动物在汉英文化中的喻义及其翻译 (英文).doc

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1、动物在汉英文化中的喻义及其翻译1. Introduction1.1 Close relationship between animals and human beingsHuman beings and animals are both the products of natural evolution, and factually man had evolved from animals. But since human beings created language, there have existed some great differences between man and ani

2、mals. Language, the result of human labor and social activities, is human specific, which is the major factor that distinguishes human beings from animals. In the long progress of human society, animals, which provide food and labor force for human, have been closely bound up with human existence an

3、d development. Their furs were also good dress materials for ancient human to keep out wind and cold. In a certain stage of primitive society, man once considered animals as Gods to worship. So far animals are still close friends of human beings. Now that animals play an important role in human live

4、s, the animal words in human languages will bear the deep socio-cultural imprints in the course of being used long by the human beings.1.2 Influence of animal words in both Chinese and English culture Language is the carrier and container of cultural information. Human beings have been interacting w

5、ith the world and accumulated their experience and knowledge about the world, which are represented in language. As a result, we can find in language all human knowledge and experience which are interpreted as cultural information. 1 So in human language there exist a plenty of animal words that are

6、 often used as kinds of association vehicles. Human beings often associate their feelings and emotions with various animals according to animals features such as their appearances, habits and characteristics so that the names or images of animals possess specific cultural connotations. Culture is th

7、e soil of language. Sir Edward Tylor, a British anthropologist, was one of those who first defined culture，in Primitive Culture (1871). His definition was that “Culture is complex whole, which includes knowledge, belief, art, law, morals, customs and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man

8、 as a member of society.” Tylors definition has continually been the basis of most anthropological conception of culture. 2 Culture is also a historical phenomenon. Each generation inherits the culture established by its forefathers and makes its own contributions to the development of culture; so d

9、ifferent nations have different cultures. Universality between Chinese and English cultures and similarity in the thinking modes make people associate the same animal words with the same or similar figurative meanings. But differences between these two cultures always lead to different association,

10、i.e. Chinese and English people have different figurative meanings to same animal words or use different animal association vehicles to express same or similar figurative meanings. English and Chinese are rich in animal words as association vehicles, so in this paper the author mainly compares figur

11、ative meanings of animal words in English and Chinese culture and indicates translation techniques.2. Animal words as association vehicles It is well known that there are many figurative expressions in English and Chinese, especially animal metaphors. However, because of different histories, social

12、backgrounds and cultures, the connotations of animal words are different. If Chinese people and English people want to use the figurative way to express the same tenor, they would use the same or different association vehicles, so the corresponding relationships between association vehicles and figu

13、rative meanings are also different.2.1 Same animal association vehicles and similar figurative meanings As all human beings live in the similar environment, the Chinese people and English people nearly have the same knowledge of animals. Therefore, they have the same or similar figurative meanings t

14、o animal words. For example, English people would say, “He is a fox.” Similarly, Chinese people can understand the meaning of the sentence “He is a fox.” in Chinese “他是一只狐狸。” This example shows that in English “fox” can be used to describe somebody who is cunning and dishonest. This example indicate

15、s that different languages and cultures endow “fox the same figurative meanings. The following animal words have the similar figurative meanings both in English and Chinese. “Sheep(羊) or lamb(羔羊)” can be considered as a kind of animal with a sweet and tame temper. As a result, the “sheep(羊) or lamb(

16、羔羊)” is used to show the character with a sweet and tame temper both in English and Chinese, for example: “as lovely as a little sheep (像小羊羔一样可爱)”. Wolf(狼) is a kind of greedy, savage and cruel beast, so in Chinese there exist such expressions: “狼心狗肺”, “豺狼当道”, “如狼似虎”, “狼吞虎咽”, “狼狈为奸”, “狼子野心”. Similar

17、ly, the greedy, sinister, dishonest character of wolf also displays vividly and incisively in western culture, e.g.: “a wolf in a sheeps clothing or a wolf in lambs skin (披着羊皮的狼)”; “wake a sleeping wolf (自找麻烦)”; “hold a wolf by the ears (骑虎难下，进退两难)”;“keep the wolf from the door (勉强度日)”. 3 In additio

18、n, when “wolf” is used to refer to a person, it means “a man who charms women so as to use them for his own pleasure. Therefore, in English there is an idiom “a wolf whistle(挑逗口哨)”. In Chinese, there is also such an expression “色狼”. “Ass(驴)” in English and Chinese has the same connotation and figura

19、tive meaning “foolish, stupid”. In Chinese the expression “笨驴” is used to indicate a fool or an idiot. In English, most of the set phrases, idioms and proverbs including the word “ass all imply the meaning of “foolish”, e.g. “ass in grain (十足的大傻瓜)”; “an ass in a lions skin (from Aesops Fables, 冒充聪明人

