Sino-US English Teaching, September 2016, Vol. 13, No.

9, 724-735
doi:10.17265/1539-8072/2016.09.007
D DAVID PUBLISHING

The Functions of Componential Analysis to the Translation of

Cultural Animal Images in The Classic of Mountains and Seas

YU Chen-chen, LIANG Jin-zhu

Chengdu Textile College, Chengdu, China

The thesis aims to explain the functions of componential analysis to animal images in The Classic of Mountains
and Seas. It serves as a treasure to the tremendous Chinese classics. However, as most of the animal images in the
classic book are rarely seen in daily life, translation of animal images in the ancient Chinese book remains a hard
nut to crack. In this case, explicit and accurate interpretation of these culture-loaded items is crucial to make readers
understand. However, few previous studies touched upon this area. In this case, componential analysis serves as a
solution. As an effective approach for analyzing semantic components, componential analysis is an effective way to
break down semantic components of words and make them easily understood. In the previous studies, papers
relating translation to componential analysis were not the majority. Among them, few papers are concerning
application of componential analysis to the translation of literary works. In this essay, the analysis of animal images
could be interpreted in lexical and textual level respectively. In this case, componential analysis bridges the gap for
culture differences and enables readers of target language to savor the beauty. Therefore, readers of the target
language can enjoy alien cultures of ancient China by reading this translated version.

Keywords: componential analysis, The Classic of Mountains and Seas, animal image

Introduction
The Classic of Mountains and Seas is an unparalleled encyclopedia of China in the prehistoric times. Its
content covers geography, ethnology, religion, medicine, history, mythology, zoology, medicine, etc. It can
serve as a treasure to the tremendous Chinese classics. As for when the book was finished up, a definite
conclusion has not been found. The earliest document recording the content of The Classic of Mountains and
Seas is Book of Songs. Until 1930s, the interpretation of the book has not been available. The research for The
Classic of Mountains and Seas has been reversed. ZHONG Jin-wen served as the pioneer to follow the trend.
Not only did he introduce the book to modern literature researchers, but also he was the first scholar who
undertook the research systematically and completely.
In the modern classification of books, The Classic of Mountains and Seas could be considered as
“literature” because the goodness and monsters described in the book are traced in many parts of the world.
What is more, most of the recorded treasures, animals, and plants are weird and barely seen. Therefore, The
Classic of Mountains and Seas could be regarded as novel recording stories in ancient times. As for the
classification of the book, subjectivity could serve as the feature. The scholar decided the classification, the

YU Chen-chen, M.A., Foreign Languages Department, Chengdu Textile College.

LIANG Jin-zhu, M.A., Foreign Languages Department, Chengdu Textile College.

 
 THE FUNTIONS OF COMPONENTIAL ANALYSIS 725

definition of the category, and the structure of the categories. From LIU Xiang, and LIU Xin to the
classification of The Imperial Collection of Four, many other ways of classification have been put forward.

The Animal Images of The Classic of Mountains and Seas

As for the content of The Classic of Mountains and Seas, opinions are varied. The content describing in
the book is grotesque in shape and gaudy in color, which makes readers think it is weird, scientific, mystical,
and holy. However, The Classic of Mountains and Seas describes stories in the chapters with graphics. To some
degree, it can be regarded as an epic in ancient mythology.
The animals in The Classic of Mountains and Seas are mostly imaginary. Firstly, most of the featured
parts are their eyes and bodies by which they fly. Secondly, the number of their organs is unusual. Specifically
speaking, they usually have one eye, one wing, and one foot. However, they have more than one head, tail, and
body. Thirdly, animals usually share many features with other animals. Snakes, sheep, and birds are often
characterized by the features mentioned above. Moreover, every animal has its distinctive function. Most of
them have positive effects on human being. The first kind of animal is the one that you can eat them directly
and your problems would be solved. Another kind of animal is the one that after you eat them, you could avoid
disasters that would befall you. The third kind of animal is the one that your diseases will be cured after you use
or eat them. For example, when you scrub some parts of animals to your skin or other parts of your body, your
dermatosis will be cured.
Therefore, it can be demonstrated that in the ancient times when The Classic of Mountains and Seas is
written, people attach great importance to animals. These animals have magical power that can do benign or
evil things to people. Some of features are even owned by powerful gods.

