数字在中西方文化中的差异毕业论文

IV.Conclusion 15References 17Acknowledgements iiiPAGEiiTheCulturalDifferencesofNumbersbetweenChineseandEnglishDuBianbian【Abstract】Thehumanlanguagesconveyprofoundhistoricalculturesandnationalfeatures.Andanylanguageallovertheworldisrootedinaspecificculturalbackground,reflectingthespecificculturalcontents.Numerals,beinganextremelyspeciallanguagebranch,haveplayedcrucialrolesinthedevelopmentofhumansocietyoverthousandofyears.Numeralsandhumanlifearecloselyrelatedtoeachother.Thefunctionofnumeralinhumancultureisnotonlylimitedinthecountofmathematics,butalsoisamysteriousculturalsymbol,whichformsauniquenumeralculturephenomenon.Numeralplaysanimportantroleinhumanculturalexchangesanddevelopment,reflectingthedistinctiveculturalcharacteristics.However,therearequiteafewdifferencesinreligiousbeliefs,ethicalpsychologyculture,andlanguagesaestheticsinChineseandwesterners,sonumeralshavebeengiventothedifferentculturalconnotationsindifferentculturalcontexts,fromtheperspectiveofculture,thispaperanalyzesthesefactorstoreducemisunderstandingsincommunicationandpromotetheawarenessofcross-culturalcommunication.KeyWords:Numeralculture;WesterncultureandChineseculture;Culturedifferences;Interculturalcommunication数字在中西方文化中的差异杜变变【摘要】人类的语言传达深厚的历史文化和民族特色。世界各地的任何语言都是植根于特定的文化背景，反映了特定的文化内容。在数千年内，数字作为一种极其特殊的语言分支，在人类社会发展中发挥了至关重要的作用。数字在人类文化中的作用不仅限于数学中的计数，而且也是一种神秘的文化符号。然而，由于不同民族宗教信仰﹑民族心理文化以及语言美学等诸因素在中西方文化中的差异，致使数字在不同的文化背景下已被赋予了不同的文化内涵。本文从文化的角度来分析这些因素，从而达到减少在跨文化交际中不同民族沟通的误解来促进真正意义上的跨文化交际的目的。【关键词】数字文化；中西方文化；文化差异；跨文化交际PAGEivI.IntroductionLanguageisanimportantconstituentpartofculture.Theuseoflanguagegivesanefficientexpressiontothecultureconnotationpermeation,whichmakesthespreadandexpressionofculturepossible.Inmanycases,numeralisakindofculturalsymbol,whichfullyreflectsanationalmultifacetedculturalfeatures.ChineseandEnglisharerespectivelyfromdifferentculturesystems.Asaculturalphenomenonexistsinallethnicgroups,itisthe“commoncore”partoftheculture,whilenumeralsreferenceinvirtuallymeaningandexpressionfunctionarequitedifferentfromeachother.Intheconsequence,itgraduallyformedtheculturaldifferencesofunderstandingbetweenthosetwolanguages.WorldfamouslinguistJohnTaylor(Nida,2001)discoveredtheearliestformofcultureofthereligiousbeliefis“animism”in1871.Hepointedouttheoriginsofthe“animismaremythologyandreligion.”Whatisthemostimportantisthattosomeextentnumeralsspiritcancontrolpeople’sfate.Thewesternersaredeeplyinfluencedbyreligiousbeliefs,theythinknumerallanguageisnotonlythegeneralsymbol,butalsohasmagicalpoweroperatingsomecertainthings.Sopeopleoftencloselyinvolvethenumerologyintheirdailylives.Numeralcorrespondentlyconnectswithpeople’sconceptsandisendowedwithpositiveornegativeculturalconnotations.Theseclearlyreflectthedifferentnationalpsychologyculture.What’smore,BritishfamouslinguistJenniferSeidl(HuWenzhong&DuXuezeng,1989)thinksthat“numeralandlanguagecannotbeseparated,youcannotchoosetouseornot.Wherethereisnumber,therewillbebeauty”.ChinesescholarWuHuiying(1990),wrotehisexcellentmonographaboutthedevelopmentofcultureandnumbers,inwhichhestated“Numeral—thesecondgenerationofChineselanguage.”Itclearlyshowsthecloserelationshipinnumeralsandculture.Alsoquiteafewresearchershavebeenmadedeeplyexplorationofnumeralsinculture,severalofwhichlaidtheprofoundfundamentalbaseontheanalysisofboththeindividualpropertiesinChineseandEnglish.ChinaCultureLinguistics,writtenbylinguistShenXiaolong(1989),canbeagoodexampleofsuchresearches,inwhichtheChinesecultureandlinguisticswerestudied.NumeralsHeavenandEarth,writtenbyscholarZhangDexing(1999),thetypicalexamplesofthisfield,inwhichhemadeapointthat“thenumeraldifferencesaredeeplyinvolvedwithnationalpsychologyandtraditionconceptsforalongtime.”Inrecentdecades,manyexcellentessaysconcerningonthenumeraldifferencesbetweenChineseandwesternershavebeenpublished.CulturalscientistsandlinguistsaregraduallyawareofwesternculturefactorsthatbringaboutnumerallanguageverydifferentwithChineseculture.Fromthethreeculturaldimensionsthatontheprofoundpriorstudyfromexpertsandscholars,thispaperfocusonthedifferentaspectsofreligion,nationalpsychology,languageaestheticstomainlyanalyzeChineseandwesternculturedifferences.Bycomprehensivelyresearchingnumeralsindifferentculturalbackgrounds,peoplecomingfromdifferentculturescangetusefulinformationandhelpstorespectivelyrespecttheirowncustomsandculturetoreducemisunderstandingsincommunicationandtoachievetheawarenessofcross-culturalcommunicationintheinformationeraofeconomicglobalization.Ⅱ.TheAnalysisofNumeralsDifferencesbetweenChinaandWestCultures2.1TheRelationshipbetweenNumeralandReligionThereisa“bloodrelationship”betweenreligionandmyth.Fromthepointofculturalhistory,religionisoftenacoreofculturalfactor.Manycivilizedcountriesintheircivilizationhistoryhaveappearedthedominantsituationofthetheologicalandreligiousculture,evenappearingcontinuationinonethousandratherthanliberation,butdominatedbyConfucianismintwothousandyears,Chinahadneverbeenthedominantsituationoftheologicalandreligiousculture.AlthoughtherearevariouskindsofreligiousclassicsinChina,itisnoteasytofindabookliketheBiblethatisall-roundscientificsaintandalmostasthemoonandthesuninwestcountries.TheancientGreekcivilizationandHebrewcivilizationmarkedbytheBibletogetherconstitutethebasicsourceofmodernwesterncultureandthoroughlycluelessintheentirewesternideologyandculturefiled,whichhasfullyreflectedinthenumeralsuperstition(GuangZhenbin,2007).Thisarticlewillchoosesometypicalnumeralsbothintwolanguagestoillustratethepoint.2.1.1TheTypicalNumeralsinWesternReligionInthewest,numeral“thirteen”istheNO.OnebigfearfortheAnglo—American.ThereasonscomefromtheominouslegendsandstoriesintheBible:Jesusandhisdisciplesalltogetherarethirteenpeopleinthelastsupper,duetooneofthembecameatraitorandbetrayedtheJesus,unfortunatelyJesuswascrucifiedonthecrossandtheverydaywasFriday.AndthedaythatCainkilledhisclosebrotherwasalsoonFriday.Intheconsequencefromthevariousominousreligionlegends,Fridaybecomeanunluckydayandevensometimecalledit“blackFriday”(ZhouYuan,2008).Inaddition,therewasakindofloopwiththirteenringsinthemiddleagesofwesternandalsothehankhasthirteensteps,theexecutioner’ssalaryarethirteencoins.ThisisthereasonwhythethirteenhappentobethesamedaywithFridaywouldbeominousandfierceinthewestcustom.Virusonthenetworkoftenbrokeoutintheday.Asopposedtothenumeralthirteen,westernpeoplepreferthenumeralthree,seven,nine,tenetc.NumeralthreeissocultbecauseitsymbolizesthegodofTrinitythatmeansunionofthreepersonsinChristianity—Father,Son,HolyspiritinoneGod.TherearethreevirtuesinChristianity:loyalty,hope,