英汉习语对比及其翻译.docx

英汉习语对比及其翻译【Abstract】Idioms are the essence of a language, which have strong national colors and distinctive cultural connotations. So it is difficult for both English and Chinese readers to understand the idiom translation thoroughly and exactly. This thesis first analyzes the similarity of English and Chinese idioms from the aspect of rhetorical means, such as alliteration, rhyme, repetition, antithesis and so on. Then it probes into the causes of the differences in English and Chinese idioms from the aspects of different living circumstances, different cognitions of things, different religions and beliefs, and different historical allusions and myths, etc. After that, it talks about the three typical problems in English-Chinese idiom translation, such as interpreting the English idioms too literally, copying Chinese customary sayings mechanically, and lacking in necessary explanatory notes. Finally, it summarizes five idiom translation methods, including literal translation with explanation, literal translation with association, transformation of meanings, application of Chinese couplet and equal consideration of both images and meanings. All the significance of this thesis is to convey the idioms cultural information as much as possible, which is very useful for the language learning.【Key Words】 idiom; comparison; translation【摘 要】习语通常包括成语、俗语、格言、歇后语、谚语、俚语、行话等。其表现形式音节优美，音律协调，或含蓄幽默，或严肃典雅，言简意赅，形象生动，妙趣横生，给人一种美的享受。习语是语言的精华，它带有浓厚的民族色彩和鲜明的文化内涵。因此对英语读者和汉语读者来说，做到彻底精确地理解蕴含深刻文化内涵的习语的翻译是相对比较困难的。本文首先从修辞手法方面分析了英汉习语的相似性，然后分别从生存环境、对事物的认知、历史典故、宗教信仰等四个不同方面来比较和分析英汉习语存在的巨大差异，接着概括了英汉习语互译中存在的典型问题，最后，本文侧重探索了英汉习语互译的最佳方法，包括直译加解释、直译加联想、意译改造法、采用汉语对联的形式，形象意义兼顾法等五种手段。整篇论文的意义在于最大限度地传递习语中的文化信息，对语言学习具有重大指导意义。【关键字】习语；对比；翻译 1.IntroductionIdioms are the essence of a language, which are always philosophical and eternal. According to Oxford Advantaged Learners English-Chinese Dictionary, an idiom is “a phrase or sentence whose meaning is not clear from the meaning of its individual words and which must be learnt as a whole unit”. “In the broad sense, idioms may include : set phrases; proverbs; sayings; epigrams; slang expressions; colloquialisms; quotations; two-part allegorical sayings, of which the first part ,always stated, is descriptive, while the second part , sometimes unstated, carries the message(chiefly in Chinese). While in Chinese, idioms are called as 熟语,including:短语，成语(usually consisting of four words),俗语，谚语，格言，箴言，名言(quotation or recorded utterance ) ，警句，隽语，俚语，粗话，行话，歇后语(including pun),习语, etc.” 1 However, the thesis will discuss English and Chinese idioms in a narrow sense, and only set phrases and proverbs will be under discussion.English idioms and Chinese idioms are gems of the two languages as well as the crystallization of the two national cultures. Most of idioms are of vivid images which are appropriately used to compare to other things, consequently, they often contain distinctive national and local colors. Some idioms have quite clear meanings, some are implicit and profound, which could cause a great deal of association, while others may include several meanings, which depend on the context to define its real indication.Both English and Chinese idioms are important rhetorical means in language as well as the assembled manifestations of different kinds of rhetorical means in itself. Many idioms have symmetrical forms, beautiful syllables and harmonious rhythms. All these features give rise to the particular difficulties in translation: it is more difficult to understand and more challenging to convey the cultural information clearly and exactly than the common language, however, in order to keep the translation faithful, these features should be preserved. Not only do idioms appear largely in literary works, but also in political and scientific thesis. The qualities of the idioms translation directly affect the whole translation. So it is essential to study the idioms and their methods of translation seriously. 