Strategies of Reading & Translation for Chinese Students By Prof. Zhang Dingzhou

I. Reading & translation – indispensable skills for students of English 1. an important course for a student 2. an important requisite for an employee

Syllabus for TEM 8: 能运用汉译英的理论和技巧，翻译我国报刊杂志上的文章和一般文学作品。速度为每小时250 -- 300个汉字。译文必须忠实原意，语言通顺。流畅。 能运用英译汉的理论和技巧，翻译英美报刊杂志上的文章和文学原著。速度为每小时250 -- 300个英文单词。译文必须忠实原意，语言通顺。流畅。 测试形式： 主观试题，考试时间60分钟。 From Chinese to English: 150个汉字的段落 From English to Chinese: 150个英文单词的段落

Challenges for students of English in reading & translation 1. Tom was not late for class because of his illness. 因为生病,汤姆上课没有迟到。 2. My only capital is diligence. 我唯一的资本是勤奋。 Diligence – my only means to success.

II. Difficulties for Chinese students in reading & translation 严复：“一名之立，旬月踟躇。” 理查兹：“翻译很可能是整个宇宙进化过程中迄今 为止最复杂的一种活动。” -- 许渊冲：《英汉、汉英翻译教程序言 》, 1990

1. 两种不同的文字系统： 中文： 　 parataxis,意合法 英文： hypotaxis,形合法

她弹钢琴，他吹笛子…。 1) She plays the piano and he plays the flute. Both of them are musicians. 2) She plays the piano but he plays the flute. They play different musical instruments. 3) While she was playing the piano, he played the flute. They produced beautiful tunes. 4) After she played the piano, he played the flute. Their performances were a great treat to the guests.

Examples: 1) 瓜熟蒂落，水到渠成。 When a melon is ripe, it falls off its stem. When water flows, a channel is formed. 2) Everything is good when new, but friends when old. 物莫如新，友莫如故。 3) A woman without a man is like a fish without a bicycle. 没有男人的女人好似没有自行车的鱼。 女人用不着男人，就象鱼用不着自行车。

Examples: 4）Time goes fast for one who has a sense of beauty, when there are pretty children in a pool and a young Diana on the edge, to receive with wonder anything you can catch! 当你跟可爱的孩子们站在池子里，又有个年轻 的狄安娜在池边好奇地接受你捉上来的任何东 西时，如果你懂得什么叫美的话，时间是过得 很快的！（152）

Zeugma 共轭 1. The senator picked up his hat and courage. 参议员捡起了帽子，同时鼓起了勇气。 2. While the Vietnam vet was fighting, and losing limb and mind, others stayed behind to pursue education and career. 越战老兵在浴血奋战时，即使不缺胳膊少腿也回沦为疯 子，而其他人这会儿却躲在他们后面求学深造，一展宏 图呢。

3. Friction can be considerably reduced and the life of the machine prolonged by careful lubrication. 对机器仔细加以润滑，能大大减少摩擦，从而延长机器 的寿命。 4. A scientist constantly tried to defeat his hypotheses, his theories, and his conclusions 科学家会经常设法去否定自己的假设，推翻自己的理 论，放弃自己的结论。

5. The availability of venture capital financing to young, high technology companies has been a primary contributor to the dramatic revenue growth enjoyed by, and the increased competitiveness of, America’s high technology industry. 新兴高科技公司所获取的风险资本融资，对于美国高 科技产业收益率的大幅提高和竞争力的不断提升起到 了重大的作用。

6. The start-up program for the reactor must not be commenced before completion and formal acceptance of fire precautions and associated installations by the competent authorities in question and by the insurers or their representatives. 在消防措施和相关设施完成并由有关当局及保险公司 或其代理人正式验收之前，不得开始反应堆程序。

2. 植根于不同文化土壤中的两种语言 1）Every dog has his day 2）月貌花容 with a face like the moon and a visage like a flower 3）His retort was delivered with a strong note of vinegar. 他用非常不快的口气作了反驳。 4）Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate. (Shakespeare)

Examples: 5) “The chancellor has been sentenced to death.” “Give a dog a bad name.” “首相被判死刑。” “欲加之罪，何患无词。” 6) 这个女人真是红眼病，连朋友长得好看都要嫉妒。 She is a green-eyed woman, even jealous of her friend’s good looks.

Examples: 7.旧历新年快来了。这是一年中的第一件大事。除了 那些负债过多的人以外，大家都热烈地欢迎这个佳 节的到来。 The traditional New Year Holiday was fast approaching, the first big event of the year, and everyone, except those who owed heavy debts – which traditionally had to be paid off before the year – was enthusiastically looking forward to it.

