英文翻译表述

English\Chinese TranslationWhat is translation?Translation is a representation or recreation in one language of what is written or said in another language.or : Translation is an activity of reproducing in one language the ideas which have been expressed in another language.(翻译是把一种语言所表达的思想用另一种语言重新表达出来的活动)Eugene Nida, famous American translation theorist, defined translation as: Translation consists in reproducing in the receptor language the closest natural equivalent of the source-language messages, first in terms of meaning and secondly in terms of style.翻译就是接受语言复制出与原语信息最接近的自然等值体---首先是就意义而言,其次是就其风格而言.1) Translation is a scienceWe say translation is a science, because it has its own laws and methods. Take the translation between English and Chinese for example, if we want to translate well, we must be entirely familiar with the content of the original and all the knowledge it concerns. In addition we should have a comparatively comprehensive and thorough study of English and Chinese so that we may do our work with high proficiency. English and Chinese are two entirely different languages. Each has an individual and distinct system. On the other hand, there are lots of differences between them both in morphology and in syntax. Because of this, we have to know both languages well, especially with the wide difference in vocabulary, grammatical relations, and sentence structure.Now we may well conclude that translation is indeed a science with its peculiar laws and methods, a science related to lexicology, grammar, rhetoric and other branches of linguistics.Translation is an artLin Yutang was once a representative. In his essay On Translation he declares that translation is an art whose success depends on one‟s artistic talent and enough training. Besides these, there no set rules for translation and there is no short cut for art.From the examples mentioned above we can see that translation is an art, a brilliant art. Like painting, enables us to reproduce the fine thought of somebody, not in colors, but in words, in the words of a different language. It demands a broad and profound knowledge.In other words, a translator should have an understanding of literature and art, rhetoric and aesthetics; otherwise, he can hardly accomplish the task of reproduction of the original.In accordance with what we have discussed in the above, now we can come to the following conclusion:Translation depends on the artistic level and the technique of the translator.Whoever has a good command of translation both in theory and technique can offer satisfactory translations, it is because, as pointed out in this lecture, translation is not only a science with its own laws and methods but also an art of reproduction and recreation.2. Aim of foreign language learning and the importance of translation(1) What are the objects of a foreign language? Learning a foreign language is not easy but it is worthwhile. It enables you to read foreign scientific and technical literature, and that might be useful. It makes you e nable to read some of the world‟s best writers in their own language, and this is a great pleasure. But the most important thing is that it gives you a better understanding of your own language.(2) Translation is of great value to foreign language learners. It is very important to the development of our nation. Translation keeps you informed of the international situation; translation enhances our competitive power in the international market; translation serves as instrument of propagating traditional culture. Translation is for inter-lingual communication, bridges the gulf between different-tongue speakers, and reproduces and spreads the message in the original language. Translation permits knowledge to be transmitted to different corners of the world and to succeeding generations.Translation gives information, reveals feelings, and affect people's thought or behavior. Through translation, we can draw on the advanced experience and achievement in the field of science and technology of foreign countries. Without translation, the worldwide civilization would not be possible.Today, translation plays an increasingly important role in our country's economic reform and opening to the world. More and more people of financial and business circles from all parts of the world come to our country and take part in joint ventures, cooperative enterprises, sole foreign-invested enterprises, and various other economic, trade and technological cooperation. This situation results in the great need of translators, English Chinese translators in particular. Translation promotes mutual understanding between Chinese and foreigners, contributes to the speeding up of our country‟s modernization and thus is absolutely necessary in the development of our market economy.Crite ria and Principles of TranslationCriteria is something we can use to evaluate a translation. We can say that the criteria of translation function as plumb-line for measuring the professional level of translation and as a good set for translator to strive after. There have been various opinions about the appropriate criteria for translation. First of all, we tend to think of Y anfu who advocated for the first time the three words as translation criteria: namely, faithfulness, expressiveness, and elegance.1. Y an fu‟s criteria:(1) Faithfulness: It means the full and complete conveying or translation of theoriginal content or thought. That's to say a translator must bring out the original meaning both comprehensively and accurately without any distortion or casual addition or deletion of the original thought.Now let‟s have a discussion of how the following expressions or sentences in accordance with faithfulness.e.g. 1. My work, my family, my friends were more than enough to fill my time.原译：我干工作，我做家，我有朋友往来,这些占用了我的全部时间.该译: 我要工作,要做家务,要与朋友往来,这些事用全部时间应付还不够.E.g. 2. He took all his pain and what was left of his strength and his long gong pride and he put it against the fish‟s agony and the fish came over on to his side and swam gently on his side.