,wehavetotranslateitliberally.Inthisway,theliberaltranslationapproachisrequiredwhensuchsemanticvacancyappears.InChinese,weuse红眼病toexpressthefeelingofbeingjealous.ButinEnglish,weusegreeneyetoexpressthismeaning.Ifitonlyreferstoakindofdisease,thenitshouldbetranslatedintopinkeyes.Thecoloursaresoflexiblyusedhere.Ifwewanttounderstandthemcorrectly,wemusthaveagoodcommandofcolourterms.Thedifferentsemanticmeaningsofcolourtermsthuscanbeseen.Itisbecauseofthesedisparitiesthattranslatorsareverycarefulwhendealingwithcolourterms.TakeDavidHawker’stranslatingversionof《红楼梦》asanexample,toavoidthenegativeassociativemeaningofred,hetranslatedthenameofthisclassicalnovelintoTheStoryoftheStone.And怡红院wastranslatedintotheHouseofGreenDelights,and怡红公子,GreenBoy.JiaBaoyulovesthered,butredheresymbolizesgirls.Hesympathizedwiththegirlsfortheirmiseries.JiaBaoyuandLinDaiyu’stragedywastheresultofthefeudalsocietyinwhichtheylivedandwhattheywerelookingforwardtocouldn’tcometrue.Sosuchanametranslatedinthiswayissoordinaryandcan’tbesatisfactory,unabletoconveytheauthor’sintendedmeaning.Anditisveryinappropriatetotranslatetheredintothegreen.(Ibid:26-7)InChinese,wehaveanidiom红白喜事.RedistheprincipalcolourofChinesetraditionalweddingsandwhiteistheprincipalcolouroffunerals.Butinwesternweddings,bridesalwayswearwhitedresses,givingothersafeelingofeleganceandholiness;whileatfunerals,peoplewearblacksuits.Soherecareshouldbetakenintranslatingthephrase红白喜事.Toavoidmisunderstanding,wecanputitsimplyas23 weddingsandfunerals.Whenwetalkaboutredandwhite,thereisaninterestingcoincidenceinChineseandEnglish.InChinese,thosewhoarepopularandfindfavourwiththeirbossesarecalled红人.ButIrishpeoplecallthemthewhite-headedboy.Obviously,wetwonationshavedifferentcultures.Inaddition,inancienttimesofChina,红颜or红粉wasusedtocallbeautifulgirls.Itstemsfromthetraditionthatwomeninoldtimescommonlyrougedtheircheeks.ButinEnglish,reddoesnothavetheconnotativemeaningofgirls,sowhentranslated,theredamidhastobeavoided.Then红颜canbetranslatedintoabeautifulgirloraprettyface.红粉canbetranslatedintoagailydressedgirl.红楼isalady’sroom.TheseareallChineseelements.InChinese,redisalsothesymbolofsocialismandrevolutionusedinapositivesense.Thetypicalwordsaretheredarmy,redflag,redstarandsoon.Intherevolutionarytimes,红symbolizesrevolutionasin红军,红色政权or红色根据地while白impliesdecadenceandreactionasin白区，白色政权，白军，白匪or白色恐怖.ThePeople’sLiberationArmywascalled红色长城.What’smore,wehave红代会,红卫兵.Thephrase又红又专isoftenadoptedtodescribeapersonwhoisnotonlyloyaltotherevolutionarycausebutalsotohisprofession,thatis,bothsocially-mindedandprofessionallyqualified.WhereasinEnglish,redmeansextremeness,danger,indignation,andexigency,insuchphrasesasredlightdistrict,redalertandsoon.4.ReasonsforthesemanticsimilaritiesanddifferencesofredinEnglishandChinese4.1ReasonsforthesemanticsimilaritiesofredinEnglishandChineseLanguagehastwomeanings.Oneiswithinthelanguage;whiletheotheris23 beyondthelanguage.Thefirstlevelofmeaningiswhatthelanguagepossessesitself.Thesecondoneisendowedbypeople.“Conceptsinhumans’minddeterminehowtheyperceivetheworld,whattheyperceive,andhowtheyrelatetoothers”(常宗林2005:255-6).Sowhenoneperceivestheoutsideworld,hisknowledge,hisexperience,etc.willaffecthisperception.Meaningoriginatesfromtheinteractionbetweenhumanbeingandtherealworld.Howpeopleviewtheworldwillaffecttheuseoflanguage,thusaffectingthemeaningoflanguage.Duringtheprocessoftheformofmeanings,theexternalstimuliareconceptualized.Thiskindofconceptualizationisbasedonbodyexperience.Thecognitiveprocessisverycomplicated.