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1、 English Idioms and the TranslationAbstract: Idioms are considered as the essence of English language. Idioms in language reflect common，similar and specific features of different languages and culturesTherefore，the correct English idioms and translation is related to express the right meaning. The
2、acquisition of idioms is important for a successful mastery of English translation of idioms which means not only translation of linguistic signs but also that of cultural elementsThe theme has made a study on the strategies of English idioms and the translation. It illustrates the literal translati
3、on approach，free translation approach，and the literal plus innovation translation approachLearning how to use idioms is a difficult but by no means impossible task. An idiom is different from other literal expressions in that you could not guess its meaning just by understanding all the words in it.
4、 Because their characteristics learning idioms requires both rote-learning and analytical skills. The paper has designed 3 main strategies to help English learners learn idioms.Keywords: English idioms，culture，translation strategies，literal translation approach， free translation approach，literal plu
5、s innovation translation approach. The strategies of English idioms translation1. Introduction When opening Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary of Current English, one can see such an entry: “Idiom (n.) Phrase or sentence whose meaning is not clear from the meaning of its individual words and which
6、must be learnt as a whole unit.” And English translation theoretician Peter Newmark also said: “An idiom is a current and frequently used group of words whose meaning is not clear from the common meanings of its constituent words”. In brief, idioms are fixed phrases that go through the test of histo
7、ry and cannot be separated. So the whole meaning usually cannot be guessed in translation and the components must not be separated at ones ease. 1.1 Defination to idioms Idioms, an important part of the general vocabulary of every language，are the gems of a language, which have been described as the
8、 crystallization of human wit and wisdom. Idioms best mirror the national characteristics embodied in a language and are thus always rich in cultural connotation and national flavor. Lots of cultural information is embedded in idioms. In some senses, idioms are the reflection of the environment, lif
9、e, historical culture, etc. of the native speakers and are closely associated with their innermost spirit and feelings. They are commonly used in all types of language, informal and formal, spoken and written. That is why the extent to which a person familiarizes himself with idioms is a mark of his
10、 or her command of language. English and Chinese are abundant in idioms. It is difficult to give a clear-cut defination to the word idiom, for it possesses several meaning which might get us completely at sea.1.2 Background to idioms English as an international language, its usage is wide-ranging. M
11、any countries choose English as their official language. What is more, sixty percent of broadcasting in the world use English to propagate their information. Of course, there are many idioms in English and parts of them are loanwords. The features of assimilating loanwords in English are evident. On
12、 the one hand, it belongs to Germanic language family that enables it to take possession of the common words in Germanic language. On the other hand, English keeps in touch with French and Roman language family closely for a long time. The ancient Greek mythologies, Roman myths and fairy tales of no
13、rthern Europe are the publicly owned wealth of European nations. They have deep influence on development of whole European culture in which many stories provide source materials for English idioms. Therefore, English idioms take in any word that can represent the main European culture. And it is mor
14、e typical and representative than others in reflecting the cultural diversity. Just like Bacon said: Talent, quick-witted and spirit in a nation can all be found in its idioms. 2. Origins to idioms As everyone knows, idioms come from different aspects: different living environments; everyday life; r
15、eligion; historical events; literary works and mythology and allusion. 2.1 Idioms from different living environments Idioms are closely related to peoples labor and life, because people in a particular culture need words to name and explain objects and appearance present in that culture. The Han Peo
16、ple, live on land, and belong to an agrarian society that places agricultural production at the top of the national agenda. During the long history of farming, the Chinese language has accumulated large numbers of farmers idioms like 瑞雪兆丰年 (a time snow promises a good harvest), 五谷丰登(abundant harvest