20、的傻瓜)”; “all asses wag their ears (谚语：驴子摇耳朵，傻瓜装聪明)”; “asses bridge (笨人难过的桥)”; “act the ass (做糊涂事)”; “make an ass of oneself (做蠢事)”; “sell you ass (口语：不要这样呆头呆脑)”. 4The word “dove” in Chinese and English shares the same meaning, and symbolizes for peace. We regard the dove as “peace dove”. In some gran

21、d celebrations, we often see the scene of taking the doves away, standing for cherished desire for peace world of all of us. 5The following are some other familiar examples: as free as a bird (像鸟儿一样自由); as ugly as a toad (像癞蛤蟆一样丑); as busy as a bee (像蜜蜂一样忙碌); as slow as a nail (像蜗牛一样慢).This kind of

22、terms with same or similar figurative meanings show that in different cultures there does exist something in common, which reflects the commonness of different national cultures.2.2 Same animal association vehicles and different figurative meaningsDifferent living conditions have caused varied state

23、s of mind and ways of thinking, so Chinese and English people have different ideas and attitudes to some animals such as dragon, dogs, etc. And their figurative meanings in both languages and cultures differ greatly.2.2.1 Some animal words with commendatory figurative meaning in Chinese, but with de

24、rogatory figurative meaning in EnglishWe must be very familiar with the word “dragon (龙)”, which is completely opposite in Chinese and English. “Dragon (龙)”is not a real animal but an imaginary one. In China, dragon is the symbol of the Chinese nation, especially in the ancient time, people worshipe

25、d dragon to beg for rain. And the Chinese feudal emperors were often referred to as sons of dragons (龙子), wearing clothes with designs of dragons (龙袍). And also the Chinese all call themselves descendents of the dragon（龙的传人）and are very proud of being the descendents of the dragon. However, in Weste

26、rn peoples minds, the dragon is some evil monster with a large tail with wings and claws, breathing out fire and smoke. It symbolizes evil.“Monkey (猴子)” has different figurative meaning in Chinese and English languages. In Chinese, “monkey” is often likened to a smart and agile person, with commenda

27、tory sense. The Chinese people often jokingly call clever and cute children “little monkey”. But, if you praise a western child “You are like a little monkey.”, he will be angry, thinking that you curse him. Because in English, “little monkey,” means “a troublesome playful child”. And “monkey” is of

28、ten likened to a person with a whole bag of tricks, e.g. “The man is as tricky as a monkey. (那人诡计多端，极为狡猾。)” Therefore, in English, expressions with “monkey” have derogatory meanings, e.g. “monkey business (捣鬼，骗人的勾当)”; “monkey around (闲荡，瞎弄)”; “monkey meat (美俚：劣等牛肉)”; “suck the monkey (英俚：酗酒)”. 6Lets

29、 take a look at the word “petrel (海燕)”. In English the petrel is considered as an omen of disaster. The Longman Dictionary of English-Chinese offers us the explanations: “A stormy petrel is a person whose presence excites discontentment, quarrelling, etc. in a social group.” The reason for such a di

30、slike is that they think petrel is the symbol for disaster. However, in China the word “petrel” is associated with braving hardship and adversity, advancing with perseverance and courage. The spirit is well reflected in the poem petrel written by Gorky, a famous Russian writer.To English people, if

31、a magpie (喜鹊) flies near a window, it is a symbol of bad luck. There are two explanations in The Oxford Advanced Learners English-Chinese Dictionary: (a) person who collects or hoards things (爱收藏或贮藏东西的人), (b) person who chatters a lot (爱饶舌的人). All these explanations are figurative with derogatory me

32、anings. On the contrary, a magpie is a symbol of good luck in China. If a magpie sings in a tree near houses, people would think some happy things would happen. So Chinese people often say, “Magpie sings, happy thing comes.”Whats about the animal word “fish”? “fish” and “鱼” has quite different cultu

33、ral figurative meanings in English and Chinese. In English “fish” has derogatory meaning that refers to bad things and persons, e.g.: “a poor fish (可怜虫)”; “a loose fish (生活放荡的女人)”; “fish in the air (水中捞月)”. In Chinese the letter “鱼” and “余” are homophones. Therefore, in the important festivals such

34、as Spring Festival, Chinese people would like to use “fish” as an indispensable dish to symbolize “abundance”. 7In China, “elephant (象)” is a mascot. Many places in China are named for the letter “象” such as “象山” in Zhejiang province, “象州”, “象鼻山” in Guangxi province, “象河” in Tibet, etc. “Elephant” a

