Abstract

The world we live is so closely related to colors that color has played an essential role in our life. People employ a great number of color terms to depict the outside and the inner world. Both English and Chinese have abundant color terms. Hence, a contrastive study on basic color terms in these two widely used languages is of practical significance.
The study will focus on a special set of color words known as “Basic Color Terms”. However, it is not easy for us to give a definite and accurate definition of basic color terms for there are so many different versions on what “Basic Color Terms” are. Hence, we choose five basic color terms in English and Chinese which are acknowledged by all scholars to make a contrastive analysis in the study. They are white, black, red, green and blue. Through comparing the metaphorical and metonymic meanings of the five basic color terms in the two languages, we find some similarities and differences in semantic aspects. Then, we try to apply the renowned prototype theory proposed by American psychologist Eleanor Rosch to the semantic analysis of the basic color terms and expound cognitive causes of the similarities and differences from the cognitive perspective. A conclusion is reached that human physical or cultural experience also has common points and variations, which are the deep reason why English and Chinese has much common in the understanding of some certain basic color words as well as great differences in the metaphorical and metonymic meanings. Our understanding to the outside world is rooted from our physical and cultural experience, so is our understanding to basic color terms.
On the whole, by this study, it is hoped to make language learners realize the semantic similarities and differences of some basic color terms in English and Chinese, benefiting their learning of color terms, to have a better and comprehensive understanding of the basic color terms from Cognitive perspective.

KEYWORDS:basic color terms; similarities; differences; prototype theory; cognitive causes

摘要

颜色在我们生活中扮演着非常重要的角色，我们的世界与颜色息息相关。人们使用大量的颜色词描绘外在环境，刻画内心世界。英语和汉语中都有着丰富的颜色词。因此，对这两种广泛运用的语言的基本颜色词，作对比研究有着现实的重要性。
本研究将以基本颜色词为研究重点，但是，由于对于什么是基本颜色词，语言学家们有着不同的见解，因而很难给出一个确切的定义。在此，我们选择了英汉语言中5个被所有学者公认的基本颜色词做一个对比研究。这些颜色词是白，黑，红，绿，蓝。通过比较5个基本颜色词在两种语言中的隐喻和转喻意义，我们发现了一些语义上的异同。然后，我们尝试运用由美国心理学家埃莉诺•罗许提出的著名的原型理论对基本颜色词的语义进行分析，并从认知的角度解释产生这些异同的原因。得出了结论，对于某些基本颜色词的理解，英汉语有着共同之处，同时在隐喻和转喻的意义上也存在很大的差异，其深层原因在于人类的心理体验和文化体验存在共同点，也存在着变更之处。我们对外界世界的理解源于我们的心理和文化体验，对基本颜色词的理解亦是如此。
总体来说，希望本研究能促使语言学习者了解英汉中一些基本颜色词的语义异同，从认知角度对基本颜色词有进一步的综合理解，以对其颜色词的学习有所裨益。

关键词:基本颜色词；相同点；不同点；原型理论；认知原因