On the Translation of English Idioms from a Cultural Perspective 从文化角度看英语习语的翻译.doc

从文化角度看英语习语的翻译【摘 要】英语是最重要的国际语言之一，因此其翻译就显得非常重要。而英语习语又是是英语语言文化的一个重要部分，是语言文化的镜子，是我们翻译过程中最应该注意的部分。这些习语承载了不同的民族文化特色和文化信息。英语中丰富的习语表现了语言所蕴含的多姿多彩的西方文化。为再现原文的表现力，在翻译中，除了力求忠实原文，还应根据目的语的文化特点，对不同的源语言作相应的艺术加工，以真正实现跨文化交际。本文通过对比分析英语和汉语的文化共性和差异，探讨如何实现英语习语的翻译。 【关键词】 跨文化交际英语 习语翻译On the Translation of English Idioms from a Cultural Perspective【Abstract】English is one of the most important international languages, and so the translation is meaningful. Meanwhile, English idioms are the core part of English language and culture, it is the mirror of language and culture. These phrases carry different cultural characteristics and cultural information. The performance of the rich idioms of English language contains a colorful Western culture. Expression for the reappearance of the original, in translation, in addition to strive faithfully, the original text should be based on the cultural characteristics of the target language, the language of the different source of art processing corresponding to the real cross-cultural communication. Through comparative analysis of English and Chinese cultural similarities and differences， we will find how to achieve the translation of English idioms.【Key Words】 English; cross-culture; Idioms ; culture; the translation of idioms IntroductionCultural studies have currently been prevailing in the west. And talking about cultural studies has also become a fashion in the circle of present Chinese culture and academia, especially in the field of literary theory and criticism. Accordingly, in the wide sphere of translation studies, there are some scholars both at home and abroad who have tried to replace translation with cultural translation studies and interpretation. Translation is considered to be a cross-cultural communication, which concerns not only the transfer between languages, but also the transfer between cultures. However, the ways of thinking, beliefs, attitudes and values of different cultures not only give rise to failures or misunderstandings in cross-cultural communication but also pose headaches to translation theorists and translators.An idiom is a beautiful gem of a language as well as crystallization of national culture. Yet it is also one of the most difficult things to learn and use in a foreign language. They are often rather hard to understand from the meaning of individual words. Chinese and English both abound with idioms, whose succinct forms and profound meanings make themselves more condensed and expressive. Many idioms bear figures and strong cultural flavors. If they are translated appropriately, not only can the original spirit and meanings be faithfully conveyed, clearly understood and accepted by the target language readers, but also the Chinese and English vocabularies can be enriched to provide a broader cultural vision. The issues of rendering idioms of one language into another are always complicated, if the two languages involved are so unlike in backgrounds and cultures with each other. This paper expounds the close relationship between idioms and culture translation, and the issue of idiom translation is explored from a cultural perspective.I.  Definitions and forms of idiom1 The definitions of idiom The word “idiom” possesses several meanings. It may be defined as “the language of a people or a country”, as in “the Chinese idiom”; or “a dialect” as in “Cantonese idiom”. It may also be defined, according to Oxford Advanced Learners English-Chinese Dictionary, as “phrase or sentence whose meaning is not clear from the meaning of its individual words and which must be learnt as a whole unit”1 p734. The second definition most suits the purpose of this paper. The Chinese “equivalent” for“ idiom” is“习语”, it also refers to a kind of a set phrase or sentence fixed by long usage. From the above definitions we can extract two basic criteria on which to decide whether or not an expression is an idiom(or:习语):Firstly, established and refined by long practical use, an idiom has a relatively high degree of stability of the lexical components. An idiom allows little or no variation in form under normal circumstances. In general, any change in the components will result in absurdities or even render the idioms meaningless. A speaker or writer cannot normally do any of the following with an idiom unless he or she is consciously making a joke or attempting play on words:a. Change the order of the words in it (e.g. “at sevens and sixes” instead of “at sixes and sevens”);b. Delete a word from it (e.g. “a kettle of fish” instead of “a nice kettle of fish”);c. Add a word to it (e.g. “to show ones white teeth” instead of “to show ones teeth”);d. Replace a word with another (even with a synonymous word) (e.g. “the pear of ones eye ” instead of “the apple of ones eye”)e. Change its grammatical structure (e.g. “a king may be looked at by a cat” instead of “a cat may look at a