CHARACTERISTICS OF KOREAN CULTURE IN HORSE-RELATED PROVERBS

Abstract

This paper combines descriptive, analytical and synthetic methods in exploring 361 Korean proverbs containing or relating to the horse. The study finds that the horse is realistically depicted in Korean proverbs as a symbol of human life. Symbolic values of Korean horse-related proverbs are revealed through the appreciation of Truth, Goodness, and Beauty, educational maxims and experience about life and social relationships. Horse-related proverbs also vividly demonstrate strong yet sophisticated criticism against evils and negative features as well as satire of human vices. Korean people’s material and spiritual life and cultural patterns imbued with their worldview are densely packed in horse-related proverbs. A comparison with Vietnamese proverbs, plenty of which also contain the horse, enlightens us about the various similarities between the two languages.