英语动物词汇的功能和用法

许进兴

(上海外语教育出版社学术事业部，上海200083)

The animal-specific words in the English vocabulary are mostly associated with the qualities unique to an animal or a living thing.In some cases，these animal-specific words are descriptive or emblematic of an image.Among others， “butterfly stroke”is a swimming style with both arms moving simultaneously like the wings of a butterfly;“crow’s feet”is suggestive of the feet of many-toed crows planted on the corner of the eye;“zebra-crossing”is characterized with longitudinal stripes bearing a resemblanceto thoseon thebody ofazebra;“swallow-tailed suit”obviously evokes the image of a coat with the design of a swallow-tail;“hawk-nosed”is self-evidently a nose in the shape of hawk;to name just a few.

In general practice，the animal-specific words reveal the phenomena of the human society through illumination， illustration and exposition. For example， “perking order”，based on the dominance in the chickens，has come to be associated with the hierarchical order in the human society; “rat race”，which stems from the frantic running about of rats in a maze，is analogized to the break-neck competition of the human beings;so on and so forth.

A considerable part of the animal-specific English words，however，are devoid of the intrinsic qualities of the animal itself，and the meanings are well-defined and well-established in the usage though these meanings defy rational explanation.The following examples suffice to serve as a compelling proof:“puppy love”denotes love between two teenagers，which obviously has nothing to do with a“puppy”;thecompound-word“white elephant” refersto something worthless though an elephant in the color of“white”may prove to be the opposite;“a night owl”is a person who likes to stay up late and“a wet hen”is a shrewd woman，in both cases neither“owl”nor“hen”seems to suggest such qualities in reality.

Some animal-specific idioms feature brevity of expression and clarity of meanings.The well-rhymed“more bark than bite”connotes more words than deeds of a person albeit ostensibly referring to a dog.

The usage of animal-specific wording presumably boils down to the following distinctive features.

Ⅰ.Animal-Specific Words Convey More than a Straightforward Statement

Each species of animals has its salient features，positive or otherwise.For example，the fox is crafty;the lion is ferocious;the monkey is mischievous，to name just a few.Based on the analogy between the animal-specific properties and an object of reference，the vividness of the expression is brought into bold relief.The following pairs of sentences shed light on the nuanced effect through the use of animal-specific wording.

例1 (1)A snake in the grass poses the greatest threat.

(2)The hidden enemy is the most dan-gerous.

例2 (1)He was a fastened oyster about his bus-iness deal.

(2)He kept a tight lip about his business deal.

例3 (1)He is a sly old fox.

(2)He is shrewd and crafty.

例4 (1)The young man was a lost sheep.

(2)The young man went astray.

Ⅱ.Animal-Specific Expressions are More Graphic than Literary Statements

The English sentences cited below are amply expressive of the distinctive qualities of the relevant animals in one way or another.Used in the form of verbs，the animal-specific acts are metaphorically conveyed to the reader.“Verbs enhance the graphic effectof a description ”［1］(Translated by the author).A comparison between the English sentences with animal-specific wording and the Chinese versionswithoutanimal-specific wording highlights the subtlety from the perspective of expressiveness:the former undoubtedly strike the reader as graphically-portrayed while the latter are no more than a literary statement of facts or occurrences.

例5 He ducked and dived into the water.

译文他一个猛子潜入水底。

例6 The path snakes through the valley.

译文山道蜿蜒穿过峡谷。

例7 Those who fish for fame and honors will end up nowhere.

译文沽名钓誉的人最后将一无所获。

例8 Parroting a theory is a far cry from what the practice requires.

译文照搬一种理论决不等于就是实践。

例9 Passengers were sardined into the compartment of the subway.

译文地铁车厢里到处都挤满乘客。

例10 The police hounded the criminal all the way to his home town.

译文警察对罪犯穷追不舍，最后在他老家将其抓获。

例11 He wolfed down breakfast and darted to office.

