論英語(yǔ)典故與習(xí)語(yǔ)的來(lái)源與翻譯1

1、論英語(yǔ)典故與習(xí)語(yǔ)的來(lái)源與翻譯abstract idioms are fixed phrases that go through the test of history and cannot be treated separately. in order to be loyal to the original text, the translation of english idioms should not only keep the original taste of the source, but also meet the standards of writing, especially

2、 for mythology and allusion. because english idioms have manifested and absorbed the different national culture of ancient greek, ancient rome, and northern europe, it is more typical and representative than other forms of language on reflecting the cultural diversity. domestication and foreignizati

3、on are two main methods of translation. and there are some concrete translation skills as follows: 1. literal translation 2. free translation 3. borrowing 4. literal translation with annotation. in the trend of cultural globalization, culture among various nationalities permeate and stick together m

4、utually. and the readers ability to accept the new cultural imagery has improved day by day. the refore so long as not to affect the understanding of source language, the author advocates translating english idioms directly as far as possible to carry on the culture, which promotes the exchange and

5、fusion of culture all over the world.key words idioms; allusion; translation methods【摘 要】 習(xí)語(yǔ)是指那些經(jīng)受了 歷史 的長(zhǎng)期考驗(yàn),千錘百煉而形成的固定詞組。為了忠于原文,習(xí)語(yǔ)翻譯既要保持源語(yǔ)的原汁原味,也要符合譯入語(yǔ)語(yǔ)言文字的需求。尤其在翻譯習(xí)語(yǔ)中的神話(huà)典故時(shí)更應(yīng)注意以下三點(diǎn)1.譯入語(yǔ)結(jié)構(gòu)的平衡2.譯出源語(yǔ)的民族特色和地域色彩3.盡可能保留源語(yǔ)的形象。因?yàn)?英語(yǔ) 習(xí)語(yǔ)吸收了眾多來(lái)自古希臘，古羅馬，北歐古代神話(huà)等歐洲各民族的文化精髓，所以在體現(xiàn)語(yǔ)言的文化差異方面,習(xí)語(yǔ)比其他語(yǔ)言成分更具有典型性和代表性?；镜?/p>

6、英語(yǔ)翻譯 方法 有歸化和異化，具體體現(xiàn)如下：直譯法，意譯法，借用法，直譯加注。在當(dāng)前文化全球化的 時(shí)代 背景下，各民族間的文化相互滲透和融合的趨勢(shì)愈來(lái)愈強(qiáng)。 人們對(duì)于外來(lái)文化、異國(guó)情調(diào)的包容、接納以至欣賞能力也日漸提高。因此,作者認(rèn)為只要在不 影響 譯語(yǔ)讀者理解的前提下,應(yīng)提倡盡量以文化直入模式進(jìn)行習(xí)語(yǔ)翻譯,以促進(jìn)世界文化的交流與融合?！娟P(guān)鍵詞】 習(xí)語(yǔ)；神話(huà)典故；翻譯方法1. introductionwhen opening oxford advanced learners dictionary of current english, one can see such an entry: “i

7、diom (n.) 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 and english translation theoretician peter newmark also said: “an idiom is a current and frequently used group of words whose meaning is not clear from the co

8、mmon meanings of its constituent words”. 2 in brief, idioms are fixed phrases that go through the test of history and cannot be separated. so the whole meaning usually cannot be surmised in translation and the components must not be separated at ones ease.2. backgroundenglish as an international lan

9、guage, its usage is wide-ranging. many countries choose english as their official language. what is more, sixty percent of broadcasting in the world use english to propagate their information. of course, there are many idioms in english and parts of them are loanwords. the features of assimilating l

10、oanwords in english are evident. on the one hand, it belongs to germanic language family that enables it to take possession of the common words in germanic language. on the other hand, english keeps in touch with french and roman language family closely for a long time. the ancient greek mythologies

11、, roman myths and fairy tales of northern europe are the publicly owned wealth of european nations. they have deep influence on development of whole european culture in which many stories provide source materials for english idioms. therefore, english idioms take in any word that can represent the m

