This is a groundhog, and Wednesday (February 2nd) is known as "Groundhog Day" in America. The superstition says that if the groundhog comes out of his hole on this day and sees his shadow, then there will be six more weeks of winter. Well, Wednesday is supposed to be snowy, so he won't see his shadow this year! Anyway, think of important animals in your culture, and tell me what they represent or mean to you. Why do you think humans all over the world make some animals symbolic, or meaningful, or in some way important to society?
Monday, January 31, 2011
journal Question #21 (2010-2011)
This is a groundhog, and Wednesday (February 2nd) is known as "Groundhog Day" in America. The superstition says that if the groundhog comes out of his hole on this day and sees his shadow, then there will be six more weeks of winter. Well, Wednesday is supposed to be snowy, so he won't see his shadow this year! Anyway, think of important animals in your culture, and tell me what they represent or mean to you. Why do you think humans all over the world make some animals symbolic, or meaningful, or in some way important to society?
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The only animal I could think about is dragon.The dragon we use in our history is different form the dragons in western myths. Dragon means a lot for the Chinese people. They are believed to be the disciple of Dragon. Because the very beginning of our history has very close relationship with dragons. It is believed that the mother of the Yan emperor felt the dead of a dragon and that is when Yan emperor was born. And after Yan emperor dead he turned into a red dragon.
ReplyDeleteThe dragon in our history is supposed to have tiger's palpus, mane tale, its body should as long as a snake, it has the same squama as fish does, it has horn as moose does, and its feet are as sharp as eagles'. It almost can do anything. It can walk, can swim, can fly, can change its shape itself. It can disappear whenever it wants to. It can swallow and spit the ocean. It can even change the weather.
And the ancient people divided the dragons into different types.
I think the reason why people make animals symbolic is that they want to contribute more things into their culture. Although every culture has a different story of how their culture begins. The same thing is that they contributes myths into the story. And almost every culture has a special animal which means a lot to their people.
This photo looks so funny. He looks so fat that looks like a ball. I hope I will not see groundhog's shadow that day and I hope I will have a long summer holiday.
ReplyDeleteDragon, which is not a real animal, is one of the most famous animals in China. It's a combination stag, camel, demon, snake, clam, carp, eagle, tiger, and cow. All chinese consider themselves as"Descendants of the Dragon".
I don't know why people from all over the world make some animals symbolic. But I think people use them to make a some wish. Some might wish for a good year, some might wish for protections.
I think it's important to society from make animals as symbols. Sometime, we need to learn how to stay well with our motherland. We always think ourselves the smartest animal in the world. But when trying to make our life better, we also make a huge destroy. Sometime we make something easy become more complicated. We need to learn how to use a easy way to do the effected think.
It's so cute!!!love it.yeah,me too.I agree Rie_rayyyyyLi, I hope we'll have a long summer holiday.
ReplyDeleteI think the dragon is the most famous animal in the world. that's why the "dragon ball z" still famous in the world,hahaha! just kidding.
Dragon is the Chinese people's unique cultural creation, concept creation, symbol creation. "Dragon Spirit "is the symbol of the Chinese, the dragon is a symbol of five thousand years' great history, dragon is the Chinese people rising hard-working, courageous, dauntless, daring creativity, integrity and harmonious spirit.
we are the descendants of the Dragon
this photo is really cute. the poor groundhog cant see his shadow. is that mean the winter will be longer too? i want the spring and summer come. it s to cold now. in China there are like 12 animals for 12 each year.i dont even remember it. Chinese culture are to many. the only one i know is the dragon. dragon is like a good animal for the ancient China, it protect the people away from the monsters
ReplyDeleteThe Groundhog's head is so small and it has a fat body but it looks cute and it's too bad that we can't see it's shadow. Of course there are a lot of animals symbolic in every country and Dragon is one of the most famous animals symbolic in China. I believe that every animals symbolic has a story behind them and most of them can make you have a better year or bring you some luck. Most people choose to believe them even we know that they are not really. I think that animals symbolic is for the people who feel helpless because the animals symbolic can give those people the spirit of live.
ReplyDeleteFirst of all this picture it´s so cute, I love it. In my opinion a animal that can represents my country is the bull. One of most famous spanish tradition is the bull fights. This tradition consists of a men just with a cape and a sword kill a Lidia bull. That is amazing and so dangerous, because the Lidia bulls, they are a kind of bull whose they are very dangerous and aggressive.
ReplyDeleteI´m saying that the bulls are a representation of spain, because everybody knows Spain for this tradition and a lot of cities and towns in Spain they incorporate the bulls for theirs celebrations.
