On the Transformation of Cultural Images.doc

on the transformation of cultural imagesin the c-e/e-c proverb translationbyluo kaichengsupervisor: prof. li fagena thesissubmitted in partial fulfilmentof the requirements for the degree of master of artsto foreign languages college ofjiangxi normal universitymay 2007iacknowledgementsi hope to express my heartfelt gratitude to all people who have helped and supportedme a lot.firstly,i would like to give my special thanks to my tutor,professor li fagen.he notonly read through each draft of my thesis again and again,but also provided me withprecious materials about the topic.his valuable suggestions gave me a lot of inspirations tofinish my thesis.secondly,i also would like to feel indebted to professor yu fubin,professor mushixiong,professor wang songlin,professor zhang shaoquan and professor xiaohuafeng;associate professor xie baohui and associate professor liao futao,who havetaught and helped me so much.finally,i would express my sincere thanks to my family members,classmates andfriends who have encouraged me during the period of my study.ii中文摘要谚语是语义相对完整的固定句子。使用时可作为句子成分，也可以作为独立的交际单位，表达完整的思想。谚语反映人们对自然社会，人类生活，社会环境以及历史地理等方面的知识。它最大的特点是表达人民群众在生产和日常生活中、各种社会活动中积累的丰富经验，闪耀着人民智慧的火花。其作为人类文化的宝贵遗产表达人们的智慧，思想和文化。此外，它作为民族语言和文化的精华具有丰富的文化内涵，包含在许多谚语中的文化意象具有强烈的文化色彩。实际上，谚语中的每个文化意象代表着一种文化。翻译不仅仅是语言而且是文化信息的转换，其内容来自于文化，因此在英汉谚语互译中成功地转换文化意象是非常关键的。本文拟从文化翻译观的角度探讨英汉谚语互译中文化意象转换的问题,力求解决两个问题：（1）什么是英汉谚语互译中文化意象转换的原因？（2）如何从文化翻译观的视角进行英汉谚语互译中文化意象的转换？本文采取定性的分析方法，其理论基础是文化翻译观。20世纪80年代，英国翻译理论家苏珊巴斯奈特提出翻译研究方法应该把翻译单位从人们所接受的语篇转移到文化转换。文化翻译观的具体含义：第一：翻译因以文化作为翻译的单位，而不应停留在以前的语篇之上；第二，翻译不只是个简单的译码重组过程，更重要的还是一个交流的行为；第三，翻译不应局限于对原语文本的描述，而在于该文本在译语文化里功能的等值；第四，不同的历史时期翻译有不同的原则和规范，但说到底，这些原则和规范都是为了满足不同的需要。翻译就是满足文化的需要和一定文化里不同群体的需要。鉴于上述的理论观点，本文从文化相符，文化相含，文化冲突，文化空缺和文化融合五个方面分析了在英汉谚语互译中文化意象转换的原因并且从每个方面探讨了文化意象转换的具体方法。本文采用五种常用的方法来转换文化意象，即重现意象，替代意象，增加意象，删除意象和解释意象。其从中英谚语中列举了大量实例来说明以上五种方法中哪些方法运用于上述每个方面。通过分析和讨论，以其说明：重现意象运用于文化相符；重现意象、替代意象、解释意象、增加意象、删除意象运用于文化相含；替代意象运用于文化冲突；替代意象、解释意象、增加意象、删除意象运用于文化空缺；重现意象和替代意象运用于文化融合。关键词：文化翻译观；谚语；文化意象；文化转换iiiabstractproverb is a fixed sentence with relatively complete semantic.once used,it can betaken as a componential part of a sentence and an individual communicative unit to expresscomplete ideas.proverb reflects peoples knowledge towards natural society,mankindslife,social phenomenon,history,geography and so on.the most outstanding characteristicof it is to express rich experience which the masses accumulate in production,daily lifeand all kinds of social activities,radiating sparks of peoples wisdom.it also conveyspeoples mind,thinking and culture as a cherished heritage of humankinds culture，otherwise,it has rich cultural connotations,acted as the essence of national language andculture.cultural images are contained in many proverbs with strong cultural color.in fact,every cultural image in a proverb represents a kind of culture.translation is not only thetransformation of language,but cultural information.the content of it comes from culture.its very crucial to successfully transform cultural images in the c-e/e-c proverbtranslation.the thesis discusses the problem of the transformation of cultural images in thec-e/e-c proverb translation from the perspective of cultural view on translation.it aims tosolve two problems:(1)what are the reasons of cultural images transformation in thec-e/e-c proverb translation?(2)how is cultural images transformation carried on in thec-e/e-c proverb translation?the thesis takes the qualitative analysis and its theoretical basis is cultural view ontranslation.in the 1980s of the twentieth century,english translation theorist,susanbassnett proposed that the method of translation studies must transform the unit oftranslation from texts accepted by people to cultural turn.the followings are concreteimplications of cultural view on translation:firstly,translation must take culture as the unitof translation,not remaining on the level of text;secondly,translation is not only a simpleprocess from decoding to reconstructing,but also a kind of communicative action;thirdly,translation mustnt be confined to the description of the source languages text,but thetexts functional equivalence in the target culture;fourthly,translation has differentprinciples and standards in order to meet different needs in different historic periods,andivtranslation is to meet cultural needs and different groupsneeds in a certain culture.in view of the above theoretical viewpoints,the thesis analyzes reasons of culturalimages transformation in the c-e/e-c proverb translation from five facets of culturalcorrespondence,cultural inclusion,cultural conflict,cultural vacancy and culturalintercourse and discusses specific methods to transform cultural images from the aboveevery aspect.the thesis adopts five methods to shift cultural images:to reproduce theimage,to replace the image,to add the image,to delete the image and to interpret theimage.it takes a lot of case studies to expound which methods are used one after anotherand that it adopts the method to reproduce the image in case of cultural correspondence;toreproduce the image,to replace the image,to interpret the image,to add the image ordelete the image in case of cultural inclusion;to replace the image in case of culturalconflict;to replace the image,to interpret the image,to add the image or delete the imagein case of cultural vacancy;to reproduce the image or to replace the image in case ofcultural intercourse.keywords:cultural view on translation;proverb;cultural image;cultural shiftvcontentsacknowledgementsi中文摘要iiabstractiiichapter 1 introduction11.1 