英语论文-英汉习语对比及其翻译

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.Introduction

Idioms are the essence of a language, which are always philosophical and eternal. According to Oxford Advantaged Learner‟s English-Chinese Dictionary, an idiom is “a phrase or s entence 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 means

Although 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. Let‟s 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:

I n 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