英汉对比 论文

奥巴马就职演讲中的物称与人称对比分析

摘要英语较常用物称表达法，即不用人称来叙述，而让事物以客观的口气呈现出来。相反，汉语则较注重主体思维，这种思维模式以“万物皆备于我”做主导，往往从自我出发来叙述客观事物，或倾向于描述人及其行为或状态，因而常用人称。汉语重人称，英语重物称，本文通过对奥巴马就职演讲中英文版本的全面分析来说明这一结论。

关键词人称；物称；奥巴马就职演讲

The Comparative Analysis of Impersonal and Personal in Obama’s

Inaugural Speech

Abstract In English, people usually use impersonal expressions, that’s to say, they don't use personal to express themselves, on the contrary, they used to state their opinions objectively. While in Chinese, people pay more attention to the subject thought, which is lead by “All things under heaven are being prepared for me.”Usually, the Chinese tend to narrate the object things from their own or tend to describe person and his behavior or state, therefore, people often use personal in Chinese. In Chinese, people stress on personal, while in English people stress on impersonal. In this paper, the author will prove this point through the thorough analysis of Obama’s inaugural speech.

Key words: personal; impersonal; Obama’s inaugural speech

G..Leech 和J.Svartvik 在《英语交际语法》一书中指出：“Formal written language often goes with an impersonal style; i.e. one in which the speak does not refer directly to himself or his readers, but avoids the pronouns I, you, we. Some of the common features of impersonal language are passives, sentences beginning with introductory it, and abstract nouns.”

在此我们来看奥巴马就职演讲中的一个例子：

i.e.（1）In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of shortcuts or settling for less.It has not been the path for the faint-hearted, for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things —some celebrated, but more often men and women obscure in their labor — who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.

在重申我们国家伟大精神的同时，我们懂得，伟大从非天生，而是必须赢得。我们的历程从来不是走捷径或退而求其次的历程。它不是弱者的道路——它不属于好逸恶劳或只图名利享受的人；这条路属于冒险者，实干家，创造者——有些人享有盛名，但大多数是默默无闻耕耘劳作的男女志士，是他们带我们走向通往繁荣和自由的漫长崎岖之路。

上述例子使用“it”作主语，来表达本次演讲的正式性与严肃性，相反如果直接用人称来表达本段话的含义，则会显得不那么正式。这种表达法会使得叙述显得客观、公正，结构趋于严密、紧凑，语气较为委婉、间接。

而在汉语的表达习惯中，汉语注重的是主体思维，汉语中往往从自我出发来叙述客观事物，常用人称。从上面的事例中我们可以看得出，汉语多用人称这一特点，说明“什么人做了什么事情”。

一．英语常用非人称作主语，汉语常用人称作主语

英语常用非人称主语表达，也可用人称主语表达。如果用非人称主语表达时，往往会有这样的隐含意义“什么事情发生在什么人身上了”，而汉语则较常用人称主语表达，注重“什么怎么样了”。如：

i.e.（2）On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord. （人称作主语）

我们今天聚集在这里是因为我们选择希望而不是恐惧，选择齐心协力而不是冲突对立。（人称作主语）

i.e.（3）The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works — whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. And those of us who manage the public's dollars will be held to account — to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day — because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.

我们今天提出的问题不是我们的政府太大还是太小，而是它是否行之有效——它是否能够帮助人们找到报酬合理的就业机会，是否能够为他们提供费用适度的医疗保健服务，是否能够确保他们在退休后不失尊严。如果回答是肯定的，我们就要向前推进。如果回答是否定的，计划和项目必须终止。作为公共资金的管理者，我们必须承担责任——明智地使用资金，抛弃坏习惯，在阳光下履行职责——因为只有这样我们才能恢复人民对政府的至关重要的信任。

例（3）中英语部分很显然用物称（抽象名词“The question，the answer”）作主语，隐含意义是“这个问题发生在什么上了”，运用这种直接陈述的方式更能体现出来文章内容的严肃性；而汉语中直接用人称作主语,表明：“我们怎么样了”的意义，这种表达完全符合汉语的表达习惯，直接说明事实，简单明了，使人一目了然。因此，使用人称还是物称作主语很大程度上取决于英汉语两种语言的表达习惯和具体的语境特点。