In George Orwell's satirical allegory of the Russian revolution, written in 1945, barnyard beasts are used to represent various classes or groups of people in early Soviet society. For example, the horse symbolizes the worker, and the hens speak for women. English and presumably Russian language readers have no trouble identifying who is who.
In reality, animal associations from everyday speech sometimes differ quite a bit between the two languages. As Orwell aptly illustrated, Russian speakers see the horse as industrious, but not only. In Russian, one can be said to drink like a horse and sweat like a horse, which, of course, could be considered characteristics common to workers of other countries, too.
Hens are also perceived more or less the same in both cultures, but here things get a little tricky. The male version of this bird, the cock, evokes equally strong but entirely different sentiments in Russian and English. In Russian prisons, the cock, or petukh (ïåòóõ) is what they call men who provide sexual services to other inmates. In America, these guys are known as "sissies." Cock in vulgar English denotes, ironically, the ultimate in masculinity - i.e. the male sex organ - which is why we now use the word "rooster" in children's books.
Since many of the world's tongues still maintain the imprint of agricultural societies, one shouldn't be surprised to find coarse or indelicate human behavior compared to what is quite natural among domesticated animals. That having been said, Russian peasants apparently looked at the four-legged world from a different angle.
For example, the Russian word for goat, ”kozel” (êîçåë), refers to someone who would stab you in the back. Incidentally, it is also part of the Russian prison culture, although one can commonly hear it used among irate motorists who've been cut off by another car.
Additionally, it is used in the phrase "old goat" or stariy kozel (ñòàðûé êîçåë). But you might get a strange look from a Russian speaker if you refer to yourself as such in frank admission that you are over the hill. Calling someone an old goat in English may not be a complement for an elderly man, but at worst it would mean that he is silly. In Russian, it's like calling him an old S.O.B.
The only really nasty association with goats in English is largely directed at women and means that they are oversexed. In Russian, the word ”cat” or ”koshka” (êîøêà) might express something vaguely similar. Used in the right context, however, koshka could be a complement for a woman from either linguistic tradition.
If one wants to detract from a lady's physical appearance, the ways of doing so are probably innumerable in any language. Still, you might be surprised at the more common expressions chosen by Russians. Typically, the crocodile (êðîêîäèë) and porcupine (äèêîáðàç) are favored for this purpose. In English, the dog or coyote are popular. For a stupid or clumsy girl, ”cow”, or ”korova” (êîðîâà) is the favorite in both tongues.
If a girl is good-looking, some Americans would call her a ”fox”. Russians would be confused. To them, a fox or ”lisa” (ëèñà) is just sly - a reputation it also has in English. Snakes too are considered sneaky in both cultures, but in Russian a snake is just as often considered wise.
Men may not be judged too harshly for their looks in the east or west, but that doesn't mean that they don't get compared to all kinds of critters. The word "pig" or "svinya" (ñâèíüÿ) is another one that crosses several international borders. Then there is the word ”Ass” or ”osel”(îñåë), which is biblical in vintage. In Russian, the traditional connotation has been preserved: "Ass" equals "stupid." In English, ass now more commonly refers to one's rear end, while ”donkey” is what they ride on in the third-world countryside. In any case, not many are likely to call you a stupid donkey in English.
Women may suffer from having their appearances crudely critiqued, but we men are often the butt of jokes aimed at our intellects. The favorite comparison in Russian is ”baran” (áàðàí) or ram, as in the phrase: he had a stupid look on his face like a ram looking at a new fence. Calling someone a ”bull” or ”byk” (áûê) amounts to the same. The English speaker who's been to the zoo a few times in the former Soviet Union may think he's received a complement. After all, rams are very masculine to us. Bulls, even more so, are powerful and impetuous. They also buy a lot of stock on Wall Street - unlike bears, who in Russian get the credit for being bold and powerful.
Bulls are in fact so strong that if one abuses his physical advantages to pick on others, he is referred to in English as a ”bully”, which doesn't translate into Russian at all. Furthermore, one who even exaggerates his abilities or anything else verbally is said to be talking bull. Russians also wouldn't deny the strength of the bovine beast, but first and foremost they consider him stupid.
Alas, even man's best friend, the dog, doesn't escape the mockery. In Russian, the canine is referred to as a ”sobaka” (ñîáàêà) or a ”pyos” (ïåñ). The first word has almost an eastern ring to it when used to insult someone - as if to say that he is less than human. The second one seems more Slavic, and it usually refers to body odor, as in the outdated phrase smerdyaschiy pyos (smelly pooch).
We English speakers speak even worse of the first animal ever domesticated, tagging it with all kinds of unpleasant names: mutt, mongrel, cur. In Russian the only equivalent that I know of is ”dvornyashka”, which simply means street dog.
However, not all animal names are offensive. In Russian, a favorite term of endearment is ”zaychik” (çàé÷èê), which comes pretty close to ”bunny” in English, but is usually used by women when referring to "cute" men. Don't confuse this with the word ”krolik” (êðîëèê), which is probably best translated as ”hare”, and usually means one is timid or even cowardly.
In Russian fairy tales, the lovesick maiden often calls her prince charming a sokol (ñîêîë) or falcon. Now it's the name of an elite Ukrainian paramilitary group. A modern granny might call her grandson ”golubchik” (ãîëóá÷èê), or little pigeon. In English, this bird is usually associated with street droppings. In American slang, it means a sucker or someone to be easily fooled.
Birds in general seem to get more of their fair share of attention from many a culture, as illustrated by how many winged predators appear on national flags. The associations for such breeds are international. For other birds, perceptions vary.
In English, you have the "early bird." In Russian, you are either an ”owl” ”sova” (ñîâà) i.e. night person) or a ”lark” (zhavronok) (Æàâðîíîê). In English, for some reason, we consider the lark happy, as in the phrase "happy as a lark." and the owl wise. But how can that be, given Ben Franklin's prediction that "early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise," If you mix them up, you may look like a birdbrain. On the other hand, a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. What bush? Russians say a chickadee in hand is worth a crane in the sky.
Even insects come into play. For hard workers, in English, we have busy bees (not to mention beavers). It's not just alliteration here. These creatures really do work a lot. In Russian, bees are also honored, but male bees, or truten (òðóòåíü), are picked out for being lazy. Sometimes alliteration does take precedence over meaning in the use of animals for comparative phrases: e.g. English "drunk as a skunk." No Russian speaker would accuse a skunk of overdrinking. Then again, horses aren't usually keen on martinis either.
Sometimes, English speakers even accuse fish of drinking too much, in a mad attempt to project our own vices on the animal kingdom. Though we do honor them for swimming well. In Russian, fish are known for keeping their mouths shut: "molchàt kak ryba" (ìîë÷àòü êàê ðûáà).
But at the end of the day, people on both sides of the linguistic divide seem to have ambivalent feelings for their distant relatives along the evolutionary chain. Calling someone a ”beast” can be at once a complement or an insult - at least for men. In Russian the word here is ”zver” (çâåðü). If you use the synonym ”tvar” (òâàðü), however, the effect is definitely negative.
The English word "animal" has the same root as the word "animation" or "being alive". Russian ”zhivotnoye ” (æèâîòíîå) shares the etymological stem zhivot (æèâîò) or stomach. So mind your table manners and don't live it up too much if you don't want to be reminded of your animal roots.
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