Introduction to Componential Analysis

Introduction to Componential Analysis
Componential analysis focuses on the research of notional lexical-semantic relations by regarding
words as the research object. Semanticists divide the content words into many sense components so as to
make a fundamental comparison with each word. Generally speaking, this approach is more applicable to
different words in the same semantic field. For example, for the structural linguists, man and woman could be
regarded as antonyms in the same semantic field. Therefore, componential analysis is employed to explain
them:
Man = [+ person] [+ adult] [+ male]
Woman = [+ person] [+ adult] [- male]
Leech divides the meaning of words into seven types: conceptual meaning, connotative meaning, social
meaning, affective meaning, reflected meaning, collocative meaning, and thematic meaning. According to
Leech, the focus is on the conceptual meaning. The conceptual meaning, usually called denotation, is the core
of language communication. In a sense, conceptual meaning is indispensable to basic language function. Other
layers of meaning are not so essential (Leech, 1987, p. 13).
According to the rule diving sentence structures, bigger language units are composed of small language
units. That is to say, we can analyze language units by every layer of meaning till we get the minimum unit.
Previous Studies on Componential Analysis
Three cornerstones of modern semantics are: the theory of Bedeutungsfeld built on Neo-Humboldtism, the

 
726 THE FUNTIONS OF COMPONENTIAL ANALYSIS

semantic analysis method built on structural functionalism, and the systematic meaning of relation semantics
built on the basis of referential meaning.
Componential analysis refers to a method that could formulize lexemes and make them accurate. Just as
what it implies, it conveys meaning by revealing the composition of lexemes. The essence of componential
analysis lies in that features of words are presented by analyzing components of distinctive units. Although
adopting componential analysis to solving linguistic problems has obstacles and problems, it has enlightened
the circle of linguistic studies.
Studies on Componential Analysis by Peter Newmark
On the whole, the formalization of componential analysis is seemed as the formalization of interpretation
of language. In this way, componential analysis could be transferred as a process able to operate and testify.
From what is mentioned above, features of componential analysis are summarized in translating literary works:
The first feature is that the meaning of words lies in the way of expressing. Moreover, the semantic
components could be interpreted by analyzing definitions. That is to say, for the universality of semantic
components, the semantic components have set semantic components. They can be lexicalized in all languages.
Therefore, they are common.
The second feature is that no semantic components could not be analyzed. Although the number of
sememe is huge, it has limitations. What is more, we could extract the most commonly seen sememes in the
natural language so as to set up a fixed set of semantic components to describe its lexical meaning. In this way,
we choose to find words with limited numbers. Therefore, not all the semantic components can be lexicalized
in all languages, but all the semantic components presenting in all languages lie in the list of inventory of
semantic components. That is to say, the description of any word in every language needs a list of inventory of
semantic components, for the reason that nothing can stop the lexicalization of distinctive features in a
language.
The third feature is that the contents and number of componential analysis are not definite, which is
supposed to be elaborated. Although the meaning of items lies in the way of expressing, language could not
convey the meaning absolutely accurately. Language underspecifying meaning is the normal state of language
expressing. Therefore, whether for objective or subjective reasons, the situation that different people hold
different opinions is understandable. Different understandings do not mean different ideas. The understanding
of the meaning differentiates itself from meaning itself. That is to say, componential analysis is just a
theoretical entity for convenient research. The contents and number of semantic components are not definite,
which can be adjusted or altered. For what is mentioned above, it is safe to make the conclusion that the
assumption of semantic components is not definite, not absolute. Different dictionaries can assume different
numbers and contents of semantic components. For a specific concept, different semantic components could be
analyzed according to what is required.
For Peter Newmark, componential analysis in translation is different from componential analysis in
linguistics.
In translation, the basic process is to compare a SL word with a TL word which has a similar meaning, but is not an
obvious one-to-one equivalent, by demonstrating first their common and then their differing sense components. Normally
the SL word has a more specific meaning than the TL word, and the translator has to add one or two TL sense components
to the corresponding TL word in order to produce a closer approximation of meaning. (Newmark, 1988, p. 11)

