Some Remarks on Conventional Faunal Metaphors in Polish and Italian
Some Remarks on Conventional Faunal Metaphors in Polish and Italian

Summary/Abstract: Single-word faunal metaphors used in Polish and Italian have been compared following the theory of stereotypes proposed by Lipman on metaphor ellipsis. It has been proved that numerous faunal metaphors have a derogatory connotation. Negative connotations in Polish and Italian are mainly associated with the names of insects (apart from the bee and ant), reptiles and amphibians. Similarities of metaphor usage can be explained by their biblical origins and the ancient culture. It is understandable that metaphor usage similarities are conditioned by perception analogies. However, as some zooantroponymic lexis is differently perceived in Polish and Italian, faunal metaphors may have different connotations in the two languages. On the basis of the material analyzed in the paper faunal metaphors fall into several groups: a) have similar connotations in Polish and Italian – 58; b) are polysemous in one language – 8; c) have different connotations in the two languages – 12; d) are used only in Polish – 31; are used only in Italian – 121.

• Details
• Contents