1、- 1 -武汉体育学院毕业论文题目 On the Chinese Translation of English Idioms院 系： 体育新闻与外语系 班 级： 英语二班 学 号： 0712140032 姓 名： 田 苗 指导教师： 艾险峰 完成日期： 2011 年 5 月 - 2 -摘 要习语是语言中不可分割的部分，是思维的外壳和工具。英语和汉语中都存在大量的习语这些习语是从某种语言中抽象出来的固定短语和句子，经过很长一段时间的使用成为了语言的精华。习语在语言中占有举足轻重的作用，它反映了一个国家的民族特色，因此有人将它称作语言的精髓和源泉。在中英两国不同的地理环境，生活习惯，历史，宗教及其
2、独具特色的文学作品中产生了大量的习语，这些习语反映了各自的文化差异。但两个名族相似的生活经历和思想认识，使得一些习语表现出了相似的文化特征。这些文化差异性和相似性加深了习语翻译的难度， ，这就要求译者具有双语能力的同时，还要具有双文化甚至更多元的文化知识，把握好习语翻译的方法，注意习语翻译中存在的问题。从而起到充当传递不同文化的使者的作用。关键词：语言 文化 习语差异 文化差异性 文化相似性 翻译方法AbstractIdioms,being a special and inseparable part of language,are the instrument and shell of th
3、inking.There have existed a large number of idioms in both English and Chinese ,which are set phrases or sentences abstracted from language.They form an essential part of the - 3 -whole vocabulary of language ,which reflect the national colors of the native speakers and are said to be considered as
4、the sinew of the language.Idiom reflects cultural differences .Because of the similar experiences and thinking patterns,some idioms share the cultural similarities.With the differences and similarities,idioms translation is a very hard work;it requires the translators should have bilingual competenc
5、e and bicultural even multicultural knowledge. At the same time, translators should master the methods of idiom translation and play attention to problems in idiom translation . Key words:language culture ; idiom translation ; cultural difference ;Cultural similarities ; methods of idiom translation
6、- 4 -Contents 1,Introduction 1.1 The understanding of English idioms.1.2 The sources of English idioms2,The comparison between Chinese idioms and English idioms2.1 Similarities between English idioms and Chinese idioms2.2 differences between English idioms and Chinese idioms3,Seven practical transla
7、ting ways of English idioms.3.1 Literal translation3.2Literal translation with notes.3.3Liberal translation3.4Liberal translation with notes3.5Liberal translation with notes3.6Combination of literal and literal translation.3.7Rhetorical devices- 5 -4,ConclusionBibliography.1 )Introduction1.1)The und
8、erstanding of English idioms Idiom is the essence of language.It consists of plentiful social and cultural connotations.Compared with other language components,idioms is the typical language which reflects the cultural features.Generally speaking，“idiom consists of set phrases and short sentences,wh
9、ich are peculiar to the language in question loaded with the native cultures and ideas ”(Zhang weiyou ).Except the definition ,idioms also includes proverbs ,maxims ,and famous phrases,even some slangs.There are many idioms which refer to different environments in western and eastern countries.Some
10、idioms are created from literal works.The living habits are also reflected in some idioms.Sometimes,Because of the similar experience,English and Chinese idioms have similar cultural features .The cross-cultural communication in the two countries creates lots of new idioms and cultural features and
11、cause some difficulties in understanding,but the majority reflect the different language habitstanding these idioms for non-native speakers,especially in idiom communication application and translation,so idiom translation involves transmission of cultural - 6 -information.In other words,it brings i
12、n mutual understanding of the two peoples and shows the various cultural features through source language to the target language.In order to translate English idioms into Chinese correctly,the translator should know the meaning of idioms,be aware of between the cultural features and emphasize the si
13、milarities and differences between English and Chinese idioms.1.2 The sources of English idiomsIt is well-known that idioms are mainly formed or created by people during their daily life.To much degree,they are the natural outcome of the working peoples life practice and experience.For example,“plou
14、gh the sands”is in fact about agriculture; “to know the ropes”is from navigation originally; “neck and neck” is out of horse racing; “alive and kicking ”is related to fishing.In addition, culture and religion are the major sources of English idioms.A large number of English idioms come from the Bibl
15、e,such as,“the patience of Job”means great patience; “not know somebody from Adam” means the one who is a perfect stranger.The idioms like “out of joint ”and “hit the mark ”are from the writing of William Shakespeare.Others like “cry for the moon“ and “never say die”are from Charles Dickens works.Fr
16、om the Greek myths comes an idiom “the Achilles Heel”which mean the only deadly weak point.Thus from the above examples,it is not difficult to find out that English idioms are closely connected with - 7 -Peoples common life,literature,religion,ancient legends and fables.2)The Comparison between Engl
17、ish idioms and Chinese idiomsThe comparison between English idioms and Chinese idioms can be concluded in two aspects;corresponding relation and non-corresponding relation.1.Similarities between English idioms and Chinese idioms“Corresponding relation means the two different types of idioms coincide