literature review21.1.1 a review of cultural view on translation21.1.2 a review of the relationship between cultural images transformation and proverbtranslation31.2 objective and methodology31.3 significance41.4 framework5chapter 2 factors affecting cultural images transformation in the c-e/e-cproverb translation62.1 cultural view on translation62.2 proverb72.3 cultural image92.4 the relationship of language,culture and translation11chapter 3 five aspects on cultural images transformation in the c-e/e-cproverb translation133.1 cultural correspondence133.1.1 the reason of cultural images transformation133.1.2 case studies to transform cultural image143.1.3 discussion on how to transform cultural image163.1.4 case studies to be easily confused173.2 cultural inclusion183.2.1 the reason of cultural images transformation18vi3.2.2 case studies to transform cultural image reproducing and interpreting the image replacing the image adding and deleting the image223.3 cultural conflict233.3.1 the reason of cultural images transformation233.3.2 case studies to transform cultural image243.3.3 discussion on how to transform cultural image273.4 cultural vacancy283.4.1 the reason of cultural images transformation283.4.2 case studies to transform cultural image2 partial vacancy2 complete vacancy3.1 deleting the image while interpreting it3.2 keeping the image while interpreting it3.3 replacing the image333.5 cultural intercourse343.5.1 the reason of cultural images transformation343.5.2 case studies to transform cultural image353.5.3 discussion on transforming cultural image37chapter 4 conclusion39bibliography421chapter 1 introductionevery nation is closely connected and supplemented with each other with its ownlanguage and culture.as the carrier of culture,language is a part of culture and it cantexist without culture.culture must be preserved,broadcasted and inherited depending onlanguage and its development promotes the development of language.there is a closerelationship between translation and culture just as it is between language and culture.since the 1980s of the last century,cultural value theory of translation has graduallybecome one of focuses in the field of translation research as the rising of cultural school.cultural images mostly condense national wisdom and the cream of historical culture.different nations always produce their own peculiar cultural images due to differences ofliving surroundings,cultural traditions and other factors.quite a lot of them have closerelations with a peoples legend and its totemism.in the long historical years,theyappeared in peoples language,literary works,idioms,proverbs and so on.they formed akind of cultural symbol with fixed and unique cultural connotations and some of themcreated rich and far-reaching associations.“proverb is the compendious maxim by oral instruction.”(peng zhaorong,chenxiangqin,1987:52).it is a fixed sentence with relatively complete semantic.once used,itcan be taken as a componential part of a sentence and an individual communicative unit toexpress complete ideas.proverb reflects peoples knowledge towards natural society,mankinds life,social phenomenon,history,geography and so on.the most outstandingcharacteristic of it is to express rich experience which the masses accumulate in production,daily life and all kinds of social activities,radiating sparks of peoples wisdom.it alsoconveys peoples mind,thinking and culture as a cherished heritage of humans culture.proverb has rich cultural connotations,acted as the essence of national language andculture.cultural images are contained in many proverbs with strong cultural color.in fact,every cultural image in a proverb represents a kind of culture.translation is not only thetransformation of language,but cultural information.the content of it comes from culture.2its very crucial to successfully transform cultural images in the c-e/e-c proverbtranslation.the thesis discusses the problem of the transformation of cultural images in thec-e/e-c proverb translation from the perspective of cultural view on translation.1.1 literature reviewthe intention of literature review is to set up the background in two parts:one is areview of cultural view on translation;another part is a review of the relationship betweencultural images transformation and proverb translation.1.1.1 a review of cultural view on translationduring the period between the 1920s and 1960s,linguistics research had made greatprogress,and linguists analyzed the matter of translation from the perspective of semiotics,discourse linguistics,applied linguistics and descriptive linguistics.they attempted to findthe way to solve the matter of translation from the perspective of linguistics.thedevelopment of linguistics brought great influences to translation and formed scientificschool of translation.until the 1980s,translation studies entered into a new stage,cultural theory oftranslation.the linguistic method of translation met tremendous challenge when solvingthe problem of literature translation.english translation theorist,susan bassnett proposedthat the method of translation studies must transform the unit of translation from textsaccepted by people to cultural turn.susan bassnett expounds concrete implications of cultural view on translation in thefollowing four points:firstly,translation should take culture as the unit of translation,notremaining on the level of text;secondly,translation is not only a simple process fromdecoding to reconstructing,but also a kind of communicative action;thirdly,translationshouldnt be confined to the description of the