Analysis and Translation on English Idioms英語習(xí)語分析和翻譯

1、analysis and translation on english idioms英語習(xí)語分析和翻譯摘 要習(xí)語是語言中非常重要的一部分，每種語言都擁有自己豐富多彩的習(xí)語。當(dāng)然，漢語與英語也不例外。習(xí)語能用一個(gè)簡單的方式來表達(dá)一個(gè)很豐富生動(dòng)的意義，有很強(qiáng)的民族性、歷史性和地方色彩。習(xí)語的意義不能簡單地從各個(gè)成分的表面意義去解釋，這使習(xí)語的翻譯非常困難。通過分析英漢習(xí)語,本文從目的論的角度出發(fā)，提出了一些實(shí)用的英語習(xí)語的翻譯方法。 目的論作為一個(gè)技術(shù)術(shù)語，以翻譯為目的，并作為翻譯的目的，是在20世紀(jì)70年代由漢斯費(fèi)爾梅引進(jìn)的。目的論認(rèn)為翻譯是一種行為，一種跨文化的交際行為。目的論遵循的首要法則是

2、目的法則，譯文的交際目的才是最重要的。本文試圖分析英語習(xí)語和漢語成語之間的相似和差異，并在此基礎(chǔ)上從目的論的角度提出一些翻譯英語習(xí)語的實(shí)際方法。本文介紹的翻譯方法包括直譯，直譯加注，意譯 ，意譯加注，直譯加意譯。關(guān)鍵詞：目的論；習(xí)語翻譯；直譯；意譯abstract“idiom” as “a group of words established by usage as having a meaning not deducible from those of the individual words”, is a very important part of vocabulary, and eve

3、ry language has its own rich and colorful idioms. britain and china are no exceptions. idioms can employ simple forms to express rich and vivid meanings. they have strong national, historic and local colors, and their meanings cannot be worked out by their individual words. this makes idioms transla

4、tion very difficult. this paper tries to analyze the similarities and differences between english idioms and chinese idioms, and on this base some practical methods are given on the translation from english idioms to chinese idioms from the perspective of skopos theory which was introduced into tran

5、slation theory in the 1970s by hans j. vermeer as a technical term for the purpose of translation and of the action of translating. skopos theory considers translation as a type of transfer where communicative verbal and non-verbal signs are transferred from one language into another. the methods th

6、is paper introduces here are literal translation, literal translation with notes, liberal translation, liberal translation with notes, and literal translation plus liberal translation.key words: skopos theory; idioms translation; literal translation; liberal translationcontents摘要iiabstractiiiacknowl

7、edgementsvchapter one introduction1chapter two analysis of english idioms and chinese idioms32.1 definition of idiom32.2 similarities between english idioms and chinese idioms32.2.1 basic moral concepts and value viewpoint42.2.2 the same origins52.2.3 the same features52.2.4 the same classifications

8、52.3 differences between english idioms and chinese idioms62.3.1 difference in metaphor62.3.2 difference in customs62.3.3 difference in environment7chapter three thranslation of english idioms from the perspective of skopos theory83.1 skopos theory83.2 methods of english idiom translation from the p

9、erspective of skopos theory103.2.1 literal translation103.2.2 literal translation with notes123.2.3 liberal translation133.2.4 liberal translation with notes143.2.5 literal translation plus liberal translation15chapter four conclusion17bibliography19acknowledgementsi would like to deliver my gratitu

10、de to all those who gave me help during my writing of the thesis. first im particularly indebted to my supervisor yuan lingjie , whose illuminating instruction and constructive suggestions have helped me a lot of shaping the idea and the framework. without her insightful direction and constant encou

11、ragement, the completion of the present thesis would have been impossible.then my profound gratitude and appreciation goes to all the teachers of my college courses, whose excellent teaching laid a solid foundation for this thesis. among them, my special thanks must be paid to professor wang lanying

12、, professor zhang ruijun, and li ge teacher.last but not least, i owe a great deal of my parents and classmates for their profound love and care, constant encouragement and support.chapter one introductionin our study and daily life, we may often mention or use english idioms with which we are famil

