论翻译与大学英语教学

黄 健

(黑龙江生态工程职业学院 人文社科系，哈尔滨 150025)

1 Introduction

Nowadays, we can figure out this kind of description in College English syllabus: “build up excellent reading skills and good listening, speaking, writing and translation ability of learners.” According to this sentence, we can conclude that although the syllabus admits the promotion of listening, speaking, writing and translation ability is more and more important, the top posi-tion still belongs to reading skill. But College curriculum design should conform to the society needs. The college students are required to grasp translation ability. But this syllabus does not become effective in real teaching process, there are still some problems and deficiencies. It mainly includes the following problems: first, students’ translation ability has not been built up when they finished the college curriculum; second, the text books ignore the translation part too. Learners nearly have no chance to practice translation, so their ability of translation is weak.

As translation is a part of academic ability, English teachers must have high expectations of a student’s ability to cope with the demands of English learning. However, it is also an activity that many college students don’t enjoy very much. To succeed at schools, students need to possess a range of strategies and skills that support self-directed learning. Traditionally, many of these strategies and skills, some of which are highly generic, are not explicitly taught to students in the expectation that students either already have these skills, or will naturally acquire and develop these skills in their course of study. In order to improve the college students’ ability of English, we should answer the following questions: What are the functions of translation in college English teaching? How to apply translation in college English teaching?

2 Predicament of English Translation Teaching

Translation should be the important part in English teaching. But in college English teaching, translation is neglected. The following are reasons.

First, teachers do not pay enough attention to translation. In traditional teaching method, we have grammar teaching method and audio-lingual method which was popular in 1950s, and language communicative method and text analytical method which was popular in 1980s. Those methods play important role in foreign language teaching of our county. However, those methods do not pay any attention to translation. They are just emphasis on basic teaching method. Neglecting of translation has a long term history. This is the reason of which we neglect translation nowadays. Moreover, teachers are over emphasis on basic knowledge of English, and ignore the theories and skills of translation in teaching process. In College English Intensive Reading lesson, teachers pay most of their attention to grammar and vocabulary, just little to translation. Normally teachers ask students to translate the whole text by themselves and then tell all students the result of the translation, but no process, no theory. This teaching method ignores the skills of translation. What is more, teachers ignore the inner connect between basic knowledge and translation practice. Emphasizing basic knowledge is very normal in teaching process. But this kind of situation happens usually: teachers split translation and basic knowledge in teaching process instead of connect them together. It is clear to us that we must get solid foundation of knowledge and rich vocabulary and excellent reading ability for the training translation ability.

Second, students do not pay enough attention to translation. We could ask this question to all of the college students: which part of English learning you think is the hardest part to you? We could get several answers, like reading, listening, grammar, and oral English, etc. But, nearly none of them would say it is translation. This shows the underestimate of translation in all students. For a long time, most of students believe the most important part of English learning is grammar, listening, or something like that. Many students believe translation is just a part of reading comprehension process. If you understand the whole essay, you could translate it very easily. These kinds of thinking make learners satisfy when they just understand the general idea of sentences, but not accurate idea. So their translation ability is very hard to be promoted. By the way, weakness of learners’ basic knowledge influences their translation ability. This mainly shows on: poor grammar, weak vocabulary, etc.

3 Application of Translation to College English Teaching

3.1 Application of Translation to Reading Teaching

Translation activity plays a very important role in improving reading ability. In the exercises of reading comprehension, a big part of question is multiple-choice questions. As the result, students are eager for quick success and instant benefit. They do not seek to understand the reading material deeply. We choose several difficult points to ask student, some of them still do not understand the meaning. This kind of exercise cannot examine the real reading level of students.

Translation has three steps, there understand, expressing and checking. And understanding is the base of expressing. We can find the root of students’ problem with the method of translation. According to the problem, teachers carry out pertinent explanation and practice, and analyze the difficult words or complex sentences deeply, then translate it into corresponding Chinese.

3.2 Application of Translation to Writing Teaching

English writing can examine English express ability of student, examine student whether they have the ability to carry out communion with English knowledge and skill that they have learned. English writing have been a difficult problem for Chinese students. And academic world experts and scholars have done a lot of research for this. Can we use translation method to promote English writing level? That is the key question.

