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1、Translation of English Proverbs from a Cultural Perspective1. Introduction How to translate the English proverbs efficiently? Many translators are harassed by this issue throughout, especially the English learners. The majority of scholars discuss it in the aspects of etymology, contrasts between En
2、glish and Chinese, rhetoric, and the transfer theory and so on. These researches have important implemental and instructive significances with regard to raise the translation level. From the above, it is not difficult to see that they touch upon the cultural interference a little. Because of the clo
3、se relationship between language and culture and the effects brought by mother language, Chinese students combine Chinese traditional thinking habits, values and so on unavoidably into the proverbs translation. Therefore, the inferences take shape and the translated works Chinglish. This writer hold
4、s that cultural barrier is the key of affecting efficient proverbs translation because language and culture are well blended as milk and water. In order to learn a language, one must study the culture the language reflects and know the differences between the national culture and the foreign ones. A
5、nd the manifestation showed in language.(刘华, 2003:9) This paper will analyze it from the English proverbs definition, source, features and functions and discuss the translation of English proverbs from a cultural perspective. Whats more, it points out the importance of dealing with the cultural diff
6、erences and connotations. 2. The English Proverbs2.1 The Definition of ProverbsAccording to the definition of The Modern Chinese Dictionary, proverbs are the fixed sentences that are spread among people and reflect the profound meanings by simple and popular expressions. And Ma Guofan says something
7、 about the differences between proverbs and idioms in Idioms as follows: Idioms are mainly written, while proverbs are mainly oral. The structures of idioms are easier to become set than the those of proverbs. