文化的多样性和文学作品翻译.docx
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文化的多样性和文学作品翻译.docx
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文化的多样性和文学作品翻译
Abstract:
Intranslationofliteraryworks,thegreatdifficultyliesinculturalgapaswellaslinguisticgap.Inthisessay,somemethodsoftranslationareputforwardaccordingtotheprinciplesoftranslation,suchasliteraltranslation,freetranslation,literalandfreetranslation,Translationwithfootnotes,usingsimilaridiomsandsoon.
KeyWords:
culturalgapdiversityofcultures
translationofliteraryworks
概要:
文化之间的差异造成我们在文学作品翻译中很难把具有某一种文化鲜明特征的事物准确地翻译到另一种文化中去。
本文通过这一难点的分析,指出在翻译尤其是文学作品翻译中的几个原则及常用的几种文学作品翻译方法,如直译,意译,直译与意译相结合,加注补义,成语或习惯用语的替代等并结合实例加以说明。
关键词:
文化代沟文化的多样性文学作品翻译
Introduction:
Eachnationhasitsdistinctiveculturewhichisconcernedinpoliticalideas,literatureandart.scienceandtechnology,mythandlegend.localconditionsandcustomsandmodesofliving,etc.Differentcultureshavetheirownhistoricaltraditionswiththeirowncharacteristics,andduringthecourseofhistory,besidesthecontactofpeople,translationplaysanimportantroleinculturalevolutionandculturalexchanges.
Asweknow,thetaskoftranslationistoconveyaculturetootherswithadifferentlanguage,andthediversityexistinginculturesandlanguagescausesmanyunexpecteddifficultiesintranslation.
Everylanguagehasitsowncharacteristics,sotheremustbealinguisticgapbetweenlanguages.AccordingtoQianZhongshu(钱钟书),afamousChinesetranslator,thecraftsmanintranslationofliteraryworksisthattranslationofaliteraryworkfromonelanguagetoanotherrequiresonetoretaintheoriginalflavoroftheworkaswellasavoidsomefarfetchedmarkscausedbylinguisticgaps.Sointranslationculturalgapisalsoagreatdifficulty.BeforeearlytwentycenturyChinesepeoplehadnoideaofwhatis“democracy”and“democracy”wastranslatedas“德谟克拉西”accordingtoitspronunciation.ItwasaftertheChinesepeopleacceptedthebourgeoisiedemocracythattheChineseequivalent“民主”cameup.Tothisextent,thelinguisticgapisverysimilartoculturalgapandthedifficultyintranslationisseeminglycausedbythelinguisticgap,butactuallyitiscausedbytheculturalgap.
Infact,thereexistproblemsintranslationapparentlycausedbythedifferenceofcultures.InChina,abatisregardedasagoodman,whileinthewestitisthoughtasastrangekindofcreaturewithpeculiarcharacters.SoeventhoughtheBatBrandElectricFanshadexcellentquality,theywerechangedintoanothernameinordertoexportthemtothewest.AnothercaseisthatsomeChinesepeopleoften,withoutthinking,regard“个人主义”inChineseastheequivalentof“individualism”inEnglish.However,thosewithalittleknowledgeofAmericansociocultureknowclearlythat“individualism”isthetotalsumofAmericans’conceptsofvalue,andthecoreoftheAmericanoutlookonlife,anditadvocatesfullplayofindividualfreedom,rightsandindependentthinkingandaction.SoindividualismreflectsthebasicnormofAmericanlifeandthemainstreamofAmericanculture.ButinChina,Weoftenemphasizetheinterestofthemajorityandtheindividualinterestmustsubmittothemajorone.Accordingly,“个人主义”referstothequalityofthosepeoplewhoalwaysthinkaboutthemselves,whichisnotadvocatedbyoursociety.Sotheculturalconnotationsof“个人主义”aredifferentfromthatofindividualisminAmericanculture.
Owingtothediversityofcultures,misunderstandingwillappearwhenpeoplefromdifferentnationalitiesareincommunication.ProfessorHuWenzhongoncemadearesearchontherelationshipbetweentheculturaldifferencesandforeignlanguageteaching.Hecarriedoutawrittensurveyamongsomeforeignteachersandtheirstudents.Of28foreignteachersinvolvedinthissurvey,26teachersthoughtthereexistedaculturalgapwithintheirstudents,accountingfor92%,and97%studentshadthesameopinion.ThoughProfessorHufocuseditonforeignlanguageteaching,Ithinkthisphenomenonalsoexistsintranslation.Ifwedon’tknowaboutthedifferencesbetweentowcultures,andjustcomprehendthesourceculturalinformationwithourownculturalinformation,thenthiswillresultinsomemistakesinunderstandingandexpressing.Inthatcaseitwillbedifficulttoconveytheoriginalculturalinformationfaithfullyandcorrectly.
Hence,itismorearduoustoovercomethedifficultiesresultingfromculturaldiversitythanthatfromlinguisticgap,andmoderntheoristsinthisfieldhaverealizedthatthegreatdifficultyintranslationliesinthediversityoftheculture.