原译:他要唤起久已丧失的自傲,忍住所有的痛楚,去克服那鱼临死的挣扎.鱼身倾斜了,它侧着身体缓缓地游着.改译:他忍着一身痛,使出还剩下的一点力气, 鼓起早已丧失的自信,与临死挣扎的鱼拼搏着.终于鱼翻过了身子,侧起来慢慢游着.e.g.3. 他一面讲经, 一面从事佛经的翻译工作. 鸠摩罗什既精通梵文,又精通汉文, 因此他翻译的佛经表达准确,文字流畅,当时颇受人们称赞.原译:He was well versed in Sanskrit as well as Chinese. He preached while translating the Buddhist scripts. His translation are accurate and smooth.改译: He translated the Buddhist Scripts while preaching. He was good at both both Sanskrit and Chinese, and his translations were received with much praise for their accuracy and smoothness.From these examples, we can see that in order to fully realize the faithfulness of translation, a translator must profoundly comprehend the actual linguistic situation and original meaning of the source language. The translator ought to convey the author‟s ideas faithfully and exactly. He has no right to alter the original meaning of the original to suit his own taste.(2) Expressiveness: It demands that the version must be clear and fluent without any grammatical mistakes or confused logic and sense.E.g.1 She went , with her neat figure, and her sober womanly steps, down the dark street .原译: 她顺着黑暗的街道走去,显出利落匀称的身材,迈着端庄的女人的步子.改译: 她迈着女人特有的不急不慢的步子,顺着黑暗的大街走去,身材格外显得匀称.E.g.,2 Because the departure was not easy , we made it brief.原译: 告别这件事难受得很, 我们就做得简单一些.改译: 话别叫人难过,我们只说了几句便分手了.From these examples we may see that faithfulness and expressiveness are the two rudimentary criteria every translator must observe so the first two words as translation criteria are easily acceptable .(3) Elegance : it means gracefulness.Y an fu held that only the language before the Han dynasty could be considered elegant and old vocabulary, old structure of Chinese must be used to representthe original fully and adequately. Therefore he can be said to object to the use of the vernacular or popular language of the people. As a matter of fact, the vernacular began to be in fashion when Y an fu lived. Facts prove the vernacular or the popular language of the people can be used to translate any foreign language in the world. But Y an fu opposed the application of the vernacular in translation, that is why his idea of elegance is not adaptable and criticized by many people. Of course, Y an fu’s explanation of the translation criteria is limited by the age he lived in. Therefore we must look at his criteria with a critical eye.Furthermore, Y an Fu’s elegance ca n only be regarded as one style. There are many other styles in translation. Evidently, we should not make all our translations elegant in style. The original style must be exactly reproduced as it is. For instance, the style of Libai is elegant and forceful whereas that of Dufu profound and thoughtful. That’s to say, style varies with authors. A translator should try his best to make the style of his translation as close as possible to that of the original. Specifically speaking, if the original style is elegant, of the translation style should be elegant too. If the original style is not elegant, the translation style shouldn’t be elegant either.E.g. 1 . It …s up to my neck to your bullshit .你让我倒了八辈子邪霉了.不能译成:你把我害得好苦啊!E.g.2. they are striving for the idea which is close to the heart of every Chinese and for which, in the past, many Chinese have laid down their lives.原译: 他们正在为实现一个理想而努力, 这个理想是每个中国人所珍爱的, 在过去, 许多中国人曾为这个理想而牺牲了自己的生命.改译: 他们为之奋斗的理想是每个中国人珍爱的理想, 是许多中国人曾不惜牺牲生命追求的理想.e.g.3. It is the opinion of my grandmother , God bless her, that all man should labor, and at the table, a moment ago, She said to me: you must learn to do some good work , the making of some items useful to man, something out of clay, or out of wood or metal or cloth .原译: 我亲爱的祖母, 愿上帝保佑她,认为凡人都应该努力工作. 适才进餐时她对我言道: 你务必拜师学艺, 制造一些于人类有用之物, 使用泥土, 木材, 金属, 布料来制造物品.改译:我亲爱的祖母, 愿上帝保佑她, 认为人人都应该干活.刚才在饭桌上她对我说: 你一定要学会一样好手艺, 做些对人有好处的东西, 用泥土做些什么, 或者用木材, 或者用金属, 或者用布料做些什么.3. So much for Y anfu‟s three-character translation criteria. Here I would like to introduce the three laws of translation formulated by Alexander Fraser Tytler(1749---1814), an English theoretician, in his essay On the Principles of Translation.3.Prerequisites for a translator(1) In order to achieve genuine competence in translation, a translator must bear inmind that translation means honest, solid knowledge, and that genuine knowledge comes from practice. As translation is work that involves at least two languages ---the first language and the second language . Therefore, to know both language fairly well is one of the prerequisites for translation.e.g. Y ou are telling me . (slang: I know that very well. / I knew that long ago.) 我早知道了．／还用你告诉我！≠你正在告诉我．e.g. Now you are talking . ( informal: at last you are saying something agreeable.)你到底说了合我意的话了／你这样说才合我的意思．≠ 现在你正在谈话．e.g. Henry Kissinger has slept there before, in July and again in October. 这之前亨利基辛格在７月和１０月两度在这里下榻．（不译为：睡觉）陈先生乃中国学界泰斗．Mr. Chen, our respected teacher, is a renowned master in the academic circles of China.e.g. 你要有所收获,则必须在学习中不断深入.If you want to gain anything, you must constantly deepen your studies.(2) Besides a good knowledge of both the SL and the TL, a translator should do a lot of reading, listening, and speaking.He has to experience the many ways in which the English is spoken and written by native speakers. And to be constantly exposed to English spoken and written by native speakers is considered to be a very important part of practice, without which a Chinese learner of English can‟t expect to acquire competence in understanding and production as far as the English language is concerned.(3) Furthermore, acquaintance with the subject matter covered in the book or article is also an indispensable factor in doing translation work well. For instance : If you are going to translate some technological data on remote sensing of the earth by man-made satellites, you have to learn to acquire some basic knowledge of the relevant aspect of space science and technology , otherwise , you will run the risk of making mistakes in the subject matter imperceptibly. So you should have a wide background knowledge .E.g. The Security Council has been seized of the question since then.安理会自那以来就一直受理这个问题。