TheFunctionofChineseQuadrisyllabicPhrasesinE―CTranslation-文档资料

1、The Function of Chinese Quadrisyllabic Phrases in E C Translation【】Chinese quadrisyllabic phrases are indispensable in English-Chinese translation. It can be said that their existence is one distinct feature of Chinese. Without them the translated text can never be concise ， vivid and fluent. Only t

2、hose translators who have an excellent foundation in Chinese can make good use of them freely. So， in order to improve the quality of the translated Chinese text ， it is quite necessary to highlight the main functions of Chinese quadrisyllabic phrases. This thesis covers three main benefits that qua

3、drisyllabic phrases can bring in English-Chinese translation， with a lot of examples.In English-Chinese translation， the use ofquadrisyllabic phrases can make the Chinese version more brief and fluent. Eugene A. Nida wrote in his The Theory and Practice of Translation ： “A conscientious translator w

4、ill want the closest natural equivalent.”“ The besttranslation does not sound like a translation. ”Whether a translator can use Chinese quadrisyllabic phrases well can embody his Chinese level. This shows the importance of quadrisyllabic phrases in making the receptor language more natural. This the

5、sis is to elucidate the main advantages of these phrases from three aspects.1. Rhythmic EffectAs is stated above， there are abundant quadrisyllabic phrases in the ancient Chinese poems ， and this shows one advantage of these expressionsthe rhythmic effect. Thequadrisyllabic phrases have much beauty

6、in rhythm ， which is an important aspect of the beauty in a language. The change in tone ， rhyme and intensity in sound adds poetic beauty to the language.Because a large number of quadrisyllabic phrases derive from various allusions in history and the ancient Chinese writers paid much attention to

7、the rhythm of their works ， many of these phrases are melodious themselves. With the help of these phrases ， the translated Chinese can sound more like music ， especially when there are several quadrisyllabic phrases in a sentence. The following examples are to show this point more clearly：A： A woma

8、n goes to work for a large corporation like IBM. She is extremely intelligent， ambitious andhard-working.一位女士去一家大公司（如际商用机器公司）工作，她才智 过人，雄心勃勃，勤奋努力。B： Isolation of China is unworkable，counterproductive and potentially dangerousClinton.孤立中国是行之无效，适得其反，后患无穷的 克林顿。C： The Inauguration took place on a bright，

9、 cold ，and windy day.就职典礼那天，阳光普照，寒风凛冽。D： A little ， yellow ， ragged beggar was sitting there. 一个要饭的坐在那儿，他身材矮小，面黄肌瘦，衣衫褴褛。E： His venture is in a stormy mid-passage now. It may ultimately be forced back， or even sunk. Yet Gingrich did the workcrude ， forceful ， effective that compelled the voyage in th

10、e first place.现在，他的冒险行动正处于惊涛骇浪的中途， 有可能无功而 返，甚至汪洋沉船。但是他言出必行，粗放有力，卓有成效。In sentence A ， the three words “intelligent ”， “ambitious ” and “hard - working ” are rendered into three quadrisyllabic phrases in Chinese. The same is true with sentences B ， C， D and E. It is plain that all the quadrisyllabic p

11、hrases are very fluent and forceful in the receptor language and sound like rhythm. The translated sentences are so natural that they do not sound liketranslation.2. Balanced StructureThe second advantage of the quadrisyllabic phrases is that the sentences can achieve a good visual effect with their

12、 help a balanced structure. In ancienttimes ， thewriters have always expressed a strong preference for the balance of the language ， from the ancient poems to the antithetical couplets written on the scrolls. In poetry they tried to pursue a matching of both sound and sense in two lines and sentence

13、s. The reason may be that symmetry is considered to be a kind of beauty and it symbolizes auspiciousness and harmony in China. Some of the quadrisyllabic phrases have balanced internal structures themselves. Besides ， in many cases ， the quadrisyllabic phrases which appear in pairs can also make the

14、 whole sentence balanced. The following sentences are taken for examples ：Zhu Rongji w as called China s Gorbachev a sincere but limited reformer.朱?F基被称为中国的戈尔巴乔夫 一个雄心勃勃却壮 志未酬的改革家。He is all fire and fight.他怒气冲冲，来势汹汹。They have all made it in the United States. They are comfortable and successful.他们在美国

