浅析英语影视作品中习语的翻译策略

1、 Liaoning Normal University2021届本科生毕业论文(设计)题 目： 浅析英语影视作品中习语的翻译策略学 院： 外国语学院 专 业： 英语师范班级序号： 1班14号 学 号： 学生姓名： 李飘飘指导教师： 陈泳2021年5月An Analysis of the Translation Strategies of Idioms in English Movies and TV SeriesLi PiaopiaoA Thesis Submitted In Partial Fulfillment for the Requirements of the Degree ofBA

2、CHELOR OF ARTSSchool of Foreign LanguagesLIAONING NORMAL UNIVERSITYMay, 2021Abstract Nowadays, with the persistent expansion of globalization and the firm implementation of the open-up policy of China, as the carrier and medium of culture, English movies and TV series have a more ample cultural conn

3、otation and inter-cultural mission. The inter-cultural communication of English movies and TV series not only reinforce the understanding and communication between different countries, but also play a significant role for the abundance of social lives and the formation of values of the audience. Ess

4、entially, English movies and TV series are a part of cultural product, and a lot of dialogues in subtitles often possess the typical cultural characteristics, so idioms in movies and TV series are one of the biggest obstacles to apprehension of the audience and to translation of translators. Therefo

5、re, the understanding of idioms is undoubtedly of vital importance. In order to get a better understanding of idioms in English movies and TV series, after the statement of the popularity of English movies and TV series, this thesis analyzes the basic knowledge and translation of idioms from them. F

6、rom the point of view, with the illustration of representative conversations and subtitles, this thesis studies on the definition, classification, linguistic features and translation of idioms in English movies and TV series.资料个人收集整理，勿做商业用途Keywords: idioms; English movies and TV series; inter-cultur

7、al communication; dialogues摘 要在全球化进程不断推进和中国开放政策坚决实施的今天，英语影视作品作为文化的载体和媒介，具有日渐丰富的文化内蕴和跨文化交流的重要使命。英语影视作品的跨文化交际不仅加强了各国之间的相互了解与交流，还对观众社会生活的丰富和价值观的形成起到了不可无视的作用。英语影视作品在本质上是文化产品的一局部，字幕中出现的大量对话往往具有典型的文化特征，因此影视作品中的习语成为了观众理解和译者翻译的最大障碍之一。所以说对习语的理解至关重要。为了更好地理解英语影视作品中出现的习语，本文在通过对英语影视作品流行的相关阐述后，分析了英语影视作品中习语的根本知识和翻

8、译知识。从这一角度出发，本文通过对代表性对话和字幕的举例说明，研究了作品中习语的定义、分类、语言特点和翻译知识。关键词：习语；英语影视作品；跨文化交际；对话Table of ContentsI. INTRODUCTION1II. LITERATURE REVIEW32.1 Previous Studies Abroad32.2 Previous Studies in China4III. THE BASIC KNOWLEDGE OF IDIOMS63.1 The Definition of Idioms63.2 The Classification of Idioms in English M

9、ovies and TV Series63.2.1 Ideographic idioms63.2.2 Inter-personal communicative idioms73.2.3 Relevant idioms83.3 The Linguistic Features of Idioms in English Movies and TV Series93.3.1 The social cultural feature of idioms93.3.2 The figurative feature of idioms93.3.3 The national historic feature of

10、 idioms103.3.4 The popular and concise feature of idioms10IV. TRANSLATION OF IDIOMS IN ENGLISH MOVIES AND TV SERIES114.1 Inter-cultural Communication114.2 The Principles of Translation of English Movies and TV Series124.3 The Problems of Translation of Idioms in English Movies and TV Series134.4 Str

11、ategies of Translation of Idioms in English Movies and TV Series144.4.1 Literal translation144.4.2 Free Translation154.4.3 A Combination of Literal Translation and Free Translation154.5 The Prospect of Translation of Idioms in English Movies and TV Series16V. CONCLUSION17WORKS CITED18ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

