商务英语往来信函的中文翻译技术

毕业论文(设计)PAGEPAGE1TechniquesofTranslatingBusinessEnglishCorrespondenceintoChinese1.Introduction“BusinessEnglishisaspecialtermgiventoEnglishbynon-Englishspeakingnationsforinternationaltrade.InBritain,itiscalledCommercialEnglishorCommercialcorrespondenceorcommercialLetter”(胡鑑明,2001:3).InEnglishspeakingcountries,allcorrespondencesneededbothindomesticandforeigntradesarewritteninEnglish.However,innon-Englishspeakingcountries,correspondenceforinternationaltradeisalsoneededtobewritteninEnglishbecauseEnglishisthemostwidelyusedlanguageinthisfield.WiththeexecutionofthereformandopeningpolicyandthesuccessofChina’senteringintoWTO,internationalbusinesstranslationisbecomingmoreandmoreimportant.Today,manycoastalcitiesinourcountrywhereactivitiesofinternationaltradehavebeenincreasinghavebecomemoreandmoreindustrializedandcommercialized.Therefore,businessEnglishtranslationplaysaveryimportantroleininternationaltrade,andthequalifiedtranslatorsareurgentlyneededinourcountry.BusinessEnglishcorrespondencesarenotliteraryworks,sotheydon’tneedtheflowerylanguage.Oneisrequiredtoexpresshisownviewsaccuratelyandproperlywithaplainlanguage.Thepurposeistomakethereadersunderstandandtocatchthereader’sattention.Therefore,abusinessEnglishcorrespondenceandthetranslationofitmustbeaccurateandappropriate,oritwillbringgreatinconvenienceorlossininternationalbusinesses.InordertoobtaingoodqualitytranslationofbusinessEnglishcorrespondence,translatorsmustunderstandthelanguagefeaturesbetweenBusinessEnglishcorrespondenceandBusinessChinesecorrespondence.2.ThelanguagefeaturesofbusinessEnglishcorrespondenceThefunctionofthebusinessEnglishcorrespondenceistoconveybusinessinformation.IthasitsownlanguagestylewhichformsthelanguagefeaturesofbusinessEnglishcorrespondence.TherearesevenlanguagefeaturesofbusinessEnglishcorrespondence:completeness,concreteness,clearness,conciseness,courtesy,considerationandcorrectness.2.1CompletenessIfonewantstowriteasuccessfulandhighlyeffectivebusinessEnglishcorrespondence,hislettermusthavetwoaspects:completenessoffactsandcompletenessofexplanation.Forexample:Supposeabusinessmaniswritingalettertohissuppliertellinghimthathisgoodswerenotdeliveredontime,hislettershouldincludethefollowing:Remindinghimofhispromiseoftimelydelivery.Hebrokehispromise.Whatlosseshasthiscausedyou?Askingforcompensationifthereisanyagreementonthat.Expectingnosuchthingwillhappenagain.(胡鑑明,2001:11)2.2ConcretenessABusinessEnglishcorrespondenceshouldbespecific,definiteandpersuasivebutnottobevague,generalandabstract.Forexample:(1)a.Wewishedtoconfirmourtelexdispatchedyesterday.b.WeconfirmourtelexofJuly2nd,2000(concrete).(廖瑛,2003:4)(2)a.Ourapplesareexcellent.b.Ourapplesarejuicy,crispyandtender(concrete).(胡鑑明,2001:9)Insentencesbinthetwoexamples,“July2nd”,“juicy”,“crispy”,and“tender”aredefiniteandspecific,containingconcretemessage,whileinsentencesa,“yesterday”and“excellent”arevagueandabstract.2.3ClearnessClearnessisanimportantlanguagefeatureinbusinessEnglishcorrespondence.Thefinalpurposeof“clearness”istomakesurewhatonewroteissoclearthatitcan’tbemisunderstood.Clearnessmeans:1)Onesentenceforonemeaningonly.2)Theremustbealogicalrelationshipbetweenrelevantsentences.Noreversionorrepetitionallowedtoappear.