译文他一口气吃完早饭，然后飞奔办公室。

例12 He wormed himself into my confidence and betrayed me after that.

译文他渐渐骗取了我的信任，但之后却出卖了我。

例13 The onlookers craned their necks to have a better look.

译文旁观者伸着脖子要看个究竟。

Ⅲ.Animal-Specific Words Are More Succinct than Literary Statements

Many animal-specific words have metaphorical references.Therefore they are imbued with referential meanings.In this sense，the use of an animal-specific word is more than enough to put across a meaning which otherwise requires an explanatory statement.As“conciseness is a virtue in writing”［2］，the contrast based on the following pairs of sentences speaks volumes of the fact.

例14 (1)Copycats are subject to severe punishment.

(2)Those who plagiarize are subject to severe punishment.

例15 (1)The local discipline watchdog is probing into this case.

(2)The local department in charge of discipline inspection work is probing into the case.

例16 (1)In the remote tribes of those days disputes were handled in kangaroo courts.

(2)In the remote tribes of those days disputes were handled in an unauthorized court without regard of justice.

例17 (1)The newly-developed eco-friendly products are a cash cow to the company.

(2)The newly-developed eco-friendly products generate enormous profit margins to the company.

例18 (1)He was a lame duck and was dismissed before his term expired.

(2)He was incompetence at admini-stration and was dismissed before his term expired.

例19 (1)The athlete turned out to be a dark horse in the match and shot to stardom overnight.

(2)The otherwise unknown athlete won the championship in the match and shot to stardom overnight.

例20 (1)Steven was a black sheep in class.

(2)Steven was always making trouble in class.

例21 (1)He always regards himself as a big fish in the academic field and loses no chance to flaunt his learning.

(2)He always regards himself as some-one of great importance in the academic field and loses no chance to flaunt his learning.

例22 (1)Couples who have gone through locust years have their bond cemented.

(2)Couples who have gone through the years of hardship have their bond cemented.

例23 (1)Unless you are fit for the job，we will change horses promptly.

(2)Unless you are fit for the job，we will have you replaced promptly.

Ⅳ.The Animal-Specific Words Evoke the Image of a Specific Animal

According to Liu Miqing［3］(Translated by the author)，“Artistic language outperforms stative language”.Animal-specific expressions more often than not conjure up an image of the animal in the mind’s eye of the reader.The following Chinese sentences are rendered into English by drawing on the analogy between a human act and an animal’s behavior.The stark contrast shows that the latter outdoes the former in terms of image-evoking effect.

例24 孩子径直朝学校走去。

译文The kid made a beeline for the school.

例25 本市经济跳跃式发展，一季度国民生产总值以两位数增长。

译文The economy of the city has taken a frogleap and its GDP chalked up a two-digit growth in the first quarter.

例26 在工作中炫耀自己不对，而不正视自己的缺点也是错误的。

译文It’s unwise to play the peacock in the work，but ill-advisable as well to adopt an ostrich policy.

例27 他经常玩小聪明，我得提防着点。

译文He often plays the fox and I am to keep an eye open.

例28 上海至威海的直线距离980公里。

译文Shanghai is 980 km away from Weihai as the crow flies.

例29 整天照应两个一岁大的双胞胎可是个单调乏味的苦差事。

译文It’s simply donkeywork to baby-sit oneyear-old twins the whole day.

例30 汽车横着滑向马路一侧。

译文The car skidded to a halt crabwise on the road.

例31 我绝不容忍这样的恶作剧。

译文I have zero tolerance of such monkey business.

例32 他敏锐的眼光洞察秋毫。

译文Nothing can elude his eagle-eyed observation.

例33 船被大海汹涌的波涛掀翻了。

译文The boat turned turtle in the choppy waves of the sea.