18、 in meaning and form,because of similar cultures and experiences”（zhang peiji) Although the English culture is fundamentally different from the Chinese one,in their struggle against nature and their observation of the world,they drew some conclusions and gained some perception of the world.Then some
19、 of the idioms can exchange the cultural information directly without many difficulties to understand,that is to say some English idioms can be translated into corresponding Chinese one.For example,in the two countries,people regard“heart”as“soul ,thought and emotion”，so there are a lot idioms relat
20、ed to“heart”,the Chinese say“心情沉重” ，while the British say“with a heavy heart”for that,and“heart and soul”for“全心全意”Here are more examples:- 8 -1)Walls have ears 隔墙有耳As for the meaning and the word components,they are similar to each other.This idiom comes from a story:long time ago ,a queen built som
21、e special walls around her court. She could hear what others said very clearly in another room.In this way,the queen got a lot of top secrets and secret plans.Both the English and the Chinese idiom mean“even the most secret and private conversation may become known to other people ”Because of the sa
22、me meaning and word components,the two idioms are corresponding to each other.2)A snow year,a rich year 瑞雪兆丰年Even though some proverbs can reflect the knowledge about science,there are not scientific researches about the meaning of idioms;we can say that idioms are resulted from experiences.Some idi
23、oms in western and eastern countries can reflect the similar experience.For instance:A wolf in sheeps clothing 披着羊皮的狼To lose face 丢面子Some of the above idioms borrow a large number of expressions from Chinese.The borrowed idioms enrich the way of expressing,and still maintain the previous form and me
24、aning,so they can refer to the similar cultural characteristics.3)When in Rome,do as romans do 入乡随俗- 9 -This idiom explains that“people should confirm to the mnners and customs of those amongst whom they live”Every potter praises his own pot.王婆卖瓜自卖自夸This idiom explains that“people are loath to the d
25、efects in their posessions or their members”.The two idioms reflect that there are a large number corresponding coincidences between English and Chinese idioms.2 ,Differences between English and Chinese idiomsEnglish is the common language in the world;it refers to the English culture and tradition.
26、English culture,which is a complex system, covers many aspects:knowledge,art,belief,moral and custom.While translating the English idioms,the translator must be familiar with the culture and history of the countries,since idioms reflect the different aspects of peoples life.1)The differences of livi
27、ng environmentsThe origins of the English idioms are related to the life and manual labour.England is an island country;their life is connected with the sea and water,which shows the coastal culture.While China is a continental country, we attach much importance to the land.These two kinds of cultur
28、es have great impacts on idioms,for instance:the English say“挥金如土”for that.The two idioms mean“wasting money”.- 10 -In English,ther are many idioms related to boat and water,but there are no corresponding idioms in Chinese,such as:To rest on ones oars 暂时歇一歇To keep ones head above waters 奋力图存All at s
29、ea 不知所措The above three idioms reflect the geographical features;we can not understand the meaning unless we are familiar with the environment.As for Chinese culture,“east wind”means“the wind in spring”,but in England, the“west wind”stands for spring,because England is located in the west globe and e
30、njoys coastal climate.2)The differences of customsThe customs is the way of living;it conveys many aspects and has impact on politics,economy,religion and literature.Language is the special component of culture and reflects the custom. Idioms are not exception,especially the animal idioms.We take do
31、gs for example, the Chinese have negative attitude to dogs ,such as“狼心狗肺” ， “狗腿子” ，and so on. Even though dogs become pets nowadays,it seems that the position of dogs has been changed the negative attitude towards dogs is rooted in peoples mind.But in western countries,people regards dogs as their l
32、oyal friends,the most majority of animal idioms with “dog“ have positive meaning,such as : Jack is - 11 -really a luck dog;he has won the championship again.杰克真是个幸运儿，他比赛又得了冠军。In this sense,“lucky dog“means “lucky person“ British people think dogs are very lucky,because dogs are loved by them.In Chin
33、a,dragon stands for power and emperor;people worship it and regard it as lucky object and power,so Chinese people say“龙楼凤阁“for“imperial palace”But in England,dragon stands for evil and pagan.It is used to describe ferocious woman,for example:The woman in charge of the accounts department is an absol
