An English proverb is a brief statement that gives life advice, wisdom, or truth. Proverbs are common in English and are used to quickly convey information. They communicate a familiar message using well-known words. For example, the proverb “The early bird catches the worm” is similar to “first come, first served.” It simply means that it’s best to be early.
Proverbs are an integral component of the English language, constituting form-meaning units that are indispensable to any comprehensive language analysis. They possess their unique combination of properties associated with individual words, complete sentences, textual segments, and entire texts. Proverbs are encountered within extensive texts such as everyday conversations, newspaper editorials, and sermons, and they also exist as self-contained texts, such as group slogans, house inscriptions, and within anthologies alongside other sayings, for example, “Action speaks louder than words”, or “Every man has his price”, etc.
In Vietnamese, proverbs represent a multifaceted and diverse cultural phenomenon, encompassing linguistic, cognitive, and folk literary dimensions. Vietnamese proverbs not only condense experiences and ideas related to human philosophy, but they also summarize the rules of natural phenomena, labor experiences, animal husbandry, farming practices, or some historical and local characteristics, for example, “Khoai ưa lạ, mạ ưa quen”, “Mưa tháng bảy gãy cành trám”, …
English proverb: “The grass always looks greener on the other side of the fence”
According to the Cambridge Dictionary, this proverb implies that individuals often perceive others to be in more favorable circumstances, although this may not necessarily be the case. It teaches us that wanting what other people have is a bad sign of jealousy. It may seem like everyone around you has “greener grass,” meaning nicer cars, better jobs, etc. Nevertheless, your neighbor probably thinks you have greener grass too. Therefore, the proverb encourages individuals to appreciate their own circumstances rather than fixating on the belongings of others.
Their equivalence in Vietnamese is “Đứng núi này trông núi nọ.” This proverb implies blame and criticism of people’s attitudes towards life. Literally, “Đứng núi này trông núi nọ” means standing on this mountain but looking forward to another mountain, wanting to go to that mountain rather than the mountain you are standing on. Metaphorically, it implies that people are not satisfied with what they have, always comparing and looking at things around them, showing an attitude of not being satisfied with the present.
However, this Vietnamese proverb has many equivalences in English besides the above proverb: “Blue are the hills that are far from us”, or “Why look for a good thing when you have one?”
English proverb: “No pain(s), no gain(s)”
According to the Oxford Dictionary, this proverb says that it is necessary to suffer or work hard to accomplish worthwhile goals. In other words, only by embracing, and managing difficulty or hardship, you will succeed or make progress. Without sufficient effort, we can never achieve any results in life. Its equivalence in Vietnamese is “Có công mài sắt có ngày nên kim.” A huge iron bar through the process and time of grinding will become a needle. Figuratively, this proverb promotes human perseverance, patience, and overcoming difficulties. However, there are many ways to understand the English proverb above in Vietnamese: “Có chí thì nên”, or “Có chí làm quan, có gan làm giàu”.
Structurally, English and Vietnamese proverbs are all complete sentences that can stand independently and perform functions of art, perception, and education. They can be considered as artworks, containing human perception, conveying a message, or a lesson from one generation to the next.
In addition, some English and Vietnamese proverbs can be separated or words added to become other sentences, other phrases, or part of a compound or complex sentence. For example, there is a sentence: “Jack humorously called his trainer a “pain” but followed it by saying there is no gain if there is no pain”. It is clearly seen that the second English proverb was separated into a complex sentence “There is no gain if there is no pain.”
Semantically, English and Vietnamese proverbs both fully express an idea that comments on social relationships, or conveys life experiences, and moral lessons, or criticism of events. These first proverbs convey the idea that people often perceive others’ situations as more favorable than their own. According to these second proverbs, they serve as motivational messages, encouraging individuals to endure challenges and work hard for eventual success.