Russian Biblical Idiom Змий-Искуситель (Tempting Serpent) From Viewpoint Of Chinese Culture

Abstract

The paper considers national and cultural specifics of a biblical idiom змий-искуситель (Old Serpent, lit. tempting serpent) that reflects the concept of snake characteristic of the Russian people in the context of Chinese linguistic culture. After analyzing the symbolic meanings of the zoonym snake in Chinese context, the authors revealed that this idiom is absent in Chinese, as the concept of tempter that the snake has in the Russian linguistic culture is absent in Chinese linguistic and cultural tradition. Meanwhile, temptation is one of the dominating anti-values of the Russian linguistic culture. The obtained results showed difference in semantics of the snake zoonym and idioms including this component between the representatives of Russian and Chinese culture due to an active influence that the culture exerts onto the national language. In Chinese tradition, the image of the snake has both positive and negative connotations. It is defined by symbolism of the totem animal that is genetically related to a dragon, which is reflected in many Chinese chengyu. Often, the attributes of insidious, cruel, evil and greedy animal are highlighted in the image of a snake. However, connotations of a tempter are absent in the Chinese phraseology. The materials of the paper may find practical application in teaching the Russian phraseology to foreign audiences, including the Chinese one.