13、iar. an english idiom is a group of words with a special meaning different from the meanings of its constituent words. idioms are usually semantically opaque, that is, metaphorical rather than literal. for this reason, it is hard to determine the meaning of an idiom from the literal meaning of the i

14、ndividual word, for example, to kick the bucket or to bite the dust means to die. the english language is noted for its wealth of idioms .besides semantic opaqueness, another important characteristic of english idioms is that they are structurally fixed or invariable .most of these idiomatic express

15、ions are phrases of two or more words that function as a unit of meaning and must be learned as a whole. to sum up, an idiom may be defined as a combination of two or more words, which are usually structurally fixed and semantically opaque, and function as a single unit of meaning. it is an establis

16、hed form that has been accepted by traditional usage and forms an essential part of the general vocabularytranslation is a bilingual art, which is the cultural bridge and media between two languages. it is not an easy job, especially the translation of english idioms, which are independent, irregula

17、r and fixed part of language. for the purpose of keeping the flavor of english idioms and catering the versions of english idioms for all the chinese readers, not only to the readers who master english but also to those who do not know or know a little, translation skills must be employed in the pro

18、cess of translation. in the paper, the author will present several kinds of skills for english idioms translation from the perspective of skopos theory.skopos theory, which developed from german functionalism, holds that translation is a form of translational action based on a source text and the pr

19、ime principle determining any translation process is the purpose (skopos) of the overall translational action. it allows the possibility of the same text being translated in different ways according to the purpose of the tt and the commission which is given to the translator. skopos theory provides

20、a new and effective perspective for the study of english idioms translation.chapter two analysis of english idioms and chinese idioms2.1 definition of idiom new oxford dictionary of english defines “idiom” as “a group of words established by usage as having a meaning not deducible from those of the

21、individual words”. while long-man dictionary of applied linguistics gives a definition like this, “an idiom is an expression which functions as a single unit and whose meaning cannot be out from its separate parts.”professor cowie explains english idiom as following: an idiom is a combination of two

22、 or more words which functions as a unit of meaning. ammer has another definition about english idiom in this way: “an idiom is a set of phrases of two or more words that means something different from the literal meaning of the individual words”. a simple definition of english idiom would be the us

23、e of common words in a special sense. in this paper, english idioms include phrases, proverbs, literary quotations, colloquialisms and slang expressions.2.2 similarities between english idioms and chinese idiomsbased on rich culture, both english idioms and chinese ones are of ancient origin and lon

24、g development. they have recorded their respective national history, showed their respective national viewpoint and reflected their respective national culture as well as the formation of thinking. the similarities are showed as the following.2.2.1 basic moral concepts and value viewpointas human ci

25、vilization has developed in a similar way, both english and chinese idioms are similar in this field, which has formed a common base for both cultures.2.2.1.1 persuading people to be kindboth english and chinese idioms have expressed good will and forgiveness of human nature:chinese idioms english i

26、dioms己所不欲，忽施與人do as you would be done好有好報(bào)one good turn deserves another慈悲心腸milk of human kindness既往不咎let bygones be bygonesthe surprising similarity of the above idioms in both culture and language style has showed the universal kindness and generosity of human beings. equivalents are required when

27、they are introduced into the target language to preserve cultural accuracy, classical language style and vivid description.2.2.1.2 encouraging people to be active and venturousboth english and chinese are imaginative, hard-working, brave and indomitable. both march in the front echelon of all nation

28、s through their own effort. thus, there are many idioms in both languages to praise the pioneering spirit:chinese idiomsenglish idioms天行健，君子以自強(qiáng)不息god helps those who help themselves有志者，事竟成where there is a will, there is a way不入虎穴，焉得虎子nothing venture, nothing havelike 2.2.1.1, equivalents are required

29、 when they are introduced into the target language to preserve cultural accuracy, classical language style and vivid description. 2.2.1.3 persuading people to be dogged once determinedchinesese idiomsenglish idioms不成功，便成仁do or die已不做，二不休over shoes over boots有始有終from beginning to endthe above similar