34、ute dragon.会计部的那个女科长是个十足的母夜叉The eating habits have much impact on the English idioms.In the European countries,the main cereals are wheat,which are used for baking bread,and the bread becomes the major food day by day.So the idioms related to these foods reflect many aspects in peoples life,such as:
35、“bread and butter”means“the way of earning ones living”.“Culture is the way of people who adopt themselves into the nature,and it is resulted from the process of peoples life,the Chinese and English idioms reflect the different cultures in different countries”(Guo Jianzhong)3)The differences of reli
36、gionsReligion is a kind of culture.Language has a close relationship with religion.We can find a large number of words that originated - 12 -from religion.In European countries,Christianity has very important effect on ideology,culture and language,especially the Bible.The Bible affects English idio
37、ms in two aspects:first ,those characters and stories;second,the sentences and phrases.Ones real enemy is the old Adam.人的真正敌人是本性之恶 “Old Adam”comes from Genesis,and it means instinctive evil.“To spoil the Egyptians”is from a story and means“to force the enemy to provide necessaries”.For example:The g
38、eneral was good at spoiling the Egyptians during the Second World War.在第二次世界大战中这位将军善于用敌人的装备来武装自己。 （Deng Yangchang）There is an idiom originated from the sentence:“keep me as the apple of the eye”,it means “person or thingthat is loved more than any other”.But in China we believe in Buddhism, There ar
39、e many Chinese idioms from it,such as:借花献佛，佛口蛇心，and so on.3)Seven practical translating ways of English idiomsTranslating is an art ,a bilingual art ,which is considered as the cultural bridge and media between two languages.As there exist wide differences in vocabulary and syntax between the orient
40、al and occidental languages,translation is no easy - 13 -job,especially the translation of English idioms.Therefore,in order to keep the flavor of the original English idioms as well as cater for all the Chinese readers,Translation skills should be reasonably employed in the process of translating,s
41、uch as the following seven translating ways and skills.3.1 Literal translationLiteral translation refers to the complete representation of the original when refers to the complete representation of the original when the original almost accords with the Chinese language in the form of vocabulary,gram
42、matical structure and rhetorical device.In terms of idiom translation,literal translation can keep the original form of English idioms without causing confusion in meaning.Whats more,it transfers the original cultural information effectively and narrows the gaps between two languages.The most import
43、ant point lies in the function of keeping the full flavor of English idioms.For example,“Do not throw cold water on newly emerging thing” A,不要给新生事物泼冷水。B,不要反对新生事物。Obviously,A fits the original sentence better than B because the English idiom“throw cold water”and“泼冷水”in Chinese are - 14 -perfectly equ
44、ivalent.B cant express the original meaning accurately.On the contrary,B creates diversity to Chinese readers in thought.3.2Literal translation with notes.Good literal translation can help Chinese readers to acquire the direct cultural information of English idioms,but sometimes the direct literal t
45、ranslation without any notes will puzzle readers so that cultural gaps will be naturally produced.So this kind of translating skill,literal translation with notes,may supply notes to English allusions,backgroundfigure meaning,context and sources,strengthen the acceptability of English idioms and kee
46、p the original flavor of English idioms.For example,“as American as an apple pie”(像苹果派一样是典型的美国式的） 。As to this version,Chinese readers might be confused,so a note must be added【注：苹果馅饼是美国人喜爱的 甜食之一，据说是美国人发明的，因此这个短语用来强调某种东西是真正美国式的】 。With the note,Chinese readers could acquire new information about this
47、idiom.English allusion is a part of idiom,which has many splendid stories.Literal translation with notes to allusion can make Chinese readers,especially,children,recognize the origin and widen their knowledge when reading the translation.For example,“the Achilles heel of the Australian economy today
48、 is that,although its structure is - 15 -geared to international trade,its participation in trade has declined.“ (澳大利亚今天经济中的阿克琉斯的后脚跟是：虽然它在不断参加世界贸易，但是它在世界贸易的地位已经下降。 ） 【The Achilles heel 这个典故来源于神话史。阿克琉斯时海神 Thetis 和国王Peleus 的儿子，因为他母亲把他浸阻碍冥河水里，使他刀枪不入，但他母亲忽视了一点，忘记了把握着的后脚跟沾湿。战神 Apollo 知道了这一秘密，并悄悄告诉了他的死地 P
49、aris,Paris 举起箭瞄准了这一致命弱点英雄阿克琉斯被射死了。 ”】 Though the note Chinese readers know who is Achilles,a legend with unlimited power but the only vulnerable part.Thus they can get a deeper understanding of Australian economic situation.3.3Liberal translationLiberal translation is also called free translation,which does not conform strictly to the form or word order of he original.“When there exist dissimilarity or differences between English idiom and Chinese idiom i terms of vocabulary ,grammatical structure and art devices,free translation can be employed.“(郭
