翻译方法分析：中国礼仪与习俗

摘要：本文選自英国汉学家翟理斯（Herbert Allen Giles）的China and the Chinese，讲述的是作者在清末对中国社会、中国人以及这个国家风俗习惯的了解以及研究。整本书分为六章，分别从中国汉字，中国的民主程度，古代中国与古希腊的对比和中国传统习俗等方面着手，分析和研究中国社会的意识形态。本文选取了第六章Some Chinese Manners and Customs作为翻译素材，首先节选部分以小见大，对比和比较成为作者的一大写作特点，对比的范围包括官场、宴会、女人的社会地位等，由细微之处来凸显东西方文化的差异。其次文中作者多次引用孔子、老子的至理名言，这也是本文的另一大亮点。 本文首先介绍翻译选材的来源及特点，着重分析作者的写作手法以及创作风格，其次探索翻译理论以及方法，通过作者的写作风格的了解以及掌握，可以更好地总结出论文作者的翻译技巧以及翻译理论。

关键词：翟里斯；China and the Chinese；翻译理论；翻译方法

On Selected Chinese Translation of Some Chinese Manners and Customs

Liu Yuncong

Comparative Education， University College London， London， the United Kingdom

Abstract： This paper is the translation practice of a selection of Some Chinese Customs and Manners， written by Herbert Allen Giles， a British diplomat， professor of Chinese language. The selection tells about how a foreigner thinks about China and Chinese and his personal opinions about the country through his unique perspective and deep understanding. The author of the thesis aimed to improve her translation competence by deeper understanding Herbert Allen Giless unique writing style and translating his masterpiece. The First part of the paper is the analysis of the characteristic of the original text， Some Chinese Customs and Manners， the second part is the translation methods used and comprehension about this translation.

Keywords：Herbert Allen Giles；Some Chinese and Chinese Manners；translation methods； translation theory

一、The source of translation and analysis of its characteristics

（一）The source of the translation

Some Chinese Manners and Custom is the sixth chapter of China and the Chinese， written by Herbert Allen Giles， which was published in the United States in 1902. The book focuses on the Chinese language， Chinese library and democratic Chinese. Considering the situation at that time， a period filled of conflicts and collision， the selected chapter features huge comparison and contrast between China and western countries in terms of manners and cultures， which is readable and researchable.

（二）The characteristics of the translation

Herbert analyses China in all kinds of perspectives， particularly in the sixth chapter， he displays his comprehension about China by using lots of proverbs of Confucius and Laozi.

The conciseness language style is one of the characteristics， which thoroughly revealed by his description of the actual status of Chinese women and their devotion to families as well as their way of living. All opinions are based on his actual experience. Besides the language style， the approaches he used in the translation are another feature.

Comparison and contrast can be often seen as ways to show the differences， since lots of examples are taken for the explanation， the discrepancies are likely to be understood.

二、Discussion about translation methods

Massive reading of this book and his other masterpiece is required before embarking on translation. As a sinologist， the authors understanding of Chinese traditional culture proves to reach the limitation， thanks to his unique perspective as a foreigner and his experience in China as a diplomat， the description is quite objective and profound， which is admirable.

One of the obstacles in this translation is the difference in two different cultures. After painstaking study for Chinese traditional backgrounds， Herbert has grasped the language style of Confucius and Laozi， two Chinese saints. Alienation and adaptation have been used many times to make the translation more understandable.

Although it has been a century since the book has been published in the US， the peculiar style accurate diction will lay a solid foundation for the future researchers， especially when it comes to the translation of Chinese culture and manners.

The author of the thesis benefits a lot from this meticulous work. On one hand， she has gained a deeper comprehension of different cultures through reading all kinds of materials， on the other hand， she realizes that a foreigner can become a teacher even in terms of something related to China. These have driven her to deepen the study in Chinese traditional works. In the following part， the author of the thesis will focus on the difficulties in translation revealed in this chapter and some translating approaches.

