Job Discussion Forums

SethinBeijing · Joined: 23 Feb 2005 Posts: 19

Hi,
Can anybody think of a SIMPLE way to explain to Chinese students the difference between allegory and connotation. SIMPLE is the key. Yes, I know allegory and connotation, but when I try to explain to third year English majors....it kind of gets confusing.

So if anybody out there could offer any suggestions, it would be appreciated.
Thanks

fluffyhamster · Posted: Sat Dec 03, 2005 10:16 pm Post subject:

Just so we're clear about what we as native speakers understand the two words to mean:

allegory: a story, play, picture, etc. in which each character or event is a symbol representing an idea or a quality, such as truth, evil, death, etc.; the use of such symbols: a political allegory the poet�s use of allegory�see also fable

connotation: an idea suggested by a word in addition to its main meaning: The word �professional� has connotations of skill and excellence. negative connotations�compare denotation

(from OALDCE7 online)

Why are the two words being compared (who's confusing or "pairing" them, exactly)? Their meanings are quite different!

Surely these students, if they are English majors, should be able to handle the definitions in English-English learner dictionaries (somewhat earlier bilingualized/translated editions of the OALD were available in Shanghai, and a bilingualized/translated edition of the Longman Active Study Dictionary available in at least Hong Kong, the last time I travelled between the two places), and doubtless they have English-Chinese dictionaries already.

But in answer to your question, ask them if they know e.g. Animal Farm (perhaps touchy or banned in China LOL). That's an example of an allegory. Googling, I was reminded that there is Plato's 'Allegory of the Cave'...I am sure you can find more.

http://www.sil.org/linguistics/GlossaryOfLinguisticTerms/WhatIsAnAllegory.htm

As for connotation, you could ask them why 'hordes of' or 'bloody' sometimes potentially added before 'tourists' (that's me speaking as a Londoner of tourists in London, not as a BBC newsreader talking about e.g. tourist deaths in the bombings in Bali or the tsunami disaster).

Reading more cautious, technical definitions by linguists such as Matthews sheds little immediate light on what connotation is, but Trask seems to view it as being so wide a thing as to seem virtually synonymous with 'association' (in the cognitive sense of what we think of given a certain stimulus word), such that the dictionary definition expands to encompass what is usually called "encyclopedic" (that is, real-world and kind of non-linguistic/non-verbal) knowledge. I won't type up what he says, apart from 'Particularly emotive words like foxhunting, lesbian, multinational and even vegetarian may produce connotations for different people which are wildy different. For some words, such as pornography, the connatations may be so overwhelming that an agreed central sense of the term (i.e. pornography) may be almost impossible to identify.'

I'm not sure that I'd agree with Trask about a meaning being impossible to identify, because lexicographers for one can come up with serviceable and non-emotive definitions without too much difficulty (see below), but he is surely right that words like 'pornogrpahy' will mean different things to different people ('hot' or 'exciting' versus 'tawdry' and 'disgusting' etc etc).

pornography: books, videos, etc. that describe or show naked people and sexual acts in order to make people feel sexually excited, especially in a way that many other people find offensive: child pornography

Good luck with your class! Very Happy

fluffyhamster · Posted: Sat Dec 03, 2005 10:46 pm Post subject:

Hmm, I think I should type up a bit more from Trask just so you (and more importantly your class) don't get totally the wrong impression!

kev7161 · Joined: 06 Feb 2004 Posts: 5880 Location: Suzhou, China

. . . what "fluffy" said . . .

Don McChesney · Joined: 25 Jun 2005 Posts: 656

To connote, or connotation, think of the first three letters.
'con' "to con someone" a 'con artist' . . . disguise what is actually being said. Laughing

fluffyhamster · Posted: Sun Dec 04, 2005 3:34 pm Post subject:

No need for scary scare quotes, Kev! I am as fluffy as a cute adorable fluffyhamster with huge fang-like incisors can be! Smile

Yeah Don, and 'den' is a place where packs of wild linguists live, or a man's name (Dirty Den from Eastenders etc)! Very Happy

fluffyhamster · Posted: Sun Dec 04, 2005 4:53 pm Post subject:

Connotation: one's attitude/reaction to a word? Surprised

You can of course also react to an allegory, but an allegory is more than just a single word and is purposely designed to encourage quite complex thought.

frigginhippie · Joined: 13 Mar 2004 Posts: 188 Location: over here

Allegory: a tale that relates some element of human nature, of humanity
ex. Aesop's fables, animals err and we learn through their mistakes. Pick a fable, any fable.
Donkey wasn't happy with his workload, but foolishly complained and got a cruel master. Complained again and got a tanner.

Connotation: a 'deeper' meaning not found in the dictionary, that is, a feeling from a word due to it's relationship with something else (personal or some thing/event we all share).
ex. "Poverty is cooking without food and cleaning without soap" (not in dict. but definitely true, and felt when the word 'Poverty' is spoken)
ex. the word 'love' from "Waking Life"