30、ities are essential to the intercultural communication. different cultures may conflict in many aspects, but must agree on basic morals and value points. only by agreeing on basic morals and value points, can cultural conflicts be limited in a tolerable level and intercultural communication carried

31、out.2.2.2 the same originsboth english idioms and chinese idioms have such same origins as : 1) the experience of the common people ; 2) myths and fables ; 3) historical events and anecdotes ; 4) classical literary works ; 5) social customs and habits;2.2.3 the same features idioms display its diffe

32、rentiation from other general expressions or structures in its own distinctive features: 1) fixed structure ; 2) abundant connotation ; 3) distinct cultural feature .2.2.4 the same classificationsin a limited sense, idioms just signify the set phrase or short sentences with fixed structure and compl

33、ete meaning employed by the people for a long time. they usually contain four words in chinese but uncertain number of words in english. however, in a broad sense, the idiom is also defined in an almost same way, but it is composed of set phrases, idioms (in the narrow sense), two-part allegorical s

34、ayings, allusions, proverbs, maxims, sayings, epigrams, slang expressions colloquialisms, quotations and jargons. those listed above are all revised and rewritten again and again, and then handed down from generation to generation. up to the present, they are widely applied and studied by all the pe

35、ople.2.3 differences between english idioms and chinese idioms2.3.1 difference in metaphor there are many english idioms that have the same or similar meaning with chinese idioms, but they employ different images on metaphor. take english idiom “just like mushroom” for example. it means new things s

36、uddenly appear and develop in leaps and bounds. we know that in china there is a idiom “雨后春筍” having the same meaning with it. english people use “mushroom” instead of “bamboo”, because “bamboo” is not a native plant in britain, and even the word “bamboo” is borrowed from other nation, so it is impo

37、ssible for english people to use the word “bamboo” as the element of english idioms. the following english idioms all belong to this kind of idiom: kill the goose that lays the golden eggs (殺雞取卵) , look for a needle in a haystack (大海撈針) , like a rat in a hole (甕中之鱉) , spend money like water (揮金如土) ,

38、 to laugh ones head off (笑掉大牙) , kill two birds with one stone (一箭雙雕) .2.3.2 difference in customsdifferent nations have different customs. english idioms are english cultural treasures. it can reflect the customs of english people. take “dog” for example, in britain dog is usually treated as a comp

39、anion or pet of people. it can be used not only for watching for the door, but also for hunting, and english people usually have a good feeling for this animal, so english idioms which include “dog” usually have not derogatory meaning. for example: top dog (重要的人) ,lucky dog (幸運(yùn)兒) ,love me love my do

40、g (愛屋及烏) , every dog has its day (凡人皆有得意日) , not a dogs chance (毫無機(jī)會(huì)) , put on the dog (炫耀，擺闊) .however, in ancient china, people usually have a bad impression of dog. they disdain and scorn this animal. this custom reflects in language. for instance: 狗腿子 (lackey) , 狗雜種 (bastard) , 狗娘養(yǎng)的 (son of a bi

41、tch) , 狗急跳墻 (a cornered beast will do something desperate) , 狗嘴里吐不出象 (a filthy mouth cannot utter decent language) , 狗膽包天 (monstrous audacity) .2.3.3 difference in environmentbritain is an island country, which is surrounded by the sea; so many english idioms are connected with the sea. for instance

42、: to know the ropes (懂得秘訣，內(nèi)行) , to tide over (順利渡過) , to clear the decks (準(zhǔn)備戰(zhàn)斗) , to sink or swim (好歹，不論成敗) ,to go with the stream (隨波逐流) , all at sea (無主意) .however, china, since the ancient time , has been a big agricultural country, so many chinese idioms are related to agriculture, such as “斬草除根

43、”，“拔苗助長”，“柴多火焰高”，and so on.chapter three thranslation of english idioms from the perspective of skopos theory3.1 skopos theoryskopos theory is a significant contribution to the system of functional theories. skopos is the greek word for aim or purpose, and was introduced into translation theory in t