 
 THE FUNTIONS OF COMPONENTIAL ANALYSIS 727

The Functions of Componential Analysis in the Interpretation of the

Animal Images in The Classic of Mountains and Seas
The meaning of word is the main research subject of semantics. The meaning of word links the symbol of
language to the real world. In the language system, word remains as the minimum unit of language. Words
reflect the subject world by concepts and thoughts. It remains as the foundation of sentences, paragraphs, and
texts. The appropriate organization of words constructs complete thoughts. However, the process of translation
is aimed to render words in the source language into the correspondent words in the target language. Therefore,
translation usually begins with words in the text, conveying the message in the source language by studying
meaningful words. When items are translated, many factors need to be taken into consideration. The process of
translation is not just consulting the dictionary. We are supposed to take sentence structures, the contents of text,
social surroundings, historical background, and cultural contents into consideration.
That is to say, componential analysis in linguistic studies is slightly different from that in translation
studies. Like Newmark mentioned:
Componential analysis in translation is not the same as componential analysis in linguistics; in linguistics it means
analyzing or splitting up the various senses of a word into sense-components which may or may not be universals; in
translation, the basic process is to compare a SL word with a TL word which has a similar meaning, but is not obvious
one-to one equivalent, by demonstrating first their common and then their differing sense components. (Newmark, 1988, p.
114)

Functions in Lexical Level

In terms of translating specific cultural items, componential analysis has made great contributions,
especially in the process of translating cultural sets and series, interpreting conceptual terms and differentiating
synonyms. In most cases, due to culture differences, translation of culture-loaded words is difficult to achieve
accuracy. Therefore, the translation of culture-loaded items remains a hard nut to crack. In such condition,
componential analysis provides us with an appropriate way of interpreting them accurately and explicitly.
Cultural sets and series. Peter Newmark has mentioned in his A Textbook of Translation: “CA can be
used to distinguish the meanings of SL cultural sets or series, when their TL ‘equivalents’, even if they have
transparently similar names, have widely different functional and or descriptive (substantive) components”
(Newmark, p. 111). Although cultural sets have transparently similar names, they differ a lot in terms of
functional and descriptive components. That is to say, they share distinct cultural characteristics respectively
and it is essential to tell them apart so as to make readers understand.
For this type of animal images, equivalent words cannot be found in the target language. The whole image
has not occurred or been accepted in the target language. Readers of the target language do not have the
roughest idea of what these animals look like. What is more, such culture-loaded words carry much information
about cultures of source language and are crucial to make us comprehend. In The Classic of Mountains and
Seas, many culture-loaded items occur and it is a difficult job to render it into English. In this case, if the items
are intended to be interpreted completely and accurately, a brand new image is needs to be created to make it
understood. That is to say, a solution for new words which have never occurred in the Chinese-English
dictionary before it is available.
For example, in The Classic of Mountains and Seas, the cultural set “当康” (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN,
2010, p. 128) has no equivalent word in the target language. That means the image of “当康” needs to be