12、S20iiiAn Analysis of the Translation Strategies of Idioms in English Movies and TV SeriesI. INTRODUCTIONWith the development of international economics and technology, the economic and cultural globalization seems to be an irresistible trend. As a result of the persistent development of globalizatio

13、n and the firm implementation of Chinas open-up policy, China has become an indispensable part of the burgeoning globalization and has spread its unique and fabulous culture to the world. Meanwhile, China is also the absorber of the culture of the globe. Among all the countries that have multifacete

14、d effect on China, the United States, the representative of English-speaking countries, was the first country that has to be mentioned. The United States spread its popular culture and consumption patterns as a consequence of entrance to an era of mass production and consumption. As is known to us a

15、ll, the cultural products of the United States have been prevalent all over the world, such as Hollywood movies, TV series and cartoons. Thus it can be seen that English movies and TV series are undoubtedly popular around the world. English movies and TV series, as the medium of English culture, spr

16、ead English and American culture to the world. At this point, the spread and popularity of English movies and TV series reinforce the understanding and communication between different countries. English movies and TV series also plays an important role in the formation of values of the audience. Of

17、course, the entertainment function is the basic reason of their popularity. The frequent appearance of idioms in the subtitles of English movies and TV series means that to get an accurate and full apprehension of English moves and TV series, the basic knowledge of the idioms in subtitles is indispe

18、nsible. 资料个人收集整理，勿做商业用途The New Oxford English Dictionary defines that idiom is “a form of expression natural to a language, person, or a group of people (Pearsall J, 2001:908). As an essential part of the language, English idioms are the concentrated expression of many rhetorical functions, especial

19、ly metaphor, and idioms depict objects or tell truth in a concrete and vivid way. Idioms are rooted in cultural knowledge and can reflect the common and specific characteristics of culture. This paper attempts to account for an analysis of English idioms in English movies and TV series. Idioms in En

20、glish movies and TV series are, that is to say, the important access to understanding the culture and values of the English-speaking countries. However, as idioms have the strong idiomaticity, sometimes English idioms are hard to be understood by the audience. Therefore, the basic knowledge of idiom

21、s is urgent and necessary. In the process of the statement of basic knowledge of idioms, the definition, classification and linguistic features of idioms are involved. The translation of idioms is undoubtedly a part that needs to be focused on.资料个人收集整理，勿做商业用途This thesis consists of five parts. The f

22、irst part is an introduction to the background, objective and scopes of the thesis. The second one is an overview of the previous studies on the analysis of idioms and its use in movies and TV series. The third one concentrates on the basic knowledge of idioms in English movies and TV series, includ

23、ing the definition, classification and linguistic features of idioms. The forth part discusses the effect of inter-cultural communication and principles of translation of English movies and TV series, and it also focuses on the translation of idioms in English movies and TV series, which is divided

24、into the three parts of problems, strategies and the prospect of translation of idioms. The fifth one makes a conclusion of this thesis.文档收集自网络，仅用于个人学习II. LITERATURE REVIEWIdioms are the essence of language as they carry distinctive cultural features. Idioms in English movies and TV series are the k

25、ey to the understanding of the whole content and English culture. Many scholars, especially foreign scholars, have done many studies on English idioms and English movies and TV series, making a great contribution to the development of related theories.2.1 Previous Studies AbroadIn the book of Idioms

26、 and Idiomaticity, Chita Fernando provides descriptions of modern English which take the revelations of recent researches into consideration. He offers a comprehensive treatment of idioms and idiomaticity from a functional perspective. Fernando explores the use of idioms in conversations to unite th

27、e new-fangled and the conventional, and gives further thought to ways in which idioms are utilized to pass on the representation of the globe, to judge people and conditions, signal conviviality and conflict, and to bring about coherent, cohesive texts. This book attempts to evoke the attention to i