source text,but the texts functionalequivalence in the target culture;fourthly,translation has different principles and standardsin order to meet different requirements in different historic periods,which breaks throughconcepts of traditional translation studies.she emphasizes cultures position in the3translation and significance which translation brings to culture.as the representative ofcultural school,she makes conscious introspection for contemporary social requirements,general conditions and repercussions in the field of translation and believes that culture isthe key element to decide information nucleus.1.1.2 a review of the relationship between cultural images transformation andproverb translationits a few of translators who have indicated their opinions about the relationshipbetween cultural images transformation and proverb translation.some suppose that wecan know which culture proverb comes from if proverb contains special cultural images;some consider that cultural images should be kept as much as possible in the chinese andenglish proverb translation,however,cultural images should be transformed in it becausechinese culture should accumulate western culture once involving cultural differences;some wonder whether a kind of cultural image can produce the same or similar effect inanother kind of culture and the target readers can comprehend and accept it regardless ofculture and cultural phenomenon depending on language,in other words,they lack thedefinite understanding on whether cultural connotation can be shifted when dealing withproverb translation;some believe that cultural images mainly manifest in culturaloverlapping,cultural vacancy and cultural conflict according to carried culturalcharacteristics.on the principle of“seeking common ground while reserving differences”,foreignization and domestication are effectively employed,which enables the targetreaders to understand and appreciate it in the same manner as the source readers do;somedeal with the transformation of cultural images in the light of different translation goals.its not necessary to translate cultural images in any of cases because terms with badcultural images will get bad effects.1.2 objective and methodologythe thesis aims to solve two problems:1.what are the reasons of cultural images transformation in the c-e/e-c proverb4translation?2.how is cultural images transformation carried on in the c-e/e-c proverbtranslation from the perspective of cultural view on translation?the thesis adopts the qualitative analysis and takes cultural view on translation as itstheoretical basis.in view of the above standpoint,it takes examples from thetransformation of cultural images in the c-e/e-c proverb translation by giving reasonsfrom five facets and illustrating the practical use of five different transforming methodsfrom every aspect of the above five reasons.the thesis adopts five methods to shiftcultural images:to reproduce the image,to replace the image,to add the image,to deletethe image and to interpret the image.a lot of case studies are presented focusing on theabove five methods.chapter one and chapter two are the introduction and the bedding of chapter three,which is the kernel of the whole thesis,and chapter four makes a conclusion on the basis ofthe above three chapters.1.3 significancesusan bassnett and andre lefevere put forward that the emphasis change intranslation studies is the cultural turn in 1990.translation is the performative nature ofcultural communication and the cultural turn has become the main trend of studyinginterlingual translation.from the visual angle of cultural view on translation,culturalimage is the focus of cultural difference and proverb is a crystallization of collectivewisdoms for every nation with plentiful cultural images.its the presupposition and crux ofproverb translation to transform cultural images in the c-e/e-c proverb translation.thetranslator should be familiar with cultural divergence between chinese and english andimprove cultural accomplishments,so that peculiar cultural images of the source languagecan be shifted fully and exactly and cultural information is passed on from a kind of cultureto another.functional equivalence can be realized between the source culture and thetarget culture as the essence of cultural view on translation.51.4 frameworkchapter one is the introduction of thesis.firstly,it makes a literature review from twofacets;secondly,it introduces the objective and methodology;thirdly,it sets forth thesignificance;fourthly,the framework of it is presented.chapter two are factors affecting cultural images transformation in the c-e/e-cproverb translation,including four points:firstly,it introduces cultural view on translationin details;secondly,it centers on chinese and english proverb;thirdly,it concerns aboutcultural image in chinese and english proverb;fourthly,it focuses on the relationship oflanguage,culture and translation.chapter three includes five aspects on cultural images transformation in the c-e/e-cproverb translation.it aims to solve two problemsthe reason of cultural imagestransformation and how to transform cultural image from every aspect.chapter four is the conclusion of the whole thesis.it summaries the methods ofsolving two problems and the limitation of thesis is presented.6chapter 2 factors affecting cultural images transformationin the c-e/e-c proverb translation2.1 cultural view on translationsusan bassnett believes that translation is the exchange between internal culture andculture;translation equivalence is the equivalence on cultural function between