PrinciplesinTranslatingLiteraryWorks
InLuXun’s(鲁迅,oneofthemostfamouswriterandtranslatorinearly20century)opinion,atranslatorshouldtakeconsiderationoftwothings:
oneistomaketherenderingeasiertounderstand,theotheristoretaintheflavoroftheoriginalwork.Andheoncesaid:
“Ratherbefaithfulthansmooth.”However,inthepastdays,thetranslationcircleinChinaproposedthattranslationissupposedtogiveafreereignofChineselanguageforthepurposeofbringingintofullplaymanyChineseexpressionsincludingabundantvocabulary,flexiblesentencepatterns,Variousmeansofrhetoricandidioms.Inmyopinion,translatorsshouldbecautiousoftakingthisstep,especiallywhentheyaretranslatingidioms.Proverbs,allusionsandmetaphorsetcsincetheycontainmuchculturalinformation.Otherwise,misunderstandingwillarise.Forexample,sometranslatorsrendered“tocastpearlsbeforeswine”asChineseversion“对牛弹琴”butthetruemeaningofthisphraseisthatapersonthrowssomepearlsbeforeaswine,buttheswineattackshim,insteadofshowingitsappreciation.Inotherwords,itmeansreturningevilforgoodwhichindicatesnomeaningof“对牛弹琴”,andtheyarenotequivalentstoeachotherbecauseoftheirdifferentculturalorigins.
So,intranslation,especiallyintranslationofliteraryworks,renderingoughttobetruetotheoriginalculturalinformation,withnodistortionsoralterations.Inotherwords,atranslatorshouldn’treplacetheoriginalculturalinformationwithhisownoneoraddsomeextrainformation,Howeverbecauseofculturaldiversity,variousculturalinformationmaybeinevitablylostindealingwithtranslating,andwhattranslatorsshoulddoistominimizethelossoftheculturalinformation.
Inaword,culturaldiversitiescausemanyproblemsintranslation,andtranslatorsarerequiredtonotonlycomprehendthelexicalmeaningofawordoranexpressionbutalsotoexploreitssocioculturalmeaningsoastomaketherenderingbothstickingtotheoriginalcultureoftheliteraryworksandeasyforreaderstounderstand.
MethodsUsedinTranslating
Traditionally,thetwomajormethodsintranslatingareliteraltranslationandfreetranslation.
ILiteralTranslation
Sometranslatorsholdthatinthetargetlanguage,weshouldpresentboththecontentandtheformoftheoriginal(theformherereferstothemetaphors,imageryandthestyleoftheoriginal).Suchamethodcalledliteraltranslationhasbeenparticularlyemployedbymanytranslatorsofliteraryworks.Theyareconvincedthatthisisawayofbeingfaithfultotheoriginallanguagetext.Ithinkliteraltranslationcanretaintheoriginalculturalinformationintheoriginaltext.Forexample,aChineseline“懒婆娘的裹脚布又长又臭”canberenderedinliteraltranslationas“foot-bindingsofaslatternlongaswellassmelly.”Therenderingisnotonlyexpressiveofthemeaningofthephrase,butalsoiseasytounderstandincontext.Howeveritmayalsobringsomeinevitableproblemswhicharecausedbydiversityofcultures.Forinstance,SometranslatorsrendertheChineseline“上坟烧纸”as“togotoburnpiecesofpaperatone’sgrave.”Itisreallydifficultforforeignerstounderstand,thoughthisrenderingcompletelyreflectsthemeaningofthephraseliterally.Inthiscase,itshouldbetranslatedinto“togotosacrificeatone’sgrave.”Anotherexample,“ItwasFridayandsoonthey’dgooutandgetdrunk.”istranslatedas“星期五发薪日到了,他们马上会出去喝得酩酊大醉。
”Here,“Friday”wasnotjusttranslatedinto“星期五”,but“星期五发薪日”,becauseinBritain,itisonFridaythattheemployeesgettheirsalary.Itisnecessarytoadd“发薪日”init,oritmustmakethereadersfeelpuzzled.Hence,wemaysayliteraltranslationcansometimesrevealonculturalcharacteristics,butitmakessomerenderingsdifficulttounderstand.
ⅡFreeTranslation
Thosewhoareadvocating“freetranslation”areapttosacrificetheformoftheoriginallanguageforthesakeofeleganceandintelligibilityinthetargetlanguage.Tosomeextent,freetranslationmaymaketranslationsmuchmoreelegantandeasiertounderstand,butitwillalsocausethelossofculturalinformationcontainedintheoriginalwritings.Forexample,
“这两件事都是实的,倘若审起来,体面上须不好看,‘三十六计走为上计’,卷卷行李,一溜烟急走到省城去了。
”(吴敬梓《儒林外史》第五回)
Rendering:
“Bothcomplaintsaretrue,andifIhavetoappearincourtIshallloseface.BettermakemyselfscareHebundledsomethingstogetherandfledtotheprovincialcapital.”(TranslatedbytheYangs)
Heretherenderingseemseasilyunderstandable,butitresultsinthelossoftheoriginalflavoroftheculture.Inordertofaithfullyconveytheoriginalculture,it’sbettertotranslateitinto“ofthethirty-sixstrategies,thebestistoquit”whichisalsoacceptableforforeignreadersthroughreadingthecontext.
Anotherexample,ifwetranslate“……IamaDutchmanif……”inliteraltranslationas“如果……我是个荷兰人”,IamafraidmostoftheChinesereaderswouldn’tunderstanditclearlybecausepeopledon’tknowtheculturalbackgrounds.Asweknow,thoughEnglishpeopleonceadmiredtheDutchmen,theydonotlikethem.IfanEnglishmanissaidtobelikeaDutchman,hewouldbedispleased.Inthiscase,thissentencebecomestheexpressionofcursing.WealsoknowthatthissentenceisalwaysusedinspokenEnglish,andthetoneisnotveryviolent.Sowecantranslatethesentence“‘Thenwe’vewon?
’sa
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- 关 键 词:
- 文化 多样性 文学作品 翻译