Cultural Connotations of Color Words and Their Reflections in English Idioms
颜色词的文化内涵及其在习语中的体现
Abstract (in English)
Introduction
Chapter 1 Cultural Connotations of Black and Reflections in Idioms
1.1Negative Connotations and Their Reflections in Idioms
1.1.1 Black Is Associated With the Unknown and Death
1.1.2 Black Is Associated With the Evil and the Wicked
1.1.3 Black Is Associated With Tragedy and the Bad
1.2 Positive Connotations and Their Reflections in Idioms
Chapter 2 Cultural Connotations of White and Reflections in Idioms
2.1 Positive Connotations and Their Reflections in Idioms
2.1.1 White Is Associated With Purity, Innocence and Honesty
2.1.2 White Is Associated With Fortune and Hope
2.2 Negative Connotations and Reflections in idioms #
Chapter 3 Cultural Connotations of Red and Reflections in Idioms
3.1 Positive Connotations and Their Reflections in Idioms
3.1.1 Red Is Associated With Honor
3.1.2 Red Is Associated With Celebrations and Joyful Occasions
3.2 Negative Connotations and Their Reflections in Idioms
3.2.1 Red Is Associated With the Evil and Danger
3.2.2 Red Is Associated With Revolution and Socialism
3.2.3 Red is Associated With Embarrassment and Anger
3.2.4 Other Negative Connotations of Red
Chapter 4 Cultural Connotations of Green and Reflections in Idioms
4.1Positive Connotations and Their Reflections in Idioms
4.1.1 Green Is Associated With Environmental Protection
4.1.2 Other Positive Connotations and Their Reflections in Idioms
4.2 Negative Connotations and Their Reflections in Idioms
4.2.1 Green Is Associated With Immaturity and Inexperience#
4.2.2 Green Is Associated With Envy
Chapter 5 Cultural Connotations of Blue and Reflections in Idioms
5.1 Positive Connotations and Their Reflections in Idioms
5.1.1 Blue Is Associated With High Social Status
5.1.2 Blue Is Associated with the First-rank and Intellect
5.2 Negative Connotations and Their Reflections in Idioms
Conclusion
Bibliography
Introduction
We are living in a colorful world. Our life can not be deprived from different colors, neither could our language. There are many color words in our language, such as black, white, red, green, blue, yellow, etc. “Three aspects of meaning are involved in each color word：basic meanings，scientific meanings and the cultural connotations.”(Pan, 1997) Color words are burdened with cultural connotations overwhelmed by the associations and history. Language is a mirror, in front of which culture is reflected. As the essence of language, idioms whose meanings are not clear from the meaning of individual word are the best examples to reflect the culture. Idioms with color words are no exception, in which, the cultural connotations of different color words are well reflected. The same color word may have different connotations when combined wit
h different words. Take “black” for example, “black sheep” is a bad thing while “black horse” refers to something excellent. Different color words may denote the same or similar connotations, such as in “in the black mood” and “in the blue” which all mean being gloomy. The cultural connotations of different color words can easily find reflections in idioms with color words. In this thesis, I will discuss the cultural connotations of different color words and their reflections in English idioms in the order of black, white, red, green, blue, yellow and other color words.#
Chapter 1 Cultural Connotations of Black and Reflections in Idioms
1.1 Negative Connotations and Their Reflections in Idioms
1.1.1 Black Is Associated With the Unknown and Death
The most profound associations of black are the ones with the unknown and death which can date back to the very early years of human beings’ history, when people suffered from the great instinctive dread of the dark natural environment because of their limited objective knowledge about it. Such dread has become a kind of intuition through thousand upon thousand of years and is reflected by the media for communication--language, especially, idioms. First of all, let us see some examples in which black denotes the unknown. i.e.
Black ice: the thin transparent layer of ice on a road surface which may cause great problems because it is difficult for the drivers to know its existence;
Black market: illegal buying or selling of goods or currencies;
Black economy: system of employing and paying workers without observing legal requirements.
Since “black market” and “black economy” are all illegal, they must keep unknown.
There are also some idioms reflecting black’s association with death. i.e.
Black spot: place where accidents often happen;
Black out: to lose consciousness.
