乱码英文浅谈英汉翻译中的文化因素

Contents

1

1.0

Introduction of culture………………………………………………..

1

2.0 Language, Culture & Translation

………………………………….. .2

2.1 Idioms

…………………………………………………………... 2

2.1.1

English

and

Chinese

idioms

sharing

the

same

meanings

and

cultural images……………………………………………………

2

2.1.2 English and Chinese idioms sharing the similar meanings but

different cultural images………………………………………….

3

2.1.3 Translation of idioms not restricted to only one version……...

3

2.2 Communications with peopl

e of different background……………

4

2.2.1 Communications in a restaurant………………………………

4

2.2.2 An embarrassing answer………………………………………

4

2.3 Animals that bear different cultural connotations…………………

5

2.4 Colors that have different cultural bearings……………………….

6

2.4.1 B

lue……………………………………………………………

6

2.4.2 White…………………………………………………………

.6

2.4.3 Black……………………………………………………….….

7

3.0 Conclusion……………………………………………………………

7

Cultural Factors in English and Chinese Translation

Abstract:

This

article

discusses

the

influence

of

cultural

factors

on

translation.

Translation is to convey a message of one language into another language.

It might

not be so easy to get along well with your foreign friends because you have different

cultures. You want to be friendly and to show your hospitality towards them when you

say

or

do

something.

Even

if

your

words

or

action

are

acceptable

in

the

Chinese

culture might be understood as impolite. So the cultural factors play a very important

role in translation.

Keywords:

cultural factors, English and Chinese translation

After

entering

the

WTO,

we

have

now

got

more

chances

to

do

business

with

European

countries.

Obviously,

English,

used

by

most

of

the

countries,

makes

our

communication much easier. So if

you can master English, it will help you a lot in

your business. Since the cultural factors play a very important role in translation, it is

necessary for us to learn the cultures of the English speaking countries. Then you can

understand them much better and communicate with them more successfully.

1.0

Introduction of culture

Culture

is

an

extremely

complex

concept

and

an

enormous

subject

as

well.

It

includes almost everything in the world, whether material or spiritual. But however

complex it is, culture can roughly be divided into three categories: the material culture,

which refers to all the products of manufacture; the institutional culture which refers

to

various systems

and theories that support them,

such as social

systems,

religious

systems, ritual systems, educational systems, kinship systems and language; and the

mental

culture,

which

refers

to

people's

mentality

and

behaviors,

their

thought

patterns, beliefs, conceptions of value, aesthetic tastes.

1

These three aspects of culture

have been formed through a long history of social development. Different countries

have undergone different historical developments and thus have had different cultures.

Therefore, the English native speakers and the Chinese native speakers have their own

cultures.

2.0

Language, Culture & Translation

1

/revue/meta/1999/v44/n1/

1

“Every

language

is

part

of

a

c

ulture.

As

such,

it

cannot

but

serve

and

reflect

cultural

needs.”

2

In

turn,

language

is

a

carrier

of

the

culture

in

which

it

has

been

born

and

developed.

In

a

sense,

learning

a

language

is

also

a

kind

of

learning

the

culture and habits of the country where the language is spoken. Therefore, how to deal

with

the

cultural

factors

in

translation

has

become

a

very

important

task

for

the

learners of the language.

2.1 Idioms

“Idioms consist of set phrases and short sentences” and “idioms are expressions

that

are

not

readily

understandable

from

their

literal

meanings

of

individual

elements.”

3

Idioms, as an indispensable part of a language, are naturally related to the culture

from

which

they

have

been

derived.

They

are

characterized

by

their

colorful

and

thought-provoking expressions,

involving history, religion,

social

customs

and other

aspects of the culture. In other words, they are a typical carrier of the culture. In the

translation

of

the

idioms,

special

attention

should

be

paid

to

the

cultural

factors

involved.

2.1.1 English and Chinese idioms sharing the same meanings and cultural

images

Here are some examples:

(1) Seeing is believing

眼见为实；百闻不如一见

(2) Turn a deaf ear

置若罔闻

(3) Draw the curtain

落下帷幕

(4) Pour oil on the flame

火上浇油

(5) Facts speak louder than words.

事实胜于雄辩

(6) Strike while the iron is hot.

趁热打铁

The above are literal translations. But they are not the only versions, and other

expressions are acceptable only if they have similar meanings to and fit in the original

context. There are also some examples:

(7) Tom told John he had passed the test, but John said, “

Seeing is believing

.”

2

Zhuanglin Hu and others,

Course of Language

(Beijing: Beijing University Press,1988) p.250.

3

Weiyou Zhang,

English Lexicology

(Beijing: Foreign language Teaching & Reach Press,1998)

p.174.