andloveforothers.Numeralsevenhasthecloserelationshipwithsevenkindsofdeadlysinsinreligion:Pride,Wrath,Envy,Lust,Gluttony,Avarice,andSloth,allofwhichwarnpeoplethatonlythroughthispurgatorycanpeoplegetintotheheaven.Aspeopleallwellknowninthewesternculture,ChristianbelievesGodcreatedeverythingintheworldinsevendays,soaweekexpressedinsevendayshasbecometheworld’suniversaltimingmethod.Meanwhile,Jesustoldpeopleforgiveothersasmanyasseventimes;thevirginMaryhadsevenhappythings,sevensadthings;theholyspirithassevengift;person’slifeisdividedintosevengrowthperiod;theprayeroflordsisdividedintosevenparts.AllofabovespecificexamplesmentionedhavecloserelationshipwithreligionandChristianlegends.What’smore,sincethesevenarchbishopsinGreek,sowesternreligionandcultureoftenusethenumeral“seven”toregulatepeople’smoralbehaviorsandreligionceremonies.Herearesevenvirtues:Faith,Hope,Charity,Justice,Fortitude,Prudence,andTemperance.MaybemanypeoplehearaboutthesevenSpiritualWorksofMercyandthesevenSacraments.ActuallytheresurelyexistthesevenSpiritualWorksofMercyandthesevenSacramentsinwesternreligion:toconvertthesinners,toinstructtheignorant,tocounselthoseindoubt,tocomfortthoseinsorrow,tobearwrongpatiently,toforgivetheinjurers,toprayforthelivinganddead,andthesevenSacraments:Baptism,Confirmation,Eucharist,Penance,Orders,Matrimony,andExtremeUnction(YeShuxian,1990).NumeralnineistheultimateidealofChristianity,whichissupposedtorepresentthehumanbeingtodogoodthingsinthisgoodKarmaandsymbolizesthebesttreatmentforhumanbeingsinsafterGod.Peoplewillbeintheheavenonlybydothe“tencommandments”.Atthesametime,thenumeral“ten”isalsoasymbolofthe“cross”,onwhichJesuswascrucified.2.1.2TheTypicalNumeralsinChineseReligionInthefivethousandyearsdevelopmentprocessofculturalhistoryinChina,theinfluenceofreligionsbeliefisveryoutstanding;especiallythethreemajorreligionsevenhavetheirownirreplaceablerolesrespectivelyinChina.Buthereamongthem,ChineseisratherfamiliarwithBuddhismthanotherreligions.TheominoushazardsofnumbersalsohasgreatdealofexamplestoembodyreligiousinfluenceinChineseculture,suchasthenumber“onehundredandeight”hasacloserelationshipwithBuddhism.“Onehundredandeight”canbeusedasasymboloftheBuddhainBuddhismthroughoutthedailylifeandtheimportantthingsofBuddhism:BuddhistBudhidharmaonbehalfofatotalofBuddhanamely“onehundredandeightBuddha”intheshowoffaithtoBuddha.TheChinesenationconsidersthatthe“ten”isfull,meaning“completeness”,“success”or“perfection”,whichinChinese“十全十美、完美、圆满”.Therefore,peopleusethenumeraltenasastandardtodescribethefullestextentofthings,meanwhilefullyshowculturalmeaningsofnumerals.Suchas“十大圣人”(theancient10thSt.),“十大兵书”(themilitarybookstenBingshu),alsothereis“KilometerStreet”inBeijinginChinese“十里长街”and“tendream,changedtheirlivesandputtheirsurvivalunderthreat.Undersuchcircumstances,humanconditionschangeddrastically.Theoriginalintegralselfispresentedasfragmentedandinsecure.Ingeneral,Americansbelieveintraditionvaluesandemphasizetheimportanceofpressureonfamilylife.