英语论文汉英数字文化比较及其翻译.docx
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英语论文汉英数字文化比较及其翻译.docx
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英语论文汉英数字文化比较及其翻译
汉英数字文化比较及其翻译
[Abstract]Numbers,asaspecialpartinthescienceoflinguistics,arewordsoriginallyusedtoexpressquantityorsequence.NumbersservethesamecalculatingfunctioninbothChineseandEnglish.Butbecauseoftheculturaldiversityfoundinthenationalpsychology,religiousbeliefandmythology,numbersareendowedwithabundantculturalconnotationsandassociations.AndbothChineseandEnglishpeopleshowdifferentcults,taboosandconnotationstowardsthedifferentoridenticalnumberssoastogeneratetheirownnumeralcultures.Therefore,intheprocessoftranslatingnumbers,especiallyonesinthefolklanguageandliteraryworks,translatorsshouldmakearelativelythoroughstudyofthelanguageandculturebothinChineseandEnglish,andconsiderthediscrepancyinthevaguenessofnumbersrespectivelybeforerenderingsatisfactorytranslations.
[KeyWords]numbers;Chinese;English;comparison;translation
【摘要】数字是语言科学中的一个特殊领域,是表示数量或顺序的词类。
在汉英两种语言中,数字作为计算功能的意义是一致的。
但由于受民族心理、宗教信仰、神话传说等文化差异的影响,数字被赋予了丰富的文化内涵。
对不同或相同的数字,汉英有着不同的崇尚或禁忌习俗,以及不同的联想和意义,并由此而孕育出各自独特的数字文化。
因此,在翻译数字,尤其在民间语言和文学作品中,要对汉英两种语言与文化有较全面的了解,并充分考虑到英汉数字的模糊语义的差异,灵活运用不同的翻译方法,才能译出形神兼备的作品。
【关键词】数字;汉语;英语;对比;翻译
1.Introduction:
1.1Language,cultureandnumbers
1.1.1Therelationshipbetweenlanguageandculture
Culture,acontroversialandpuzzlingquestion,hasbeenconceptualizedfromdiverseperspectivesbygenerationsoflinguistsandanthropologists.Ithasnocompletelystandarddefinitions,however,“culture,inabroadsense,meansthetotalwayoflifeofapeopleincludingthepatternsofbelief,customs,objects,institutions,techniques,andlanguagethatcharacterizesthelifeofthehumancommunity”[1].Ascultureissoinclusive,itpermeatesvirtuallyeveryaspectofhumanlifeandinfluencespredominantlypeople’sbehavior,includinglinguisticbehavior.Andlanguage,“thecarrierandcontainerofculturalinformation”[2],iscommonlyviewedasameansofcommunications,meansofexpressingideasandemotionsofhumanbeings. Language,asareflectionofthecultureandamirrorofthesociety,isstronglyinfluencedandshapedbyculture.Andcultureisinfluencedbymanyfactors,suchaslanguage,beliefs,customs,socialhabitsandsoon.Thus,languageandculture,intrinsicallydependentoneachother,cannotexistwithouteachother.Thecloserelationshipbetweenlanguageandcultureisreadilyshownbythefactthatcultureistransmittedfromonegenerationtothenextthroughlanguage.
1.1.2Thedefinitionofnumbers
Asfarastherelationshipbetweenelementsoflanguageandcultureisconcerned,thewordsrelatemosttightlytotheculture.Andnumbers,asanimportantpartinlanguageworld,haveaninformativefunction.Butwhatisnumber?
AsOxfordAdvancedLearner’sEnglish-ChineseDictionarydefines,“Anumberisawordorsymbolthatrepresentsanamountoraquantity”[3].Numbersareusedwidelyineveryaspectoflife.Withoutnumbers,nothingcangetalongwellintheworld.Asweknow,numbersaregrammaticallydividedintocardinalnumbers,ordinalnumbers,multiples,fractionsandapproximatenumbersinChineseandEnglishlanguage.
AndtheconceptofnumbersstemsfromtheNature,fromhumanbeings’observationandexplorationtotheobjectiveworld,fromtherealizationandgeneralizationtothephysicalworld[4].Anumberistheabstractconceptthatcanbeconsiderednotonlyasthewordbutalsoasthesymbol.
1.2Thepurposeofthispaper
Numbersarecreatedfromtheinteractionofhumans’socialandculturalbehaviorwiththeirabilitytoconceptualizetheiroutsideworld.Sonumbersarenotmerelymathematicaltools,butextendedasmetaphorsintheidiomaticusageswithaseriesofconnotations.ChinesepeopleandEnglishpeopleshowdifferentappetitestowardsthenumbers.SothereexistdifferentculturalconnotationsandextensionsbetweenChineseandEnglishnumbers.Thispaper,fromdiverseculturalbackgroundsofnumbersinChineseandEnglish,discussesthediscrepancyinthenationalpsychology,religiousbelief,mythologyandsoon,andgeneralizesseveralmethodsoftranslationinnumbers,especiallyinliteraryworks,soastofacilitateinterculturalorcross-culturalcommunication.
2.TheculturaldiversitybetweenChineseandEnglishnumbers
Allhumanbeingsusenumberssothatthecultureofnumbershascomeintobeing.Numberspenetrateintoeveryaspectofhumanlife[5].Yet,numbers,whichreflectthescalesofthematerialworld,havebeenendowedwithrichculturalconnotationsduetothedifferentculturalbackgrounds.AsfarasChinesecultureisconcerned,itbearssomesimilaritiestotheworldculture,butithasbeenlayingmorestressontheusagesofidioms.TherearenumerousChineseidiomsandidiomaticusageswithnumbers,suchas:
说一不二,五湖四海,三教九流,一日不见,如隔三秋,三十六计走为上计,三句话不离本行,八九不离十,百战不殆,七零八落,九霄云外,九九归一,十万火急andsoforth.
