On Translating English Figures of Speech—Transferred Epithet & Zeugma into Chinese

【Abstract】This paper is going to use some examples to illustrate how to translate English figures of speech- transferred epithet & zeugma into Chinese.

【Key words】English figures of speech； transferred epithet； zeugma； translate

【作者简介】朱久堂，江苏省徐州医药高等职业学校。

1. Translation of transferred epithet.

1.1 The definition and characteristics.

A figure of speech in which the epithet is transferred from the appropriate noun to modify another to which it doesnt really belong.

a. The words which is used to modify A， but in fact， it is transferred to describe B（that is， transferred modification.）

b. In terms of its form， it seems that the modifiable words focus on a noun， in fact， another noun which exists in the descriptive phrases is the real modified object when it comes to the meaning.

“A sweet voice” 一副甜嗓子（from the sense of taste to the sense of hearing）

“An icy look”一副冷漠的神色（from the sense of touch to the sense of seeing）

“An angel of a woman： an angel-like woman” 天仙般的女人。

In the phrase “ an icy look”， “icy” collocates with the word of look， but originally it should be used to show the feelings.

1.1.1The relations between the transferred adjective and its headword.

From some examples， we can find some logical relations between the transferred adjectives and its headword（中心語）， such as the reasons， results， time and functions etc. For example：

（1）“People listened with open-mouthed astonishment while the shocking news sank in.” （result）

当这条令人震惊的消息传来时，人们听后都惊的张大了嘴巴。

（2）“The sky was overcast， and poured down onto the dirt crossroads a very discouraging light. （function and effect）”

阴沉沉的天空使这片泥土地的十字路口呈现出一片令人沮丧的色调。

1.1.2 The characteristics of the logical headword：

Sometimes， the logical headwords modified by the transferred adjectives are in or out of the context. For example，

（1）“But he just looked at her with his crying face.” （ the logical headword is “he”） 然而，他只是泪流满面地瞧着她。

（2）“I enjoy the clean voluptuousness of the warm breeze on my skin and the cool support of water. “（ the real headword is water）

和煦的微风吹拂着我的肌肤，凉爽的海水托浮着我的身体。我享受着那种纯净的飘飘欲仙的感觉。

（3）“America has shown us too many desperately worried executives dropping into early graves.“（the real headword is dropping）”

在美国有多少走投无路的经理过早地跌进了坟墓。

1.1.3 Under some circumstances， we cannot find the logical headwords modified by the transferred adjectives， because they are out of the context. Under such conditions， the transferred adjectives are used according to the writers feelings， associations and psychological activities etc. for example.

（1）“The American society saw a gnawing poverty during the years of the Great Depression.“（hearing connection：animals gnawing）

在大蕭条年代，美国社会充斥着噬心啮肺的贫困。

（2）“All the time the creeping fear that he would never come back to her grew strong within her. ” （touching connection：a worm creeping on the skin）

一直令她揪心的那种毛骨悚然的恐惧与日俱增---她感到他将永离她而去。

1.2 The methods of translating the transferred epithet

Transferred epithets usually can be translated with the method of relative literal translation to express the original meaning. Of course， the most important thing is to re-express its original meaning. If we cannot keep the content and form of the original transferred epithets at the same time， we can overlook the style and just translate its meaning and give some explanation.

（1） “There was an amazed silence. Slowly Alexander turned away. ”

“Silence” in the sentence is an abstract word. Usually， the words like “total”， “dead” are used to modify the word “silence”， and the word “amazed” is often used to express ones astonishment. So we can translate the sentence above into Chinese “人们一阵惊讶，默不做声。亚历山大悄然离去。”

（2） “The big man crashed down on a protesting chair.”

After reading the sentence， many people may be surprised. Thinking about it， after all， we know that the chair cannot bear the weight and give out some noise. So we get a good translation “大个子一屁股坐下去，椅子吱吱嘎嘎的响（像是抗议似的）。”.

2. Translation of zeugma

2.1 The characteristics of zeugma：

The figure of speech takes advantage of something common and the interior relations of the substance， changes the meaning of the words to form a new collocation. In order to demonstrate the logical relations and meaning， the writers will create one new collocation to make the readers think deeply and understand the real meaning. This kind of expressions can strike a chord with the readers. In the construction of this figure of speech， one word can be collocated with the two parallel words or phrases， but one is used in its literal meaning and the other is used in its figurative meaning. For example，

“She had to swallow bread and butter and a spasm of emotion.”

她吞食着黄油面包，但抑制不了感情的波澜。

In this sentence， “to swallow bread and butter” is used in its literal meaning， while “to swallow a spasm of emotion” is used in its figurative meaning.

2.2 The types of zeugma

2.2.1 The same word （usually verbs） collocates with two or more objects. For example，

“Lawsuit consumes time， and money， and rest and friends.”

诉讼使人丧失时间，金钱，安宁和朋友。

The verb “consume” collocates with time， money， rest and friends.

2.2.2 The same word or phrase that has many meanings collocates with two or more objects is used to form some different phrases， for example，

“He picked up his hat and his courage. “（庞人骐：〈英语转换修辞句法〉）

他捡起了帽子也捡回了勇气。

“Yesterday he had a blue coat and heart.”

昨天他身着蓝上衣，心情忧郁。

In the first example， “pick up” has two meanings. One is “ take hold of and lift something ”， the other is “ restore to normality or make better ”. In the second， “blue” has two meanings， too. One is “ having the color of a clear sky or the sea on a sunny day ” and the other is “sad or depressed ”.

2.3 The methods of translating zeugma

2.3.1 Antithesis translation：

Antithesis translation is a method that expresses the contrast of ideas marked by the choice and arrangement of words. For example，

“When my sorrows and I are dust…”（Dickens： A Tale of Two Cities）

等到我的尸骨变为灰烬之日，我的悲哀化为烟云之时……

“Clean your breath while it cleans your teeth. ” 满口皓齿，满口清香。

Of course， the sentences are translated according to the context. From the above translation， we can see that they are very formal.

2.3.2 Literal translation（对等翻译）

From the name of literal translation， we know that the method just uses the words meaning to translate what the sentences substances， for example：

“Words and feathers are tossed by the wind.”

话语和羽毛，随风到处飘。

“You devils ought to search our heads not our pockets.” （Gorky： Mother）

你们这些魔鬼！搜的应该是脑袋，而不是我们的钱包！

Besides， it is also effective to translate this figure of speech into Chinese four-character structures：

“They have gone with weeping eyes and hearts.”

他们走了，泪眼汪汪，心情沉痛。

From the above examples， we can see the method of literal translation is very simple， and easily applied in practice.

References：

[1]周方珠.zeugma與拈连的比较翻译[D].安徽大学外语系.

[2]王家楫.轭式修辞法的欣赏与翻译[J].中国翻译，2000，2.