44、he 1970s by hans j. vermeer as a technical term for the purpose of a translation and of the action of translating. skopos theory considers translation as a type of transfer where communicative verbal and non-verbal signs are transferred from one language into another. translation is an “intentional,

45、 purposeful behavior that takes place in a given situation”. (nord, 2001: 11).therefore, the intention and purpose of translators could be taken as another key factor to explain many problems in translation studies. the major work on skopos theory is groundwork for a general theory of translation, a

46、 book vermeer co-authored with reiss in 1984. reiss and vermeer aim at a general translation theory for all texts. the basic underlying rules of the theory are：(1) a translation (or tt) is determined by its skopos(2) a tt is an offer of information in a target culture and target language concerning

47、an offer of information in a source culture and source language.(3) a tt does not initiate an offer of information in a clearly reversible way.(4) a tt must be internally coherent.(5) a tt must be coherent with the st(6) the five rules above stand in hierarchical order, with the skopos rule predomin

48、ating(reiss and vermeer 1984:119)some explanation is required here. rule (2) is important in that it relates the st and tt to their function in their respective linguistic and cultural contexts. the translator is once again, as in the translational action theory, the key player in a process of inter

49、cultural communication and production of the translation. the irreversibility in rule (3) indicates that the function of a translation in its target culture is not necessarily the same as in the source culture. rules (4) and (5) touch on general skopos rules concerning how the success of the action

50、and information transfer is to be judged: the coherence rule (the fourth rule) states that the tt must be interpretable as coherent with the tt receivers situation. (reiss and vermeer 1984: 113) the fidelity rule (the fifth rule) states that there must be coherence between the translation and the st

51、. (ibid: 114) these two rules together with the skopos rule (the first rule) make the major framework of functionalism.however, the hierarchical order of the rules means that intertextual coherence (rule 5) is of less importance than intratexual coherence (rule 4), which, in turn, is subordinate to

52、the skopos (rule 1). this down-playing (or dethroning, as vermeer terms it) of the status of the st is a general fact of both skopos and translational action theory. (mundav 2001:79-80)according to skopos theory, the translator is the expert to carry out the commission by which a skopos is realized.

53、 he/she is thus responsible for choosing of information from the st as an information offer, and his/her work becomes an inspirational production of tt, instead of reproduction of st, and this task relies greatly on the accountability of the translator. this raises the status of the translator in tr

54、anslation action, and releases the translator from the corset of an enforcedand hence often meaninglessliteralness (vermeer 1989: 231). skopos theory provides a new and effective perspective for the study of english idiom translation. 3.2 methods of english idiom translation from the perspective of

55、skopos theory3.2.1 literal translationliteral translation refers to an adequate representation of the original when the original coincides or tallies with the chinese in the sequence of vocabulary, in grammatical structure and rhetorical device. literal translation preserves the original form of eng

56、lish idioms without causing confusion in meaning. it transfers the original cultural information effectively and shortens the gap between the two languages, english and chinese. furthermore, literal translation keeps the full flavor of english idioms. for example:your plan is marvelous, but you will

57、 have to work out the budget before the board can give the green light. (a：你的計(jì)劃很好，但在委員會(huì)給你開綠燈之前，你須預(yù)算出這個(gè)計(jì)劃的開支。 b：你的計(jì)劃很好，但在委員會(huì)批準(zhǔn)之前，你須預(yù)算出這個(gè)計(jì)劃的開支。)obviously a fits the original sentence better than b, because the english idiom “throw cold water” and “批準(zhǔn)” in chinese are equivalence, but if we select b, “批

58、準(zhǔn)” cannot express the original meaning accurately, and lose the vivid image of the original idiom.the following are the other such examples: hot line (熱線) , fast food (快餐) , white collar (白領(lǐng)) , green card (綠卡) , trade war (貿(mào)易戰(zhàn)) , blood is thicker than water (血濃于水) , the cold war (冷戰(zhàn)) , bottle neck (瓶頸) , last but not least (最后但并不是最不重要的) , knit ones brow (皺眉頭) , n