摘要

本文从语用学的角度，以搜集到的中西方动物谚语作为语料，从两个方面分析中西方动物谚语的区别，其中有动物谚语的三个不同来源和中西方的相同点与不同点。本文得出的结论是：中西方的动物谚语来自于他们不同的历史背景，宗教信仰和文化差异，并且中西方相同的动物有相同的意义与不同的动物也有相同的意义。了解这些，有助于理解动物词汇除了表面含义以外更深层次的内涵和社会用法，还能有助于人们更恰当地理解两种语言的文化。并且对促进中西文化交流、克服语言交际障碍也大有益处，能更好地进行跨文化交际。

关键词：动物谚语；来源；比较；动物形象；比喻形象

ABSTRACT

The present paper analyzes animal proverbs of both Chinese and English from the perspective of pragmatics based on the collection regarding the differences of animal proverbs from two aspects. The research presented here includes three origins and the differences and similarities of China and the West. The conclusion is that the Chinese and English animal proverbs are from different historical background, religious belief and cultural discrepancy. Meanwhile, the same animals have the same meanings and the different animals also have the same meanings in the two cultures. The ideas presented here are helpful to understand the surface meanings of animal words, in addition to the deeper connotation and social usage. And it is also profitable for people to understand appropriately the culture of the two languages, thus beneficial to enhance the cultural communication between the West and China and overcome the language obstacle for better international communication.

Key words: animal proverbs; origin; comparison; animal metaphor; metaphoric meaning

1. Introduction
In this beginning chapter, the author explores two facets of the animal proverbs: their origins and both the similarities and differences. In order to present a clear picture for our readers, the author first gave a brief introduction to the research background, followed by the relevant literature review. The literature focuses on the two parts: the previous studies on animal proverbs at home and abroad. Then the author specified the purpose of the thesis and presented the thesis statement and the organization of the paper.