英文翻译表述

EnglishChinese Translation

What is translation?

Translation is a representation or recreation in one language of what is written or

said in another language.

or

:

Translation

is

an

activity

of

reproducing

in

one

language

the

ideas

which

have

been

expressed

in

another

language.(

翻译是把一种语言所表达的思想用另一

种语言重新表达出来的活动

)

Eugene

Nida,

famous

American

translation

theorist,

defined

translation

as:

Translation

consists

in

reproducing

in

the

receptor

language

the

closest

natural

equivalent of the source-language messages, first in terms of meaning and secondly in

terms of style.

翻译就是接受语言复 制出与原语信息最接近的自然等值体

---

首先是就意义而言< /p>

,

其次是就其风格而言

.

1) Translation is a science

We

say

translation

is

a

science,

because

it

has

its

own

laws

and

methods.

Take

the

translation between English and Chinese for example, if we want to translate well, we

must

be

entirely

familiar

with

the

content

of

the

original

and

all

the

knowledge

it

concerns.

In

addition

we

should

have

a

comparatively

comprehensive

and

thorough

study of English and Chinese so that we may do our work with high proficiency

.

English and Chinese are two entirely different

languages.

Each

has an

individual and

distinct system. On the other hand,

there are

lots of differences between them both

in

morphology

and

in

syntax.

Because

of

this,

we

have

to

know

both

languages

well,

especially with the wide difference in vocabulary

, grammatical relations, and sentence

structure.

Now we

may well conclude that translation

is

indeed a science

with

its peculiar

laws

and

methods, a science related to

lexicology

,

grammar, rhetoric and other branches of

linguistics.

Translation is an art

Lin

Yutang

was

once

a

representative.

In

his

essay

On

Translation

he

declares

that

translation

is

an

art

whose

success

depends

on

one?s

artistic

talent

and

enough

training.

Besides these,

there

no set rules

for translation and there

is

no

short cut

for

art.

From

the

examples

mentioned

above

we

can

see

that

translation

is

an

art,

a

brilliant art.

Like painting, enables

us

to reproduce

the

fine

thought of somebody

,

not

in colors, but

in words,

in

the

words of a different

language.

It demands a broad and

profound knowledge.

In other words, a translator should have an understanding of literature and art, rhetoric

and

aesthetics;

otherwise,

he

can

hardly

accomplish

the

task

of

reproduction

of

the

original.

In

accordance

with

what

we

have

discussed

in

the

above,

now

we

can

come

to

the following conclusion:

Translation

depends

on

the

artistic

level

and

the

technique

of

the

translator.

Whoever

has a

good command of

translation both

in theory and technique can offer

satisfactory translations,

it

is because, as pointed out

in this

lecture,

translation

is

not

only

a

science

with

its

own

laws

and

methods

but

also

an

art

of

reproduction

and

recreation.

2. Aim of foreign language learning and the importance of translation

(1)

What

are

the

objects

of

a

foreign

language?

Learning

a

foreign

language

is

not

easy

but

it

is

worthwhile.

It

enables

you

to

read

foreign

scientific

and

technical

literature, and

that

might be

useful. It

makes

you e

nable

to read some of

the

world?s

best writers in their own language, and this is a great pleasure. But the most important

thing is that it gives you a better understanding of your own language.

(2)

Translation

is of

great

value to

foreign

language

learners. It

is

very

important to

the

development

of

our

nation.

Translation

keeps

you

informed

of

the

international

situation;

translation

enhances

our

competitive

power

in

the

international

market;

translation

serves

as

instrument

of

propagating

traditional

culture.

Translation

is

for

inter- lingual communication, bridges

the

gulf between different-tongue speakers, and

reproduces

and

spreads

the

message

in

the

original

language.

Translation

permits

knowledge

to

be

transmitted

to

different

corners

of

the

world

and

to

succeeding

generations.

Translation

gives

information,

reveals

feelings,

and

affect

people's

thought

or

behavior.

Through

translation,

we

can

draw

on

the

advanced

experience

and

achievement

in

the

field

of

science

and

technology

of

foreign

countries.

Without

translation, the worldwide civilization would not be possible.

Today

,

translation

plays

an

increasingly

important

role

in

our

country's

economic

reform

and

opening

to

the

world.

More

and

more

people

of

financial

and

business

circles from all parts of the world come to our country and take part in joint ventures,

cooperative enterprises, sole foreign-invested enterprises, and various other economic,

trade

and

technological

cooperation.

This

situation

results

in

the

great

need

of

translators,

English

Chinese

translators

in

particular.

Translation

promotes

mutual

understanding between Chinese and

foreigners, contributes

to the speeding

up of our

country?s

modernization

and

thus

is

absolutely

necessary

in

the

development

of

our

market economy

.

Crite

ria and Principles of Translation

Criteria

is

something

we

can

use

to

evaluate

a

translation.

We

can

say

that

the

criteria

of

translation

function

as

plumb-line

for

measuring

the

professional

level

of

translation

and

as

a

good

set

for

translator

to

strive

after.

There

have

been

various

opinions about the appropriate criteria

for

translation. First of all, we

tend to think of

Y

anfu

who advocated

for the

first time the three words as translation criteria:

namely,

faithfulness, expressiveness, and elegance.

1.

Y

an fu?s criteria:

(1)

Faithfulness:

It

means

the

full

and

complete

conveying

or

translation

of

the

original content or thought. That's to say a translator must bring out the original

meaning

both

comprehensively

and

accurately

without

any

distortion

or

casual

addition or deletion of the original thought.

Now

let?s

have

a

discussion

of

how

the

following

expressions

or

sentences

in

accordance with faithfulness.

e.g. 1. My work, my family

, my friends were more than enough to fill my time.

原译：我干工作，我做家，我有朋友往来