InEnglish-relatedculture,therearealsoalargequantityofidiomsoridiomaticusageswithnumbers,suchasthreesheetsinthewind,theupperten,secondtonone,two-by-four,four-letterman,catch-22,two-leftfeet,andsoon.Besides,oddnumbersexcept13,arefavoredandadornedbywesternpeople.Forinstance,number“seven”withmarkedreligiouscolourisusedfrequentlyintheScripturestosignifycompleteness.Similarly,multiplesofsevenarealsousedinasimilarsenseofcompleteness[6].ButinChinese,itisontheotherwayaround.Althoughthediscrepancyinthesocialtraditionandthediversityinthenumericalcultureareuniversal,thereexistsageneralcultofnumbersinbothChineseandEnglish.Thefollowingpartwillfocusontheculturalsourcesofnumbercultorworshipfromthreeaspects,thatis,nationalpsychology,religion,andmythology.
2.1Numbersandpsychologyofnationalculture
InChineseculture,heavenandearthproduceeverythingbytheinteractionoftwoexistentialandpowerfulforcesoftheuniverse,yinandyang.“Sincenumberswereconsideredamysticalpartoftheuniverse,theancientChineseregardedoddnumbersasyangormasculineandevennumbersasyinorfamine”[7].“Nine”,asthelargestsingledigit,tookonthemeaningof“ultimatemasculinity”andimpliedtheloftiestreverenceforheaven.Therefore,thenumber“nine”symbolizedthesupremesovereigntyoftheemperorwhowastheSonofHeaven. Andthenumber“nine”(oritsmultiples)isoftenemployedintheChineseancientarchitecture,particularlyimperialbuildings.Ancientpalaceswereusuallydesignedasnine-sectionarchitecturalcomplexesrelatedtothenumber“nine”inthenumberorsize.TaketheForbiddenCity,locatedinthecenterofBeijingforexample.Ithasatotalof9,999bays,andtheGateTowerofTian’anmenhasninebyninebays.Thusnumber“nine”oritsmultipleisubiquitousinthearchitectureofthesacrificialtemple.AndtheNineDragonScreennearBeihaiParkhasalsobeenconnectedwithnumbernine.TheChinesepeopleshowpreferencetonumber“nine”,notonlyontheconstructionofthebuilding,butalsoinotherfields,suchas:
AnnualfestivalfeastsfortheroyalcourtoftheQingconsistedof99kindsoffoods.Andadivisionofancientfeudalgovernmentofficialswas“ninelevel”.Besides,tocelebrateanemperor’sbirthday,therewere81formsofentertainmentcalledthe“nine-ninebigcelebration”towishtheemperorgoodluckandlongevity[8].Byandby,thenumber“nine”becameexclusivelyreservedandadornedbyChinesepeople,eventoday.
Generallyspeaking,inChineseculture,evennumbersareregardedtobeluckyandpropitioussymbols,whichcanbringpeoplegoodluckandfortune,whileoddnumbersareincomplete.ButasfarasEnglishpeopleareconcerned,thisphenomenonisontheotherwayaround.Theypreferoddnumberstoevenones,suchas“three”,“seven”,ofcourseexcludingnumber“thirteen”,asisknowntonearlymostEnglish-speakingpeople.Whencelebratingorsendingflowerstofriendsorrelatives,peopleshouldtakeone,three,five,orevenmore(excluding13),whereas,peoplesendtwoorfour,sixflowersoritsmultiplewhencondolingwithdeceasedpersons.
Buteverythinghasitsbothsides.Forinstance,number“four”inChinesehasabadandunluckyassociationandconnotation,thoughitisanevennumber.Thus,anotherelementthatrendersnumbersgoodorbadinChineseisthehomophonyandpunninginamany-toneword.Number“four”hasasimilarsoundwiththeChinesecharacter“死”,representing“death”.Soalargenumberofpeopletryeveryefforttoavoidit.ThepossibleomensassociatedwithnumbersandsoundsofnumbersbytheChineseareinexhaustible.Incontrast,thenumber“eight”isfortunatebecauseitsoundslike“发”,namely,makingafortune.Whenitcomestothecasesliketelephonenumbers,vehiclelicensenumbers,doornumbers,peopleshowspecialpreferencetonumber“eight”orsomethingassociatedwithnumber“eight”,suchas168(tomakeafortunealltheway)(一路发),518(Iwanttomakeafortune)(我要发)andsoforth[9].Numberninealsohassuchluckyassociationduetoitssoundandpunning“eternity”(久).Thereforepeoplefavortochoosethedaterelatedtonumber“nine”astheweddingday.The21stCenturyoncereportedthaton9th,September1999,165pairsofpeopleweremarried,inthehopeofhavingeverlastingloveforeachother[10].
Butincontrast,Englishpeopleworshipnumber“four”,whichisthesymbolofjustice,righteousness,power,thefountainofcreation,andthekeyofeverythingintheworld[11].Forinstance,totheearlypeople,thecosmosismadefourelements:
earth,air,water,andfire.
2.2 Numbersandreligionorphilosophy
Religion,consideredtobethekernelsourceofaculture,withoutdoubtinfluencespeople’sconceptionofculture,becauseof
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