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EFFECTIVE METHODS OF TEACHING BIBLICAL IDIOMS TO EFL STUDENTS A. Y. Kuznetsova
The article is devoted to the problems of teaching biblical idioms to EFL students. The necessity of using these phenomena in methodical aspect is conditioned by their linguistic and cultural characteristics.
Keywords: the Bible, idioms, EFL students.
One of the main goals of modem education consists in cultivating cultural and intellectual dialogue on the basis of mutual understanding and tolerance. The study of the Holy Bible and linguistic analysis of its phraseology both in Russian and in English will contribute to it.
Every thinking teacher seeks to determine the ways and techniques of teaching that will not only provide her or his students with profound knowledge but will also help develop their thought. English phraseology is the salt of the language and the quintessence of the folk wisdom, presents in itself a reliable source for students’ education, especially those of biblical origin, due to their moral and ethical value.
The Bible is obviously the most influential text in all of Western culture. This book has contributed more to the colour and grace of the English language than almost any other literary source [1]. A lot of words and phrases that are commonly used in English originated from the Bible. We find them appearing in such disparate worlds as nuclear physics, court cases, TV programs, books and so on. So, apart from spiritual enlightenment you can also look to the Bible for language enrichment. Here is a list of some popular Bible phrases.
biblicism meaning
manna from the heaven an unexpected but very needed gift
apple of one’s eye a precious thing, a favourite of someone
Babel a mess or a state of confusion, a visionary project
to hide one’s light under a bushel to be modest about one’s talents
alpha and omega the beginning and the end of something
a doubting Thomas someone who doubts
a drop of a bucket a very small quantity that has very little effect
a mark of Cain a person’s guilt or shame
feet of clay to have hidden faults
to kill the fatted calf to prepare an elaborate feast in welcome or celebration
There are many cases where expressions have become so thoroughly assimilated into the language that any sense of a biblical origin is quite lost. Not many know, and only etymologists care, that “a fly in the ointment” comes from Ecclesiastes. Foreign learners of English would simply pick it up as an idiom, along with “to kick the bucket” and all the other expressions that have nothing to do with the Bible at all.
It should be also pointed out that biblical phrases as the object of study arouse great interest not only with linguists but also with philosophers, historians, painters, pedagogues and other specialists due to their inexhaustible philosophical, ethical, aesthetical, pedagogical and moral potentiality. The Bible was a source of inspiration for many great writers, most notably William Shakespeare. He used over 1,300 documented biblical references in his plays written from 1589-1613. Christian elements are richly embedded in “Hamlet”, “Macbeth”, “Much Ado about Nothing”, “Measure for Measure”, “Henry IV” (“I am as poor as Job, my lord; but not so patient” [2. P. 36], “... and yet to me, what is this quintessence of dust?” [4. P. 17]). Some verses are directly taken from the Bible (“What his heart thinks his tongue speaks” [3. P. 56]).
According to the types of their variability idioms of biblical origin can be classified into four groups: grammatical variants (morphological variants, morphologo-syntactical variants), lexical variants (verbal variants, substantive variants, adjectival variants, prepositional variants), quantitative variants (reduced-quantitative variants, extended-quantitative variants), mixed variants.
variability examples
I. grammatical: a) morphological variants to be in deep waters/to be in deep water
b) morphologo-syntactic variants the land of promise/ the promised land
II. lexical: a) verbal variants to proclaim from the housetops / to cry from the housetops / to shout from the housetops
b) substantive variants a drop in the bucket/ a drop in the ocean
c) adjectival variants shining light/leading light
d) prepositional variants to shake the dust from one’s feet/to shake the dust off one’s feet
III. quantitative: a) reduced-quantitative variants a brand plucked out of the fire/a brand from the fire
b) extended-quantitative variants clean hands / one’s hands are clean
IV. mixed to lift up one’s heart/to take heart bone of one’s bones and flesh of one’s flesh/bone of the bone and flesh of the flesh
The linguomethodic idiomatic complex, presented in this article, includes a considerable number of exercises (lexical, communicative, linguocultural) and objectively reflects the wealth of English biblical idioms. It is based on modern practice criteria and integrates listening, speaking, reading and writing activities together. Thus, EFL students can be involved in the application of idiomatic units in four skills. Here are some examples.