2. The similarity between English and Chinese idioms in rhetorical meansAlthough there is always some “cultural distance” between Chinese and English, there is much overlap, too, and it shows in many aspects. However, the focal point of the thesis will lie in the analysis of the English and Chinese idioms similarity from the view of rhetorical means.Both English and Chinese idioms usually adopt rhetorical means, such as alliteration, rhyme, repetition, and antithesis, etc, for the purpose of enriching the rhyme and rhythm.2.1 Alliteration “Alliteration is the occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of two or more words in succession”2, which sounds continual and is easy to read and to remember. Both English and Chinese idioms take full advantages of the means, so that they could be passed down from generation to generation. Lets look at some examples.In Chinese there are “恍恍惚惚，红红火火,乒乒乓乓” ,etc. In English there are also “ as cool as a cucumber”(泰然自若), “as busy as a bee” (忙个不停), “tit for tat”(以牙还牙), “as thick as thieves” (非常亲密,要好), “sing a song of sixpence”, “ part and parcel(主要部分)， might and main (竭尽全力)”, 3 “Money makes the mare go.” (有钱能使鬼推磨) , etc.Through the above examples, we may well see that both English and Chinese idioms are popular by this means.2.2 Rhyme“Rhyme is the sameness of sound between words or syllable”4, which sounds very beautiful. Some English and Chinese idioms use this method as well to achieve the acoustic enjoyment. For example:In Chinese, there are “从善如登，从恶如崩、不经一事，不长一智、差之毫厘，缪以千里、失之东隅，收之桑榆”, etc. , which use the means of rhyme. In English, we also can find it in “ A friend in need is a friend indeed.” , “Beggars cant be choosers.” , “East or west, home is the best.” , “Health is better than wealth.” , “ as snug as a bug in a rug (舒舒服服)， high and dry(孤立无援), by hook or by crook(不择手段)” 5 ,etc. Both English and Chinese idioms that use this rhetorical means are of tinkling and jingling sounds. Not only are they easy to remember, but also it seems that we are reading a beautiful short poem.2.3RepetitionIn rhetorics, “repetition is a commonly seen rhetorical device, which usually repeats a sentence or part of sentence at both the beginning and end of long sentences, stanzas, or paragraphs. The main function of repetition is to emphasize the key points.”6 Both English and Chinese idioms use this method to achieve the emphatic effect. The examples are like the following:In Chinese, there are “喜气洋洋，多多益善，沾沾自喜，泱泱大风，姗姗来迟，亭亭玉立，想入非非，落落大方，种瓜得瓜，种豆得豆”etc. In English, there are “measure for measure” (一报还一报), “ step by step” (循序渐进), “neck and neck”（并驾齐驱）, “diamond cut diamond”（棋逢对手）, “an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth”（以眼还眼，以牙还牙）, “call a spade a spade” (直言不讳)，etc.Using the means of repetition makes the idioms have obviously emphatic object. Their meanings will be clear at a glance.2.4 Antithesis“Antithesis is the deliberate arrangement of contrasting words or ideas in balanced structural forms to achieve force and emphasis. The form of the expression is very important for effect, for the force of the emphasis, whether for profundity of judgment, for humor or for satire, depends chiefly on the juxtaposition of direct opposites, of glaring contrasts.”7 Many idioms, both English and Chinese, adopt this device, too. The examples below illustrate the point: In Chinese, there are “大同小异，古往今来，冷嘲热讽，阴奉阳违，顾此失彼，因小失大，小事明白，大事糊涂”，etc. In English, there are “far and near(四面八方), ups and downs(盛衰沉浮); sooner or later(迟早); more or less(或多或少) , penny wise, pound foolish(小事聪明,大事糊涂)”, etc. Though the idioms have only a few words, they contain much truth and philosophy in them by comparing two completely opposite things. Antithesis has played an important role in this aspect, which makes the readers have a lot of aftertaste while pondering over them.3. The differences between English and Chinese idiomsEnglish-speaking and Chinese-speaking countries are two different nations, so there exists vast difference between English and Chinese culture and this difference occurs in English and Chinese idioms, too.3.1 Different living circumstancesIdioms are closely related to peoples work and life. So the idioms have strong national colors. Britain is an island country on the Atlantic ocean, surrounded by the sea, which was once leading the world with its navigation, so lots of English idioms have something to do with navigation and fish. Such as: a drop in the ocean“沧海一粟”; plain sailing “一帆风顺”between the devil and deep sea“进退维谷”; know the ropes“懂得秘诀”; go with the stream“随波逐流”; as close as an oyster“守口如瓶”; steer clear of all doubtful questions“避免一切暧昧的事情”; feel under the water“感觉不适”.While “China is an agricultural country. The peasants have presented many idioms about farmwork, such as 斩草除根 which is translated literally into to cut the weeds and dig up the roots, its figurative meaning is to stamp out the source