Another thing about that the bulls represent Spain, is that the personality of bulls is similar than the spanish people personality, because they are passionate and strong.
I really love the tradition of bulls fights because it´s so beautifull and make my country richer. Not everybody understand that tradition, because they think that it is unfair to kill the bull, but they are wrong, because this kind of bulls are only just for the bull fights, and when they will fight with the bull fighter they will be like 8 or 9 years old and the bulls they live only 10 years. I love bull fights.
I don´t know why animals always participe in ours traditions and celebrations, but I think it´s great....
Why did everyone have so many comments about this topic? I feel pressure...
ReplyDeleteWhat I want to talk about is the same one as all od those students have mentioned before:Dragon. Dragon means power and special right in the ancient of China. Only emperor can use something with the pictures of dragon. However, nobody has ever seen what is real dragon looks like.
It seems like most of the countries like using something doesn't exist to make as a symbol. We give those animals special power and mystery story. We can't find some real animals which are such powerful as we think. So we create them.
Human is such creatively! Even though we know it doesn't exist sometimes, we still choose to believe it. It's just a kind of positive thought and good for chasing better life.
Anyway, I forget to say this picture is really really really cute! :)
(by Sunny)
The animal that shows up in my mind is Dragon. In ancient China, Dragon is the emblem of powers and dignity.And in ancient China, we had clothes called Robes. It was only for the emperor.So you can see how people respected Dragon. But no one has ever seen the real Dragon.It is just legend.
ReplyDeleteI think the reason why humans all over the world make some animals symbolic or important to society is because we can learn from some animals,even is unreal.Or maybe sometimes one kind of animals begins a history, so it is meaningful.For example, Chinese history began with Dragon. So it has become a emblem to a culture!
Animal and human are friends. My favorite animal is monkeys, cause monkey year is my Zodiacal year. In China, Monkeys are smart, athletic. My mon used to call me little monkey when i was a little kid. monkeys have lots of resemblances. The monkey king is very famous in china, it means Justice, smart, invincible.
ReplyDeleteI agree Rie said that this photo looks so funny. He looks so fat that looks like a ball.
ReplyDeleteAnd I hope I will not see groundhog's shadow that day,too.I hope the spring will come soon.
The most important animal for me, maybe is chicken. Because I was born in chinken year.
I feel the animal and our life, they have relation.The airplane from bird,the oar from fins,and a machine to explore the way from bat.
So many things in our lift from the animal.
I think it is important to have a animal as a symbol in a country's culture. Although actually the animals do something "special" or "meaningful" don't means anything. it is still important to us to give them a special meaning. animals do not think a lot and will not do something for a meaning. but human beings do. they put their emotion and imagination in a phenomenon. some animals even not exist. like dragon in china. dragon is not a real animal but it is the perfect animal in chinese mind. dragon can does anything and can control the weather. it has the strongest power in animals. it is a important part in chinese culture.
ReplyDeleteI think this picture is funny too.groundhog's hand like human's.maybe human from groundhog? haha just kidding.
ReplyDeleteI hope I will not see groundhog's shadow that day,too.I hope the spring will come soon too.
the most famous animal in china is dragon.
Our national claims to be a descendant of the dragon.
I think people made some animals symbol is to consign their spiritual feelings。
Dragon is the most famous animals symbolic in Chinese culture.The traditional Chinese lunar calendar has been used in China for over three millennia. It counts the years in sixty-year cycles, utilizing combinations of two series of numbers known as the ten Heavenly Stems and twelve Earthly Branches. Dragon is the only animal in the Chinese zodiac that does not exist in the natural world. Despite this, the dragon is one of the most revered symbols of the Chinese people. In traditional Chinese culture, the dragon symbolizes imperial power and high status, as well as good fortune and success. According to ancient legend, the Yellow Emperor and the Yan Emperor, the ancestors of the Chinese people, were Sons of the Dragon. The Chinese people are therefore called "Descendants of the Dragon."
ReplyDeleteThe Groundhog is so funny and cute!! I love it a lot. I think there are to many people talk about Dragon. That was so boring. Now, i want to talk another animal symbolic. There is a tradition come form many years before. Dragon has 9 sons in Chinese fable. All of them are not real Dragon, and each of them has their different style. I really wanna describe the eighth son of the Dragon,whose name called Pi Xiu. He is really fierce and valiant, so he use to be a general whose working for the a kind of God from China called Yu Di. Pi Xiu only eats jewelry and has a good appetite. But he always excrete a lot of rubbish after he has eaten the jewelry. One day occasional he pupus in the face of Yu Di. Yu Di becomes angry and gives Pi Xiu a bunch which place is Pi Xiu's butt. And then his butt-hole has been close forever. After that Pi Xiu has been symbolize rich, because he only eats jewelry but he never excrete out. So people begin to carve it on the store and bring it when they go to gambling. This allegory has been blaze abroad for many years. Until now we still believe Pi Xiu can bring us lucky.