2

My translation:

汤姆告诉约翰他通过了考试，

但约翰说：

“

< br>耳听为虚，

眼见为

实

”

。

(8) I told him to quit smoking but he just turned a deaf ear to my words.

My translation:

我让他戒烟，但他根本不听。

(9) Mother is in good mood now. Strike while the iron is hot and ask her to let

you go to the cinema.

My translation:

母亲现在情绪很好，趁此机会求她让你去看电影。

2.1.2

English

and

Chinese

idioms

sharing

similar

meanings

but

different

cultural images

There are

also

two ways of translation. They

are

the

literal

translation

and

the

liberal translation. Here are some examples:

(10) Love me love my dog.

Liberal

translation:

爱屋及乌

In Chinese

it means

:

Love one’s house

love the

crows

around the house.

If we translate it

literally

like

“

爱我及狗

”

,

I’

m afraid, the

Chinese readers may not understand.

(11) Beat the dog before the lion.

Liberal translation:

杀鸡骇猴

In Chinese it means: Kill the chicken before the

monkey. If we translate it like

“

在狮子面前打狗

”

, that would make you puzzled.

(12) He cries wine and sells vinegar.

Liberal

translation:

挂羊头卖狗肉

In

Chinese

it

means:

He

cries

mutton

but

sells

meat

of

dog

instead.

If

we

translate

it

like

“

< br>他喊着酒卖着醋

”

,

we

also

can

’

t

understand it well.

(13) A new broom sweeps clean.

Liberal translation:

新官上任三把火

In Chinese it means: a newly appointed

officer carries out new efficient policies. If we translate it like

“

新的扫把扫得干净

”

,

I believe, no one can understand it well.

From

all

the

idioms

above

we

can

see

that

we

also

have

things

different

that

share similar meanings.

2.1.3 Translation of idioms not restricted to only one version

Take a sentence for example,

(14) One boy is a boy, two boys half a boy, three boys no boy.

It is often translated as

“一个和尚挑水喝，两个和尚抬水喝，三个和尚没水

3

喝。

”

In

Chinese

it

means:

One

Buddhist

monk

carries

water

for

himself;

two

Buddhist

monks

carry

water

together;

three

Buddhist

monks

carry

no

water

for

drinking. We can get a similar culture message from the translation. But I think maybe

it is better to preserve the original images and avoid cultural loss for this idiom and I

would like to translate it into

“

一人做事尽力，

两人做事合力，

三人做事没力”

, from

which the Chinese readers can also be able to grasp the images and meanings.

2.2 Communications with people of different backgrounds

Many interesting things may happen in our daily life. Some of them are caused

by the different cultures. Here are two typical examples.

2.2.1 Communications in a restaurant

It

happened

in

America.

A

Chinese

student

worked

as

a

waiter

in

a

hotel,

his

English was not so good.

A

young

man

walked

into

a

hotel.

The

Chinese

waiter

said,

“

Welcome

to

our

hotel!

”

The man looked at him and nodded politely. The waiter wanted to be sure how

many people would come, so he asked,

“

Are you

lonely?” The

young man looked at

him amazingly but said nothing. Then the waiter wanted to make himself understood

well, so he asked the young man again, in another way,

“

Are you single?

”

The young

man stood up and made several steps backward and said

, “

Are you a gay(

同性恋者

)?

I

’

m sorry, I

’

m straight!

”

Then he left the hotel quickly.

We all know why the young man left the hotel. The Chinese waiter

’s

questions

“A

re

you

lonely?”

and

“A

re

you single

?”

show that he did

n’t

know how to use the

words

correctly.

What

’

s

more,

it

also

shows

that

he

didn

’

t

know

the

culture

there.

Thus

he

made

the

young

man

misunderstand

the

meanings

of

his

words.

If

we

put

what he said in Chinese they mean

“

你 孤单吗

?

”, “

你寂寞吗

”

or

“

你单身吗

?

”

The

young man was surely unable to understand him. From this, we can see that the young

man

also

didn

’

t

know

the

Chinese

culture.

In

fact,

at

that

time,

the

Chinese

waiter

should

say

“A

re

you

alone

”

.

In

Chinese

it

means,

“

您一个人吗

”.

And

the

young

man

’s last sentence “

I

’

m straight

”

means I

’

m not a homosexual.

2.2.2 An embarrassing answer

A Chinese manager together with his beautiful wife went to a hotel to meet his

distinguished

guest

from

The

United

States

of

America.

Following

them

was

an

interpreter. Seeing his wife was so beautiful, the foreign guest praised

, “

Your wife is

4