12、ain european culture. and it is more typical and representative than others in reflecting the cultural diversity. just like bacon said: talent, quick-witted and spirit in a nation can all be found in its idioms. 3 2.1 the sources of english idioms as everyone knows, idioms come from different aspect

13、s: different living environments; everyday life; religion; historical events; literary works and mythology and allusion. 2.1.1 idioms from different living environments    idioms are closely related to peoples labor and life, because people in a particular culture need words to name a

14、nd explain objects and appearance present in that culture. the han people, live on land, and belong to an agrarian society that places agricultural production at the top of the national agenda. during the long history of farming, the chinese language has accumulated large numbers of farmers idioms l

15、ike 瑞雪兆豐年 (a time snow promises a good harvest), 五谷豐登(abundant harvest of all food crops). while british live in an island country, probably have idioms about water and sailing. for example, we speak揮金如土in chinese，but we should render it into english as “spend money like water”. and there are simila

16、r examples as follows: “to keep ones head about water” (奮力圖存)，“in full sail” (全力以赴), “tower ones sail” (甘拜下風(fēng)).what is more, there come different special products determined by the different geographical surroundings. for example, “l(fā)ike mushrooms” and “spring up like mushrooms” in english , means 像蘑菇

17、一樣, and 雨后春筍般地涌現(xiàn) in chinese. both of them have the same meaning of the great development of a thing, but they use their respective things to form the metaphor, because china abounds with bamboo, whereas it does not grow in england. so the chinese people are quite familiar with bamboo; while the engl

18、ish dont. this case is quite the same with the idiom “plentiful as blackberries”, for blackberries are easily available in england while in chinese, 多如牛毛 is used, for cattle can be found everywhere in china.2.1.2 idioms from everyday life    entertainment and activities, which are par

19、ts of national culture, are quite different in various countries. horse racing, boxing and cricket are ancient and traditional sports in england, so in english, there are idioms like “neck and neck” (不分上下)，“down and out”(倒下出局)，“not cricket” (不講信用)，and “straight from the shoulder” (直截了當(dāng))，and “have a

20、good innings” (一帆風(fēng)順)；whereas the ancient chinese preferred hunting and chess: 棋逢對(duì)手 (diamond cut diamond), 劍拔弩張(at daggers drawn), 明槍易躲，暗箭難防(false friends are worse than open enemies). there are some aspects in everyday life in the following.() idioms from food    in england, bread is

21、usually eaten together with butter, and salt, milk and cream are their everyday diet. all of them are the everyday diet for western people and thus appear “there is no use crying over spilt milk” (不要做無(wú)謂的后悔)，“bakers dozen” (面包師的第十三個(gè)面包), and “polish the apple” (拍馬屁)；china has a long history of cooking

22、 and the chinese are known as the most critical, for who attach greater importance to food than any other people, as is reflected in the saying like: 畫(huà)餅充饑 (to draw cakes to allay hunger) () idioms from sea    both in the chinese and the english languages, idioms about the sea are nume

23、rous, because both of these two countries are surrounded and half-surrounded by sea, and they are rich in natural resources of fish. fishing plays a vital role in their economy, so a large number of idioms concerning fish are handed down: “fish begins to stink at the head” (上梁不正下梁歪), “never offer to

24、 teach fish to swim” (不要班門(mén)弄斧)，and “to fish in troubled water” (渾水摸魚(yú)).() idioms from military affairsthe history of mankind is almost the history of war, which is the source of numerous idioms. the chinese nation has a long history of war for more than two thousand years, and therefore the chinese la

25、nguage is rich in such idioms: 項(xiàng)莊舞劍，意在沛公 (xiang zhuang performed the sword dance as a cover for his attempt on liu bangs life.-act with a hidden motive); 四面楚歌(be in desperate straits); 暗度陳倉(cāng)(to steal a march on). and it is also mirrored in the following english idioms: “what millions died that caesar

26、 might be great” (一將功成萬(wàn)骨枯); “meet ones waterloo” (遭遇慘敗); “pyrrhic victory” (得不償失的勝利); and gentlemans agreement (君子協(xié)定).2.1.3 idioms from religionreligion is an important source for idioms. it is a social phenomenon and mainly a code of ethics governing personal and social conduct. comparatively speak