ReplyDeleteThe Groundhog is so cute!!!I think in every country, they have their own traditional animal.
ReplyDeleteI think the traditional animal in my country is buffalo. There are a lot of reasons why buffalo is very important in Vietnamese's culture. Buffalo represent for strength and Vietnamese's enduringnes. And buffalo is representation for SEAGAMEs 23 the first time held in Vietnam.
I think humans all over the world make some animals symbolic, or meaningful, or in some way important to society because it represents for the country and for the people in the country.
JUNGLE BOY. Phoenix and Dragon are the two animal symbolic we most talk about. Both two are symbolize rich and noble. They can only be used on emperor and princess. In Chinese ancient mythology, phoenix brings lucky and resolves the suffering. Dragon brings power and indicates that earth-shattering event will happen. I don't know why I can't find any common animal symbolic, maybe the low won't allows common animals have the same treatment as the dragon has, just like the identity between farmers and the emperor. Now, we communicate with the world，and we accept more thinking about protection of animals and more animals' culture. I think the animal symbolic is represent the religion, that give people spiritual sustenance.
ReplyDeleteWow~ The groundhog it's so cute! I love it small little head and have a fat body. It looks like a ball.. Haha... I like it. In China we have a cute animal too our traditional animal is Panda. Panda he is very fat and very lazy he looks like a bear but he never eat the meat only bamboo. He is very friendly to the human and very never attack the human. I want to hug the groundhog anyway but at first i should make sure he won't attack me.. I scare someone attack me if i don't know. I already have the chance to hug and take a photo with Chinese traditional animal. So I want to meet the groundhog and hug it. And the another reason is the Feb 2 it's my birthday.
ReplyDeleteI think groundhog day is a tradition in the america, it's like spring festival in the china. Because If we had spring festival this mean spring is getting closer to us. In chinese culture spring means spring. So this means we are close to spring. Also I really like the spring festival. I have a big family so our family getting together is a very good thing. I really enjoy our traditional dinner. Also we always have dumplings before the new year. Another tradition of us is we use animal to represent every year. For example this year's animal is rabbit.
ReplyDeleteObviously there is a lot of examples for symbols that made by animals. And i know there is a clearly animal symbol near us. We just played them today: Biddeford tigers. I guess they are using tigers to say their players are athletic, brave and unbeatable. But too bad we just beat them today and they are sucks. In china, we using chinese dragon a lot. In here i need to repeat, its chinese dragon, not some kinda westurn dragon. Chinese dragon can mean luck, brave, and honour .we using it on weapon, restaurant, and even in the army. also， we have twelve different animals to name every year. like if you born in dog's year, then you belong to dog. so i think the animal symbols are very useful and very popular .
ReplyDeleteIn my country the most important animal is that bull. The reason is not that if u have a bull u will be lucky or something like this, not. the reason is that we have a tradition with this animal. It's kind of a sport or an entertainment. It takes place in a Coliseum. There one man try the bull to get mad. When he get it the bull attacks him. What the man has to do is don't let the bull to kill him and put knives in its back. It's pretty hard because the man needs to be fast and he needs to be always in front of the bull. This man is call in spanish "Torero". the "Torero" always wear clothes with red colors to make the bull be more excited. Finally the man needs to kill the bull. it's is pretty dangerous. Lots of mens die doing this. I don't really like this stuff but is tradition and it's not going to change.
ReplyDeleteI have never seen groundhogs. The picture looks so cute! I hope I have chance to see it sometime.
ReplyDeleteThe important animal for Chinese culture is panda, but I am not really know what the meaningful or symbolic is.
For myself, my favorite animal is dolphin, because they are so cut and I think they are smarter than other animals, except person. Dolphins are also very friendly. All aquariums have the dolphin shows, they are great!
I don't know why humans all over the world make some animals symbolic, or meaningful, or in some way important to society. Maybe it is just cultures I think. But I really want to know the real reason that why people do this.
The animal I want to talk about is dog ,I like dog because I have had a dog as a puppy for many years and I find dog is a very good animal for you to keep as a puppy ,when you feel sad you can play with him and I find when I want to talk to somebody but you can’t find any one you can just talk with your dog .
ReplyDelete