2021考研:英语翻译技巧之归化(2)

文都教育

  (8) It was, as Bill afterwards expressed it, "during a moment of temporary mental apparition", but we didn't find that out till later.

  恰如后来比尔说的那样,那阵子简直是"一时鬼迷心窍".不过,我们直到后来才明白了这个意思。

  (apparition在原文中是鬼魂或幽灵出现的意思。mental apparition直译是"心中有鬼",这就很容易给人造成误解,因此需要多少将原形象适当地转换一下。)

  (9) They will be ice-skating in hell the day, when I vote the aid for them.

  要我投票赞成给他们援助,除非太阳从西边出来。

  (ice-skating in hell如译成"在地狱里滑冰"就很难为中国读者所理解和接受。)

  (10). "Until her husband won the pools, she was the most commonplace, dowdy, illiterate creature imaginable,but now that she dresses herself up like a society queen and nearly always remembers to sound her aitches, people are already beginning to forget what she was like before.

  "Fine feathers make fine birds."

  "过去没有比她更平平常常、无知无识而又邋邋遢遢的了,自从她男人赢得全部赌注以后,她打扮得象个社交皇后,总是记住发H的音,人们开始忘记她以前是什么样子了。"

  "人靠衣裳马靠鞍嘛。"

  (11) I'd much rather see her once or twice and not do anything about it–;–;what could I do about it anyway? She's a bit out of my class, don't you think? If I did try to do anything, I'd only get sent off with a flea in my ear.

  我宁愿见她一两面就算了──我还能干什么呢?你没看到她和我不怎么相称吗?我要干点什么,也只会碰一鼻子灰。

  (原文a flea in one's ear的字面意思是"耳朵上有个跳蚤",用来比喻"讥讽的话,刺耳的话".send sb. off with a flea in one's ear意思是"用讥讽的话气走某人",与汉语"碰一鼻子灰"意思相近,但如译为"用讥讽话气走某人",则过于平淡,远不如"碰一鼻子灰"生动、俏皮。)

  (12) He was so fond of talking that his comrades nicknamed him "magpie".

  他如此唠叨,同伴们给他起了个 "麻雀"的外号.

  (英语中 "喜鹊" 喻义 "唠叨、饶舌",但在汉语中 "喜鹊" 却象征着 "喜事、吉祥",而 "麻雀" 表示 "唠叨、饶舌",所以用归化法.)

  (13) There's a people's court waiting for him. His God-damned head is going to be separated from his God-damned neck.

  人民法庭正等着他。狗头就要和狗脖子分家呢。

  (原文God-damned意为"该死的",但如译成"该死的头"、"该死的脖子"远不如"狗头"、"狗脖子"痛快。)

  (14) I'm a diplomat, a linguist, altogether a bespectacled cream puff.

  我是个外交官,一个语言学家,总而言之,是个戴眼镜的银样邋枪头。

  (原文cream puff的字面意思是"奶油松饼",比喻"中看不中用的人",和汉语中的"银样邋枪头"意思相近。但如直译成"奶油松饼",则不易为汉语读者所接受。归化后,既能保存原意,又能为汉语读者所接受。)

  采用归化时,要避免走极端,不要用汉语民族文化色彩太浓的词(如:历史人物、地理名词等)来归化英语习语,否则译文会让人感觉不伦不类。

  (1) Beauty lies in lover's eyes.

  情人眼里出美人.

  (此处就不宜归化为具有浓厚汉语文化色彩的 "情人眼里出西施".译者怎能把中国古代美女西施搬到西方作品中去呢?)

  (2) Many heads are better than one.

  一人不及众人计.

  (此处就不宜归化为具有浓厚汉语文化色彩的 "三个臭皮匠,顶个诸葛亮".如把历史人物诸葛亮搬到西方作品中去,总让人感到不伦不类的.)

  (3) Never offer to teach fish to swim.

  不要教鱼儿游泳.

  (此处也不宜归化为具有浓厚汉语文化色彩的 "不要班门弄斧"、 "不要关公面前耍大刀".)

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