17、 of all food crops). While British live in an island country, probably have idioms about water and sailing. For example, we speak挥金如土in Chinese，but we should render it into English as “spend money like water”. And there are similar examples as follows: “to keep ones head about water” (奋力图存)，“in full
18、 sail” (全力以赴), “tower ones sail” (甘拜下风). What is more, there come different special products determined by the different geographical surroundings. For example, “like mushrooms” and “spring up like mushrooms” in English , means 像蘑菇一样, and 雨后春笋般地涌现 in Chinese. Both of them have the same meaning of th
19、e great development of a thing, but they use their respective things to form the metaphor, because China abounds with bamboo, whereas it does not grow in England. So the Chinese people are quite familiar with bamboo; while the English dont. This case is quite the same with the idiom “plentiful as bl
20、ackberries”, for blackberries are easily available in England while in Chinese, 多如牛毛 is used, for cattle can be found everywhere in China.2.2 Idioms from everyday life Entertainment and activities, which are parts of national culture, are quite different in various countries. Horse racing, boxing an
21、d cricket are ancient and traditional sports in England, so in English, there are idioms like “neck and neck” (不分上下)，“down and out”(倒下出局)，“not cricket” (不讲信用)，and “straight from the shoulder” (直截了当)，and “have a good innings”(一帆风顺)；whereas the ancient Chinese preferred hunting and chess: 棋逢对手 (diamon
22、d cut diamond), 剑拔弩张(at daggers drawn), 明枪易躲，暗箭难防(False friends are worse than open enemies). There are some aspects in everyday life in the following. 2.2.1 Idioms from food In England, bread is usually eaten together with butter, and salt, milk and cream are their everyday diet. All of them are th
23、e everyday diet for western people and thus appear “There is no use crying over spilt milk” (不要做无谓的后悔)，“bakers dozen” (面包师的第十三个面包), and “polish the apple” (拍马屁)；China has a long history of cooking and the Chinese are known as the most critical, for who attach greater importance to food than any othe
24、r people, as is reflected in the saying like: 画饼充饥 (to draw cakes to allay hunger) 2.2.2 Idioms from sea Both in the Chinese and the English languages, idioms about the sea are numerous, because both of these two countries are surrounded and half-surrounded by sea, and they are rich in natural resou
25、rces of fish. Fishing plays a vital role in their economy, so a large number of idioms concerning fish are handed down: “Fish begins to stink at the head” (上梁不正下梁歪), “Never offer to teach fish to swim” (不要班门弄斧)，and “to fish in troubled water” (浑水摸鱼). 2.2.3 Idioms from military affairs The history of
26、 mankind is almost the history of war, which is the source of numerous idioms. The Chinese nation has a long history of war for more than two thousand years, and therefore the Chinese language is rich in such idioms: 项庄舞剑，意在沛公 (Xiang Zhuang performed the sword dance as a cover for his attempt on Liu
27、 Bangs life.-act with a hidden motive); 四面楚歌(be in desperate straits); 暗度陈仓(to steal a march on). And it is also mirrored in the following English idioms: “What millions died that Caesar might be great” (一将功成万骨枯); “Meet ones Waterloo” (遭遇惨败); “Pyrrhic victory” (得不偿失的胜利); and gentlemans agreement (君子
28、协定).2.3 Idioms from religion Religion is an important source for idioms. It is a social phenomenon and mainly a code of ethics governing personal and social conduct. Comparatively speaking, Buddhism has greater influence on Chinese culture although China is a multi-religious country. It was first in
29、troduced into China in the first century AD, and has shaped the Chinese language, diet, arts, etc., and greatly stimulated the development of Chinese literature. The large number of words and idioms derived from Buddhism is one of the manifestations of its influence, such as 放下屠刀，立地成佛 (A butcher bec
30、omes a Buddha the moment he drops his cleaver-a wrongdoer achieves salvation as soon as he gives up evil) and 做一天和尚，撞一天钟 (take a passive attitude toward ones work). And there are quite a few English idioms from religion. Such as: Benjamins mess (最大的份额); raise Cain (大吵大闹); apple of Sodom (金玉其外，败絮其中);
31、 sop to Cerberus (贿赂); handwriting on the wall (不祥之兆) and so on.2.4 Idioms from historical events In most language, people embellish their speech or writing with references to characters or events from their history, that is to say, idiomatic expressions are closely related to a countrys history. Th
32、ere are a lot of idioms in the Chinese language cannot find an equivalent in the English language because the history of the two countries are quite different. Many idioms are from their own history. The English language has much less idioms from historical events than the Chinese language because E
33、nglish just has a history of more than one thousand years during which less important historical events happened. For example, “to meet ones Waterloo” (遭遇滑铁卢) is from the defeat of Napoleon at Waterloo in 1815, which means to be completely defeated.2.5 Idioms from literary works Literary works are a