E.g. suddenly the man blacked out during the parade and had to be helped to a quiet place.#
1.1.2 Black Is Associated With the Evil and the Wicked
The association of black with the evil and the wicked is greatly influenced by the widely spread Christianity. At the beginning period of Christianity, the Christians were all white people. They endowed black with the association of evil things. Azrael is dressed in overall black. In John Milton’s Paradise Lost, at the beginning, Satan and other angels were all white, but after Satan peeved God and was exiled to Hell from Haven, he was burnt into a black devil.
In English, “black mass” refers to the travesty of mass in which Satan is worshiped in stead of God.
In the old days, the shepherd believed that the wool of the black sheep could bring the devil. Later, “black sheep” is used to refer to a person who is a disgrace or embarrassment to a family or group.
e.g. The man is the black sheep in his family and is the only member who has not had a successful caree
r and life.
In English, there are many other idioms indicating black’s association with evil things, i.e.
Black magic/black art: magic calling on the evil;
Black knight: person or company that makes a hostile take-over bid for another company;
of the blackest dye: of the worst kind.
e.g. He is a villain of the blackest dye.
1.1.3 Black Is Associated With Tragedy and the Bad
Friday in Holy Week is the anniversary of the Crucifixion, the day that Christ was crucified and died on the cross. In the church, black is the color of that day. “Black Friday” in English refers to a bad and tragic day, so is “black day” and “black letter day”. #
Look at another example:
“Kerry Packer is arguably Australia’s biggest corporate wheeler and dealer and one of the few business chiefs to emerge unscathed from the rubble of the Black Tuesday market crash.”(Sunday Mail, Dec. 27, 1987)
In the example above, “Black Tuesday” refers to 19th, October, 1987,on which the stock market in Wall Street crashed.
There are many other idioms in which black carries the meaning of the bad. i.e.
In the black mood: in a bad mood; gloomy;
Black news / black tidings: bad news;
Black and white: bad and good;
Not as black as one/it is painted: not as bad as it is said to be;
Black comedy/black humor: a genre of comedy and satire that deals with serious subjects-death, divorce, drug abuse, etc-all bad things, in a humorous manner.
A most famous example of “black humor” is “catch-22”.Catch-22 is a military rule in the novel Catch-22 by Joseph Heller, the circular logic of which most notably prevents anyone from avoiding combat missions:
“One may only be excused from flying bombing missions on the grounds if insanity; one must request it be excused;
One who requests to be excused is presumably in fear for his life. This is taken to be proof of his sanity, and he is therefore obliged to continue flying missions.
One who is truly insane presumably would not make the request. He therefore would continue flying missions, even though as an insane person he could be excused from them.” (Heller, 1994)
Here is another example: “in someone’s black books”.
“black books” refers to the pamphlet recording the names of people who should be punished. In one of the British poet, Nicholas Amhurst’s articles, he says, in Oxford University, students who behave badly will have their names recorded in “black books” and then surely will fail to get the degrees. Later, “in someone’s black books” means being regarded unfavourable by someone.
# E.g. You will be in your superior’s black books if you don't work hard.
1.2 Positive Connotations and Their Reflections in Idioms
There are a few exceptions to the general negative associations of black. Some idioms use black to denote positive meanings.
e.g. “The company has been in the black since they be
gan to adopt many new ideas to cut costs.”
Here, “in the black” means being successful or profitable (a very positive thing in the capital world), opposite to “in the red”. Both idioms come from the color of the ink used in keeping accounts.
We have another example, “black horse” which means a person who may have unexpected qualities or abilities and who may win a match totally out of people’s expectations. In this idiom, black also have a positive meaning.
Chapter 2 Cultural Connotations of White and Reflections in Idioms
2.1 Positive Connotations and Their Reflections in Idioms
2.1.1 White Is Associated With Purity, Innocence and Honesty
In Christianity, angels with white wings fly in the lily-white Haven. The Pope’s white costume symbolizes the glorification of Christ, the glory and purity. Choir singing holy songs and hymns wear white clothes. So do people who are baptized. At weddings, brides wear white dress, besides, the packages of the presents for wedding are all fastened with white silky ribbons. Therefore, we have “white wedding”. Even in the fairy tales, we have Snow White (who is interestingly opposed to a black witch).The remark “Mary is a white girl” means Mary is pure and innocent. By saying “Tom is a white boy. He never tells lies.”, we mean Tom is honest. In idioms, we have many examples denoting white’s association with purity, innocence and honesty. i.e.#
A white witch: a witch who helps the needy people;
A white lie: a harmless lie (told to be polite or to do something not seriously wrong);
White light: justice;
White hand: innocence;
White and black: good and bad;
2.1.2 White Is Associated With Fortune and Hope
White lily, flower of Easter, is the symbol of the resurrection. White color, the traditional color for funeral, stands for hope. Thus, in English, white is associated with fortune and hope. In idioms, we can easily find examples reflecting such associations. i.e.
a white day: a lucky day;
days marked with a white stone: happy days;
white hope: person who is expected to bring success to a team, group, etc;
white knight/white squire: person that saves a company from being bought by another person or organization at too low a price.