(胡鑑明,2001:4)Theitalicwordsinthetwoexamplesbelowarenotclearenough.(3)“Fluctuationintheexchangerateafterthedateofcontractsigningwillbeforthebuyer’saccount.”Improved:“Anyincreaseordecreaseintheexchangerateafterthedateofcontractsigningwillbeforthebuyer’saccount.”(胡鑑明,2001:4)(4)“Theyhavealsoadecidedadvantageinregardtofreight.”Improved:“Theyhavealsoadecidedadvantageinregardtofreightcharges.”(胡鑑明,2001:4)Theauthorshouldpayattentiontotheword“freight”whichhasdifferentmeanings:“freightcharges”,“cargo”,or“transportation”.2.4ConcisenessConcisenesscansavethetimeofboththewriterandtheaddressee.Concisenessmeanstheauthorshouldclearlyexpresswhathewantstodowithafewwordsintheconditionofconsideringcompleteness,concretenessandcourtesy.Forexample:(5)Wordy:Iwishtoexpressmyheartfeltgratitudetoyouforyourkindcooperation.Concise:Thankyouforyourcooperation.(6)Wordy:wehavebeguntoexportourmachinestotheforeigncountries.Concise:wehavebeguntoexportourmachines.(廖瑛，2003:14-15)2.5CourtesyCourtesyisaveryimportantlanguagefeatureofBusinessEnglishcorrespondence.Acourteousexpressioninalettercanhelptosetupanhonestandenthusiasticimpressiontothereaders.Courtesynotonlymeanspoliteness,butalsomeanscaringabouttheinterestsofthecustomersandofferingthecustomersconvenienceintheirwork.Inordertobecourteous,oneshouldusetheexpressionwiththemeaningofjoy,thanks,regretorwithrequestingtone,suchasplease…,thankyoufor…,weareafraid…,wewouldsuggest…,andsoon.Forexample:Wearepleasedtoinformyouthatthecommoditiesyouareinterestedinfallwithinthescopeofourbusinessactivities.(王乃彦，2005:20)2.6ConsiderationConsiderationmeansoneshouldputhimselfinthepositionoftheoppositeparty.Forexample,aletterpromotingone’sownproductshouldtelltheprospectivebuyerwhatbenefithewillgetifhebuysthegoods.Thus,itwillbeeasiertoarousehisinterestanddesiretobuy.Forinstance:Acceptanceofourofferfrommanycustomershasproventhatourpricesarereasonable.Yourorderinquantitieswillsurelyaccordwiththemarketdemandatyourendandbeofgreatbenefittoyourcompany.(胡鑑明,2001:10)2.7CorrectnessCorrectnessmeanstheexpressioninbusinessEnglishlettersmustbecorrect.Thefacts,wordsandfiguresmustbeaccurateandcan’tbeoverstatedorunderstated.Forexample:(7)Thisproductisabsolutelythebestoneonthemarket.(8)Thisproductisthebestonewecansupply.(廖瑛，2003:26)Inexample(7),itisverydifficulttoguaranteethatthisproductisabsolutelythebestoneonthemarket,soitisoverstated.Andexample(8)clearlystatesthefact,soit’sbetter.3.ThelanguagefeaturesofbusinessChinesecorrespondence3.1ExactnessExactnessmeansaccuracyandappropriateness.Inordertomakeabusinesscorrespondenceexact,theauthorhadbetterusestandardChinesewordsandpayattentiontothedifferencesofsynonyms,suchasthewords“优良，优秀”.Boththetwowordshavethemeaningof“goodness”,butalsohavedifferentgrades.Theword“优秀”isusedtomodifybothhumanandthingsandtheword“优良”isalwaysusedtomodifythings.Andthensuitableprepositionalstructuresshouldbeused.Theuseofprepositionalstructurecanmakesentencesmuchmoreaccurateandprecise.Forexample,peopleusuallyuse“为”，“为了”，“由于”toshowthepurposeorcauseanduse“根据，依据，遵照”toexpressthebasisorway.3.2ConcisenessBusinessChinesecorrespondenceisclearinmeaningandshortinsentencestructure.Inordertobeconcise,oneshouldavoidusinglongandwordysentences.Oneshouldusemoreimperativesentencebecauseitismoredirectandclearandcanavoidsomeunnecessarymistakes.Besides,subjectlesssentencewhichcanmakethesentencemoreconciseshouldbeusedcorrectly.Forexample:ifabusinessmanwantstoexpresshisappreciationtotheotherpartofthisbusinessforhiscooperation,hewillsay“感谢贵方真诚合作”,butdonotsay“我方感谢贵方真诚合作”.Thereasonisthesecondsayingiswordy.3.3PlainnessAsisknowntoall,officialdocumentsaredifferentfromliteraryworks.Theaimofliteraryworkistoamusereaders,buttheaimofofficialdocumentsistostatetherealmattersandtrytosolvethem.So,whenwritingbusinessChinesecorrespondence,theauthorjustneedstoexpresstherealproblemsandrequirementsconcisely.Avoidtheambiguousexpression.Forinstance:thewords“大约，大概，几乎”shouldnotbeusedinbusinessChinesecorrespondence.InordertomakeabusinessChinesecorrespondenceplainandclear,theconcretewordsorfigurewordsshouldbeusemorefrequently.3.4SeriousnessSeriousnessisalsoanimportantlanguagefeatureofbusinessChinesecorrespondence.Inordertomaintaintheseriousnessinbusinesscorrespondence,thewritershouldpayattentiontoseveralthings.Firstly,heshoulduseformalwords,Forexample,using“积累资金”insteadof“攒钱”.Secondly,heshouldusepropercustomarywords,forexample,using“贵”insteadof“你”andusing“本”insteadof“我”.Finally,heshouldusesomeclassicalChineseproperly.Forexample,using“业经”insteadof“已经过”andusing“妥否”insteadof“妥当不妥当”.4.ThetranslationprinciplesofbusinessEnglishcorrespondenceInrecentyears,manyscholarsandtranslatorshavedevotedtheirmindstothetranslationofbusinessEnglish.Althoughthereisn’tanauthoritativecriteriafortranslationofbusinessEnglishcorrespondence,thethreeprinciplesbelowarecommonlyaccepted.Theyarefaithfulness,smoothnessandexpressiveness.AnauthornamedHuSanningsaid,“Byfaithfulness,wemeantobefaithfulnotonlytotheoriginalcontents,totheoriginalmeaningandviews,butalsototheoriginalformandstyle.Bysmoothnessandexpressiveness,wemeannotonlyeasyandreadablerendering,butalsoidiomaticexpressioninthetargetlanguage,freefromstiffformulaandmechanicalcopyingfromdictionaries”(2005:10-11).Thetranslatorshouldalsopayattentiontothebusinessbackgroundknowledge,besidesthetranslationprinciples.BecausebothbusinessEnglishcorrespondenceandbusinessChinesecorrespondencecontainalotofbusinessbackgroundknowledge,sobeingfamiliarwithsomebusinessbackgroundknowledgeshouldbecomeoneofthetranslationprinciples.5.ThetranslationtechniquesofbusinessEnglishcorrespondenceTranslationrelatestotwodifferentlanguages.Inordertohaveagoodtranslation,thetranslatorhastounderstandthesimilaritiesanddifferencesbetweenthetwolanguagesandknowhowtosolvethedifferencesbetweenthem.Themethodsofsolvingthedifferencesaretheso-calledtranslationtechniques.TheauthorjustdiscussesthetranslationtechniquesoftranslatingbusinessEnglishcorrespondenceintoChinese,fromtheaspectsofwordsandsentences.5.1Thetranslationtechniquesofwords5.1.1InordertomakethetranslationaccordwithChinesereaders’idiomaticexpressions,somepartsoftheoriginalwhichareunnecessarycanbeomitted.Thetranslatorshouldknowthatsomethingregardedasanindispensableelementinonelanguagemaybesuperfluousintheother.OmissionofEnglishaArticlesarefrequentlyusedinEnglishlanguage,buttherearenoarticlesinChinese.WhentranslatingEnglishintoChinese,thetranslatorcanomittheEnglisharticlessometimes.Forexample:(9)Wetrustyouwillgivethisenquiryyourimmediateattentionandletushaveyourreplyataearlydate.