 
728 THE FUNTIONS OF COMPONENTIAL ANALYSIS

created. In this case, the blank of animal images has been filled out. By analyzing semantic components, a new
word can be defined in a scientific way. It is not just rendered at random. Although not all the semantic
components can be lexicalized in all the languages, every semantic component occurring in the lexical meaning
of a certain language is listed in the inventory of semantic components. In this case, many animal images in The
Classic of Mountains and Seas can be known by readers in modern China or in the English-speaking countries.
Take another cultural set “开明兽” (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010, p. 250) as an example, it is
translated as “kaiming animal” in The Classic of Mountains and Seas. Although transliteration and liberal
translation are adopted, the meaning of this word in the source language could not be successfully conveyed.
When readers encounter this English version, they just interpret it as an animal named “kaiming”. However, the
original word could express more messages than that. In the Chinese old books, “开明兽” means the legendary
animal who guards the door in the heaven (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010, p. 253). If we just render it into
“kaiming”, it would fail to convey the message to readers of the target language.
Take another word “乘黄” (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010, p. 226) as an example, it is translated as
“Chenghuang”. In the Chinese old books, “乘黄” is an animal that looks like a fox and has horns on its back.
Whoever rides on it, he will be able to live a long life of 2,000 years (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010, p. 227).
For readers in the English-speaking countries, even for modern Chinese, “乘黄” has never been acknowledged
before. If the translated version is just “Chenghuang”, no one has the slightest idea of what the animal looks
like. If it is interpreted as:
Chenghuang: + giant legendary horse + triple of a normal horse + four wings + pierce horn
Readers who do not know anything about it would have a rough idea of what it looks like and what
features it has. By adopting componential analysis, the culture-loaded items which never occurred before have
been clearly and concisely presented. In this way, the blank of culture difference has been filled out.
Take another word “精卫” (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010, p. 96) as an example, it is translated as
“Jingwei”. For Chinese people, it is known to all that “精卫” dates from a legendary story. According to the
legendary story,
The bird is originally Nüwa, the youngest daughter of Emperor Yandi. She was drowned when swimming in the East
Sea. Thus she transformed herself into the bird jingwei and often carried broken woods and pebbles in the mouth to fill the
East Sea. The Zhangshui River flows out of the mountain and runs to the east before it finally empties itself into the
Yellow River. (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010, p. 97)

In the modern China, people tend to focus on the perseverance of the bird and the justice to repay the debt.
Therefore, for such a phrase that carries much information about Chinese culture, readers in the
English-speaking countries are indeed supposed to know the connotation of the word “精卫”. If the translated
version is just “Jingwei”, no one would know anything about its cultural correlation. However, if the word is
translated by narrating the story, the translated version would be too long to be accepted. Therefore, in this case,
componential analysis is adopted to solve the problem and present readers a profound and meaningful story.
Let us take another example, “山膏” (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010, p. 164) is translated as “shangao”.
In the modern China, people seldom know about these legendary animals which have not existed any longer. In
The Classic of Mountain and Seas, the animal has the features of piglet and its color is red. If we just use the
version “shangao” and do not combine it with the context, no informative messages about the animal can be
available. In The Classic of Mountains and Seas, it is translated like this: “There is an animal called shangao

 
 THE FUNTIONS OF COMPONENTIAL ANALYSIS 729

which looks like a piglet and is as red as fire” (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010, p. 165). Therefore, if
componential analysis is employed, the image would be explicit and vivid. It would be analyzed like this:
Shangao: + red animal + like a pig
In this way, we could not only know the Chinese pronunciation of this word, but also know the features
and color of the animal.
Generally speaking, there are items which carry much information about cultures of source language but
the translated version is just demonstrating us the Chinese pronunciation. Therefore, nothing about the implied
information except its Chinese pronunciation is known. In this case, componential analysis needs to be
employed to express the meaning explicitly, which includes the denotation and connotation respectively. For
these culture-loaded words, their connotations are the key to intercultural communication. If these words are
analyzed comprehensively and accurately, readers in the target language can easily get a deep understanding of
the traditional Chinese culture.
Conceptual terms. Peter Newmark mentioned in his A Textbook of Translation:
Note that if a concept-word becomes a key word, i.e., if it is central to a professional non-literary text, it may be
useful to analyze the concept componentially in a footnote at its first mention, scrupulously repeating the word at all later
citations. (Newmark, 1988, p. 138)

