FEATURES OF AESTHETIC SIGNS OF KOREAN PROVERBS OF COMPARISION CONTAINING ZODIAC ANIMALS (IN WHICH T IN THE COMPARATIVE STRUCTURE T LIKE B IS AN ADJECTIVE)

Abstract

Unlike linguistic signs with an arbitrary relation between the signifier and the signified as argued by Ferdinand de Saussure (1973), the signifier and the signified in aesthetic signs provides the referents in proverbs with highly generic and symbolic values. This paper analyzes features of aesthetic signs of Korean proverbs of comparison containing zodiac animals in which the t in the comparative structure t like B is an adjective. These adjectives are categorized in two groups: adjectives of human attributes and qualities, and adjectives of emotions. The findings show that among the aesthetic signs with the t as an adjective, associated aesthetic materials, or objects of comparison are all familiar to people, and so are the images or situations referred to in proverbs’ structures and elements. Especially, the biological features or typical attributes of the twelve Chinese zodiac animals are also explicitly revealed through the aesthetic materials used in proverbs. As a result, proverbs hold enormous emotional values and significant Korean cultural elements.