（一）Verbalization of Nouns

The verbalization of nouns is commonly seen phenomenon in modern English， where there are many examples of nouns used as verbs. Verbalization has become a trend as English develops， as an important way of word formation； verbalization of nouns enlivens and economizes our linguistic expression，

【例句1】

原文：The allotment of these toys is not quite so disparaging as it seems.

譯文：这样分配男孩和女孩的玩具并非像它看起来那样在贬低女孩。

原文：Here we have the real obstacle to the abolition of this horrible custom， which vast numbers of intelligent Chinese would be only too glad to get rid of， if fashion did not stand in the way.

译文：如果不是在新时代，废除这项可怕的习俗有一定的阻碍，现在大量聪慧的中国人都会很高兴的摆脱这一习俗。

分析：In the first sentence， allotment is an example of verbalization of nouns， which has been translation as distribute or assign. In this second case， abolition is verbalized. One advantage of the word formation is that the translation context is more in line with Chinese reading habits， that is， the frequent usage is one of the characteristics in Chinese language， and lots of verbs are used in both literal and written forms. In English language， there is only one main verb in a sentence. The differences in two languages show that when it comes to English-Chinese translation， numerous verbs should be used to make the passage more fluent.

（二）The usage of literal translation and liberal translation

Because there are special characteristics and forms in different languages， and there are homogeneity and differences in the vocabulary， the phrase， the method of habit and expression， we should translate it according to actual circumstances， handle it nimbly at the time of translation. The “literal translation” and “liberal translation” are two major forms of translations. They are not exclusion； contrarily， complement each other. We can find that the “literal translation” and “liberal translation” are blending as well as milk and water in any successful translation

【例句1】

原文：Women of the shopkeeper class often display great aptitude for business， and render invaluable assistance to their husbands. As in France， they usually keep the cash-box.

译文：商店的女主人通常表现出巨大的商业潜能，并对她的丈夫提供宝贵的帮助。就像在法国，她们通常掌管着钱袋子。

分析：The translation of cash-box belongs to literal translation， indicating the original meaning of the phrase “cash-box”， an object that stores money. By “literal translation” means while translating we should be faithful to the original and keeping the language form of the original at the same time as far as possible. This phrase， whether in Chinese languages or in western languages， both show the similar meaning， so literal translation is suitable.

【例句2】

原文：A widow who remains unmarried for thirty years may be recommended to the Throne for some mark of favor， such as an honorary tablet， or an ornamental archway， to be put up near her home.

譯文：如果一位寡妇30年都没有再婚，那么她将被举荐至朝廷，皇上将在她的家附近为她立贞洁牌坊。

分析：“an honorary tablet” and “an ornamental archway” sound unfamiliar to Chinese， according to the context， the two phrases mean a reward for a widow who remained unmarried for a long time， and in Chinese culture， we do have a name for this reward. That is “zhenjiepaifang”. In order to translate the two phases properly， liberal translation is suitable. Since it requests us to express the general ideas of the original naturally and fluently on the premise of grasping the marrow deeply， not to be formalistic.

【例句3】

原文：I was told that the crossing was in order to exhibit to each the “heart，” i.e. the palm， of the hand， in token of loyalty.

译文：曾经有人告诉我，这样做是为了向每个接受茶的人展现自己的“诚意”，例如，手掌代表了忠诚。

分析：The original meaning of “heart” means a human organ， but here it was not what the author was talking about. Actually， the “heart” means loyalty and sincerity. These show that the context is one of the key factors when choosing an appropriate translation method.

【例句4】

原文：When two mandarins of equal rank find themselves face to face in their sedan-chairs， those attendants among their retinues who carry the enormous wooden fans rush forward and insert these between the passing chairs， so that their masters may be presumed not to see each other and consequently not be obliged to get out.