“It’swellknownthatcolourvisionisanimportanttoolofhumancognition”(赵艳芳2001:41).What’smore,theresearchesoncolorandthephysiologyofhumancolorvisionshowthatthephysiologyofhumancolorvisionisconstantacrossallraces.Itisgenerallythecasethatregardlessofthenumberofcolortermsinalanguage,thefocalhueisremarkablyconsistentacrosslanguages.(quotedin李丽雪2003:24)Withthisviewinmind,letusreturntored.Redistothehumaneyethemostsalientofcolorexperiences.Atnormallightlevels,redstandsoutinrelationtoallotherhuesbyvirtueofareciprocal,heighteningeffectbetweensaturationandbrightness…(Forley2001:163)Soredbringspeoplestrongvisualshock.Theroleofredasawarningsignisrelatedtothecolour’shighvisibility.Peoplethinkofthecolouroffireasred.Forexample,Birrennotesthat“TheJewishhistorianJosephusinthefirstcenturyADassociated…redwithfire”.InChineseculture,“Weshallsetdown…redforfire”.(quotedin陶丽2006:34)Firebringspeoplewarmth,sopeoplethinkofredasawarmcolour.Fireisalsodangerous,soredisusedasasymbolofdanger.Flashingredlightsdenotedangeroremergency.Stopsignsandstoplightsareredtogetthedriver’sattentionandalertthemtothedangersoftheintersection.23 “Metaphorsaresometimesusedwithoutusers’beingconsciousoftheirmetaphoricalcharacter”(常宗林2005:255).Thesamephenomenonwillappearwhenweusecolourterms.Manyassociationsaregroundedsodeeplyincommonhumanexperiencethatweseldompayspecialattentiontothemwhenweusetheassociativemeaningofcolourterms.Inadditiontotheperceptualbasis,colortermsaredeeplyrootedintheirculturalbasis.Thisiswellsummarizedasfollows:Inotherwords,whatwecall“directphysicalexperience”isneveramatterofhavingabodyofacertainsort;rather,everyexperiencetakesplacewithinavastbackgroundofculturalpresuppositions…Culturalassumptions,values,andattitudesarenotaconceptualoverlaywhichwemayormaynotplaceuponexperienceaswechoose.Itwouldbemorecorrecttosaythatallexperienceisculturalthroughandthrough,thatweexperienceour“world”insuchawaythatourcultureisalreadypresentintheveryexperienceitself.(LakoffandJohnson1980:57)ItisknownthatbullfightersinSpainuseapieceofredragtoexasperatebullstowageawar,forbullfightingisatraditioninwesterncountriesandbullsareapttogetangrywhentheyseesomethingred.Sopeopleuselikearedragtoabulltoexpressone’sanger.It’salsoacolourfordanger.Thewesternpeoplerelateredtoblood.Theyassociateredwithviolenceanddanger.Oncalendars,wecanfindthatholidaysareprintedinred,whileordinarydaysareinblack.That’sthesameintwocountries.AlsoaccordingtoKovecses(2002:165),onelanguagecouldborrowsomethingfromanother.Like红灯区,赤字,theyaretranslationsfromtheirEnglishequivalentsred-lightdistrict,inthered.Andtheuseofredinintheredcomesfromthecoloroftheinkusedinkeepingaccounts.Soduetotheinfluenceofcognitiveaccordanceofpeopleandthemutual23 penetrationofculture,wehavethosesimilarities.4.2ReasonsforthesemanticdifferencesofredinEnglishandChineseOntheotherhand,peopletendtohavedifferentviewsandunderstandingofthesameobjectbecauseofthediversityofpoliticalrules,religiousbeliefs,ethicsandvaluesofdifferentnations.Everynationhasitsownethnicpsychology.CulturehasbeenaveryimportantsourceforconstructingconnotativemeaningsofcolourtermsinEnglishandChinese.Thus,itleadstoculturaldifferencebetweensourcelanguageandtargetlanguageofcolourterms,thatistosay,thenon-equivalencereflectedintheirconnotativemeaning,socialmeaning,affectivemeaning,reflectedmeaning,collocativemeaning,andthematicmeaning.Chinesephilosophyfocusesonemptiness,whilewesternculturepursuesentity.Chineseculturepaysattentiontolikenessinnature,whilewesterncultureisfastidiousaboutscienceandpreciseness.Thiskindofculturalcharacteristicisalsoreflectedintheuseofcolourterms.Forexample,Chinesecolourterm碧canbeexplainedas绿or蓝.Sometimes,peopleofdifferentnationsusedifferentcolourtermstodescribethecolourofthesameobjects.Forexample,brownsugaristranslatedinto红糖inChinese.ThisexactlyembodiesthegreatimportanceofredinChineseculture.Inaddition,brownsugarisgoodforone’shealth,soitiscommendedas红糖.Infact,thecolourofthiskindofsugarisclosertobrown.ItsbeingcalledbrownsugarinEnglishismoreprecise.Blackteaistranslatedinto红茶.Infact,thecolourofthiskindofteaisclosertoblack.Butwecallit红茶,matchingitwithgreentea.ThesetwoteanamesfullyembodythelanguagetraditioninwhichChinesecultureisfastidiousaboutsymmetricbeauty.Thus,wecanseethatforChinese,theuseofcolourtermsisapttobevague,tobeopaque；however,forEnglish,theuseofcolourtermsisapttobeprecise,tobereal.Itistheresultofculturaldifference.23 4.2.1DifferenceinaesthetichabitChinesepeoplepreferred,whileEnglishpeoplepreferwhite.Thiskindofdifferenceinaesthetichabitcausesthedifferenceinpragmaticmeaning.Redisassociatedwithhappyoccasions,harvest,etc.Becauseofthis,inChina,menoflettersinancienttimesandtodayprefertouseredtosymbolizehospitality,warmth,energyandyouth.Itcanbeseenfromthefollowingexamples:(11)“霜叶红于二月花”——杜牧(12)“红杏枝头春意闹”——宋祈(13)“日出江花红胜火,春来江水绿如蓝。”——白居易(14)“试问卷帘人——却道海棠依旧。知否，知否？应是绿肥红瘦！”(15)“落红不是无情物，化作春泥更护花。”——龚自珍InExample(11)andExample(12),twopoetsuse红todescribethecolourofleavesandapricotsrespectively.InExample(13),thepoetuses红tosymbolizetheredflowersnearthebankreflectedbythefirstraysofthemorningsun.Heuses绿tosymbolizeapoolofgreenwaterblownbythebreezeinspring.Suchavividmetaphorbringsthespectacularscenerytousreaders.绿肥红瘦inExample(14)meansgreenleavesarefreshbuttheredflowersarefading.落红inExample(15)referstofallenflowers.Theimportancethecolourtermshaveinliteraryworkscan’tbeunderestimated.Theappropriateusageofcolourtermsisformoreefficientexpressionofcontexts.InancientChineseliteraryworks,红男绿女isoftenusedtodescribeyoungandbeautifulwomenandhandsomemen,sowhatwejustneedtodoistotranslateitintogailydressedmenandwomen.AlthoughredisalsousedforcelebratingeventsinEnglish,therearestillmanyphrasesrelatedtoredthatarederogatory,suchasred-handed(当场抓获),red-tape(官僚作风),red-blooded(狂热，固执),seered(怒不可遏),intothered(每况愈下的经营状况),inthered(负债累累).AlltheseChineseequivalentshavenothing23 todowiththeconceptualmeaningofredatall.Redflag,inChina,isarevolutionaryandpositivesymbol,butinEnglish,itreferstosomethingthatwillmakeyouangry.Wecanseeitintowavearedflag,whichIhavementionedabove.ThepositivemeaningofredisabundantinChinese.红inChinesehasthemeaningofhappinesswhileinEnglishpeopleprefertousewhitetoexpressthismeaning.WhiteinEnglishisassociatedwithbeauty,hope,blessandhappiness.IntheBibleangelsalwayshaveapairofwhitewingswithawhitehalosuspendingovertheirhead.ChristmasDayisthemostimportantdayinwesterncountries.AwhiteChristmasrefersto“银装素裹的圣诞节”;whitehands,“公正廉洁的”;awhiteday“吉日”.WhilethesamecolourinChinesepeople’seyeisthesymbolofdeath,sadnessandpoorness.Besidesthewhitecolourinfunerals,therearemanynegativephraseswhicharerelatedtowhiteinChinese,suchas白搭，白送，白眼，吃白食，一穷二白.4.2.2Differenceinhistoricalbackground“Alanguagecarriesalotofcultureandhistory”(常宗林2005:174).Thedifferenceintheuseofcolourcanbetracedbacktodifferenthistoricalbackgroundsofdifferentnations.Manycolourtermsarerelatedtospecifichistoricaleventsandhavetheirownallusions.IntheeyesofChinesepeople,redisthesymbolofsuccess,auspiciousness,loyaltyandprosperity,etc.ThisderivesfromtheadorationfortheGodofSun.Inancienttimes,thehouseoftherichandofficialsarecalled朱门.