3. 两种不同的思维方式和表现手法 １）你来得不是时候。 You could have come at a better time. ２） He can’t see you quickly enough. 他想尽快和你见面。 3）We’d better let the sleeping dogs lie. 我们最好别去惹这个是非。

这个队两年前就成立了，到现在还没赢过一场球。 More examples: 4）The team was organized two years ago and it has yet to win a single game. 这个队两年前就成立了，到现在还没赢过一场球。 5）A：你应该休息一下。 B: 我必须一口气把它做完。 A: You should take a break sometime. B: I have to do this in one sitting. (perspective)

More examples: 6) I don’t know her to speak to. 我和她只有点头之交。 7) A big elephant is not more an animal than a little cat is. 大象是动物，小猫也是动物。 8) He was not the eldest son of his father for nothing. 他不愧是他父亲的长子。（否定转移）

More examples: 9) A: You have a big nose. B: Look who is talking! 10) A: Those students are terrible. B: Don’t I know it! A: 那些学生真差啊。 B：一点都没错。 (Mode of thinking)

11) The maxim was that when a married couple saw red lawyers saw green. 俗语说，夫妇吵得脸红耳赤之时，便是律师招财进 宝之日。

III. Strategical consideration of Translation

Translation – an early social activity in human history 1.《册府元龟》里的《外臣部 朝贡》： “夏后即位七 年，于夷来宾。少康即位三年， 方夷来宾。” （夏后即位：2197 B.C. 少康即位：2079 B.C.) 2. 安世高，东汉，148 A.D. 二十余年，佛经95部 3. 埃及国王托勒密二世邀72学者到亚历山大图书馆， 把《圣经 旧约》从希伯来语译成希腊语 (285 B.C. -- 249 B.C.)

鲁迅：“我是至今主张‘宁信而不顺’的。” （〈给瞿秋白的信〉） 傅 雷: “传神”论：译文和原文在形式上和精神上 中国列代的翻译理论： 玄奘：“既须求真，又须喻俗”（公元620年前后） 严复：“信、达、雅” (1853 -- 1921) 鲁迅：“我是至今主张‘宁信而不顺’的。” （〈给瞿秋白的信〉） 傅 雷: “传神”论：译文和原文在形式上和精神上 同时一致起来。 （ 1951） 钱钟书: “化境”说：原文的思想、感情、风格、神韵都 原原本本地化到译文的境界里，不留任何翻译 的痕迹。（1964）

奈达的动态对等原理 （Dynamic Equivalence）: Translating consists in reproducing in the receptor language the closest natural equivalent of the source language message, first in terms of meaning and secondly in terms of style. 翻译就是在译语中复制出与原语首先在意义上其次 在风格上最切近与自然的等值语。 (Eugene A. Nida and Charles R. Taber, p. 12, The Theory and Practice of Translation,1969)

对翻译初学者的要求： 正确理解和表达原文的思想， 忠实与通顺, 译文的文字流畅地道。

翻译的方法: literal translation & free translation 直译：按照词或句的直接含义来表达原文。 优点：能顺其自然地表达原文的本色。 缺点：在一定程度上影响译文的畅达 和可接受性。 意译：在原语与译语无对应形式的情况下， 采用折射或迂回的手段来表达原文。 优点：能较好地保持译入语的习惯性 和译文的可接受性。 缺点：在一定程度上影响译文的准确性。

1）能直译时就直译： 船小好掉头：A small boat turns easily. 望而生畏：be terrified by the sight of 望梅止渴：quench one’s thirst by thinking of plums 看风使舵，他的口气立即变得温和了。 Steering according to the wind, he immediately softened his tone.

Examples: 他活该！老虎头上扑苍蝇。 Serve him right! Only fools catch flies on a tiger’s head. 你“借刀杀人”之计好厉害呀！ Your scheme to murder with a borrowed knife is very effective. A wise man thinks all that he says; a fool says all that he thinks. 智者思其所言， 愚者言其所思。

This organization is today collapsing on its clay feet. Its organs have been cut out, dissected and reshaped so that they may perform the way the puppet masters want. 今天这个泥足支撑的组织正在崩溃。它的器官被割掉、肢 解和整形，以使其按照木偶操纵者所要求的方式行事。 （马来西亚总理马哈蒂尔2004年在第58届联合国大会上的发言）

Language enriched by literal translation 幽默 (humor); 逻辑 (logic); 芭蕾 (ballet); 引擎 (engine); 扑克 (poker); 歇斯底里 (hysteria); 达摩可利斯之剑 (Damocles Sword, 意指某种威胁); 潘多拉的匣子 (Pandora’s Box, 指灾祸之源); 挪亚方舟 (Noah’s Ark, 代表和平); 犹大之吻 (Juda’s Kiss, 表示奸诈的背叛) Lose face 丢面子 paper tiger 纸老虎 Gongfu 功夫 yinyang 阴阳 Long time no see 好久未见