2.2 Negative Connotations and Reflections in Idioms
Ghosts are pictured as white creatures and in dreams a white horse is related to death in western culture. Due to its association with death, which is quite horrible, white is associated with fear. Here are some idioms reflecting white’s association with fear:
As white as a sheet: in a state of great fear;
#E.g. You look like you have just seen a ghost. Your face is as white as a sheet.
as white as a ghost: very pale because of fear;
e.g. My sister became as white as a ghost when she saw the man at the window.
show the white feather: show fear. It is said that the cock whose tail has w
hite feather is very likely to be beaten in the cockfight due to its cowardice. Thus, “white feather” refers to the evidence of cowardice; “show the white feather” means showing fear.
Other negative meanings of white can be seen in the following idioms:
A white slave: someone who is forced to be a slave;
A whited sepulchre: person who seems to be good, but is really evil;
white elephant: a useless possession. In ancient Thailand, white elephant is regarded as sacred. No one could ride it except the king. The king often vouchsafed it to the ministers he wanted to punish. Because the minister could do nothing but to raise it well, which was very expensive? Thus, “white elephant” is used to refer to a useless possession.
E.g. The new stereo that he bought is a white elephant and he doesn’t need it at all.
Chapter 3 Cultural Connotations of White and Reflections in Idioms
3.1 Positive Connotations and Their Reflections in Idioms
3.1.1 Red Is Associated With Honor
#Red is a scared color, a color for honorable people. In the traditional Christian art, red is the color for Christ and the blood of the martyr. Cardinal is dressed in overall red. The sanctuary color for Pentecost is red, the color of the church. Thus, on that day, Christians wear red clothes or accessories, bring out the red potted flowers, and serve red and zingy foods. In the old days, under the bed of state, there was the red carpet. It was the same with the path to the bed of state. Nowadays, Oscar’s red carpet is the world’s spotlight and in various official visits, red carpet is a necessary formality, which is called “the red carpet treatment”. In English, “roll out the red carpet” means greeting a person with great respect.
e.g. When Nelson Mandela visited Washington, they rolled out the red carpet and gave him a great welcome.
3.1.2 Red Is Associated With Celebrations and Joyful Occasions
Red is a warm color and is usually associated with celebrations and joyful occasions in English-speaking countries. On Christmas, red decorations can be seen everywhere: red decorations on the Christmas trees, red ribbons on the doors, red stockings on the fireplaces, etc. Santa Claus is a jolly fat man in a red suit. Since 15th century, on calendar, holidays, festivals and saints days have been being printed in red, which are called “red-letter days”, while ordinary days are in black. In idioms, “paint the town red” means going out to have a good time.
e.g. When my cousin came to visit us we decided to go out and paint the town red.
3.2 Negative Connotations and Their Reflections in Idioms
3.2.1 Red is Associated With the Evil and Danger
Firstly, red has association with the evil because in Christianity sinful women are usually dressed in red as Babylon, mother to all whores and scandals on earth and red is also the color of hell. Thus, Westerners take red as the sy
mbol of the evil. In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, Hester is forced to wear a scarlet letter A because of adultery. Such reflection can be seen in idioms. i.e.
be caught red handed: be caught on site;
have red hands: commit a murder.#
Secondly, red has association with danger.
Red is the colour of fire, which is very dangerous. Besides, the colour of blood leads red to be associated with the god of war, Mars. Thus, red is associated with danger, which an easily find reflections in idioms. i.e.
red ruin: the fire;
a red battle: a cruel battle in which a lot of lives have been lost;
red alert: alarming in emergency;
to see the red light: to recognize approaching danger.
3.2.2 Red Is Associated With Revolution and Socialism.
In English, red stands for revolution and socialism, which are the very negative things in the western world. Red, with a capital R itself means person supporting Socialism or Communism. Beginning with the Revolution of 1848, “Socialist” red was used as a color of European Revolutionaries, like Garibaldi’s red-shirts in the Italian Risorgimento, and taken up by Leftist and generally radical groups. The identification of Communism with “Socialist” red and with red being the primary color of the flag of the Soviet Union led to such Cold War phrases as the “Red Menace”. According to the Random House Dictionary, red further develops to be the synonym for political radical. There are idioms like “red ideas”, “go red”, “red belt”, etc, reflecting this aspect of meaning.
3.2.3 Red Is Associated With Embarrassment and Anger
Red is associated with certain emotions.
Firstly, red is also associated with embarrassment. In idioms, “her face turned red”, “to become red-faced” and “her face is as red as beetroot” all show one’s embarrassment. #
Secondly, red is associated with anger. In bull-fighting, the national
Spanish sport, the bull fighter carries a red flag to infuriate the bull.
Therefore, “wave a red flag” means to cause quick anger in somebody by doing something offensive.
e.g. The mere mention of his enemy’s name is like waving a red flag to him.
Here are more idioms in which red denotes anger:
go red: become angry;
e.g. He clenched his fist and went very red.
be red: be angry;
e.g. I can see that he is red with anger.
see red: become angry.
e.g. When he criticized my work, I really saw red.
3.2.4 Other negative connotations of red
Red also has other negative meanings:
1. Stop. Owing to the red light and the red card, red stands for stop as in “to be shown the red card” which means to be dismissed from one’s job.
e.g. He was shown the red card for hiding company’s money.
2. Debt. Owing to the red ink used to keep the debt in accounts, red is associated with debt as in “be in the red” which means being in debt and “be out of the r
ed” which is on the contrary.
3. Trivial formalities. Red is associated with trivial formalities as in “red tape” which means bureaucratic delay. In the old times, the England’s office used red tape to fasten the documents. Thus, people use red tape to refer to bureaucratic delay, excessive attention to rules and regulations, often resulting in injustice to the ordinary citizen.#
e.g. I want to start a new business but the red tape involved is very frustrating.
Chapter 4 Cultural Connotations of Green and Reflections in Idioms
4.1Positive Connotations and Their Reflections in Idioms
4.1.1 Green Is Associated With Environmental Protection
Green is a color seen commonly in nature. The ecology movement uses green because of its common occurrence in nature. Those who carry this into the political are called “Greens”. There are political parties known as “Green Parties” in over one hundred countries throughout the world .With the foundation of Greenpeace and the increasing recognition of the importance of environmental protection, green has more association with environmental protection. We have a long list of idioms concerning green’s such connotation. Here are some of them:
Green belt: an area of fields and trees around a town;
Green revolution: agriculture-related reform;
Green consumerism: consumerism which is affected by environmental issue to direct its buying preference towards products which are not harmful to the environment;
Green audit: examination of claims made by producers, that they are meeting ecological standards;
Green label: label on goods which sets out the manufacturer's claims that the product meets certain environmentally desirable criteria; etc.
4.1.2# Other Positive Connotations and Their Reflections in Idioms
Green also has some other positive connotations:
1. Go. Green symbolizes go because of its use in informational and directional signs such as traffic signals, as in “give someone the green light” which means giving permission to go ahead with a project;
e.g. We were finally given the green light to begin setting up the new project.
2. Power and energy. Green also has the meaning of power and energy. Let us see some idioms reflecting such connotation:
Green power: mighty power;
A green old age: bear one’s age well.
E.g. Her grand children wished her a green old age. And there is an old saying: be ripe in years but green in heart.
3. Gardening skill. Green is associated with gardening skill as in “a green thumb” and “green fingers” which all mean being skilful with plants.
4.2 Negative Connotations and Their Reflections in Idioms
4.2.1 Green Is Associated With Immaturity and Inexperience
Green indicates immaturity and inexperience, probably from its reference to the unripe fruit, such as green apple. Idioms reflecting such connotations can be easily find. i.e.
green hand : some
one who is inexperienced and immature;
green horn.: an immigrant who is not familiar with local customs or un-travelled;
to be green: inexperienced, immature;
green from the school: fresh from the school.
#4.2.2 Green Is Associated With Envy
Since 16th century, green has been being associated with envy. It is said that in the Oriental, the jealous men believed that if you had the one you loved eat the powder made of jade, she would accept your proposal. Thus, the colour of the jade, green, became the symbol of envy. Envy is also called the “Green-eyed monster”. A person suffering there-from is said to be “green with envy”.