我们相信你方会对此询盘加以重视。盼即复。(廖瑛，2003:89)(10)Weareverypleasedtoreceiveyourenquiryof15thJanuaryandareenclosingourillustratedcatalogueandpricelistgivingthedetailsyouaskedfor.欣悉你1月15日询盘的来信。现随函附寄我公司的插图目录和价目表，上面列有你方所需的各项细节。(廖瑛，2003:89)Inthefirstexample,indefinitearticle“a”doesnothavethemeaningof“one”.Itisusedjustforgrammaticalreason,soitisunnecessarytotranslateitintoChinese.It’sthesamesituationforthesecondexample.Thedefinitearticle“the”doesnothavethemeaningof“thisorthat”.Thus,ifanarticlehasnopracticalmeaning,thetranslatorcanomititintranslation.OmissionofBecauseofthedifferenceinEnglishandChineseculturesandvalues,thefrequencyofusingpronounsisdifferent.Sometimes,possessivepronounsarenecessarilyremainedinEnglish,butitisunnecessarytohavetheminChinese.So,possessivepronounsaregenerallyomittedinChinesetranslation.TheotherreasonisthatthefirstpersonEnglishpronouncanbeomittedinChinesetranslation,whenitisusedasthesubjectinEnglish.Forexample:(11)Weencloseacopyofourpricelist.现随函附上价目表一份。(王乃彦，2005:28)(12)Wetrustyouwillgivethisenquiryyourimmediateattentionandletushaveyourreplyataearlydate.我们相信你方会对此询盘加以重视。盼即复。(廖瑛，2003:89)OmissionofInChinese,peopleexpressthelogicalrelationshipbyitswordorder,sotheydon’tuseconjunctionsusually.ButinEnglish,therearemanyconjunctionsusedinordertoconnectthecontexts.Thus,manyconjunctionsareomittedintranslation.Forexample:(13)Wearelargedealersintextilesandbelievethereisapromisingmarketinourareaformoderatelypricedgoodsofthekindmentioned.我行是经营纺织品的主要经销商，如上述这类商品价格公道，相信在这里会获得畅销。(14)Wetrustyouwillgivethisenquiryyourimmediateattentionandletushaveyourreplyataearlydate.我们相信你方会对此询盘加以重视。盼即复。(廖瑛，2003:89)5.1.2AmBecauseEnglishandChinesearetwodifferentlanguages,theyhavetheirownhistoricalandculturalbackground.InordertotranslatetheoriginalintoChinesefaithfully,thetranslatormustamplifysomewordsonthepremisethatheaccuratelyunderstandstheoriginal.AmplificationofChinesecategorizedwTherearesomewordswithvagueandgeneralconnotationsinbusinessEnglishcorrespondence.Inordertomakethosewordsmorespecific,thetranslatorshouldaddsomecategorizedwordsintranslation.Forexample:(15)Theirimportsarebothdiversifiedandsubstantial.他们的进口商品品种多且数量大。(王乃彦，2005:28)(16)Beforesettlingyourprices,youmustunderstandyourproduct’smarket,distributioncostsandcompetition.定价之前，你必须了解自己的产品市场，分销成本和竞争情况。(叶玉龙，王文翰，段云礼，2003:64-65)Intheexamplesabove,thewords“import”and“competition”areabstractwords.Taketheword“competition”forexample.“Competition”means“竞争，竞赛”inChinese,ifthetranslatordoesn’tknowwhichmeaningheshouldchoose,hecanaddacategorizedwordinthissentenceaccordingtothecontext,hecantranslateitinto“竞争情况”byaddingtheword“情况”tomakethesentencemoreclearandtokeepwiththeexpressionofChinesehabits.AmplificationoftheellipticalpartoftheoRepetitionisnotallowedinEnglish.It’sdifferentfromChinese.InChinese,Inordertomakethesensemoreclear,repetitionisverynecessary.Therefore,thetranslatorshouldamplifysomewordsrepeatedinEnglishwhentranslatingthemintoChinese.Forexample:(17)Andeveniflargeinvestmentwitha10-yearpaybackperiodlooksdifficult,forlargecompaniesthereareplentyofsmalleropportunitieswhichwillpaybackmuchmorequickly.