貌合神离的假朋友： pull one’s leg 拖后腿; eat one’s words 食言; make one’s hair stand on end 令人发指; a walking skeleton 行尸走肉; foot the bill 踩着支票； laugh one’s head off 笑掉大牙 in the seventh heaven 升天 (a place or condition of utmost happiness) hang on sb’s lips 挂在嘴上 (listen attentively)

2）不能直译时就意译 She liked to be with him better than with others. a. 她喜欢与他在一起， 并不那样喜欢与别人在一起。 b. 她觉得跟他比跟别人在一起更开心。 c. 她觉得跟他在一起最开心。

望穿秋水：have long been looking forward 望尘莫及：too far behind to catch up; too inferior to compare with He got the sack because he used to loosen his tongue. 他曾因信口开河而被解雇 范进被胡屠户一口啐在脸上，骂了个狗血喷头。 Butcher Hu spat in Fan Jin’s face, and poured out a torrent of abuse.

a. not even the first stroke of the character 八 is in sight. Examples: 八字还没有一撇呢 a. not even the first stroke of the character 八 is in sight. b. There is not the slightest sign of anything happening yet. 他没料到半路上会杀出一个程咬金来。 a. He did not expect that Cheng Yaojin should appear half way. b. Little did he expect that half way another man should appear and try to poke his nose into the matter.

Examples: Sleep came upon me as it came on many other outcasts, against whom house-doors were locked, and house-dogs barked. 我和其它那些无家可归、无处栖身的流浪汉一样，在 不知不觉中睡着了。

Examples: Benjamin Franklin ： If we do not hang together, we shall most assuredly hang separately. a. 咱们要是不biao（提手边加票）到一块儿，保准会 吊到一块儿。 b. 如果我们不能紧密地团结在一起，那就必然分散地 走上绞刑台。

1. 表层义和隐含义：Denotation and connotation Nida: “Translation means translating the meaning.” I am never at a loss for a word, and he is never at a loss for the word. 我从来不愁找不到词来表达思想，而他从来不愁 找不到最合适的词来表达思想。

Examples: 妇人问道：“叔叔，青春多少？” 武松道：“武二二十五岁》” The woman asked again, “Brother-in-law, how many green springtimes have you passed?” “Twenty-five,” Wusong answered. Pearl S Buck:《All Men Are Brothers》

一径来至一个院门前，看那凤尾森森，龙吟细细， 正是潇湘馆。 At last he came to a secret door which was hidden away behind a thicket of high ferns by the edge of a quiet pond. A mysterious thumping which seemed to come from a water dragon living at the bottom of the pond, filled the air. -- Florence & Isabel Mehugh:《The Dream of the Red Chamber》 Bamboo dense as phoenix plumage there made a rustling music. -- Yang Hsienyi and Gladye Yang:《A Dream of Red Mansions》

2. 归化译法与异化译法: Domestication and alienation 鲁迅：“翻译和旅行外国是很相像的，它必须有异国 情调，就是所谓洋气。” 《且介亭杂文二集 “题未定”草》 1）All roads lead to Rome 条条道路通罗马, 百川归海, 殊路同归 2）雨后春笋： Spring up like mushrooms (《汉英成语词典》p388) Spring up like bamboo shoots after a spring rain

Examples: 3) A brewer’s wife may drink of a tun. a. 酿酒人的妻子不愁酒。 b. 近水楼台先得月。 4）to cast pearls before swine 明珠暗投 5）The pitcher went once too often to the well. 常在河边走，哪能不湿脚 6) 对新药业，老实讲，我是擀面杖吹火 - 一窍不通。 To be quite honest with you, I don’t know the first thing about the modern drug business.

Translatability: 拙作 my writing 寒舍 my house (residence) 贱内 my wife 贵庚 your age 高见 your opinion 雅意 your kindness Art or science? 因文而异，相机行事； 互补有无，相得益彰

Books recommended on translation 1. 实用翻译教程 冯庆华 上海外语教育出版社 2. 英汉互译实用教程 郭著章 李庆生 武汉大学出版社 3. 论翻译教学 主编 刘宗和 商务印书馆 4. 英汉互译 – 方法与实践 主编 王卫平 华中科技大学出版社 5. A Textbook of Translation Peter Newmark 上海外语教育出版社 6. Translation and Relevance -- cognition and Context Ernst-August Gutt 上海外语教育出版社 7. Discourse and the Translator Basil Hatim & Ian Mason 上海外语教育出版社 8. Dictionary of Translation Studies Mark Shuttleworth & Moira Cowie 上海外语教育出版社