27、ing, buddhism has greater influence in chinese culture although china is a multi-religious country. it was first introduced into china in the first century ad, and has shaped the chinese language, diet, arts, etc., and greatly stimulated the development of chinese literature. the large number of wor

28、ds and idioms derived from buddhism is one of the manifestations of its influence, such as 放下屠刀，立地成佛 (a butcher becomes a buddha the moment he drops his cleaver-a wrongdoer achieves salvation as soon as he gives up evil) and 做一天和尚，撞一天鐘 (take a passive attitude toward ones work). and there are quite

29、a few english idioms from religion. such as: benjamins mess (最大的份額); raise cain (大吵大鬧); apple of sodom (金玉其外，敗絮其中); sop to cerberus (賄賂); handwriting on the wall (不祥之兆) and so on.2.1.4 idioms from historical eventsin most language, people embellish their speech or writing with references to characte

30、rs or events from their history, that is to say, idiomatic expressions are closely related to a countrys history. there are a lot of idioms in the chinese language cannot find an equivalent in the english language because the history of the two countries are quite different. many idioms are from the

31、ir own history. the english language has much less idioms from historical events than the chinese language because english just has a history of more than one thousand years during which less important historical events happened. for example, “to meet ones waterloo” (遭遇滑鐵盧) is from the defeat of nap

32、oleon at waterloo in 1815, which means to be completely defeated.2.1.5 idioms from literary worksliterary works are also one of the main sources of english idioms. in english literature, the most glittering star is shakespeare. his dramas are the major source of this kind idioms: “to claim ones poun

33、d of flesh” (割某人的一磅肉) is from the merchant of venice; “make assurance doubly sure” (加倍小心) comes from macbeth. and there are other examples: “reading makes a full man, conference a ready man, writing an exact man”-bacon on study; “ the ugly ducking”(丑小鴨) is from han andersons tales; “jekyll and hyde”

34、 (雙重性格) originates from stevensons the strange case of dr. jekyll and mr. hyde; “open sesame” and “old man of the sea” come from arabian tales.2.1.6 idioms from mythology and allusion in this thesis, the author focuses on the translation of mythologies and allusions in english idioms, which come fro

35、m stories of gods and heroes. as we all know, greek and roman civilizations have a great influence on english, so the greek and roman civilizations have great influence on english idioms. lets pay attention to the following idioms: (1) “achilles heel” (致命弱點(diǎn)) which comes from the greek mythology has

36、the meaning “the one weak spot in a mans circumstances or character”. in greek epic, his mother took achilles upside down into the styx when he was a child. so he was arms-proof except his heel because it was held in his mothers hand. therefore in troy war, he died for paris shot a poisoned arrow in

37、to his heel.(2) other examples, “herculess choice” means “the reward of toil in reference to pleasure”, “the herculian efforts” (九牛二虎之力)，and “the pillars of hercules” (天涯海角). it is said that hercules was one of the most famous heroes in greek mythologies. he killed two snakes when he was a baby, and

38、 was known as a man of muscle. he refused the pleasure goddesss allure, went through innumerable hardships and in the end, he won the eternal life.idioms have been called the crystallization of language. an appropriate use of them in our speech and writing will add to the strength and vividness of i

39、dioms. perhaps some people are quite familiar with “to cut the gordian knot” and “a pandoras box” such allusions not only make the language richer, but also make communication much more vivider and easier. however , in daily communication, people usually dont know why “hobsons choice” means no choic

40、e at all (別無(wú)選擇); “pile pelion on ossa” means extremely difficult (難上加難), or “mercury fig” means the first fruit (最初的果實(shí)). if the source of an idiom is known, it is easier to figure out its meaning. it is difficult to translate idioms faithfully because idioms reflect the wisdom of ordinary people tha

41、t isall-inclusive. the knowledge of the sources of these idioms will help us comprehend what they really mean. 2.2 the difficulties in the translation of english idiomsin the 1950s the american writer hockett put forward the concept “random holes in patterns”文化空缺which means “the accidental gap” in c