On the side of second language writing, many scholars had proved the bilingual character of second language writing by research. These embody the effects of mother language thinking way to English writing.

(1)Translating the Chinese notes in long-term memory into English notes;

(2)Translating the other relative material such as title or reader material into English;

(3)Translating organized Chinese notes in planning into organized English notes;

(4)Translating Chinese propositions with intact thinking into English propositions with the same composition;

(5)Using Chinese evaluating to evaluate the English made-up article, then decide whether to go into the procedure of revise.

Although the hypothesis is not final conclusion, it provides evidence that translation exists in procedure of English writing. Carrying out the translation teaching in proper time is helpful for learners to improve there comprehensive language ability from the high vision, and it is also good for improving of the second language writing in the view of short time proper.

3.3 Application of Translation to Abstract Science and Technology Terminology Teaching

In college English teaching, application of translation to teaching can help student to grasp some difficult words or sentences rightly. It is helpful for the whole chapter understanding. Some teachers have this experience: sometimes the students still could not understand the meaning of a word or a sentence after teacher spent a lot of time and effect to explain. However, with the aid of our native language, the learners enlightened suddenly. Therefore, some science and technology proper nouns or difficult sentences should be translated; the method is helpful for students to understand the meaning. Word for word translation must be spurned, but translating some difficult words or sentences propriety does not bring mother tongue interference to foreign language. The other way round, it is helpful for understanding. All kinds of language have the parts of corresponding and different. In the part of corresponding, we should translate the content into native language, so the content meaning is concision, definite and easy to remember. Contrarily, using English to express English is complicated, confuse and hard to remember, especially some abstract science and technology technical terms. Without application of translation, it is difficult for students to catch the accurate meaning. Thus, it affects connotation understanding of the whole article.

E.g. Histories make men wise; mathematics subtle; logic and rhetoric able to contend.

(历史使人明智，数学使人周密，逻辑学和修辞学使人善辩。)

Above-mentioned examples adopt the matching method; teachers translate the vocabulary of terms such as logic, rhetoric and global navigation satellites into Chinese. So complicated interpretations are avoided, students catch the technical terms meaning rapidity and correctly, and the time is saved.

3.4 Application of Translation to Comparative Analysis of two Languages

All kinds of language have commonness and differences. So we can apply native language to teaching. We apply translation as a method to carry out necessary and limited language comparative analysis and emphasize on analyze the dissimilitude between two languages. This method contributes to learning language knowledge and regulation in the round, and lays a foundation for single-language practice.

For example, let us to compare Chinese and English greetings. The Chinese greetings are “您好”,“吃饭了吗？”or “您去哪里？” and so on as usual. But the English greetings are “How do you do?”, “How are you?”, “Hello！”or “Hi!”，etc.

Though comparing two languages, students can grasp that the English greetings have no relation with native language, so making mistakes can be avoided. Furthermore, we apply native language to teaching; the English greetings are easy to understand.

3.5 Application of Translation to Special Sentence Structure and Grammar Structure Teaching

In English, there are some special sentence structures and grammar structures, and those structures such as tense, voice, tone are provided with the meaning that we cannot neglect. They deliver the information that letter cannot explain. It is necessary to use translation method in this language situation. Teacher use mother language to give out the exact meaning. It can avoid ambiguity and specious translation. E.g. “It’s time he began to work.”Students may translate the sentence into: “这时他已经开始工作了”. It is wrong. The right translation is“该是他开始工作的时候了”.In the example sentence “It’s time+ subject+ past participle” and “It’s time+ for somebody+to do something”, they have the same meaning. The past participle “began” in this sentence is subjunctive mood; it is not mean the past. Accordingly, using translation method, we can achieve good effect.

4 Conclusion

To sum up, using translation in college English teaching can promote teaching and learning. No matter in elementary stage or senior stage, translation is a functional method for guiding English study. Translation should become more and more important in college English teaching. Taking practical and effective measures in college English teaching will be beneficial to students’ communicative competence. Students will have a better understanding of the cultural difference between China and the West. Consequently, under the condition of our country, translation measure is essential.

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[2]申雨平，戴宁.实用英汉翻译教程[M].北京：外语教学与研究出版社,2002.