1. Metaphors in “trong-ngoài” 

Generally, the preposition “trong” in the location relationship “x ở trong A” (x is in/inside A) denotes that the space of A embraces the space of x, and vice versa, the preposition “ngoài” in the location relationship “x ở ngoài A” (x is outside A) denotes that the space of A does not embrace the space of x.  In these location relationships, “trong” and “ngoài” are equivalent to “in/inside” and “outside” respectively. In English, the speaker’s location does not influence the use of in/inside” and “outside”.

Ex 1: He is playing in the school yard. 

In Ex 1: the preposition “in” is used whether the speaker is in the classroom or in the school yard. Nevertheless, in Vietnamese, the speaker’s location determines the usage of “trong” or “ngoài” in the sentence. If the speaker is in the location, which is farther than “he” in comparison to the center of the school, or if the speaker is in the space, which is more open than the space of “he”, for instance, the speaker is outside the school, then the preposition “trong” will appear in the Vietnamese sentence: 

Vietnamese equivalent to: Anh ấy đang chơi trong sân trường. 

However, if the speaker is in the location, which is closer than “he” in comparision to the center of the school, or if the speaker is in the space, which is more closed than the space of “he”, say, the speaker is in the classroom, then the preposition “ngoài” will appear in the Vietnamese sentence: 

Vietnamese equivalent to: Anh ấy đang chơi ngoài sân trường. 

If the speaker and “he” are in the same space, then “trong”, “ngoài”, or more neutral preposition “ở” can be used:  Bọn mình đang chơi trong/ ngoài/ ở sân trường. 

Ex 2: Ngủ ngoài đường có hại cho sức khỏe. 

English equivalent to Sleeping outside in the street is harmful to your heath.

 

2. Metaphors in “trên dưới”

The prepositions “trên” (above/over/on) and “dưới” (below/under) in the location relationships “A ở trên B” (A is above/over/on B) and “B ở dưới A” (B is below/under A) denotes that the space of A is higher than the space of B, or the space of B is lower than the space of A.

In English, when the space of A embraces the space of x, the preposition “in” is used to portray this location relationship: 

Ex 3:  Stars in the sky 

Vietnamese equivalent to: Những ngôi sao trên trời 

Ex 4:  The trembling carp in the water 

Vietnamese equivalent to: Chú cá chép run rẩy dưới nước 

Ex 5:  Mary is waiting in the living room. 

Nonetheless, in Vietnamese language, the speaker’s location relative to the space of A determines the use of the preposition. Since the sky is above the speaker and the water is below the speaker, the prepositions “trên” and “dưới” are respectively used in the Vietnamese expressions (Ex 3 and 4)

The Ex 5 has two Vietnamese equivalents: 

Vietnamese equivalent to: Mary đang đợi dưới phòng khách. (in case the speaker is in the room, which is above Mary’s.) 

Vietnamese equivalent to: Mary đang đợi trên phòng khách. (in case the speaker is in the room, which is below Mary’s.) 

 

3. Metaphors in “trước-sau”

The spatial prepositions “trước” (in front of) and “sau” (behind) are metaphorised in time expressions such as:

Ex 6:  Trước Tết: English equivalent to before Lunar NewYear.

          Sau Tết: English equivalent to after Lunar New Year. 

The preposition “trước” also emerges in time metaphors with the implications of “facing” and “confronting”, for instance:

Ex 7:  Trước thềm năm mới

         English equivalent to facing the threshold of the new year.

 

-The end-