“Qinhuai”inNankinginChinese“十里秦淮”,“十里洋场”thatis“tenforeignmarkets”inShanghaiassoon.ItcanbeseenthatChinesepeoplelovenumber“ten”.Inaddition,mostChineselovetheauspiciousnumeralsandarefamiliarwiththeirrelativethingsinordinarylife.Hence,therearesomeidiomsrelatedwithnumeralsaswellasBuddhatemples,themonksetc.,forexample,inChinese“一个和尚挑水吃,两个和尚抬水吃,三个和尚没水吃”thatis“oneboyisaboy,twoboyshalfaboy,threeboysnoboys.”inEnglish,and“做一天和尚撞一天钟”thatis“adaymonkbumpadayclock.”inEnglish(ZengYufang,2008).Inanutshell,bothwesterncultureandChineseculturehavebeenprofoundinfluencebytheirownreligions,sodoesthenumerallanguages.Also,ChineseculturehasbeenprofoundinfluenceofConfucianismandBuddhism,Taoismandpaymoreattentiontotheharmonyofnature,thepursuitofspiritualsatisfactionanddetached,especiallythewell-knowntheory“天人合一”thatis“manisanintegralpartofnature”isthecoreideaforChinesepeople,whilewesternershavestrongbelieffortheirsacredreligions.2.2TheRelationshipbetweenNumeralsandNationalPsychologyIntheancienttime,peoplethinkthatlanguageisnotmerelyacommonsymbolthatcouldblessforthembutalsohaveevilmagicalpower,sopeoplewouldnotliterallytalkabouttheaffairsofthosebannedphenomenonrelatingwithnumerals,otherwisetheywillsuffercatastrophesoonerorlater.Asanimportantformofexpressionoflanguage,numeralshavetheirownsoulsthattosomeextentcancontrolthefateofpeople.Thus,peoplealwaystendtouseandtalkaboutthoseluckynumeralstoavoidthosenumeralconsideredareominousasmuchaspossibleindailylife.Sonumeralshavecloserelationshipwithreflectingthecultureandpeople’spsychologyofeachnation.2.2.1NumeralsandChinesePsychologyItisacknowledgedthatChinesealwayshavethepursuitofsymmetry,balance,harmonyandstabilityofpsychology.Asthe“CopulativeBiography”said“itiseasytocreateTajo.Consequently,TajobornintotheEightDiagrams…….”（WangHongqi,2002）Thingsarefromoneintotwo,twointofourandfourintoeightgeometriccascadedevelopments.Asaresult,theevennumeralsconnectedwithsomeauspiciousculturalconceptsinChina.Generallyspeaking,Chinesepeopleaspirethatgoodthingsshouldbeinpairsandadoubleblessinghasdescendedupontheirhouses.Givingadoublepresentstoothersshowtheirsincerityininterpersonalcommunication.Fromtheordinary’santitheticalcoupletsonthedoortothefiguresofspeechinliterary,noneofthemdoesn’treflectthephenomenonthattheHannationalityhaveaspecialpreferencetoevennumeral“two”.What’smore,thecultureoftheevennumeral“four”,“six”,“eight”,“ten”inChinaisconsideredastheluckynumeralsthatcanbringgoodluckandfortunate.Thefollowingexamplesjustcanillustratethiscaseinpoint.Chineseidiomsrelatedwiththoseevennumeralstodescribethingslackingininitiativeandovercautiousandinthegooddirectionisthe“key”peoplecouldsayinChinese“四平八稳”.InChinese“四通八达”isacommendatorywordthatisusedtodescribethetrafficisveryconvenientwithoutanytrafficdifficulties.AlsothereisanamelioratewordinChinese“六六大顺”meansluckorauspicious,whichinChinameansPepsiinalmosteveryepisode.Whathavementionedidiomsrelatedwithnumeralsaboveallincludetheevennumerals.What’smore,numeraleightisapropitiousevennumeralforChinese,becausetheaffinityforeightcomesfromGuangdongprovincewherepeoplepronounce“eightyeight”to“fafa”inChinesemeaningofmakingafortuneandgoodluck.Soevennumeral“eight”becomethemostpopularauspiciousnumeralinChina,especiallyphonenumbers,licensenumbersandhousenumbersetc.Ifthetailnumeralofthemis“eight”,itwillbeagoodcatch.Somanybusinessmenwillchoosethedayscontainingnumeraleighttoholdtheopeningceremonies.Meanwhile,intraditionalChineseculturalconcepts,peopleshowspecialpreferenceandworshipswiththenumeral“nine”and“ten”.Fromnumeralonetonumeralten,Chinesepeoplethinkthatnumeral