of the trouble. More examples:瑞雪兆丰年（a timely snow promises a good harvest）; 顺藤摸瓜 （its original meaning is to follow the vine to get the melon; its extended meaning is to track down somebody or something by following clues ）; 捡了芝麻，丢了西瓜 （its original meaning is to pick up the sesame seeds, but overlook the watermelons; its extended meaning is mindful of small matters to neglect of large ones ）”8, etc.Typically speaking, English people use “spend money like water” to describe someone who splashes money on something. While Chinese people say“挥金如土”. “However many idioms concerning boats and water cannot be given the same equivalents in Chinese, such as , to rest on ones oars（暂时歇一歇）, to keep ones head above water（奋力图存）all at sea（不知所措）etc”.9Due to the geographical and environmental factors, the bamboo shoots grow abundantly in China, thus, there are idioms concerning bamboo. On the contrary, bamboo doesnt grow in British islands at all, even the word “bamboo” is a loan one, so that there is no English idioms in this aspect. For example, “the Chinese idiom 雨后春笋is translated into spring up like mushrooms” 10 in English.“In Chinese culture, east wind is the wind of spring; summer is always connected with extremely hot or the intense heat, so 赤日炎炎似火烧 骄阳似火are terms often used to describe summer. While Britain is located in western hemisphere, with north temperate zone and marine Climate, so west wind is the symbol of spring. The famous English poet Shirleys Ode to west wind is a praising song of spring. Summer in Britain is a warm and comfortable season, which is usually linked with lovely, gentle and nice. Shakespeare compare thee to a summer in one of his poems, shall I compare thee to a summers day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate” 11So different living surroundings may produce different idioms in different language and different culture. 3.2 Different cognitions of thingsBecause of the differences between eastern and western cultures, people have greatly different cognitions of things, and this exerts a great influence on the differences of the outcome of both Chinese and English idioms.3.2.1 Different cognitions of animalsEnglish and Chinese belong to two different language families. Chinese belongs to the Han-Tibetan language family. Being limited to the living conditions, climate and so on, several animals find the same environment on which they rely for existence as the human being. These animals and the human beings are interdependent. While the man are the most emotional animals that give the animals different affection, as a result, the symbolic meaning of the animals vary greatly.The cattle had once done great contributions to Chinese agriculture in history, sothere emerged idioms concerning this animal, such as “力大如牛”，“倔犟如牛”，“鞭打快牛”，etc. For the English, horse is used as an important tool whose merits and contributions are outstanding. Consequently, there are equivalent idioms having the same meaning as Chinese idioms in English, such as “as strong as a horse”, “as stubborn as a mule” and “The horse that draws best is most whipped.” Besides, the British advocate horsemanship. They like raising horses and holding horse-races. Thus there are a great number of idioms concerning horse, such as: “dark horse”, “eat like a horse”, “bet on the wrong horse”, “change horse in mid-stream”, “hold ones horse”, etc.In western culture, the cunning fox specially likes eating the goose surreptitiously. If leaving the fox to look after the geese alone, wouldnt it mean looking for trouble? We have no such knowledge in Chinese. Thereby, the English idiom “set a fox to keep ones geese”（让狐狸看鹅）would be quite baffling to the Chinese. But there is an identical idiom in Chinese “引狼入室”which means the same thing as “set a fox to keep ones geese”. Both of the two idioms are translated correspondingly and vividly.It is worth mentioning that, in Chineses eyes, tiger is the king of wild animals. It has rich cultural symbolized meaning, including the commendatory connotation, such as valor, grandeur and might, as well as the derogatory connotation of cruelty, savageness and ferociousness. While in English culture, lion is the king of all animals, consequently, there are obviously much more English idioms concerning lion than the Chinese idioms concerning tiger, so that “we often translate lion into 虎 in English translation, such as a lion in the way(拦路虎), place oneself in