Substitute word combinationsfor the idioms. a labour of love, as old as the hills, the blind leading the blind, the salt of the earth, the rootof the matter.
Substitute biblical idiomsfor thefollowing word-groups. figuratively it is something, or more usually someone, cherished above others; someone who helps another in need for compassionate motives and with no thought of reward; to die, or in the case of inanimate objects, to cease working; a small but irritating flaw that spoils the whole; a persistent difficulty or annoyance.
Translate the sentences.
1. Don’t be shy; your light should not be hidden under a bushel.
2.1 don’t want to touch any of your filthy lucre.
3. The president of this company is a wolf in sheep’s clothing.
4. You’re making a mountain out of a molehill. You wrote one bad essay - it doesn’t mean you’re going to fail your degree.
5. I’ll look through the application forms and separate the sheep from the goats.
6. There were several chances for politicians and celebrities to meet and break bread with each other.
7. She came to the United States thinking it was the land of milk and honey.
8. I’ve already apologized. How long must I wear sackcloth and ashes before you’ll forgive me?
9. They raised the roof at the party.
Find the English equivalents.
нести свой крест, блудный сын, Фома неверующий, вавилонское столпотворение, капля в море.
Fill in the blanks.
to cast pearls before ..., an eye for an eye, ..., ... Samaritan, ... the first stone, ... fruit.
Invent the situations where thefollowing idioms can be used.
at the eleventh hour, to be in deep water, to fly in the ointment, Samson, David and Goliath.
Choose the correct idiom to complete each sentence below.
feet of clay, a little bird told me, apple of their parents’ eye, the salt of the earth, to kill thefatted calf.
1. Sarah’s grandmother adores her; Sarah is ... .
2. Wilson was disappointed when he learnt that the coach had ....
3. The people in my village are very honest and hard-working; they are..
4. When my brother came back home from his trip to Europe, we ... .
5. She would not say who told her about the surprise party. She just said, “... ”.
Read and translate thefollowing information.
Moses was the prophet chosen by God to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt. Two months after the Israelites left Egypt, they began grumbling against Moses and Aaron who brought them out of Egypt because they had no food in the desert. God had compassion on the Israelites, and
rained down bread like morning dew from heaven for them. When the Israelites saw the land was covered by thin flakes, they asked, “What is it?” The bread looked like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey. People called the bread manna, meaning “What is it?” in Hebrew. Manna from the heaven became the daily food for the supplies of Israelites during the wilderness years. Today, it means a very much needed, unexpected and timely gift that helps a situation.
Write the story under the title «A wolf in sheep’s clothing».
What is the meaning (source) of the idioms?
lost sheep, loaves and fishes, Sodom and Gomarrah, a mote in smb.’s eye, gall and wormwood.
Idioms are not a separate part of the language which one can choose either to use or to omit, but they form an essential part of the general vocabulary of English. Many of the idioms used in English stem from the Bible. Nowadays with newly derived and synchronic meanings, they can be employed in a similar fashion in contexts that are notjust religious. It is the simultaneous existence of the two metaphoric readings - the historic and the synchronic - that makes Bible idioms particularly rich and fascinating linguistic tools worthy of study.
List of Literature
1. Crystal, D. Begat: The King James Bible and the English language. N. Y. : Oxford University Press, 2011. 320 p.
2. Shakespeare, W. Henry IV. Part 2. N. Y. : Washington Square Press, 2006. 339 p.
3. Shakespeare, W. Much Ado about Nothing. New York: Washington Square Press, 2003. 249 p.
4. Shakespeare, W. The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. N. Y. : Washington Square Press, 1992. 347 p.
5. The Holy Bible: New King James Version. N. Y. : Oxford University Press, 2005. 1392 p.
6. Phrases from the Bible. URL: http://www.phrases.org.uk/mean-ings/bible-phrases-sayings.html
