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Students Learn About Chinese Culture Through the Folktale Yeh-Shen

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Students Learn About Chinese Culture Through the Folktale Yeh-Shen Promising Practices Students Learn about Chinese Culture through the Folktale Yeh-Shen Emphasizing Figurative Language Interpretation Barbara C. Palmer, Lingzhi Sun, & Judith T. Leclere We are now living in a globalized By studying this unique version of cuted scholars who opposed his efforts to world. Present and future generations Cinderella, students can both experience centralize and unify China (Waley, 1947). must develop intercultural competence authentic Chinese culture and better in order to meet new social and economic understand the Chinese people’s wishes, The Figurative and Metaphorical challenges (Davies, 2008). As cross-cultural dreams, and problems during ancient Language of Yeh-Shen understanding increases, communication times. Students’ minds can open to ap- is facilitated and clarified around the globe, preciate and enjoy great works of art Figurative and metaphorical language and we are more readily able to learn about and literature and to discover their own effectively convey exact meaning in a vivid cultures that are not already familiar to identity and responsibility through fairy and impressive manner. Language using us. One way to learn about and appreci- tales (Bettelheim, 1976). Furthermore, figures of speech such as similes, metaphors, ate a culture is to become familiar with fairy tales can encourage imagination and hyperboles, personification, and symbolism its literature. Kaminski (2002) indicated creative thinking by compelling readers to to form imagery is known as figurative that “multicultural folktales are an excel- find new solutions to age-old problems. language. Lakoff and Johnson (1980) have lent source of content for illustrating not Fairy tales typically carry two levels of shown that everyday metaphors in a lan- only the uniqueness of different cultures meaning. The first level, the literal story, is guage are culturally as well as perceptually but also the commonalities between and often an allegorical conflict between good based (as cited in Kondaiah & Dana, 2004). among cultures” (p. 31). and evil, containing characters that are Bonvillain (2003) argued that linguistic Widely-known fairy tales, for example, one-dimensional and stereotypical, such analysis, particularly of words and expres- can be used as vehicles to experience and as the lovely young woman, the handsome sions, reveals underlying concepts, beliefs, understand life from different cultural prince, the evil old crone, and some element and values. Duranti (1997) adds that “the perspectives. “Cinderella is the best known of magic. Hidden behind the overt, literal considerable body of literature on metaphor and most copied of the fairytales, with as story is a second metaphorical story that can be considered as another case in which many as 700 variants; almost every cul- provides a window into the cultural origins culture is seen as transmitted through lin- ture has a version” (Worthy & Bloodgood, of the fairy tale. guistic forms” (p. 38). Dec./Jan. 1992-93, p. 291). It is agreed that These two levels provide opportunities Thus, the analysis of figurative expres- one of the earliest recorded versions of Cin- for the teacher to successfully utilize the sion in language can reveal underlying con- derella is the Chinese story of Yeh-Shen, tales and to lead students into a deeper and cepts as well as the culture of its speakers. believed to date back to the Tang Dynasty more thorough understanding of how to With the publication of an important book (618-907 A.D.). It was popular among the read for meaning, to scaffold an apprecia- by Lakoff and Johnson in 1980 entitled ethnic minority, Luoyue, of southern China tion for figurative thought, and to examine Metaphors We Live By, the early idea of in the ninth century (Nong, 1998). the nature of a different culture. Yeh-Shen figurative language as merely figures of provides such an opportunity. speech to be used by writers has given way Barbara C. Palmer is professor emerita Yeh-Shen: A Cinderella Story from to a contemporary theory of metaphor. As of reading and language arts China, retold by Ai-Ling Louie (1982), is described by Yu (1998), “the central thesis in the College of Education an early version of the classic fairy tale of the theory is that metaphor, in its broad- at Florida State University, and was based on the Chinese manuscript est sense, is pervasive and essential in Tallahassee, Florida. “Youyang Zazu,” which might best be trans- language and thought” (p. 2). Essentially, Lingzhi Sun is an associate professor lated as The Miscellaneous Record of You there has been a movement from consider- of English to speakers of Chinese Yang. Youyang Zazu is dated to the Tang ing figurative language as figures of speech at Shanxi Agricultural University dynasty (618-907 A.D.) (Nong, 1998). to the broader term “figures of thought” in the