the lions mouth(深入虎穴)”,etc.123.2.2 Different cognitions of colors There are three kinds of basic colors: red, yellow and blue. Colors are cognized mainly through the seven kinds of colors: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and purple in the spectrum. Due to the different countries historical backgrounds, geographical locations, customs and traditions, people have diverse cognitions of colors, so the idioms rising under the conditions reflect such regional differences.Taking “red” and “white” for example, in western countries, red is regarded as brutality and unluckiness. Red means bleeding. So there appears some having derogatory and taboo color words, such as “red skin（对印第安人的鄙夷称呼），red tape（繁文缛节，官僚习气）,in the red（亏损）,out of red（扭亏为盈）, red alert（空袭、紧急警报）, red cock（纵火引起的火灾）, red cent（毫无价值的事物）etc.” 13 While in China, red means luck and joy. There are many Chinese idioms obviously having complimentary sense, such as开门红 (get off to have a good start), 红颜薄命 (a beautiful girl has an unfortunate life), 红运当头(have a good luck), 红光满面 (in the pink), 红男绿女(gaily dressed young men and women), 红得发紫(extremely popular), 红极一时（enjoy popularity for a time）, 红装素裹（clad in white, adorned in red）,etc.People in western countries look upon white as the symbol of purity, as well as some implications of racial discrimination. The westerners are white people who entrust extremely noble symbol to white. In English there are：white hat（好人），white lies （善意的谎言）， white-headed boy（宠儿），the white hope（带来荣誉的人），white slavery（逼良为娼西方人认为白种人不能做奴隶），etc. However it is different in China. In Chineses eyes, white stands for funeral and revolt, which has derogatory color. For example, there are白日做梦(indulge in wishful thinking), 白费口舌(waste ones breath),一穷二白(poor and blank),白忙乎(in vain) ,白字连篇(reams of wrong characters), 白云苍狗(white clouds change into grey dogs-the changes in human affairs often take freakish forms)etc.3.2.3 Different cognitions of numeralsNumeral worship and taboo exist both in eastern and western courtiers, however, the people in the two countries have totally different cognitions of numerals.In the west, “13” is regarded as an unlucky number, owing to the story in the Bible that Jesus Christ was betrayed by his 13th disciple Judas. “666” symbolizes demon in the Bible. “7” stands for good luck, great prosperity and victory. But there is no particular connotation of “9” at all in English. The examples are: in the seventh heaven（极其快乐）, the Seventh Day（星期六犹太人安息日）, etc. In China, “13”, “666”, “7” have no special meanings, therefore, there is no taboo usage of them. However, “six”(六)、 “nine”(九) have peculiar cultural connotations to the Chinese people. “nine”(九). means a long period of peace and order or lasting political stability in Chinese traditional culture. The emperors of the past dynasties worshipped “nine”(九), hoping his country could be in great peace and order. There are Chinese idioms concerning “nine”(九), such as “九九归一” ,“九死一生”etc. “six”(六) means that something goes on smoothly in Chinese，there are“六六大顺”“六畜兴旺”etc. Meanwhile, Chinese people place the allegorical meaning on the even number, such as “双喜临门”、“四季发财”、“八面玲珑”etc. “It is calculated that there are far more Chinese idiom using numerals than the English idioms, which is a difficult problem to the translation.”143.3 Different Religions and Beliefs Religion plays an important role in the development of the language. Different religions produce different idioms. Buddhism has been transmitted to China for more than one thousand years, which occupies the leading position in Chinese traditional religions.People believe there is a “Buddha” who can dominate the world and decide everyones destine. Many Chinese idioms come form Buddhism, such as “佛口蛇心”、“佛头着粪”、“借花献佛”、“五体投地”、“一尘不染”、“现身说法”、“回头是岸”、“在劫难逃”、“大慈大悲”etc. There are also proverbs coming from Buddhism. For example,“不看僧面看佛面”、 “闲时不烧香，临时抱佛脚”、“跑得了和尚跑不了庙”、“泥菩萨过河，自身难保”、“放下屠刀，立地成佛”、“一个和尚挑水吃，两个和尚抬水吃，三个和尚没水吃”etc. In western countries especially in Britain and America， people believe in Christianity. The Bible has been regarded the classical Christian scripture, which establishes a foundation of western countries culture, art and ideology, Idioms concerning the Bible can be found everywhere. For example, “doubting Thomas”（怀疑的托马斯）is an idiom from the Bible now stands for “不肯轻易相信别人的人(people who will not believe in others easily)”. And The idiom “cast pearls before swine”（把珍珠丢在猪的面前） is also from