Also see:
Idioms 1 |
2
|
3 |
ASL has idioms. [search]
However, some ASL teachers sometimes inaccurately tell their students that
certain signs are "idioms" (when they are not).
An idiom is generally defined as a group of words [or signs] "established by
usage as having a meaning not deducible from those of the individual words."
(Source: Oxford Dictionary*)
Allow me to provide an example of a sign that people often call an idiom but it
really isn't:
SPEECHLESS
(For an example of the sign "SPEECHLESS" see:
https://youtu.be/lJ_Y5FXwGVY )
While the sign SPEECHLESS is often listed as an ASL "idiom" because it is often
interpreted into English as meaning "cat got your tongue" -- you might want to
ask yourself this question:
Is the sign SPEECHLESS really an ASL idiom -- or rather is it a regular
(non-idiomatic) ordinary ASL sign that is used to express the non-idiomatic
concept of "being speechless" (and closely related meanings) and just happens to
capable of being interpreted into an idiom in at least one other language?
When we sign SPEECHLESS we are "not" signing CAT GET TONGUE. There is no reason
for a skilled (non-drunk) signer of ASL to assume that an actual "cat" is
involved when someone does the sign "SPEECHLESS" in ASL. When an ASL signer asks
another ASL signer what SPEECHLESS means -- the second ASL signer doesn't start
discussing "cats" and "tongues" but rather starts signing about "not knowing
what to say" or "not knowing how to respond to someone."
The "idiom confusion" starts when two ASL / English bilinguals get together --
both typically native English speakers (including many ASL instructors) who
acquired ASL as a second language and one of them decides to map (or interpret)
the sign SPEECHLESS to an idiom in the other bilingual's native language
(English).
When we sign SPEECHLESS in ASL we are doing a single, specific sign with a set
of closely associated unambiguous meanings that can be used to convey ideas such
as:
I was speechless.
I didn't know what to say.
I was so shocked that I couldn't even respond.
No cats involved. (Unless you get English involved).
Just because a concept can be expressed by an idiom in English doesn't mean that
the same concept is an idiom in Spanish, Japanese, ASL or any other language.
Allow me to provide you an example:
English speakers have a non-idiomatic saying: "The awkward teenage years." That
phrase is "not" an idiom. It is an expression. It is a clear statement. "The
awkward teenage years" -- is not idiomatic since each word is being used to mean
what we typically expect the words to mean and together the words have an
overall meaning that we would expect. We are actually talking about awkwardness
and we are actually talking about the teenage years.
Suppose you were taking an English class you had an assignment to find and share
an idiom. If you stood up and announced that you would now share with the class
an idiom and here it is: "The awkward teenage years" -- you would fail the
assignment. (Or at least you would if your teacher was competent.)
After your teacher told you that you failed the assignment because "The awkward
teenage years" is not an idiom, suppose you replied:
"Yes it is -- my Spanish teacher told me it is! My teacher said that "Estar en la
edad del pavo" is an idiom and it means "those awkward teenage years!"
Ah, there's the problem. You are mistaking an "interpreted non-idiomatic meaning
in a second language" for an "idiom." They are not the same.
These three things are not the same:
1. An idiom
2. A translation
3. An interpretation
Examples:
1. An idiom: "Estar en la edad del pavo." This is a Spanish idiom. It says one
thing but means another. It talks about turkey but is really discussing
something else -- the awkwardness of puberty. A second language learner of
Spanish may have learned that "pavo" means turkey -- yet will not understand
this Spanish saying without further explanation -- because it is an idiom.
2. A Translation: "Being in the age of turkey" This is the literal translation
(or more specifically a transliteration*) of "Estar en la edad del pavo." This
translation is meaningless to an English speaker (or reader) because to
understand it you need additional cultural knowledge (or you need an interpreter
-- not a translator).
3. An Interpretation: "In those awkward teenage years." This phrase says what it
actually means. As soon as a second language learner learns the words "awkward,
teenage, and years" the second language learner can generally figure out the
overall typically accepted meaning of this phrase. It is a regular
(non-idiomatic) English phrase that has been pre-chewed and partially digested
for you by an interpreter to remove any idiomatic aspects. You don't need any
special in-group knowledge to figure it out. The phrase, "In those awkward
teenage years" -- is not an idiom.
Similarly, the sign SPEECHLESS is not an idiom.
Just because "In those awkward teenage years" can be interpreted into an idiom
in Spanish doesn't mean it is an English idiom.
Just because SPEECHLESS can be interpreted into an idiom in English doesn't mean
it is an ASL idiom.
Remember that the next time your ASL instructor tells you: "This is an idiom…"
And then think: "Is it really?"
[End]
Continued...
DO-DO / what do / what to do / what did I do
While some people consider this to be an idiom, I would suggest that it is
simply an evolved sign that started as the spelling of "DO" and was lexicalized
over the years to change into its current form of two G-hands pointing up ward
and opening and closing the index and thumb. While this may seem like an
idiom -- in my opinion it is simply a wonderful, complex ASL sign that
transitioned (or was borrowed) from English and is combined with facial
expressions to create a range of meanings from "What do?" However, I think
that if you add even more movement and turn the DO-DO sign into the sign ERRANDS
-- you have quite possibly reached a level at which you could claim that you
have an idiom. ERRANDS is arguably an idiom. DO-DO is questionable
but is claimed by some to be an idiom.
_____________________________________________________________
Permission: You may share and republish / repost this article. Cite:
Vicars, William (2019) "When is an ASL idiom not an idiom?" ASL University.
Retrieved from: https://Lifeprint.com/asl101/topics/idiom-in-asl-or-not.htm
_____________________________________________________________
Date of article: 9/21/2019
Author: William G. Vicars, Ed.D.
Author information at time of writing: Tenured, Deaf/hh, full-professor of Deaf
Studies and American Sign Language. Director of ASL University (Lifeprint.com)
Bio: http://www.lifeprint.com/asl101/pages-layout/instructor.htm
__________________________________________
References
*"Transliterate" means "write or print (a letter or word) using the closest
corresponding letters of a different alphabet or language." (Source:
transliterate. (n.d.). In Oxford Dictionaries. Online 9/2/2019 < https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/transliterate
> )
* Idiom definition. (Source: "idiom." Oxford Dictionaries (Lexico). Online. 21
Sep 2019 < https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/idiom > ).
Also see:
Idioms (1)
Idioms (2)
Idioms (3)
Puns: Cross-lingual interpreting of puns: ASL / English
Note:
ASL pun: Sign FISH while mouthing "fish" to mean "finish" as in "I'm done." [idiomatic] This idiom is created by a combination of [context]+[mouth-morpheme]+[FISH]