ученицы 10 Б класса

Лисунова Маргарита Витальевна,

Бродская София Александровна,

МОУ «Лицей №5»

«COMPARISON OF ASSOCIATONS WITH ANIMALS IN RUSSIA AND ENGLISH-SPEAKING COUNTRIES »

Железногорск 2022

Оглавление

Problem Statement:        3

Purpose:        3

Tasks:        3

Introduction        3

Contrast between animal images in Russia and English-speaking countries        4

Animals in cinema.        5

Conclusion        6

List of references        6

Problem Statement: This topic helps people interested in an in-depth study of the country, its culture and language to study the cultural base of England/America

Purpose: to compare associations with animals in different countries: Russia and England/America.

Tasks:

1. Find out how animals are described in Russia and England/America.

2. Match the images of animals in the chosen countries.

3. Consider animals in cinema.

Introduction

It is noticed that associations with animals are not the same in different countries. Therefore, we were interested in this topic and we decided to analyse it. It is important to understand that, developing in different historical conditions, the English and Russian peoples often used different images to describe the same animals, which, in their turn, reflect the different social order and life of the two peoples.

Contrast between animal images in Russia and English-speaking countries

The Cat.   As a rule, in Russia, the cat is described as freedom-loving, lazy and wise. He brings happiness to the house and protects it from pests (mice).

In Russia there are signs of cats: "The cat washes itself means the change of the weather"; " The cat hides its face under it means coming frost"

The image of a wise cat can be met in literary writings:

... "A learned cat whiles away the hours

By walking slowly round and round. " by A. Pushkin

In English-speaking countries the cat is considered to be clean and nine-lived.

The legend of nine cat lives takes its origin from there.

There are references to the cat in English idioms:

"A fat cat" means a money bag; "Not have a cat in hell's chance" means to have no chance.

The Mouse.  Russia: complete antithesis to the cat, it is shy, does harm.

There are signs mentioning mice: "A plague of mice foreshadows crop failure and starvation"

England: Mice are smart, fast and inquisitive

There are references to mice in English idioms: "Rat's nest" means disheveled hair;

"A rat race" is rivalry.

The Hare or the rabbit.  In Russia the hare or rabbit is usually considered to be a cowardly and defenseless inhabitant of the forest.

In the Russian language there are many proverbs with a hare: “If you run after two hares, you will lose them both.”; "A little stub is a wolf for a cowardly bunny."

In English-speaking countries hares or rabbits, in addition to being shy, are very cunning and quick-witted. Here are some expressions about rabbits:

"To pull a rabbit out of a hat" means to find an unexpected solution in the situation that seems to be hopeless.

"To go down the rabbit hole" - they say when they get into strange situations. A reference to "Alice in Wonderland."

The Fox.  As far as we know, in Russia, the fox is associated with cunning, deception and flattery. In many proverbs and sayings, it is represented in this way.

Take a look at these proverbs about the fox: "The Fox is an old flatterer."

"The Fox counts chickens in its sleep."; "An old fox is not taught tricks"

In England, the fox is presented as clueless, arrogant and proud. Foxes in America were known for their "crazy behavior," at least in early 1890s.

The expression "Mad fox" proves it.

Animals in cinema.

Nowadays, there are a huge number of cartoons and films where animals play the main roles. But animals are casted for a good reason. First of all, if we are talking about cartoons, to provide a cartoon character with certain traits, people rely on the above mentioned associations. And as you might have guessed, in cinema animal images are shown in different ways in many countries.  Let us consider some of the most famous cartoons.

         "Mickey Mouse".  Mickey the mouse is the most recognizable character in the whole world, a symbol of America, a favorite of the public. Mickey Mouse is a very inquisitive, friendly and optimistic mouse, an adventurer and keen traveler.

"The Adventures of Leopold the Cat".  The main character of this animated series is a decent and very well-behaved Leopold the cat. The antipodes of such a positive cat in this cartoon are two mice. The cat is good-natured and peaceful, he forgives offensive mice’s pranks, Leopold even comes to the rescue of cocky mice.

“Zootopia”. This is an American cartoon that shows obvious differences in animal images. The main character is Judy the rabbit, who joined to the police contrary to the stereotypes about cowardly rabbits. The second main character is Nick the fox that became Judy's partner, which also contradicts the stereotypes, because as far as we know foxes hunt hares. By the way, in the cartoon, the rabbit is very smart, fearless and does an excellent job.

“You just wait!’  This is the most famous Soviet cartoon in which the main characters are the Wolf and the Hare. Here we can see animal relations as they are associated in our country. Throughout the series, the wolf tries to do all his best to catch the hare while constantly chasing him. But all this is useless, the hare always manages to fling off pursuers and leave the wolf high and dry.

Conclusion

Due to this project we have learned a lot about the way animal images are perceived in different countries, remembered interesting cartoons, and more than that we have learned many new English idioms. This helps to develop knowledge of the language and learn the culture of the country, thereby enriching our store of knowledge.

List of references

ru.wikipedia.org

http://grammar-tei.com/anglijskie-idiomy-s-nazvaniyami-zhivotnyx-animal-idioms/