As a professional non-literary text, we are supposed to analyze the concept in a footnote at its first mention.
What is more, if the context is taken into consideration, we should add up other layers of meaning in order to
make it understood. Take the translation of the word “羊” (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010, p. 4) as an
example: “There is an animal called boyi which looks like a sheep, but it has nine tails, four ears and two eyes
on its back” (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010, p. 5). In the previous chapters, the word is interpreted as “ram”.
However, in latter chapters, the word “公羊” has been also translated as “ram”. In this case, the word “ram”
conveys different meanings in view of different contexts. That is to say, the word which has different meanings
in different contexts is supposed to be analyzed accurately and specifically. Moreover, in this case, slight
differences exist in word meaning. Parts of these meanings are overlapping and it is a tough job to tell them
apart. However, componential analysis is able to differentiate the nuances of meaning of a word. Therefore, a
clear explanation is displayed to us.
Take another example: “跂踵” (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010, p. 124) is translated as “qizhong”. In the
modern China, people explain the word “跂踵” as a movement of human body, which is to tip one’s toes. That
is to say, the word carries many layers of meaning nowadays. However, in the times when The Classic of
Mountains and Seas was finished, “跂踵” might just have one or two layers of meaning. As time goes by, “跂
踵” has many layers of meaning. In the Classic book of Nan Dynasty, “跂踵” was mentioned to express the
meaning of striving for achievement. Moreover, in the Classic book of Song Dynasty, “跂踵” was written to
express the meaning of tipping toes. Actually, early in the times when The Classic of Mountains and Seas was
written, “跂踵” referred to a kind of bird. If someone sees the bird, his country will suffer illness. In the
translated version of The Classic of Mountains and Seas, this sentence is interpreted as: “There is a bird called
qizhong which looks like an owl. It has only one claw and a pig’s tail. Wherever it appears, there will be a
pestilence” (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010, p. 189). Therefore, when words which have many layers of
meaning are analyzed, componential analysis is adopted to explain it concisely and accurately. The word “跂踵”
could be analyzed as:

 
730 THE FUNTIONS OF COMPONENTIAL ANALYSIS

Qizhong: + bird + like an owl + one claw + pig’s tail + people who see it will have pestilence
For conceptual terms, the denotation serves as the focus to explain. After explicit and accurate
interpretation of the denotation and connotation by componential analysis, word meaning could be
differentiated. Animal images can be vividly demonstrated to readers of the target language. Besides,
conceptual items in The Classic of Mountains and Seas have culture-loaded traits. Therefore, when these
conceptual terms are interpreted, the very content is in need of consideration. Some of the traits even become
the symbols or words that could awaken people’s cultural consciousness.
Synonym. During the process of translation, we usually come across another difficulty: Many words seem
to be appropriate for items in the source language. The problem occurs as to which one we should choose.
Componential analysis would serve as a solution. In the actual process of translation, the word translation of
componential analysis could be limited to componential analysis in semantics. Because words in translated
version have special meanings, limitations of context for the translated version could not be ignored when
componential analysis is adopted.
The employment of componential analysis could interpret relations of words and phrases. Especially in the
process of translation, diction for the translated version plays a vital role in the process of translation for choice
of synonyms. When componential analysis is adopted, the words or phrases are analyzed. If semantic
components of words or phrases are identical, these words or phrases are synonyms. However, if any semantic
features of words or phrases are opposite to another word or phrase, words or phrases are antonyms.
Just as what Peter Newmark mentioned in his A Textbook of Translation:
CA can be used to distinguish the meanings of SL cultural sets or series, when their TL “equivalents”, even if they
have transparently similar names, have widely different functional and or descriptive (substantive) components. This goes
back to the origins of CA which was concerned with kinship terms which, being more numerous in developing than in
industrialized societies, are most conveniently described through CA-A detailed CA establishes. (Newmark, 1988, p. 111)