king”). Similarly in Chinese we can only say: “七零八落” not “八零七落;”“无的放矢”not “无的放箭”, although “矢”and “箭” both mean “arrow”. However, just as what has been mentioned above, sometimes, either for the sake of sarcasm or for the sense of humor or for the sake of style, we can create, as a makeshift, some irregular variants from the original idioms, but these irregular variants are transient, and may not be acknowledged by people as a whole: (1) “to read more than one can chew” is from “to bite off more than one can chew”; (2) “be dressed to the teeth” is from “to be armed to the teeth ”.Similarly in Chinese: (3) “一箭三雕”（to shoot three hawks with one arrow）is an irregular variant of the set phrase “一箭双雕”（to shoot two hawks with one arrow）;Sometimes for rhetorical effect, an idiom can be made brief with only the core element remained:(4) The hotel was expensive, the food was poor and the bad weather was the last straw. In this sentence, “the last straw” is adapted from the idiom “It is the last straw that breaks the camels back.”(5) Make hay. The market is good now dont miss the chance. Here, “make hay” is abbreviated from the idiom “Make hay while the sun shines”. Such adaptation usually calls for the familiarity of the idiom by the reader to recognize the real meaning.Secondly, an idiom often carries meanings, which cannot be deduced from their individual components. More often than not, it cannot be interpreted only according to its literal meaning. Take the expression “to go Dutch (with someone)” for example: Instead of going to the Netherlands (Holland), it means to agree to share the cost of something (with someone), as in “Will you let me take you out to dinner tonight? “As long as we go Dutch”. Take another Chinese idiom for example: “胸有成竹”(literally means to have the bamboo in ones mind, figuratively, to have ready plans or design in ones mind. cf. to have a card up ones sleeve). An idiom usually acquires an implied meaning, that is to say, most idioms are metaphorical in meaning. The meaning of an idiom is somewhat more than the sum meanings of its constituent words, in other words, idioms convey more meaning as a whole than the few words could carry separately. This can be fully illustrated by the following examples: when taken literary, the phrase“ the man in the street” is not an idiom. In a figurative sense, “the man in the street” implies the average person, who represents general opinion. “Cats paw” does not refer to the paw of a cat but a person who has been fooled or exploited. “Black sheep” is not a sheep which is black at all. And it means an evil member of a herd or a good-for-nothing person.2 Forms of idiomsIn a broad sense, idiomatic phrases cover all of the following forms: set phrases, proverbs, common sayings, colloquialisms, allusions and slangs. Here four important forms of idioms are selected for explanation.2.1 Set phrasesOne most important group of idioms is set phrases whose form is set and many of them are rather rigid and cannot show up in any other forms. There is an inexhaustible storehouse of set phrases that play an important role in English language. I shall select one of them with cultural traces. For example, the origin of “to kick the bucket” can be traced back to a religious ceremony of baptism in Christianity. As far as a Christian is concerned, his/her important three stages, birth, marriage and death, are closely connected with a religious ceremony: baptism. A Christian needs to receive baptism from an administrator when he/she was born, get married in the church with blessings of a certain minister and be baptized again when he/she is going to die”. So the idiom “kick the bucket” is a euphemistic expression connoting “to die” referring to the death of a Christian in the ceremony of being baptized.2.2 Allusions Allusions of idioms are actually origins and national characteristics of idioms. On account of the different social background, customs and religious, some idioms are sure to have allusions to myth and legend, history and classic. Their meanings are much more remoted from their literal senses. Without knowledge of the allusions made in idioms we can hardly read between the lines and catch what they imply. To understand the idioms of this kind, knowledge of the etymology of idioms is indispensable. Only a small part of English idioms, it is said, draw on sources from the legend of Greece and Rome, most of them are of biblical origin 2 p97.For example, “bone of the bone and flesh of the flesh”, a phrase of biblical origin, is now metaphorically used to refer to “blood relation” or “unity in thought”, but why and how? As to these questions, the readers have to refer to the Bible, an inspired as well as an inspiring book, which provides men and women with promises and punishments from God. It is cherished cultural heritage all through the history of the west but now its influence has spread to most of the civilized world, just as the spirit of Confucianism has penetrated into our Chinese spiritual life, the essence of Bible also influences how people in the west look at life. 2.3 Proverbs Proverb is often defined as the wisdom of many and the wit of one, stating commonly experienced or for the purpose of giving wise advice to others. Proverbs are the wisdom of people, so it is common people who have created a great number of proverbs that are terse, colloquial, vivid and charged with life through their practical work. Their varied proverbs are from all walks of life. Here are some typical ones reflective of common peoples lives as follows 3 p286:Sailors will say:(6) “In a calm sea every man is a pilot.”