第4讲 语境与选词.doc

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1、广西师范学院 英汉互译（一）课程教案编号: 15-4 开课单位：外语系 授课教研室：翻译写作课程名称：英汉互译（一） 授课教师： 唐旭光教 材：新编英汉互译教程， 授课对象：06级英语专业2、3、5班授课时间： 授课时数： 2 课时授课课题6. Context and Wording in Translation (1)7. Context and Wording in Translation (II)授课形式讲练课教学目的与要求Techniques and skills on how to word in translation教学重点Context and Wording in Trans

2、lation教学难点Context and Wording in Translation教学方法与手段理论讲解与翻译操练相结合教学内容及过程设计 1知识点介绍1. Towards context2. The various definitions of context by different scholars 3. The functions of context: Restrictive and Interpretive Function1). Restrictive Function(1). First, lets see how extra-lingual context restri

3、cts peoples way of using language. (2). Next, lets see how intra-lingual context realizes its restrictive function. 2). Interpretive function(1). First, we will see how intra-lingual context realizes the interpretive function. (2). Para-lingual context also helps to narrow down the meaning of an utt

4、erance. 4. Wording in translation5. Classification of the word meaning6. Wording across languages:Disparities between languages eleven kinds of disparities between word-meanings among languages: 7. Three kinds of discrepancies betweeen English and Chinese words1). Partial correspondence. 2). No corr

5、esponding words can be found between English and Chinese. 3). Polysemous words in English, each sense matching a corresponding word in Chinese.8. Intra-lingual context and wording1). lexical context and wording2). Sentential Context and wording 3). Discourse context and wording2. 翻译操练与练习讲评作 业Exercis

6、es P150-151，专八翻译（活页）练习课后小结参考资料英汉互译（一）第四讲 语境与选词(Context and Wording in Translation)1. Towards context The concept “context”, since it was raised by the Polish anthropologist B. Malinowski in 1923, has drawn wide attention in many fields such as pragmatics, semantics, logics, anthropological linguisti

7、cs, socio-linguistics, psycholinguistics, applied linguistics, etc. In the past twenty years, context has been the focus of attention in linguistics. Translation, either as an independent science or a branch of comparative linguistics, should draw on the wealth of context theories so that it may be

8、further enriched and developed.2. The various definitions of context by different scholars 1). Hu Zhuanglin (2001: 405-406) introduces Firths theory as follows:(1) The internal relations of the text(a) the syntagmatic relations between the elements in the structure;(b) the paradigmatic relations bet

9、ween units in the system;(2) The internal relations of the context of situation(a) the relations between text and non-linguistic element, and their general effects;(b) the analytical relations between “bits” and “pieces” of the text (words, parts of words, phrases) and the special elements within th

10、e situation (items, objects, persons, personalities, events). Firths student M.A.K. Halliday made still further contribution to the study of context and put forward the notion “register” in 1964 (Wang Dechun, 1992: 129), which is a representation of the context of situation. Features of the context

11、of situation include “things like what is going on, who is taking part, and what the speech act are designed to achieve”(Halliday, 1985: 365). The three scholars formed the mainstream of London school, and their views on context are said to be static, for they failed to consider communication events

12、 in terms of the psychological environment of the speaker and hearer and neglected such personal factors such as the communicators experience, knowledge etc.a more dynamic view 2). With the thrust of pragmatics, a more dynamic view of context emerged. Mey, in his Pragmatics: An Introduction, defines

13、 context as: “Context is a dynamic, not a static concept: it is to be understood as the continually changing surroundings, in the widest sense, that enable the participants in the communication process to interact, and in which the linguistic expressions of their interaction become intelligible (199

14、3, 2001: 39)”.D. Sperber s understanding According to D. Sperber (1986, 2001: 15), a context is a psychological construct, a subset of the hearers assumptions about the world. It is these assumptions, of course, rather than the actual state of the world, that affect the interpretation of an utteranc

15、e. A context in this sense is not limited to information about the immediate physical environment or the immediately preceding utterances: expectations about the future, scientific hypotheses or religious beliefs, anecdotal memories, general cultural assumptions, beliefs about the mental state of th

16、e speaker, may all play a role in interpretation.The two linguists believe that context is a psychological construct that exists only in the hearers mind and is constantly changing. It is a variable.Wang Jianpings definition of context3). The Chinese scholar Wang Jianping (1989: 24) gives a very goo