即使回报期为10年的大规模投资看起来有困难，对大公司来说，仍有许多小规模投资的机会，其回报期将会短得多。(叶玉龙，王文翰，段云礼，2003:67)(18)RecessionsinEuropeandJapanwillproducelittleorno1993growthinthosecriticalexportmarkets.欧洲和日本的经济衰退将会使那些主要出口市场的出口额在1993年增长甚微或毫无增长。(叶玉龙，王文翰，段云礼，2003:68)Inthefirstexampleabove,theword“investment”between“smaller”and“opportunities”isomittedinordertoavoidrepetition.Thesameistruefortheword“growth”inthesecondexample.Maybe,itisclearforomittingthewordsinEnglish,butinChinese,itisunclear.So,itisnecessaryforthetranslatortoaddtherepeatedwordssometimesintranslation.5.1.3ConversionofwordcConversionmeansthechangeofwordclassesintranslation.BecauseofthedifferencesoflanguagefeaturesbetweenEnglishandChinese,it’simpossibleforthetranslatortokeepthewordclassesintranslation.Therefore,it’snecessarytochangethewordclassesintranslationsometimes.ConvertingEnglishnounsintoChineseaInordertobeconsistentwithChinesegrammaticalfeaturesandlanguagefeatures,someEnglishnounsmustbechangedintoadjectivesintranslationintoChinese.Firstly,someEnglishnounsshowthemeaningofsortsoramounts,suchas“kindof”,“varietyof”or“majorityof”canbetranslatedintoChineseadjectivestructure“……的”.Secondly,someEnglishnounswithindefinitearticlesassubjectcomplementscanbechangedintoChineseadjectives.Forexample:(19)Fromtheenclosedpricelistyouwillseethatwehaveagoodvarietyofladies’gloves.从附上的价目单上贵公司可以看到我们有各式各样的女装手套。(叶玉龙，王文翰，段云礼，2003:60)(20)Marketingresearchisanabsolutenecessityinbusiness.市场调研对经商来说是绝对必要的。(叶玉龙，王文翰，段云礼，2003:61)ConvertingEnglishprepositionsintoChinesevChinesepeoplelikeusingverbs,butEnglishpeoplepreferprepositionsorprepositionphrases.Therefore,it’snecessaryforthetranslatortochangeEnglishprepositionsintoChineseverbsintranslation.Forexample:(21)Thepriceyoucounter-offeredisoutoflinewiththemarket,soitisbeyondwhatisacceptabletous.你方还价与市场不一致，故我方无法接受。(廖瑛，2003:28)(22)Asthegoodsyouorderedarenowinstock,wewillshipthemwithoutfailasearlyaspossible.因为贵方订货尚有存货，本公司将一定尽快发运。(廖瑛，2003:50)ConvertingEnglishnounsintoChinesevIt’scommonforEnglishpeopletousenounstoexpressallkindsofactionssometimes,butChinesepeopleusuallyuseverbstoshowtheiractions.Therefore,thetranslatorshouldchangetheEnglishnounsintoChineseverbsintranslationwhenit’snecessary.Forexample:(23)WespecializeintheexportationofChineselightindustrialproductswhichhaveenjoyedgreatpopularityinworldmarket.我公司专门出口中国轻工业产品,这些产品在世界市场上久享盛誉。(廖瑛，2003:80)(24)Itwillbegreatlyappreciatedifyouwillgiveusyourcooperation.如果贵方能与我方合作,不胜感激。(廖瑛，2003:80)5.2Thetranslationtechniquesofsentences5.2.1TranslationoflongsThestructuresofChineseandEnglishsentencesaredifferent.TheEnglishsentenceconsistsofmanyprepositions,conjunctionsandnumeroussubordinateclauses.Italsocontainsalotofgrammaticalandlogicalrelationships.Therefore,therearemanylongsentencesusedinEnglishlanguage.InChinese,ThesentencesaremostlyshortandsimpleinstructurebecauseoftheChinesesentencesdonothavecomplexhierarchies.BecauseofsuchdifferencebetweenEnglishandChinesesentencestructures,thetranslatorshouldusesometranslationtechniqueswhentranslatingEnglishlongsentencesintoChinese.5.2.1BecauseofthedifferencesbetweenEnglishandChinese,it’snecessaryforthetranslatortorearrangetheorderandstructureofasentenceintranslation.Divisionisatechniquetohandleit.InordertokeepwithChineselanguagefeaturesandexpressionhabits,sometimesthetranslatorneedstodivideanoriginalEnglishsentenceintotwoormoreChineseclauses.Forexample:(25)Becauseofthis,ourgovernmenthasdecidednottograntexportlicensesforthecommodityforareasotherthanMexicountilDecember31,2000,expectingtheshortagewhichmaybecausedinthedomesticmarket.因此，我国政府预期这可能引起该商品在国内市场上缺货，已决定在2000年12月31日前停发墨西哥以外地区硫铵出口许可正。(廖瑛，2003:30)(26)ThisistointroducethePacificCorporationasexportersoflightindustrialproductshavingbusinessrelationswithmorethan80countriesintheworld.兹介绍太平洋公司，它是轻工业产品的出口商，与世界80多个国家有业务关系。(廖瑛，2003:82)TranslationoflongsentencesinsequentialoIfthesentenceorderofanEnglishsentenceisthesameasaChinesesentence,itcanbetranslatedintoChinesesequentially.Forexample:(27)Themainroleofourofficeistocarryoutmarketresearch,collectbusinessinformationandgiveinformationtopotentialclientsaboutourproducts.我们代表处的主要任务是进行市场调查，收集商业信息，向潜在的用户介绍我们的产品。(叶玉龙，王文翰，段云礼，2003:96)(28)ThroughthecourtesyofMr.Freemen,wearegiventounderstandthatyouareoneoftheleadingimportersofelectricgoodsinyourareaandwishtoenterintobusinessrelationswithus.承蒙佛利蒙先生介绍，我们得知贵公司是当地主要的一家电子产品进口商，且希望与我们建立业务关系。(廖瑛，2003:82)TranslationoflongsentencesinreverseoIfthesentenceorderofalongEnglishsentenceisnotthesamewithaChinesesentence,theEnglishsentencecanbetranslatedinareverseorder.Usually,thetranslatorcantranslatesuchasentencefromthebackofit.Forexample:(29)Weplacethisorderontheclearunderstandingthatonlyifyoucanguaranteedispatchintimetoreachusbytheendofthismonth.只是在本月底前运出的条件下，我公司才订购上述货物。(廖瑛，2003:118)(30)Weregrettoinformyouthataterribleearthquakerockedourarea,whichmadeourfactorysufferseriousdamages,soitisimpossibleforustoshipthe3,500piecesCottonShirtingsofyourorderNo.22inonelot.由于我地强烈的地震袭击厂房，你方22号订单3500匹细布不可能一次交货了，深表歉意。(廖瑛，2003:155)5.2.2TranslationofpassivevInbusinessEnglishcorrespondence,passive-voicesentencesareusedfrequently.ButinChinese,theactive-voicesentencesareusedfrequently.InordertokeepwithChineseexpressionhabits,someEnglishsentencesinpassivevoiceshouldbetranslatedintoactive-voiceChinesesentences.So,it’snecessaryforthetranslatortomastersometranslationtechniquesofthetranslationofpassivevoice.Changethepassive-voiceEnglishintotheactive-vInordertodealwiththeEnglishpassive-voicesentenceswell,thetranslatorcanconvertthesubjectofanoriginalEnglishsentenceintotheobjectofaChinesesentenceintranslation.Forexample:(31)Considerablequantitieshavebeensoldatthisprice,itisimpossibletomakeanyfurtherreduction.按此价已售出很多，再降价是不可能的。(廖瑛，2003:112)(32)Shipmentwillbemadewithin3weeksfromacceptanceofyourorder.接受定单后三周内交货。(廖瑛，2003:130)Changepassive-voiceEnglishsentencesintopassive-formChinesesentencesAlthoughpassive-voicesentencesarenotusedusuallyinChinese,sometimesthetranslatormustusepassive-voiceinordertoexpresstheeffectofemphasisintranslation.SomeChinesefunctionalwordscanbeusedintranslation,suchas“被，受，遭，由，给”.Forexample:(33)Theextrapremiumforadditionalcoverageshallbebornebyus.额外的保险费由