(在平静的海洋上,人人都是领航员)Carpenters will say:(7) “Such carpenters, such chips.”(什么木匠出什么活)Cobblers may say:(8) “The cobblers wife is the worst shod”. (鞋匠的老婆没鞋穿)2.4 SlangsSlang expressions are dialectic, vulgar and colloquial language drawing numerous sources from the shoptalk of every profession: trade, sport, school, social group, etc. They draw on source from local peoples life experiences or their customs and are widely used in informal speech and writing such as drama, TV serials, movies, monologue in the novel but are rarely used in formal contexts.II . Idioms, culture and translation1Idioms and cultureIdioms are usually highly specialized in meaning and closely tied to distinctive cultural features and cultural attitude. As the kernel and cream of a language, idioms are usually closely with the historical backgrounds, economic life, geographical environment, customs and mental states of the native speakers. As a matter of fact, idioms have been accepted by people and handed down to the present day because of their universal value. Without idioms, language would lack color and become uninteresting.Lets take proverb as an example. Proverbs are the daughters of daily experience. In nearly every culture, proverbs offer an important set of instructions for members to follow. And thanks to the endurance of these “words of wisdom”, each generation learns about what a culture deems significant. Below are some proverbs from the United States, each of which stresses an important American value: a value held by the dominant culture. (9) Strike while the iron is hot. In the United States, people who take quick action are valued.(10) God helps those who help themselves. This saying calls attention to the strong belief in America that people should show initiative.1.2 The Relationship between Idioms and CultureAs Eugine Nida put it, “culture is defined succinctly as the totality of beliefs and practices of a society, nothing is of greater strategic importance than the language through which its beliefs are expressed and transmitted and by which most interactions of its members takes place.”(Nida,2001:78)His definition is relevant to the field being discussed, which is, the origin of idiom. Idioms, as a way of expression, are sure to be framed by an inevitable relationship with the culture and the society to which they belong. Idioms reflect culture; culture consists in idioms. Any idiomatic expression emerged from the specific culture in which it is immersed, otherwise it would not have been accepted and applied by the speakers of the language and participants of the culture. The reason why it has been reduced to the status of the illogical is mainly the historical development of culture. The writers point is that many an idiom has cultural background, and that it would be rather difficult to understand them, let alone translate them satisfactorily into another language, unless the cultural background were understood. Idioms originate from the following aspects: the Influence of Bible, mythology, epigrams, historical events, customs and social practices, idioms Related to Animals and so on.2 Culture and translation Translation is the transfer of the meaning of a text which may be a word or a book from one language to another for a new readership. Since language is part of culture, translation of language cannot simply be the transfer of linguistic symbols. Translation deals not only with turning the content in one language into another, but also with turning the cultural connotation in one language into another cultural form. So, it is quite necessary for a translator to think about the cultural connotation every unit may embody when translating 4 p39. The film The First Blood is translated into“第一滴血”.However, the translation cannot reflect the cultural connotation behind the words. In fact, “the first blood” is an idiom full of cultural implication, referring to the first success in contest. It will be more reasonable if translated into “初战告捷” or “旗开得胜”. A translator must be a real culturist. Its said that a translator must grasp two languages; indeed, he must. But without understanding the social cultural connotation in one language no one can really master the language 5 p5. Even Nida E.A. once also pointed out that for a truly succ