17、d definition of context. He points out that context comprises those factors manifested as linguistic forms before or after a linguistic expression and those subjective or objective environmental factors on both of which a good grasp of the definite meaning of the linguistic expression depends during

18、 the process of communication. 语境是人们在语言交际中理解和运用语言所依赖的各种表现为言辞的上下文或不表现为言辞的主观因素。3. The functions of context: Restrictive and Interpretive Function1). Restrictive Function(1). First, lets see how extra-lingual context restricts peoples way of using language. The same animal “狗” in Chinese and “dog” in E

19、nglish have different associative and affective meanings in different cultures. In Chinese we have “狗腿子”, “狗头军师”, and “狗屁”. While western people often say “love me, love my dog”, “a lucky dog”, etc.Restrictive Function(2)(2). Next, lets see how intra-lingual context realizes its restrictive function

20、. Saeed (1997,2000: 182-183) provides a good case in point, where the same text with different titles is understood in different ways. A Prisoner Plans His Escape Rock slowly got up from the mat, planning his escape. He hesitated a moment and thought. Things were not going well. What bothered him wa

21、s being held, especially since the charge against him had been weak. He considered his present situation. The lock that held him was strong, but he thought he could break it.To be understood in different way for the change of the title:A Wrestler in a Tight Corner Rock slowly got up from the mat, pl

22、anning his escape. He hesitated a moment and thought. Things were not going well. What bothered him was being held, especially since the charge against him had been weak. He considered his present situation. The lock that held him was strong, but he thought he could break it.2). Interpretive functio

23、n(1). First, we will see how intra-lingual context realizes the interpretive function. The word “quick” has many senses. But in the following two sentences, its meaning is definite.a. He has a quick ear for music.b. Taxis are quicker than buses. (2). Para-lingual context also helps to narrow down th

24、e meaning of an utterance. Niu and Chen (1999: 33) give an example to illustrate how intonation helps the interpretation of utterances.A: Its lovely weather, isnt it?B: Lovely weather, isnt it? According to the two authors, if B answers the question with a rising tone, it means B takes a fancy and w

25、ants to continue talking with A; if B answers with a falling tone, then probably B is interested in the conversation and wants to end it as soon as possible.The definition of translation context Translation context (TC) involves various factors manifested as linguistic forms and subjective and objec

26、tive factors in both the source language society and culture and target language society and culture that affect the translators comprehension of the SLT and reproduction of the SLT in the TLT.4. Wording in translationAccording to Illustrated Oxford Dictionary(1999:961), wording refers to: a form of

27、 words used; the way in which something is expressed. In this section, by referring to the above two definitions, we prefer to define wording as: (1). selected words in texts; (2). exact choice and meaning of words used in texts. Why is wording in translation chosen as the focus of study here? Just

28、as Halliday points out, “a text is a semantic unit, not a grammatical one meanings are realized through wordings; and without a theory of wordingsthere is no way of making explicit ones interpretation of the meaning of a text” (2000: 43). So in translation of a sentence, paragraph, or text, comprehe

29、nsion of words always goes as the first step. Translators abandon literal translation only when there are special reasons to do so. Mona Baker holds the same opinion, “ Text is a meaning unit, not a form unit, but meaning is realized through form and without understanding the meanings of individual

30、forms one cannot interpret the meaning of the text as a whole” (1992, 2000: 6). The second reason is that, as Peter Newmark in A Textbook of Translation states, “the chief difficulties in translating are lexical, not grammatical”(1988: 32), and indeed, most of the mistakes made in translation are le

31、xical rather than grammatical. To achieve adequate comprehension of wording in the SLT and reproduce it in the TLT, it is necessary to look into the theory of word meaning. Word meaning is the most fluid, while textual meaning is the most definite. 5. Classification of the word meaningSeven types of

32、 meaning listed by Leech: 1). Conceptual meaning, 概念意义2). Associative meaning 联想意义(1)Connotative meaning, 内涵(2)Social meaning, 社会(3)Affective meaning, 情感(4)Reflected meaning, 反映(5) Collocative meaning), 搭配3）Thematic meaning. 主题意义 6. Wording across languages: Disparities between languages What transl

33、ators are concerned with is largely the difference of meaning aspect of the word between English and Chinese. Baker (1992, 2000: 21-26) lists eleven kinds of disparities between word-meanings among languages: 1).cultural specific concepts; 2). the source-language concept is not lexicalized in the ta

34、rget language; 3). the source-language word is semantically complex; 4). the source and target language make different distinctions in meaning; 5). the target language lacks a super-ordinate; 6). the target language lacks a specific term ; 7). difference in physical or interpersonal perspective; 8).