35、lso symbolizes status. For example, in remote antiquity, the noble ladies wore clothes with designs of elephants (象服); The emperors rode on elephants. The “elephant” is doted by Chinese people because of the Buddhist legends. It is said that the Buddhist patriarch was the reincarnation of white elep

36、hant. On the contrary, in English white elephant (白象) is likened to things that are useless and often expensive. The allusion is originated from a folk story that in Siam (now Thailand), the king would give a white elephant as a present to a subject that he did not like. The subject would have to sp

37、end all his money on looking after the rare animal. Therefore, there exist such expressions in English, “elephantine (笨拙)”, “elephant humor (蹩脚的幽默)”, “elephant task (累赘的活儿)”.82.2.2 Some animal words with commendatory figurative meaning in English, but with derogatory figurative meaning in ChineseLet

38、s take our familiar animal word “dog” for example. The dog is very interesting and closely related with people. Most of the “dog” expressions possess a commendatory sense or at least a neuter sense in English. It is all right to refer to certain people as “big dog (重要人物)”, “top dog (优胜者)”, “lucky do

39、g (幸运儿)”, etc. in English. “To help a lame dog over the stile” means “to help someone in difficulty”. “To let sleeping dogs lie” means “to make no trouble” or “not to disturb people”. “Every dog has its day,” means “every person will some day succeed or become fortunate.” Such usage does not contain

40、 derogatory meaning. But figures of speech like these are not proper in Chinese as the word “狗” in most Chinese phrases is associated with some derogatory meanings, as is reflected in sayings like “狗胆包天、狗急跳墙、狗头军师、狗腿子、狗血喷头、狼心狗肺、狗眼看人低、丧家之犬、狗嘴吐不出象牙”, etc., even though most Chinese now think the dog is

41、mans faithful friend. 9However, in some cases the word “dog” may have derogatory sense in English, as is shown in the following examples: “yellow dog (卑鄙之人)”, “dirty dog (龌龊之人)”, “sly dog (阴险之人)”, “dead dog (无用的人)”, and some vulgar languages: “son of bitch (狗杂种)”, “you dog (狗东西)”, “that cur (小杂种狗)”,

42、 etc. 10“Owl (猫头鹰)” is very popular with the western. The Greeks use “owl” to stand for Athens, which is famous for its many owls. And its said that Athena, the woman patron saint was given an owls as her mark. It symbolizes wisdom, calmness, gravity and steadiness. In dispute among birds and beats,

43、 it is the owl that they go to for advice, and we can see such idiom “as wise as an owl”. If we use “owlish” to describe somebody, we want to say he is clever or serious, e.g. “Patrick peered owlishly at us through his glasses. (帕特里克透过他的眼镜严肃而机智地审视着我们。) ” But in Chinese, the figurative meaning of the

44、 word “owl” is quite different. “Owl” is described as the devil, ill omen and evil. People are afraid of seeing an owl, especially seeing its entering the house, so there are proverbs which go like these: “夜猫子进宅，无事不来”; “夜猫子抖擞翅，大小有点事儿”. The mere sight of an owl or the sound of its hooting might cause

45、 people to draw back in fear. 11To Chinese people and English people, “bear” has quite different figurative meanings. To Chinese people “bear” means “cowardly and timid” or “stupid”, such as “笨熊”, “瞧那熊样”, etc. However, in English, people use “bear” to refer to those persons having special ability, f

46、or instance, “He is a bear at music. (他是音乐天才。)”Another example is an insect-cricket (蟋蟀), which, however, means totally different to both the Chinese and the English. In Chinese culture, “cricket” refers to a small, brown, jumping insect which makes a shrill sound by rubbing its front wings together

47、. It is often used to express “grief” and “desolation”, which is reflected in the following example “独申旦而不寐兮，哀蟋蟀之宵征” written by Song Yu in the book of 九辩. But in English, since Shakespeare used “as merry as crickets” in Henry IV, the English and American people have used “cricket” to symbolize joy a

48、ll the time. For example, C.Kingley once wrote in his Two Years Ago that “I have not had all the luck I expected, but am as merry as a cricket. (虽然我没有得到想要的一切好运，但我却很高兴。)” 122.3 Different animal association vehicles and similar figurative meaningsDifferent animal words have similar cultural connotatio

49、ns in English and Chinese languages and people use different animal words to express similar meanings. Even though the animal association vehicles are different, they have similar figurative meanings.For instance, agriculture is the foundation of Chinas economic development, so the cattle (牛) play a great role in Chinese culture. There are so many expressions which use “cattle” as association vehicles, such as “壮实如牛”, “牛气冲天”, “象老黄牛一样辛勤工作”, “过着牛马不如的生活”. However, in the Middle Ages, horse