“nine”isoneofthepositiveoddnumeral,whichindicatesthe“unlimited”.Forinstance,inChinese“九霄云外”(ninecloudysky)thatdescribesthemosthighexpression;“九州方圆”(kyushufangyuan)thatindicatestheterritoryissovastandunlimited.Inaddition,numeral“nine”isthetotemtextofthedragonandenjoysuniqueexaltedposition.Therefore,inordertoshowhisdivinepowerbestowedbyGodforassignment,everyemperorinancientChinawastryingtoassociatehimselfwiththedivinenumeral“nine”.SincenumbernineandtheEnglishword“long”areunisonanceinChina,soemperorsalwaysuse“nine”tosymbolizetheirrulesforever.ThequeenofEnglandvisitedChinain1987,shepickedinthelunarSeptemberninthdayofChungYeungFestival(alsocalledtheDoubleNinthFestival).Numeral“ninety-nine”isnoexception,whichmeans“everlasting”.Inrecentyears,youngpeopleinChinainfluencedbywesterncustomsliveawellmatchofChineseandwesternValentine’day,February14th,youngmenfallinlovewithgirlsandsendthem“ninety-nine”or“ninehundredandninety-nine”rosesinthatdaytoshowtheirlove.Thisphenomenonisbecomingmoreandmorepopularnowadays.Inaddition,therearemanyfolksassociatedwiththemultiplesofnumber“nine”inChina,suchas“eighteen”,“thirty-six”,“seventy-two”,etc.AsthesayinggoeswellinChina“afemalewillhaveeighteenchangeswhenshegrowsup”inChinese“女大十八变”;“thirty-sixplans,onlygoingisthebestchoice”inChinese“三十六计走为上策”;thefamousbookPilgrimagetotheWesthasthestoryaboutMonkeyKing,sothesentencesayslikethis“monkeyKinghasseventy-twochanges”inChinese“孙悟空有七十二变也”;“三百六十行,行行出状元”means“threehundredandsixtyjobs,eachworkcanbeoutofthetop”etc.Nowtheturnofnumeral“ten”iscoming.Numeraltenmeans“completenessandperfection”(ZhangDexing,1994).Thebeautyisnottospeakofborderforthe“perfection”,wehaveChineseequalmeaning“十全十美”.Chineseidiom“十拿九稳”meanspracticallysureorcertaintybutinEnglishitisstatedlikethis“itisdollarstobuttonsorassureashell”,fromwhichwecouldclearlyseethatthereisnoanyrelationshipwithnumeralstenornineinEnglishexpression.Thisfullyshowspeople’skeenworshipsfortheauspiciousnumberinChina.2.2.2NumeralsandWesternPsychologyBycontrast,westernersadvocatenumeral“seven”thatisoneofmostmysteriousandsacrednumeralsintheireyes.Inthewestancienttimes,therearethesevencelestialbodies―thesun,themoon,Venus,Jupiter,Mercury,MarsandSaturnthatallofthemarelinkedcloselywithGod,whichhashadaprofoundinfluenceextensivelyonthewesterncultureandeventheworldriseanddevelopmentofChristianity,thenumeral“seven”hasastrongreligiouscolorandpermeatedallaspectsofwesternsociety.Besidesthisreligionfactor,fromtheperspectiveofnationalpsychology,westernersshowkeenpreferencetooddnumeralexceptthirteen.Numeral“three”isrespectedinwesterncountries.Itisasymbolofthesacred,nobleandgoodluck.Shakespeare,theoneofgreatestplaywrightsintheRenaissanceeraofEnglish,oncesaidinhisfamousplay“Allgoodthingsareonthebasisofthree.”(Allgoodthingsgobythrees.)2.2.3TypicalTabooNumeralsinChineseandWesternWhereveryouareinChinaorwesterncountries,therearealwayssometabooslanguagesregulatepeopletoactproperly.Hencetaboolanguagesrelatedwithsomenumeralscontactwithnationalpsychologymoreclosely.AllthewordsinEnglishandChineselanguagesareveryrichandsignificant;theirtaboolanguagesalsoinvolvevariousaspects,especiallytraditionalnationpsychology.Thenumeral“seven”and“four”arewidelyregardedasunluckynumeralsinChina.Becausenumeralfourispronounced“si”（四）inChinese