On the translation skills of English proverbs from the factors affecting the translation of English proverbs

钟建

【Abstract】English proverb， the treasure of the English language， is the crystallization of English nation. The thesis introduces several methods to the translation of English proverb. The paper concludes the definition of English proverbs. English proverb has its own characteristics in form and content. This thesis also analyses the factors that affect the translation of English proverb. According to these factors， three translation methods are discussed in this paper， which are word-for-word translation， free translation， and applying translation.

【Key words】Definition； proverb； characteristics； factors； translation methods

1. The Definition of Proverb

Although people are very familiar with proverbs， there is still no certain definition of proverb， and it is very difficult to give a clear definition to them. Of course， Both foreign scholars and Chinese scholars have been discussed the definition of proverb for many years. In conclusion， English proverbs are short in form and the forms are not liable to change. Because of its short form， English proverbs are easy to remember and transmit orally from one generation to the next， but difficult to understand. English proverbs are concerned with life， work and so on. Before they are accepted， they should been a long time. Proverbs are not only the carries of intelligence and wisdom of a nation， but also reflections of spirit and instruction of a nation throughout history.

2. Characteristics of English Proverb

As a particular linguistic unit， proverbs have their own specific features in form， content， which enhance their expressiveness and vividness. Therefore， when we translate proverbs， we should fully manifest these characteristics.

2.1 Characteristic in terms of Form

Like Chinese proverbs， English proverbs also have their structures， such as， inversion， parallelism， repetition and so on. Now let us look these special structures of English proverbs and some corresponding examples.

Inversion is a dislocation of a bodily structure in which it is turned partially or wholly inside out. This structure of English proverbs has a special function in terms of syntax structure， the level of expression， the effect of expression and language and aesthetic aspect.

（1）Happy is he whose friends were born before him.

The normal sentence should be like this： He whose friends were born before him is happy.

In parallel structure， it is necessary to balance word for word， phrase for phrases， clause for clause and sentences for sentences（冯庆华，1997：387）.A parallelism is a figure of speech that uses similar structures in separate sentence to express related ideas and with which the sentence is emphatic and forceful.

（1）Everyone is weary： the poor in seeking， the rich in keeping， the good in learning.

Repetition means the act or an instance of repeating or being repeated. Repetition can emphasize the content and give people deep impression.

（1） A bargain is a bargain.

2.2 Characteristics in terms of Content

English proverbs are related to peoples life， specific history， economy， culture， religious beliefs， customs and geographical surroundings. So some English proverbs are about weather， some are about peoples daily activities， some are about geography， some are about money， time， friends， marriage and love， some point out the universal truth， so on and so forth. In a word， English proverbs are not only profound in terms of ideological， but also in presenting ethnic properties.

3. Factors that Affect the Translation of English Proverbs

Proverbs translation is restricted by many factors， including historical background， custom and religious belief.

3.1 Historical Background

During the course of history， proverb is like a mirror， clearly reflecting the changes of history. With the development of social， the changes of social history made a tremendous change of language， the old language has been replaced the new language gradually.

In 55 BC， the Roman commander Julius Caesar had conquered the British Isles， while the “Roman Conquest” began in 43 BC in the British history. From then on， the Britain was occupied by the Romans for 400 years. We can still find the trace of history in todays English proverbs. For instance，

（1）Do in Rome as the Romans do. 入乡随俗。

（2）All roads lead to Rome. 条条大路通罗马。

These two English proverbs are enough to reflect the influence of “Roman Conquest” to English proverbs， and they are enough to reflect the glory days of the Empire of Rome.

3.2 Custom

Proverbs are not only affected on a nations economy， religion， politics and literature， etc. but also reflect the custom of the nation. Let me introduce a simple example， though Chinese always look down on dogs and use dogs to describe bad things and bad people， most Anglo-American countries have a good impression and sense to dogs， they consider dogs as their reliable friends.

（1） Love me， love my dog. 爱屋及乌。

It means anyone who want to keep the friendship with me are all need to accept and stand the things all belongs to me， including my own opinions and hobbies.

3.3 Religious Belief

Religious belief is not only a kind of ideology， but also a kind of spiritual customs. It is extremely complex， which has all kinds of connections with life， work and learning of human beings. Christianity plays an important role in Anglo-American countries. In “Bible” there are many proverbs that are related to Christianity.

（1）Forbidden fruit is sweet. 禁果分外甜。

This proverb is well-known for everybody； forbidden fruit is the apple that Don Adam had eaten in the Garden of Eden. “Forbidden fruit” means the thing one want to get because it was forbidden. This proverb says that the thing you cant have is quite enticement.

4. Translation Skills of English Proverbs

How to translate the proverbs correctly and appropriately is to convey content of the original work completely， According to the different characteristics of proverbs， and the factors that affect the translation of English proverbs， I will mainly introduce three translation skills.

4.1 Word-for-Word Translation

“直说还是直说，比喻还是比喻，在消除语言差异的同时，保留言语上的差异。”In the principle of functional equivalence， the literal translation is faithful to the original content in the first place， the faithful to the original form is put in the second， take the form of smooth on the translation methods of third. Now， let us look some literal translation. For example，

（1） Like father， like son. 有其父必有其子。

（2） He walked at the head of the funeral procession， and every now and then wiped away his crocodile tears with a big handkerchief. 他走在送葬队伍的前头，还不时用一条大手绢抹去他那鳄鱼眼泪。

4.2 Free Translation

“意译是把忠实于原文的内容放在第一位，把通顺的译文形式放在第二位，而不拘泥与原文形式的翻译方法。”The translation is faithful to the original content in the first place， the translation smooth is put in the second translation methods， and not according to the original form. When the literal translation is difficult or barely translated and readers cannot understand， generally， we often use free translation.

（1）Beggars cant be choosers. 饥不择食。

（2）A horse stumbles that has four legs.人非圣贤，孰能无过。

If we use the word-for-word translation “有四条腿的马会失蹄”，we will be confused and can not understand the meaning. But if we use the free translation， we can know what the author wants to express.

4.3 Applying Translation

Some English proverbs are in the same meaning and form of Chinese idioms and proverbs. When we translating this English proverb into Chinese， we can borrow the Chinese idioms or proverbs which are have the same or similar meaning to translate. If we choose it， not only we can keep the verve and the form of the original proverbs， but also there are easy to read and accept by readers. For example

（1）A new broom sweeps clean. 新官上任三把火。

（2）In the kingdom of the blind， the one-eyed man is the king. 山中无老虎，猴子称大王。

Conclusion

As the essence of English， English proverbs have harmonious sounds and pronunciation， which stimulate students to learn English proverbs. The diversities of its structure， the vividness of its content provide useful material for English learning. This thesis discusses the definitions of English proverbs， the characteristics of English proverbs， the factors that affect the translation of English proverbs， and the translation skills of English proverbs， which can make great efforts in translating English proverbs.

Reference：

[1]Gregory Titelman.Random House Dictionary of Popular Proverbs and Sayings[M].New York：Fodor，1996：1456.

[2]冯庆华.实用翻译教程[M].上海：上海外语教育出版社，1997：387.

[3]冯世刚.翻译通讯[M].北京：中国对外翻译出版公司，1982.