Chapter 5 Cultural Connotations of Green and Reflections in Idioms
5.1 Positive Connotations and Their Reflections in Idioms
5.1.1 Blue Is Associated With High Social Status
There is an old saying: China rules the land, England rules the sea. Blue, the color of the sea is often associated with high social status or being aristocratic in English. By saying “He is a real blue blood.” , we mean he is from an aristocratic family. In addition, in U.S., a book with the names of famous figures, especially top government officials, is called “blue book”.
5.1.2 Blue Is Associated With the First-rank and Intellect
Firstly, Blue stands for the first-rank, which comes from the practice of awarding blue ribbons for first place in certain athletic or other competitive endeavors. #
“to get one’s blue” means to get first place.
e.g. She got her blue for tennis.
“blue ribbon” is also a term used to describe something of high quality, such as in “a blue ribbon panel” and “a blue ribbon commission”.
Other idioms reflecting blue’s such association are listed as follows:
a blue-eyed boy: critical description of a boy/young man who has been singled out for special favours by someone in authority;
e.g. John is a real blue-eyed boy. The team manager always gives him special treatment. It isn't fair to the rest of us.
blue hair : someone stands out.
Secondly, blue is considered the colour for the spirit and the intellect. Jesus teaches in a blue garment, and the Virgin Mary is usually depicted in a blue mantle, Virgin Mary has been called the Blue Lily in the poetic language. In English idioms, “blue stocking” refers to the intellectual ladies, in which blue denotes intellect. It came into existence in 18th century. In London about 1750, Mrs Montague, Mrs Vesey and Mrs Ord exerted themselves to substitute something rather more elevated for the card playing that was popular among genteel ladies at the time. Hence, they held parties in their homes for ladies to which leading men of letters were invited, and at which intellectual conversation was the order of the day. Many of those who attended did so in the blue worsted stockings of domestic life instead of the black silk stockings of social life. Thus, “blu
e stocking” or “blue woman” came to have the meaning of intellectual ladies.
5.2 Negative Connotations and Their Reflections in Idioms
Firstly, in Western culture, blue is associated with gloom and depression, just as in the song Love is Blue.
“He has been in a blue mood since he knew that his failure in the entrance examination.”
In this example, “in a blue mood” means “in a sad or gloomy mood”.
Similarly, “blue about the gills” means “in depression”.
#“a blue Monday” carries the same feeling. Usually after the happy weekends, we are likely to feel reluctant to attend school or go back to work, thus the expression “a blue Monday” came into existence.
Let us see another example: “blue in the face” which means to make a huge but vain effort to win a person's agreement.
e.g. I told him he was making a mistake until I was blue in the face but he wouldn’t listen.
Judging from this example, it is certain that the person in the blue face must not be in a good mood, thus, in this idiom, blue denotes gloom too.
Secondly, in English, people tend to use the word “blue” when talking about something pornographic or vulgar, such is in “a blue joke” , “a blue movie “and “ blue magazines”.
More negative meanings of blue can be seen in the following idioms:
blue murder: protest wildly and noisily
e.g. The union yelled blue murder when one of its members was fired.
blue one’s money: spend it recklessly;
once in a blue moon: to occur extremely rarely or only once in a life-time. A blue moon is the second full moon in a calendar month, or a moon that appears blue because of particles in the atmosphere. Both are uncommon enough that “once in a blue moon” means “almost never”.
e.g. My brother only rings home once in a blue moon. I wish he would ring our parents more often.
Conclusion
Color words are burdened with cultural connotations overwhelmed by the associations and history. Language is a mirror, in front of which culture is reflected. In this thesis, I mainly discuss the cultural connotations of the dominant members of the world of color words, and illustrate their reflections in English idioms with plenty of examples. From the information, we come to know the cultural connotations of different color words and have a brief understanding of the origin and backgrounds of them. Meanwhile, through the examples, we can see clearly their reflections in English idioms. According to the information above, in idioms with colors, on most occasions, it is not the basic meanings of the colors words that function, but the profound cultural connotations related to the colors that function. The knowledge of the cultural connotations of color words plays a vital role in the comprehension of idioms of colors. To understand the idioms, we should take the cultural connotations into consideration. At the same time, through t
he study and research of English idioms with colors, our comprehension of cultural connotations of different color words can be improved greatly. Thus, in English study, we should associate the cultural connotations of different color words with English idioms with color words to get better understandings of both.#