34、lso one of the main sources of English idioms. In English literature, the most glittering star is Shakespeare. His dramas are the major source of this kind idioms: “to claim ones pound of flesh” (割某人的一磅肉) is from The Merchant of Venice; “make assurance doubly sure” (加倍小心) comes from Macbeth. And the
35、re are other examples: “Reading makes a full man, conference a ready man, writing an exact man”-Bacon On Study; “ the ugly ducking”(丑小鸭) is from Han Andersons tales; “Jekyll and Hyde” (双重性格) originates from Stevensons The Strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde; “open sesame” and “old man of the sea
36、” come from Arabian tales.2.6 Idioms from mythology and allusion In this thesis, the author focuses on the translation of mythologies and allusions in English idioms, which come from stories of Gods and heroes. As we all know, Greek and Roman civilizations have a great influence on English, so the G
37、reek and Roman civilizations have great influence on English idioms. Lets pay attention to the following idioms: (1) “Achilles heel” (致命弱点) which comes from the Greek mythology has the meaning “the one weak spot in a mans circumstances or character”. In Greek epic, his mother took Achilles upside do
38、wn into the Styx when he was a child. So he was arms-proof except his heel because it was held in his mothers hand. Therefore in Troy war, he died for Paris shot a poisoned arrow into his heel. (2) Other examples, “Herculess choice” means “the reward of toil in reference to pleasure”, “the Herculian
39、 efforts” (九牛二虎之力)，and “the pillars of Hercules” (天涯海角). It is said that Hercules was one of the most famous heroes in Greek mythologies. He killed two snakes when he was a baby, and was known as a man of muscle. He refused the Pleasure Goddesss allure, went through innumerable hardships and in the
40、end, he won the eternal life.Idioms have been called the crystallization of language. An appropriate use of them in our speech and writing will add to the strength and vividness of idioms. Perhaps some people are quite familiar with “to cut the Gordian knot” and “A Pandoras box” such allusions not o
41、nly make the language richer, but also make communication clearer and easier. However,in daily communication, people usually dont know why “Hobsons choice” means no choice at all (别无选择); “pile Pelion on Ossa” means extremely difficult (难上加难), or “Mercury fig” means the first fruit (最初的果实). If the so
42、urce of an idiom is known, it is easier to figure out its meaning. It is difficult to translate idioms faithfully because idioms reflect the wisdom of ordinary people that is all-inclusive. The knowledge of the sources of these idioms will help us comprehend what they really mean. 2. On the Translat
43、ion strategies of English Idioms An idiom is a set of word combinations whose meaning cannot be derived from the meaning of the individual elements. Apart from this thematic inseparability culture specificity is another property of idioms that is idioms are usually used in a given cultural group whe
44、re people share some common foundational knowledge information or experience. As cultures are typically localized most idioms are not useful outside the local context. An idiom is a multi-word expression which functions as a single unit and whose meaning cannot be worked out from the sum of its sepa
45、rate parts. That is it has a holistic meaning which cannot be retrieved from the individual meanings of the component words.For example:1She washed her hands of the matter she refused to have anything more to do with the matter.2 He spilled the beans He told someone something that people have been t
46、rying to keep secret.3.1 Literal Translation Strategies Literal translation means express its meaning without too much extension but not to mean to translate word-for-word. In other words it is not word for word but the translation of the original thoughts and contents without changing the way of ex
47、pression such as metaphor. Literal translation is under the direct translation of English content not using any rhetorical device do not add any content nor reduce the content. Literal translation of idioms is not normally caused by cultural barriers.There was no understanding of values and the erro
48、rs in the meaning of the expression of various cultural backgrounds which can be understood and accept by the people. English idioms to break the record can be directly translated as 打破记录, Another example is the English idiom Strike the iron while it is hot. Directly translated as 趁热打铁 Similarly the
49、 idiom He laughs best who laughs last can be directly translated as 谁笑在最后 谁笑得最好. A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. can be directly translated as 双鸟在林，不如一鸟在手. Some of the use of literal translation of English not only the faithful and complete expression of the style of the original idiom but also make the translation with the original features such as metaphor and local colors.3.2 Free translation Strategies Fre