在英文中,關于“蛇”有不少帶有負面或正面含義的表達:
負面表達
a snake in the grass:字面意思是“草叢中的蛇”,實際用來比喻陰險、不可信任的人,指那些表面友好,實則暗中使壞、會帶來危險的家伙。如:Don't trust him. He's a snake in the grass. 別相信他,他是個陰險的人。
snake oil:直譯為“蛇油”,常用來指那些聲稱有神奇功效,但實際上是虛假、騙人的東西,尤指假藥或虛假的產品、想法等。例如:That salesman is selling snake oil. Don't buy it. 那個推銷員在賣假藥,別買。
as slippery as an eel / snake:像鰻魚/蛇一樣滑,形容人非常狡猾,難以捉摸或抓住。如:The thief was as slippery as a snake and managed to escape again.這個小偷非常狡猾,又一次成功逃脫了。
正面表達
wise as a serpent:出自《圣經》,“像蛇一樣聰明”,這里的蛇象征著智慧、機敏。例如:You need to be wise as a serpent in this complex situation. 在這種復雜的情況下,你需要像蛇一樣機敏。
The snake sheds its skin.:從蛇蛻皮的現象引申出“蛻變、重生”的積極含義,意味著擺脫舊的束縛,獲得新的開始和成長。如:After going through so much hardship, he finally shed his old self like a snake shedding its skin. 歷經諸多艱難困苦后,他終于像蛇蛻皮一樣,擺脫了過去的自己。
在向外國人傳播中國蛇年文化的時候,我們盡量引用正面的形象,比如把蛇比喻成小龍,這樣更符合我們的文化理解,也可以避免外國人對蛇年的誤解。