That is to say, when we come across synonyms, componential analysis serves as an effective way to
distinguish them so as to ensure us a right choice of words for the target language. For instance, in The Classic
of Mountains and Seas, when it comes to the ending of one chapter, the text usually mentions that: “use a
rooster and a pig as the sacrifice” (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010, p. 41). In such occasion, “rooster” is
adopted to be the corresponding word for “雄鸡”. “There are many different kinds of birds, one of which is
called fuyi and looks like a rooster. It has a human face and is named after its call. Wherever it appears, there
will be warfare” (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010, p. 36). It is known to all that many expressions are available
to convey the animal “鸡”, such as “chick, hen, rooster”, or even “chicken”. The differences could tell from
these words. However, after the reason why the sacrifice would be the rooster in the ancient time for a special
reason in The Classic of Mountains and Seas is found, it is demonstrated that differences of “rooster” and
“chicken” can be easily explained by componential analysis. In that way, messages of the source language
could be appropriately delivered to the target language.
Take another item “野猪” as an example, in The Classic of Mountains and Seas, “野猪” is translated as
“pig”. “15 li further east is a mountain called Quzhu” (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010, p. 132). It is known to
all that there lie differences between “野猪” and “猪”. Although they share many similarities, “野猪” have
distinctive features that differentiate from “猪”. According to the definition of both of them, physically
speaking, “野猪” grows up a little slower than home-raised pigs. “野猪” has tougher fur and darker skin than

 
 THE FUNTIONS OF COMPONENTIAL ANALYSIS 731

home-raised pigs. Moreover, it is known to all that there was no chance of raising pigs at home at the times
when The Classic of Mountains and Seas was written because no habitants actually lived there. In most cases,
the definition of “猪” has included that of home-raised pigs. Therefore, if the translator just employs the word
“pig” to substitute “野猪”, misunderstanding will occur. The inaccuracy of the version would mislead readers.
Functions in Textual Level
Componential analysis is not only employed to translate cultural sets and series, interpret conceptual terms,
and differentiate synonyms. More importantly, it serves as an effective way to find out appropriate culture
equivalents and offer us amendments of translated versions. Generally speaking, by employment of
componential analysis, animal images will be displayed vividly and componential analysis helps to bridge the
gap of culture difference.
For example, when the word “凤凰” (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010, p. 16) is interpreted, in the old
China, it was regarded as a mythical animal which resembles royalty and eternality and was widely accepted
that phoenix could reincarnate from the burned ashes. Therefore, grass-roots respected it and dared not use the
word in their daily life because of the royalty it represented. However, in the modern China, if someone is said
to be promoted to a fabulous position, she is said to fly high into the branches to be a phoenix.
Moreover, “白鹿” (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010, p. 58), in The Classic of the Western Mountains, is
translated as “white deer”. Actually, the white deer in the English speaking countries is different from what is
described in The Classic of Mountains and Seas. In the old China, white deer had many symbolic meanings. It
resembled sincerity and perseverance to nourish someone, even to govern a country. However, in the
English-speaking countries, white deer is just a kind of deer that is often seen in the zoo. If the symbolic
meaning of white deer cannot be conveyed, the core information of animal image would not be known to
readers. The white deer, described in The Classic of the Western Mountains, resembles an animal that could
bring good luck and blessings to people there, together with danghu, which looks like a pheasant and its meat
could make people not blink (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010, p. 59). Therefore, componential analysis is
employed to differentiate the differences and specify denotation and connotation of the animal images. In this
case, componential analysis is employed to explain the differences caused by the passage of time.
On the whole, for all animal images in The Classic of Mountains and Seas, there are culture-loaded items
whose meanings have changed with the passage of time. Therefore, for these items which easily cause
misunderstanding, componential analysis is advisable to differentiate them and select the proper layer of
meaning so as to present readers an authentic picture of traditional Chinese culture. Therefore, the translated
version of The Classic of Mountains and Seas could bridge the gap of culture difference.
Cultural equivalent. Many cultural-loaded words have abundant meanings and it is not an easy task to
choose an appropriate one. The function of componential analysis is to find out the correspondent word or
expression to define the real meaning of items in the source language. Peter Newmark has mentioned in his
book that the basic steps of componential analysis are to compare similar expressions so as to get their common
sememes and distinctive sememes. However, as the words in the source language carry more layers of meaning
than those in the target language, translators usually have to add up other layers of meaning in the target
language so as to accord with items in the source language. Therefore, readers in the target language could
appreciate more actual and foreign flavor of the source language. That is to say, componential analysis does
make great contribution to selecting appropriate culture equivalents for words in source languages.