,soitishomophonicallyequaltotheEnglishword“death”.InsomeplacesinChina,consequently,peopleevendonotchoose“four”tomakelogoorsaysomething.Peopleparticularlyavoidtousing“fourteen”(homophonic“die”)asmuchaspossible,“fiveonefour”(homophonic“Idie”)﹙LiuYanhui,2009﹚.InChineseculture,numeral“seven”isalsooftenusedbypeopleastaboonumerals.Whengivingsomeonegifts,itisnotauspicioustousesevensamples.Inwesterncountries,peopleusetaboonumeral“thirteen”,“Friday”and“two”.Thirteen,themostunpopularnumeralamongthem,iswidelyconsideredtobeverydangerousandominoussymbolthatoriginatedfromthereligiousmyth;especiallyitbecomesNo.onebigfearinEuropeandtheUnitedStates.ThereisapopularfolkwisdombothinBritishandAmericanforalongtime,thatis“thirteenissuchanunluckynumeralthatcallsitghostortheghostofadozen.”Thisreflectspeople’spsychologyindifferentplaces.Westernersarealwaystryingtoavoidnumeral“thirteen”,evenreachtothepointofunreasonable.Peopledonotmention“thirteen”deliberatelyinthedailyconversations;onthecontrarytheycommonlyused“abaker’sdozen”insteadof“thirteen”.(In15century,inordertoavoidbeingpunishedbyBritishgovernmentsbecauseoflackingofquality,thebreadbakerywilladdonemoreforfreeintheprovisionofadozen.)Numeralisakindoflanguagecarryingmuchimportantculturalinformation.Itisusedfrequentlyastheveryhighthinkingandcommunicationtool.Theworshipandtabooofnumeralcloselylinkedwiththenation’sspiritualworld,thinkingmode,nationalpsychologyandtraditionalcustomsetc.Hence,fromtheperspectiveofnationalpsychology,itisclearthatdifferentnationsrespectivelyfocusondifferentnumeralworshipsandtabooswiththeirgreatpassions.2.3TheRelationshipbetweenNumeralsandLanguageAestheticsLanguageisthekeytotheaestheticsfeelingofbeauty,theaestheticsvalue,whichmeansinordertoachievesuccessfulcommunicationandtheexchangesofdifferentideas,authorsusesomecertainwordsinspecificlanguageenvironmenttoacquiretheskillsandtechniquesofaestheticsfeeling.Aestheticsisascientificstudyoflanguagerulesofbeauty.Numeralsasakindofspeciallanguage,itisnodoubtthattheuseofnumeralineveryaspect,especiallytheidiomsassociatedwithnumeralsinliteraryreflectsthebeautyoflanguageincisivelyandvividly.Numeralsrelatedwithsomegoodthingstogethercangiveapersonwithbeautifulenjoyment.2.3.1NumeralsandChineseAestheticsInChina,therearemanyidiomsfromonetotennumeralsthatclosedrelatedandfullyreflectsthevalueofthefiguresinthelanguageofaesthetics.Fromthefigureofspeechinliteraturetotheordinarylanguageconversation,peoplealwayscouldfindsomewaytocaterfortheirgoodwishesandcomfortablefeelingsinlanguage,sothetypicalnumeralswithoutexceptioninmanylanguagecaseswhereverintheexcellentpoemorordinarywordsinChina.InChinese,therearemanywordsandnumeralidiomstovividlydescribesomethingatthatmoment.Justasthefollowingspecificexamples:一元复始(unaryrestart;atthebeginningofthenewyear.),一帆风顺(asrightasrain;rosesalltheway;plainsailing);双喜临门(goodthingscomeinpairs;twohappyeventscomeatthesametime;havesimultaneouslytwohappyeventsinafamily.),二度梅开(thewintersweethasthesecondchancetoopen.);三阳开泰(threesheepbringbless.),三思而行(lookbeforeyouleap;secondthoughtsarebest.);四通八达(extendinalldirections;boundaryonallsides.),四海为家(hometodayandgonetomorrow,cosmopolitans.);五世其昌(maythefamilyprosperfivegenerationsrunning.),五官端正(haveregularfeatures;well-featured.);六根清净(thisisaBuddhisttermmeansthatthesixrootsofsensationsarepureandcleanorfreefromhumandesiresandpassions.),六畜兴旺(thedomesticanimalsareallthriving.);七级浮屠(SevenCirclesofHell;aseven-storyhighpagoda.),七尺之躯(amanlybody;abodyofsevenfeetinheight;thehumanadultbody.);八面玲珑(besmoothandslickinestablishingsocialrelations;capableofdealingwithallmen.),八面威风(anawe-inspiringreputationextendingineverydirection;makeamagnificentappearance.);九霄云外(beflungtothefourwinds;belandofnowhere;throwtothewinds.),九转金丹(nineturnthenthegoldenpill.);十拿九稳(it’sdollarstobuttons;assureashell;practicallycertain.),十全十美(thepeakofperfection;perfectandbeauideal.).”(ZhangDexing,1994).NumeralistheuniquemiracleintheliterarygardeninChina.FromancienttomoderntimesinChina,manywritersshowspecialpreferencetousenumeralsasameansofwritinginliteraryworks.Moreover,therearemanywordscloselyassociatedwithnumeralsindailylife,whichmakesliteraryworksmoreincisiveandvivid,andmakespeoplefeelmoreinterestinginordinarylife.Hereislistingandexamplesofnumberswiththeirinterestingwords.Forinstance,in“ADreamoftheRedMansion”,writtenbyCaoXueqin,thereissuchsentence:evenifMrs.Liuhadninelives,she’dneverdareoffendyou.（YangXiaojun&YangZhuying,1992）InTangDynasty,theprominentpoetWangWeiwroteapoem“ThinkingofMyBrothersonMountainClimbingDay”inChinese“九月九日忆山东兄弟”,whichmeansthatherecalledhisbrothersonDoubleNinthFestival.LiBai,anotherfamouspoetinthesameDynastywithWangWei,wrotethisclassicsentence“itistorrentdashesdownthreethousandfeetfromhigh,asiftheSilverRiverfelldownfromazuresky.”inChinese“飞流直下三千尺，疑是银河落九天”（XuYuanchong,1995）.What’smore,thereareagreatdealofnumeralidiomsandpoemsinChinese.Forinstance:昙花一现(aninedayswonder);一针及时省纠正(astitchintimesavesnine);猫有九命(acathasninelives);十有八九(tentooneorsixtoone)etc.（ZengYufang,2008）.Alloftheexactuseofnumeralnineisdifferentfromwesternculture.ThenumeralninehasrichimplicitconnotationsinChineseculture.2.3.2NumeralsandEnglishAestheticsWhileinEnglishtheyarequietdifferentfromabovelistedinChinese.ItisobviouslythatnotallChinesenumeralidiomshavetheequalEnglishexplanation.ActuallyEnglishlanguagealsohasthesimilaridiomsabouttennumeralsandtheyhavedifferentliterarymeaningandorigins（WangHongqi,2002）.However,itisquietdifficultforforeignerstounderstandtheirmeaningonlyfromtheliteralpointofview.Onlybyunderstandingtheseoriginsofthenumeralidiomsclearlycanweactuallycapturethedeepmeaningbehindvariousculturalfactors.(1).onehorsetown—countrytown.ThisphraseoriginatedintheUnitedStatesandindicatesthatthetownhasonlyonehorse.(2).twoofabradesneveragreesomething—walkingtogetherislight.Thisisanoldproverb.(3).threesheetsinthewind—drunkenness.Sheetisthemeaningof“theangleundersailbowline”onthemetalring.Ifthereisnobucklebowline,sail-shipcanbearbitrarywindblows.SothecrewcalleditthewindascolloquialEnglish.Threesheetsinthewindisnaturallycalled“wasteddrunk”.(4).thefourletterwords—vulgarlanguage.(5).atfifthcolumn—atraitororaspyinfiltratingintotheimportantsectorstoworkfortheenemy.Itisliterallytranslatedasthefifthcolumn.ThiswordsphraseisderivedfromapersoncalledtheKingofthegeneralduringtheSpanishCivilWarperiod.HesaidhehavefourcolumnssurroundedtheSpanishcapitalMadrid,ontheotherhand,thefifthcolumnisinthecity.Nowitreferstosendspiesanddirtyagentstotheenemy.(6).beatsixesandsevens—itindicatesthingsareinabigmess.(7).theseven