28、dioms properly and help people take full advantage of the cohesive function for more succinct, idiomatic and thereby more effective communication. This book pays attention to factors that help learn and develop language. The authority of his analysis is bases on numerous examples and experiments.资料个

29、人收集整理，勿做商业用途According to Eugene Nida, in his book Language, Culture and Translation, he provides a relevant analysis of two factors involved in the course of translationlanguage and culture, which includes the relations between language and culture. The author stresses that language and culture are

30、indivisible and analyzes the idiom translation based on the close relation between language and culture, which means that the translation of idioms are conducted considering the English culture and its language. According to Mark Shuttleworth, in his book Dictionary of Translation Studies, the autho

31、r discusses the multifaceted translation of idioms and relevant translation theories.个人收集整理 勿做商业用途Arthur Bandura asserts that vicarious experience of watching movies and TV series has a powerful effect. Bandura believes that as movies and TV series are so powerful that people should realize its “mul

32、tiplicative capacity. In a study in the Philippines, by using instrumental and terminal values, Tan found English movies and TV series have an immense and pervasive impact on the audience.2.2 Previous Studies in ChinaCompared with scholars in foreign countries, scholars in China start studies much l

33、ater in related fields. But with the input of western knowledge and the development of Chinese studies, many Chinese scholars make contribution to related studies.In a general discussion of relations between idioms and language and between language and culture from multi-faceted perspective, Profess

34、or Ping Hong who works in Guangdong University of Foreign Studies and Professor Zhang Guoyang who are from Guangzhou Normal University, in their English Idioms and English and American Culture, analyze the origin and development of idioms from the cultural perspective. They conclude that idioms are

35、a vital part of English and idioms are saturated with abundant western cultural characteristics, mixed with the influence of other ethnics. English idioms hold the strong idiomaticity and generate from English and American culture, which means English idioms must been understood in the environment o

36、f it cultural atmosphere and historic traditions. The book shows that English idioms is deeply-rooted in the soil of English and American culture, therefore, idioms have their classification and linguistic features pertinent to English and American culture. 文档来自于网络搜索In Studies of English Idioms, Pro

37、fessor Luo Shiping from Xiamen University conducts thorough analysis and studies on English idioms from various perspectives, with the use of the principle of combination of the traditional and the modern. This book states the definition, characteristics and categories of English idioms and utilizes

38、 a lot of examples to make a detailed and vivid description of the cultural background, syntactic structure, communicative function, conversion capability, rhetoric methods and other aspects of English idioms. In addition, the book explains the apprehension and translation of English idioms.文档来自于网络搜

39、索In Corpus of Movies and an Analysis of Contemporary Spoken English, by illustrating numerous fragments and dialogues from English movies and TV series, Professor Chen Yi states the basic features of contemporary English. Professor Zhang Chunbai from East China Normal University, in his Primary Expl

40、oration of Film Translation, discusses the instant and prevalent characteristics of the language in English movies and TV series, and combined with the difference between movies and TV series translation and literary translation, he explores the nature, principles and strategies of translation of mo

41、vies and TV series. In On the Basic Principles of Film Translation, Professor Ma Zhengqi who works in Chinese Media University explores the development of theoretical studies and practice of dubbed movies.资料个人收集整理，勿做商业用途III. THE BASIC KNOWLEDGE OF IDIOMS 3.1 The Definition of IdiomsAccording to Ciha

42、i, Idioms in Chinese are usually defines as word groups used together in a fixed form, which normally contain Chengyu (Chinese idioms usually derived from ancient stories or literary quotation), folk adage, aphorism, two-part allegorical sayings, proverb, slang, jargon and so forth. The implications

43、 of idioms are always hard to be inferred as a semantic unit. Modern Chinese Dictionary defines idioms in Chinese as concise fixed word groups or short sentences, which are commonly accepted by people through usage generation by generation.资料个人收集整理，勿做商业用途The Oxford English Dictionary defines idioms