例34 他的父母亲虽然很穷，但还是把五个孩子快乐、健康地养大成人。

译文His parents were as poor as church mice and yet they managed to bring up five happy，healthy children.

Ⅴ.Animal-Specific Expressions Sparkle with Wits and Wisdom

The English language abounds with idioms from a great many classical allusions.Their multitude is too great to be listed here.But a few illustrations of these allusions deriving from the classical sources drive home the fact.Among others，“swallow a camel”is based on Bible Matthew，quoted from“You blind guides，who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!”From this context，“swallow a camel”denotes“go through great tribulations”;“a dog in the manger”derives from an old Greek fable，referring to those who deliberately prevent others from having something which they themselves have no use for;“a bull in a china shop”harks back to a caricature about Lord Amherst’s bungled trade mission to China in 1816.His rashness on the trip was figuratively likened to a bull dashing about in a porcelain shop.

Some animal-specific idioms seem to have selfexplanatory meanings.Thus the appropriate use of these idioms highlights the congruitybetween an idiom-related scenario and the real situation.For instance，“have ants in one’s pants”，“play cat and mouse with”，“can the leopard change his spots?”etc never elude understanding to those who have common sense of the idiom-related situations.

Oddly enough，some animal-specific idioms have the same meanings though the animals are a far cry from each other in terms of nature.For one，“make a monkey of somebody”and“make a hare of somebody”are both the equivalent of playing a trick on somebody though the species of monkeys and hares are poles apart.

As animals vary from each other in terms of nature，the use of similes is a common practice in some relevant contexts.By doing so，the accuracy of a description fully manifests itself.Such idioms make a long list，such as“at a snail’s pace”，“as merry as a cricket”，“like a lamb to the slaughter”，“as fit as a flea;as proud as a peacock”，“live like a fighting cock”，“eat like a bird”，“drink like a fish”，“swim like a duck”，etc.The adjectives associated with the nature ofanimalsare commonly-used epithets，such as“chicken-hearted”，“lion-hearted”，“sheepish”，“bearish”，“bullish”，etc.

The following English sentences are alive with wits and wisdom as opposed to the Chinese versions without animal-specific wording.

例35 他在台上十分紧张，说话语无伦次，简直难堪透顶。

译文He was nothing short of a hog in armor when he was seized with a terrible stage fright and spoke incoherently.

例36 他为人极端吝啬，几乎没有朋友。

译文He can skin a flea for its hide and has virtually no friends in his life.

例37 约翰想吻玛丽，但她用几句讥诮话把他气走了。

译文John tried to kiss Mary，but she sent him off with a flea in his ear.

例38 那里的景色美不胜收，可美中不足的是游人太多。

译文The beauty of the scenic spot was beyond word，but it was packed with a sea of people—a fly in the ointment.

例39 必须采取预警机制防止潜在的金融危机，这决不是虚张声势。

译文Proactive measures ought to be taken to forestall the looming economic downturn.We are not crying wolf.

例40 这孩子对音乐就是不敢兴趣，你强迫他一点也没用。

译文The boy shows no interest in music.You are flogging a dead horse.

例41 只许州官放火，不许百姓点灯。

译文One man may steal a horse，while another may not look over the hedge.

In the final analysis，the use of animal-specific idioms， ifproperly contextualized， enhances the vividness of an expression.On the contrary，if the user“barks up the wrong tree”，what is conveyed will turn out to be“a horse of different color”，and even aesthetic effect of the text is diminished.As a rule，“aesthetic sense is fostered through much exposure and practice”［4］(Translate by the author).It is true of the use of animal-specific wording.Only a master hand with a discerning eye can hit the“bull’s eye”.

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［2］杨霞华.英文写作与修辞［M］.安徽:安徽教育出版社，1984:304.

［3］刘宓庆.翻译美学导论［M］.北京:中国对外翻译出版公司，2005:19.

［4］毛荣贵.翻译美学［M］.上海:上海交通大学出版社，2005:22.