 
732 THE FUNTIONS OF COMPONENTIAL ANALYSIS

Usually speaking, a word contains many layers of meaning which includes its denotation and connotation.
The thorough expression of its connotation could serve as the key to understanding the meaning in a very
context. Based on the research of translation studies, translators usually fail to master what the writer wants to
express originally. What is more, they often fail to figure out the nuances of word meaning, which may be
exactly the essence of the theme. The reason lies in that they fail to master the actual meaning of English words
and phrases. Dating back to the time when they memorized the words, in most cases, they figured out the most
frequently used meaning and put it into use when they needed to translate the text. However, they failed to take
the appropriate context into consideration. From the perspective of linguistics, translation is the process of
trying to figure out a correspondent word in the target language to match the word in the source language.
However, the correspondence cannot be perfected. A word has many layers of meaning. However, among them
there are several layers of meaning labeled the most important ones, which in most cases are the most
distinctive and vital meaning for the word. Therefore, translator would have a deep impression on these
meanings, which could be called core members of a word, and overlook other meanings. However, sometimes
the overlooked meaning of a word may be the correspondent meaning in view of the context. The most direct
reason lies in that we misuse these correspondent relations of words and take it for granted that these meaning
should be appropriate to all the contexts. Therefore, the translated version would be difficult to make readers
comprehend and the foreign flavor has failed to retain.
For instance, “视肉” (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010, p. 278) is translated as “Shirou”. In The Classic of
the Great Wilderness: “The South, There is Mount Nanlei. On its top there are jade, green horses, Sanzhui
horses, shirou, and sweet-bloom trees. This is where a hundred grains grow” (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010,
p. 279). However, if readers in the target language come across the word for the first time, they will encounter
many difficulties in understanding the expression. In the traditional Chinese cultures, “视肉” is interpreted as a
legendary food serving for Empires in the ancient times for it can reprocess again when it is eaten. Dating back
to the Qing Dynasty, the Qing Emperor was so eager to be immortal that he visited a famous doctor Xufu to
find the elixir. Doctor Xu told him to find a food which can make people immortal. The food is “视肉”.
Therefore, when the origin and features of this word cannot be figured out, readers in the target language would
fail to savor the rich content by its translated version. If the meaning of the word can be translated
comprehensively and accurately, features of the animal would be displayed and mythical surroundings would
be enriched. Therefore, the word “视肉” is analyzed like this:
Shirou: + legendary food + serving for Empires + making people immortal
In this way, the vital meaning that the writer wants to convey is expressed. Therefore, the meaning of the
content in the source language can be fully expressed and understood. The translated version could be more
easily accepted by others.
Moreover, in the translation studies, we could not just rely on the references in the dictionary, but more
importantly, meaning of the items should be combined with the sentence structures, contents of the text, social
surroundings, and cultural backgrounds. Therefore, the meaning of the items in the source language is limited
by these factors mentioned above. That is to say, it is advisable to analyze the important items and compare
them with context. Finally, the interpretation of the culture-loaded words is defined.
Amendments of translated versions. As the whole text is taken into consideration, the first thing for a
good translated version is to understand the text thoroughly and completely. Componential analysis plays an