44、as: (1) the specific character, property or genius of any language, the manner of expression which is natural or peculiar to it; (2) a form of expression, grammar construction, phrase, etc., peculiar to a language; a peculiarity of phraseology approved by usage of the language and often having a sig

45、nificant other than its grammatical or logical one. Longman Dictionary of English Language and Culture defines as: (1) a phrase which means something different from the meaning of the separate words from which it is formed; (2) the way of expression typical of a person or a group in their use of lan

46、guage. 个人收集整理 勿做商业用途3.2 The Classification of Idioms in English Movies and TV SeriesLanguage is an important communicative tool for human beings, therefore, the idioms used by characters in movies and TV series in the process of communication must satisfy the need for communicative activities to exe

47、rt their communicative function. To exert the maximum communicative function, people have to know the usage condition of idioms in communicative activities. Australian Professor Fernando has reached the most distinguished achievement in this field. According to the different functions of idioms when

48、 depicting objective world , expressing internal feelings and using language communication, Fernando classified idioms into there typesideographic idioms, inter-personal communicative idioms and relevant idioms .资料个人收集整理，勿做商业用途3.2.1 Ideographic idiomsIdeographic idioms depict peoples life experience

49、 and feelings, including people themselves (body, career, and economic state), internal world, behavior patterns and so forth. Ideographic idioms are the main part of idioms. Based on the content that people express, ideographic idioms can be divided as: (1) idioms about people themselves, like “far

50、 by the way side (The Lion King); (2) idioms about internal world, like “get a crush on somebody (American Beauty); (3) idioms about behavior patterns, like “let the cat out of the bag (Erin Brockovich).文档来自于网络搜索What is worth noticing is that the nature of most of ideographic idioms is vivid and ima

51、ginative metaphor, such as “eat a bird. Many ideographic idioms possess strong commendatory and derogatory function, such as “have a chip on ones shoulder. Some ideographic idioms bear certain characteristics of national culture, such as “let the cat out of the bag, which deprived from an allusion t

52、hat a clever customer exposed the treacherous behavior of a profiteer.资料个人收集整理，勿做商业用途3.2.2 Inter-personal communicative idiomsIn movies and TV series, many inter-personal communicative idioms carry interactive marks in form more or less, for instance, personal pronoun, “you, “me, “I, etc. Based on t

53、he difference of functions, inter-personal communicative idioms can be sorted into four categories:(1) guiding-topics type idioms. Just as the name implies, this type of idioms works as a part of guiding topics. The common ones include “you know what, “guess what, which were used in The Lion King.Si

54、mba: But you know what?Mufasa: What?“You know what is usually the language chosen before the speaker tells somebody something, which plays a foreshadowing role. Generally, the speaker doesnt mean to let the listener really guess, and the listener will not bother doing so. If the listener has to answ

55、er, What? is a common response. (2) mighty-reminder type idioms. This kind of idioms is similar to guiding-topics type idiom in some way, but the tone is more intense. The speaker wants the listener to remember what he or she is going to say. The common one contain “for the record, “FYI, “mind you,

56、etc. The following dialogue is an example of the usage of “for the record in Tangled, Rapunzel.Rapunzel: For the record, I like Eugene much better than Flynn Ryder.Eugene: Well, then youd be the first. But thank you.There is another dialogue in Shrek: A: FYI, not my fault.B: No, of course its not, d

57、ear.Here “FYI is the abbreviation of “for your information, which means a reminder. In the spoken language, “FYI is used commonly.(3) direct-stress type idioms. This type of idioms is used to emphasize what the speaker says, especially when the speaker is afraid not to get the recognition or trust o

58、f the listener. The common ones include “I am telling you, “trust/ believe and so on. Next is a dialogue in Forrest Gump.Bubba: How would you like to go into shrimping business with me?Forrest: O.K.Bubba: We can just work together, split everything right down the middle. Man, Im telling you. 50-50.The spea