15、都是飞黄腾达的人物， 过着舒舒服服、 万事如意 的生活。Many San Diegans ， angered by the way Rogers was treated ， accused the school of gross ingratitude and cowardice.许多圣迭戈人对罗杰斯表示愤慨， 他们指责校方十足的忘恩 负义和胆小怕事。If North America and Europe renew their moral life，build on their cultural commonality， and develop closerforms of economic

16、 and political integration to supplement their security collaboration in NATO， they could generate a third Euroamerican phase of western affluence and political influence.如果北美和欧洲能在道德生活方面得以重振， 在共同的文化 基础上进行发展， 在政治经济领域进一步整合， 以此作为在北约 安全合作以外的补充， 那么将可衍生出经济富甲天下， phrases themselves ：sincere but limitedfire

17、and政治一言 九鼎的欧美第三阶段。The English sentences illustrated above have balancedfight ”， “comfortable and successful ”， “ingratitude and cowardice ” and “western affluence and political i nfluence ”. Of course ， the meaning can also be expressed explicitly in Chinese if they are translated like this：“忠 却受限”、

18、“又气又怒”、“舒服又成功”、“忘恩又胆 小”、“西方的富裕和政治的影响力” . In this case ， the rhetoric effect is worse than that of the sentences with quadrisylabic phrases ， which obviously show a stronger emphasis ， and make the whole sentence tidier.3.Cultural MeaningIn addition to the rhetoric effect in rhythm and structure ， in

19、 English-Chinese translation， the use ofquadrisyllabic phrases brings another benefit： largequantities of them are filled with cultural meaning，especially the allusive ones. Since the ancient times ， briefness has been highly appreciatedin Chinese writingto use the fewest words to express the most m

20、eanings. In the process of being passed down from one generation to another ， many expressions have been shortened to only four characters ， but they still can mean a lot. These expressions gradually form part of the quadrisyllabic phrases. Although in todays society ， we use modernChinese in most c

21、ases instead of ancient Chinesebriefness in language is still very important. The quadrisyllabic phrases are concise but affluent in cultural meaning. Besides， the Chinese tradition can beembodied very well by quadrisyllabic phrases.To be specific ， if we translate“neither fish norflesh ” into “既不像鱼

22、也不像肉”， the Chinese readers may not understand what it really means. However ， if we translate this phrase into“不伦不类”， although thereare only four characters ， the meaning is clearer. The following sentences will show the comparison of quadrisyllabic phrases with other translations.（1）Reports of new

23、success keep pouring in.A：胜利的新消息不断地传来。B：捷报频传。Basically speaking ， the sentence A is the same as B in meaning， but A is much longer and more tedious than B. Besides ， the second Chinese sentence portrays a more vivid picture and has cultural meaning in it. In the history，“捷报频传” meant that a country h

24、ad won many fights. Now its meaning has been widened.（2）Bourgeois society seems everywhere to have used up its store of constructive ideas.A：各地的中产阶级社会似乎都已经用光了他们储存的所有 有建设性的主意。B：各地的中产阶级社会似乎都已经江郎才尽，拿不出什么 有建设性的主意。Obviously ， the difference between sentence A and B lies in the use of the quadrisyllabic p

25、hrasel “江郎才尽” . This is a phrase with cultural meaning. Long time ago， aboy became known as a genius when he was still very little. With a marvelous memory， he could recite many famous poems and essays. His father was so proud of him that he brought him to different places every day just to show off

26、. As time went by， the boy grew up. Without proper education ， this boy was not outstanding among his peers any longer.（3）I am not talking about castles in the air， thedonkeys carrot.A：我 ?f 的并不是空中楼阁，驴子的胡萝卜。B：我说的并不是空中楼阁 叫大家望梅止渴。The first translation is a literal translation ， but it is nearly impossible for Chinese readers to understand what “驴子的胡萝卜” means. Compared with A ， B is more explicit in meaning.“望梅止渴” also can remind theChinese readers