“朱门酒肉臭,路有冻死骨”(杜甫《自京赴奉先县咏怀五百字》).Theclothestheyweararecalled朱衣andtheirtransportationtooliscalled朱轩.InChinese,朱equalsredwhenitreferstoacolour.Takethewell-known红娘forexample.Thereisabackgroundfortheemergenceofthisexpression.红娘isoriginallythenameofamaidintheclassicalplayTheWestChamber(《西厢记》)，whosegooddemeanorhelpsbringabouttheunionoftwolovers.Gradually,红娘isusedtodenotethekind-heartedgo-betweens.InQingDynasty,thebookthatwasauthorizedbytheemperorwascalledred23 book.ItisdifferentfromtheredbookinthoseEnglish-speakingcountries,whichonlymeansabookwitharedcover.InChina,duringtheculturalrevolution,everyoneshouldkeeponebookaboutChairmanMao.Atthattime,itwascalledredtreasuredbook.Similarly,inEnglish-speakingcountries,wordsrelatedwithhistoryandgeographyalsohavetheirownspecialmeanings,suchasredlining,redcoatandredbrigade.ThefactthattheAmericanfinancialinstitutionenclosedthepoorareawithredlineandrefusedtoprovidehousingloanstothisareamadetheareapoorer.Thiswascalledredlining.DuringtheAmericanCivilWar,theBritishsoldiersworescarletserviceuniform.Sotheywerecalledredcoat.RedbrigadeisanItalianterrororganization,specializinginkidnapping,murder,destruction,etc.Theusageofredbetweenthesetwolanguagesislargelydifferent.5.ConclusionThisthesisfocusesonacontrastivestudyofmeaningsofredinbothEnglishandChinese.Attheverybeginning,Iciteapoemtoarousereaders’interestincolourterms.ThenIlistalotofexamplesrelatedtoredinEnglishandChineseandanalysetheirsenserelationshipfromthreeaspects:exactequivalence,partialequivalence,noequivalence.Throughsomanyexamples,readersmayhaveagoodunderstandingofmeaningsofred.Somereadersmayhavereadsomeoftheexamplessomewhere,buttheydonotknowhowtoexactlyexpressthosephrasesrelatedtored.Somereadersmayhavemisunderstoodsomephrases,whileafterreadingthethesis,theywillhaveabetterunderstanding.Ifsomeonehasnevertouchedthisfield,heorshewillfindhowinterestingitis.NextItrytoexplainthefactorsthatcausesemanticsimilaritiesanddifferencesofredinEnglishandChinesefromtheperspectiveofcognitionandculture.Inthereasonpart,Ialsolistmanyexamples,andsometimescompareredwith23 anothercolourterm,suchaswhite.Thishelpstomakecleartheculturebetweendifferentnations.Fromsomanyexamples,Ihavefoundtheassociationofredwithhappiness,success,fortune,prosperity,aswellasdanger,anger,etc.Theexamplesaremoreconvincinginthattheycovermanyfields,includingpolitics,aesthetics,andhistory.IcansaythattheredoexistmanysemanticsimilaritiesanddifferencesofredinbothChineseandEnglish.Onlywhenweunderstandthemcorrectlycanwehaveagoodcommandofcolourterms.Andonlywhenwehaveagoodcommandofcolourterms,canweachievebettercross-culturecommunication.BibliographyFoley,W.A.AnthropologicalLinguistics:AnIntroduction[M].Beijing:ForeignLanguageTeachingandResearchPress,2001.Kovecses,Z.Metaphor--APracticalIntroduction[M].NewYork:OxfordUniversityPress,2002.Lakoff,G.andM.Johnson.MetaphorWeLiveBy[M].Chicago:TheUniversityofChicagoPress,1980.Leech,G.Semantics[M].2nded.GreatBritain:TheChaucerPress,1981.包惠南.文化语境与语言翻译[M].上海：中国对外翻译出版公司,2003.常宗林.认知语言文化学[M].青岛:中国海洋大学出版社,2005.邓炎昌,刘润清.语言与文化[M].北京：外语教学与研究出版社,1989.顾嘉祖,陆昇.语言与文化[M].上海:上海外语教育出版社,2002.蒋林.谈谈英汉语颜色词——红色的语用意义[J].绵阳师范高等专科学校学报2002(6):25-7.李丽雪.ComprehensionofColorMetaphor–AcomparativestudyofcolormetaphorinEnglish&Chinese[D].Unpublishedmaster’sthesis,ShanghaiNormalUniversity,Shanghai,China,2003.李凌霞.英汉颜色词运用中的文化差异[J].黔西南民族师范高等专科学校学报23 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