35、 differences in expressive meaning; 9). differences in form; 10). differences in frequency and purpose of using specific forms; 11). the use of loan words in the source text.7. Three kinds of discrepancies betweeen English and Chinese words1). Partial correspondence. The meaning of a word in Chinese

36、 may be narrower or wider than its corresponding word in English. This covers what Baker lists as 4), 5), 6), 7), 8). English kinship words make no difference between paternal and maternal side, while Chinese kinship terms pay great attention to that. E.g. aunt 姑姑，姨妈，舅妈，伯母，婶子 等. Now compare such wor

37、ds as: exclaim 大声说; blurt 脱口而出; stammer吞吞吐吐地说; whisper 悄声说; ejaculate 突然说; mumble 含糊地说. Chinese has the general word “说”, but no specific words denoting all these different kinds of “说”. English has various kinds of “say”, each should be replaced by a Chinese word plus a pre-modifier. 2). No corresp

38、onding words can be found between English and Chinese. This equals what Baker lists as 1), 2) and 3). English and Chinese are both languages rich in culture. Many words are culture-loaded, e.g. with rich cultural background. The cultural meaning of English words, according to He Shanfen (何善芬，2002: 1

39、22-125), mainly comes from their religion, myth, literary works, some historical events, customs, geographical facts, life style, ideology, etc. These are para-lingual and extra-lingual context bound. Also, there are some new terms created in English which have not yet found any corresponding words

40、in Chinese, such as “mascon” (mass concentration: 月球表层下高密度的物质聚积) and beddo （一种多用途的床).3). Polysemous words in English, each sense matching a corresponding word in Chinese. This phenomenon is very common and we can come across it wherever translation takes place and no illustration is needed. One thin

41、g we have to note is that since most words are polysemous and a single word just provides a range of possibilities for one to choose, then why does one choose the particular meaning of a particular word in the SL text, and how can the translator reproduce it? The key to these questions is the contex

42、ts.8. Intra-lingual context and wordingThe intra-lingual context is classified into three subtypes: lexical context, sentential context and discourse context. Lexical context encompasses the syntagmatic relation of collocation and the paradigmatic relation of choice of words. Sentential context invo

43、lves sentential structure and sentential meaning. Discourse context comprises paragraph, textual and inter-textual context.1). lexical context and wordingExamples：a They were discussing this question, and were almost building up some weak structure of hope on his prolonged absence, when they heard h

44、im on the stairs. b. 他们议论着这个问题，几乎在他迟迟不归上建起了结构脆弱的希望，这时，他们听见他上楼的声音。c. 他们在讨论这个问题，并且对医生迟迟不归，几乎产生了一线希望，这时，突然听见他上楼的脚步声。a. He knew what he wanted and he wanted only this: to understand within his limits as a human being the nature of the universe and the logic and simplicity in its functioning. b. 他知道自己想要什

45、么，他想要的只是：在他作为一个人的能力范围之内理解宇宙的性质以及宇宙运行的逻辑和单纯。c. 他知道自己渴望什么，他所渴望的仅仅是：在他作为一个人的力所能及的范围之内理解宇宙的性质，了解宇宙功能的规律性，懂得宇宙功能的简易性。a. It was one of those rare December days when the sun was almost as warm as Indian summer. b. 十二月里有一天，天气反常，几乎跟印度的夏天一样暖热。 c. 那是十二月里一个罕见的日子，阳光几乎暖和得像小阳春天气。2). Sentential Context and wording

46、Sentential context involves sentential structure and sentential meaning. Failure to analyze the original sentential structure correctly and failure to grasp the original sentential meaning will result in wrong wording in the version.3). Discourse context and wordingMeaning is pervasive at any level

47、of language: morphemes, words, phrases, sentences, paragraphs and the whole text. The interdependent relationship of meaning between these levels is apparent: the smaller units form contexts of each other and together they form a larger context for the interpretation of each unit in it. All these smaller and larger units should be harmonious, consistent, and coherent; they should be in agreement with human experience, or at least acceptable in human mind.