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Idiom Translation under the Chinese

and English Cultures

Class XXX

Student’s

Number XXX

Name XXX

Abstract

:

Nida, a famous translator, says,

more important to familiarize two cultures than master two languages, because words

are assigned meanings in its particular cultures.

(Background information)

This is to

say, translation is closely related with not only languages but also cultures. Studies of

the

cultural

distinction

in

idiom

translation

are

still

relatively

weak

in

the

field

of

translation

in

China.

Exclusive

research

on

the

translation

of

Chinese

and

English

idioms

is

still

incomplete.

In

the

last

twenty

years,

idiom

translation

has

mostly

emphasized

the

level

of

inter- lingual

communication,

but

cultural

differences

were

rarely involved in it.

(Identify problem)

This thesis analyses the cultural differences in

Chinese

and

English

idioms,

then

studies

English-ChineseChinese-English

idiom

translation methods

(Research subject)

from the angle of culture

(Method)

and points

out some warnings concerning idiom translation: pay attention to context and choose

the right version in line with the style and meaning of the original passage

(Results)

;

culture is

a whole way

of life, when new culture emerges, new idioms

also appear,

therefore idiom translation should develop with the time.

(Conclusion)

Key Words

:

Idioms, Culture, Translation

1. Introduction

Idioms universally exist in every language. An Idiom is a word or an expression

that cannot

be literally translated

from

the source language into the target

language

because

its

idiomatic

meaning

cannot

be

understood

by

literally

defining

its

component parts.

(Background)

In a broad sense, idioms contain set phrases, proverbs,

1

colloquialisms, slangs, maxims, allusions, etc. (YinLi, 2007:9) In Chinese, they also

include enigmatic folk similes. Newmark, a British translation theorist, in his work

A

Textbook of Translation

, said,

I define as culture the way of life and his manifestation

that

are

peculiar

to

a

community

that

uses

a

peculiar

language

as

its

means

of

expression

.

(Previous

research)

English

Idioms

derives

from

English

cultures

and

daily life. In real context, idioms explain themselves: nine times out of ten they carry

their own explanations. If we are unaware of these, we will find ourselves in a state of

confusion

since

we

will

assign

literal

meaning

to

them.

The

Chinese

Idioms,

especially the four-character idioms, have their own unique origins which are closely

correlative

to

the

Chinese

history

and

cultures.

In

view

of

the

difficulties

in

understanding

idioms,

we

should

pay

due

attention

and

efforts

to

understand

their

cultures

and

customs.

This

thesis

is

designed

to

dig

into

the

cultural

differences

between Chinese and English and then elaborates on the translation theories applied to

idioms.

(Subject + Method)

2. A Comparison Between English and Chinese Idioms

2.1

The Cultural Differences Between English and Chinese Idioms

2.1.1

Geographical Conditions

The formation of culture is closely related with natural geographical conditions. A

specific geographical environment produces a specific culture, which also leads to a

particular expression.

Great

Britain

covers

islands

including

the

Northern

one-sixth

of

the

island

of

Ireland between the North Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea, northwest of France. It

has a moist

climate with much rainfall. Rivers

and lakes are numerous.

No wonder

that fishery is thriving and most important in Britain. Accordingly, idioms concerning

fish

and

navigation

constitute

a

great

part

in

English

idioms.

(LiYuping,

2008:20)

(Theory/Results of previous research)

For example,

awkward and uncomfortable because you are in an unusual and unfamiliar situation.

2

Fish in the air

缘木求鱼

An odd fish

怪人

Miss the boat

错过机会

Trim the sails to the wind

顺势前进

A small leak will sink a great ship

小洞不补要沉大船

(Examples)

On

the

other

hand,

China

is

located

in

the

Asian

Continent

and

reputed

as

an

agricultural

country

with

a

large

population

of

peasants.

It

is

not

surprising

to

find

many idioms relevant to farming, such as

骨瘦如柴，对牛弹琴

,

众人拾柴火焰高

,

竹篮打水一场空

......

so they have idioms like

海角天涯，

海枯石烂，

海阔天空，

海底捞针，

海市蜃楼

......

(Analysis)

2.1.2 History

…… ………………………………………………………………………….

……………………………………………………………………………….