People’s Republic of China. Such stories were recorded by the Chi- (Lakoff & Johnson, 1980). Judith T. Leclere is an adjunct professor nese scholar Duan Chengshi and named Understanding diverse cultures, there- of reading and language arts for a mountain sanctuary in Hunan, to fore, requires that there is some attempt in the College of Education which some scholars were supposed to to understand the unique nature of the at Florida State University, have retreated at the time the Emperor, figurative thought of that culture. While Tallahassee, Florida. Qin Shihuang, burned books and perse- most research about figurative language WINTER 2012 49 Promising Practices (i.e., Gibbs,1992; Gibbs, 1994; Gibbs, Bog- figurative language, thus acquiring communication, can reflect the thoughts danovich, Sykes, & Barr, 1997; Glucksberg, a deeper understanding of Chinese and hopes of a particular cultural group. 2001; Glucksberg, 2003; Lakoff & Johnson, traditional society and culture. Symbolism is an important part of Chi- 1980; McGlone, 1996; Polli, Smith, & Polli, nese culture. The high incidence of the use 3. To examine traditional Chinese 1990) focused on its understanding and of symbolism in China can be attributed symbolism and figurative thought in interpretation, there are few studies about to three factors: order to better understand Chinese figurative language in relation to society customs, beliefs, social values, and 1. The fact that Chinese is an ideo- and culture. ways of thinking, thus developing graphic (rather than an alphabetic) both students' and teacher's intercul- written language allows the devel- Objectives of Our Analysis tural understanding (and to provide opment of multiple dialects and This article will analyze the figurative some instructional ideas for the use pronunciations. The ideographic language that reflects Chinese traditional of Yeh-Shen as a bridge to cultural nature of the language also leads to society and culture in Yeh-Shen. We will understanding for students through multiple pronunciations of a single consider both the figures of speech and the the grades.) word contributing to a large number figures of thought (to include symbolism) of homophones in the language. For that provide insight into an understanding Figures of Speech in Yeh-Shen that reason, words with very dif- of the Chinese culture through a reading ferent meanings become associated An examination of only the figures of of Yeh-Shen. This analysis can be used with each other due to the similarity speech in Yeh-Shen, as presented in Table by teachers to increase students’ cultural of their sounds when spoken. An ex- 1, might lead the reader initially to believe awareness and authentic understanding ample of this is the word “fu,” which that there is very little use of figurative of figurative language, thus developing means “good luck,” but also can mean language. However, as the reader develops intercultural competence. The intention “bat.” As a result, a bat represents an understanding of the use of metaphor of the article is: good luck. In addition, the ideograph- and symbolism in the story, a far differ- ic nature of the written language is 1. To identify and categorize the ent picture emerges. Knowledge of the that all meanings, whether concrete figurative language and symbolism nature of Chinese cultural thought and or abstract, must be represented by in Yeh-Shen. the Chinese people’s extravagant use of concrete pictures. This is the very symbolism is required to fully appreciate nature of symbolism. 2. To encourage students and teachers the metaphorical nature of Yeh-Shen. to reflect on socio-cultural elements in Symbols, as an alternative way of 2. As well as linguistic symbolism, the story through an analysis of the there are symbols that originated Table 1 Figures of Speech in Yeh-Shen Figurative Language Definition* Example in Yeh-Shen ASimile figure of speech that involves a direct comparison Yeh-Shen’s skin is as smooth as ivory. between two unlike things, usually with the words Her feet feel light as air. “like” or “as.” Her slippers were woven of golden thread, in a pattern like the scales of a fish. Metaphor A figure of speech that involves an implied comparison Dark pools for eyes between two relatively unlike things by speaking of one The old man’s hair flowed down over his shoulders. in terms of the other. It was said her stepmother and stepsisters were crushed to death in a shower of flying stones. Synecdoche A figure of speech that mentions a part of something That day Yeh-Shen turned many a head as she to suggest the whole. appeared at the feast. Personification A figure of speech that gives the qualities of a person to The fish rested its head on the bank of the pond. an animal, an object, or an idea. The fish wisely hid itself. The moon hid behind the cloud. Hyperbole A bold, deliberate overstatement not intended to be taken Yeh-Shen dropped her tears into the still waters of the pond. literally; it is used as a means of emphasizing the truth of a statement.
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