 
 THE FUNTIONS OF COMPONENTIAL ANALYSIS 733

important role in analyzing words and expressing messages accurately and completely. It serves as an important
premise for an excellent translated version.
When the problem of checking out translated versions comes to us, we usually find out the corresponding
problematic words and phrases, checking them out by memories that we had long before and deciding whether
it is appropriate or not. However, sometimes it is difficult to tell the differences apart. If we do not really go
deep into the denotation and connotation of the words, we would fail to savor what the author really wants to
say. On the occasion, even if the words are put into the context, we would fail to figure it out.
For instance, for the phrases in The Classic of Mountains and Seas, “青鸟” (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN,
2010, p. 224) and “青蛇” (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010, p. 278) are translated into “green bird”, “green
snake”. In The Classic of the Southern Mountains, “There is a plant called zhuyu, which looks like chives and
has green flowers” (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010, p. 2). It is known to all that the color “青” is between
blue and green. If it is just translated as green, it is inappropriate. However, if this word is taken into the context,
we are still puzzled about what the color “青” is like on earth. In this case, if componential analysis is adopted,
they can be differentiated. According to Longman Chinese-English Dictionary, “青” is translated as “dark blue;
something green or young” (WANG, 2011, p. 1299). The reason why the word is translated as so many layers
of meaning is that we could encounter many situations and explanations might accord with them. However, in
this case, the emphasis is just on its color. Therefore, the corresponding color of “青” should be figured out.
Take the word “猪” (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010, p. 132) as another example: in The Classic of
Mountains and Seas, “猪” has many English versions: piglet, pig, and wild boar. It is known that “piglet, pig,
wild boar” are different types of pig. Piglet refers to a young pig (WANG, 2011, p. 1410). Wild boar refers to
wild ancestor of the domestic pig (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010, p. 176). When the sacrifice is held, usually
speaking, piglet is used. Therefore, “猪” is translated as piglet. In the text, when “猪” is seen on the mountain,
along with rich deposits of silver, fine and coarse, and whetstones and deer, wild boar is the accurate
interpretation of “猪”, due to the fact that wild boar is reasonable to be seen on the mountain, instead of
domestic pigs. However, in The Classic of Mountains and Seas, “野猪” is translated as pig. If “野猪” is not
translated as wild boar, it will cause misunderstanding. Therefore, on the whole, a word in the source language
has explanations. Words have different meanings in different contexts. In such condition, componential
analysis is used to make things explicit.
Take another example, in The Classic of the Central Mountains, “There is a bird which looks like a
pheasant. It usually eats bedbugs and is called zhen” (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010, p. 194). “鸩”is
translated as “zhen” or “zhen, a legendary poisonous bird”. Actually, it can be clearly seen that the second
translated version is more appropriate. In the Chapter 8 and 12 of The Classic of the Central Mountains, “鸩” is
translated as “zhen”. However, in the Chapter 8 and 9 of The Classic of the Central Mountains, “鸩” is also
translated as “zhen, a legendary poisonous bird” (WANG, ZHAO, & CHEN, 2010, p. 175). In this case, the
translated version is not in accordance. On the whole, if two translated versions have occurred in the same
chapter, it will lead us to go astray. if the word “鸩” is interpreted by componential analysis as “a legendary
poisonous bird”, it will be easy for us to understand. However, in some translated versions of this word, “zhen”
is not clear enough for us to comprehend.

Conclusion
The Classic of Mountains and Seas is an unparalleled classic book of China in Pre-Qin period. It covers

 
734 THE FUNTIONS OF COMPONENTIAL ANALYSIS

geography, ethnology, religion, medicine, history, mythology, zoology, medicine, etc., which can serve as a
treasure to the tremendous Chinese classics. Although it is valuable to study, many obstacles, such as few
English translated versions and lack of writers’ recordings, have blocked the way. In this thesis, componential
analysis is employed to interpret animal images in terms of connotation and denotation.
From what is mentioned above, componential analysis has interpreted the obscure items accurately.
However, as a semantic theory, componential analysis is controversial in some aspects. For all the items that
are interpreted by componential analysis, there lies a prerequisite that all the semantic components can be
explained by componential analysis. However, in the opinions of scholars, such as Katz, Hjelmslev, Pottier,
Coseriu, Greimas, Apresjan, Leech, and Lehrer, componential analysis has the feature of weak universality.
That is to say, not all the semantic components can be lexicalized in languages. However, the semantic
components in lexical meaning of any language lie in the inventory of semantic components. The semantic
components of the inventory could be universal, or non-universal. In essence, componential analysis remains as
components to convey meaning of items. Therefore, it is easy to understand that componential analysis fails to
achieve strong universality.

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