42、onservation when contrasting two languages. 4 and nida had said: there must be information drains in any course of conservation and the absolute equity is never possible. the goal of translation is conservation in maximum to enable the foreign readers understand the source culture. there are two rea

43、sons as follows. firstly, the formation and solidification of english idioms are in relationship with the different histories, environments and cultural backgrounds. it contains certain national culture characteristics and information. furthermore, chinese and english live in different regions, so t

44、heir living environments and experiences are different, especially in their ways to observe the world, understand the world and transform the world. their culture atmospheres are unique. secondly, chinese belongs to the sino-tibetan language family while english belongs to the indo-european language

45、 family, so their language structures are different. all mentioned above enrich the idioms and make them more complex.2.3 the development of translation principle the principle of translation between english and chinese has developed for a long time. about translation standards, translators from hom

46、e and abroad put forward different opinions. from yan fus “faithfulness, expressiveness, elegance” to mr. zhang peijis “faithfulness and smoothness”; from fu leis “approximation in spirit” to the american famous translation theoretician eugene nidas “functional equivalence” or “dynamic equivalence”,

47、 we may see that these positions affect each other, supplement each other although their emphases are different. the focus is to translate the source text faithfully, meanwhile, to keep the original taste as much as possible.the quality of idioms translation has the direct influence on the entire ar

48、ticle. in order to be loyal to the original text, the translation must not only maintain its original taste and flavor, but also conform to the demand of writing in target language. however, the idioms translation is difficult to meet these two standards at the same time. it is extremely important t

49、o translate idioms faithfully, and the translation between english and chinese must pay attention to following three points:() idioms are heavily culture-loaded; they have manifested different national flavors. therefore, the translation of idioms must try to keep the original taste and not to use t

50、hose target words that have strong national characteristics.() chinese idioms stress to the rhythm and structure. so it is necessary to augment or readjust the original language structure when translating english idioms.() do ones best to translate the original images, metaphoric meaning and rhetori

51、c of the source language.3. on the translation methods of english idioms3.1 two main translation approaches of english idiomsdomestication and foreignization are two main approaches of translation. the us translation theoretician venuti defines the two methods as follow: 5 domestication adopts the n

52、ational center principle, enables the source language text to satisfy the value of target language and culture, and leads the source language readers into the target culture, while foreignization means to accept the differences between foreign language culture and target language culture to take tar

53、get language readers to see the foreign scene. from the definitions, we can see both of them hold different approaches toward the cultural differences. but the author believes that the domestication is the best way to enrich the expression of target language. adopting domestication in maximum can en

54、able the target language readers emerge the same or the similar association as the source language readers.3.2 four concrete translation skills of english idiomsthere are some concrete skills of translation between english and chinese, which are cited as follows:1. literal translation2. free transla

55、tion  3. borrowing 4. literal translation with annotationthe author reveals the methods in detail in the following.3.2.1 literal translation literal translation can fairly retain the english idioms analogy; image; national and local flavors, in the position of not violating the standard of tran

56、slation or causing the readers misunderstand. this way of translation can not only retain the original intention, but also enrich chinese language. it can be seen clearly in the following examples:(3) an apple of discord (不和女神的金蘋(píng)果) comes from greek mythology. the story is about: a goddess named disc

57、ord is angry and never forgives king paris and his wife because they dont invite her to participate in their wedding banquet. in order to give vent to the hate, she abandons a golden apple on the table of wedding banquet; declaring that this apple is given to the most beautiful lady in this wedding

58、banquet. there are three goddesses want to obtain this golden apple. and then it causes wrangle in a mess. from then on, the meaning of an apple of discord spreads. it becomes the synonym of “the cause of disaster” and “the source of the disagreement”. 6 (4) these are the greek gifts for you. the li

59、teral translation of this idiom is 希臘人的禮物, which comes from the well-known epic poem “odyssey”. when the greek had left troy, they left behind a big wooden horse outside the troy city. priest laocoon tried his best to persuade his king not to accept the thing that the greek stayed behind. he said that, “i fear the greek, even when bringing gifts.” but what a pity, the king and the people did not listen to his advice. they pulled the big wooden horse into their city. actually