译文：如果两位同级别的官员面对面相遇，各自坐在轿中，这时候，那些跟随左右手持大木扇的随行人员会迅速站在两顶即将交错通过的轿子中间，挡住两位官员的视线，这样一来，两位官员就可以假装没有看到对方，结果就是避免了两人都从轿中走出的麻烦。

分析：“sedan-chairs” and “passing chairs” mean the same thing in Chinese， a traditional mode of transportation for officials. The “sedan” and “passing” are the essence， which indicates both the speed of the chairs and the shape of it. “Sedan” is an automobile that has four doors， and “passing” shows that the special chair moving in a slow speed. Since this kind of automobile is rarely seen in China at that time the author of the thesis decides to narrow down the gap by choosing liberal translation.

【例句5】

原文：A son is often spoken of playfully as a little dog，—a puppy， in fact； a girl is often spoken of as “a thousand ounces of gold，” a jewel， and so forth.

譯文：男孩通常被近乎开玩笑地称为犬子，而女孩则被称作“千金”，珠宝等等。

分析：Without the basic knowledge of Chinese culture， “a thousand ounce of gold” only indicates the weight of gold， however， the author knows the actual meaning before using it. This is often used as a nickname for ones beloved daughters， like “honey” or “sweet heart” in the west. Literally translation approach is used in this situation， which makes him closer to Chinese readers. It is noticeable that “a thousand ounce of gold” is not applied to all girls， but only to those from wealthy families. The translation of“puppy” uses two kinds of methods- literal translation and liberal translation. The term is often used as a sigh of modesty for a father introducing his sons， especially in some formal occasions.

（三）The translation methods of passive sentences

The passive voice is used quite frequently in English， but in Chinese it is less used， People are often severed as subject for Chinese language， their western language， however， fond of using object as subject. Therefore， in Chinese-English translation， how to translate passive sentences into Chinese， make it simple， objective， accurate， more in line with Chinese custom， is the goal that the author of the thesis should obtain.

【例句1】

原文：False queues are to be seen hanging in the streets for sale. They are usually worn by burglars， and come off in your hand when you think you have “caught your man. Prisoners are often led to， and from， imprisoned by their queues， sometimes three or four being tied together in a gang.

译文：于是，可以在大街上看到挂起待售的假辫子了。通常窃贼才会戴假辫子，这样在他被抓住的时候辫子会掉下来。囚犯在被送入或带出监狱时，通常三四个人的辫子会被绑在一起。

分析：A series of passive words are used in the context， including “are to be seen”， “are worn”， “are led to， and form， imprisoned”， “being tied”. The first choice is to make the verbs active， however， the remaining two verbs continue to be passive. The frequent translation of “are to be seen” is “see”， we should add someone as the subject， in this case， “The Chinese” is a perfect choice. “Worn” is often translated as “chuan” or “dai”， since in peoples daily life， they never use passive voice to describe their outfitting. When the behavioral subject appears in a passive English sentences， it should be noticeable that some words that has the meaning of passivity in Chinese should be used， like “bei”， “ba”， “shou”， “ wei…suo”， which highlight the passive meaning in the original sentences.

（四）The usage of adaptation and alienation

Adaptation and alienation are strategies in translation， regarding the degree to which translators make a text conform to the target culture. Adaptation is the strategy making text closely conform to the culture of the language being translated to， which may involve the loss of information from the source text. Alienation is the strategy of retaining information from the source text， and involves deliberately breaking the conventions of the target language to preserve its meaning. These strategies have been debated for hundreds of years and make a great contribution for translation studies.

【例句1】

原文：This， however， is rhetorical rather than practical， somewhat after the style of another well-known Chinese proverb， “If you bow at all， bow low.

譯文：这只是一种修辞而不是实际，有些另一个著名中国谚语的风格：“既然低了头，那就多低一点。

原文：In fact， the Chinese proverb says， “If you escort a man at all， escort him all the way.”

译文：事实上，中国谚语常说：“帮人帮到底，送佛送到西”。

分析：Adaptation is used in the two Chinese proverbs， which is often used when it comes to transcultural translation； the benefit of this is due to peoples preferences of something they are familiar with.

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作者简介：刘云聪（1993-），女，甘肃天水人，英国伦敦大学学院比较教育专业2015级研究生。研究方向：教育管理，教育政策。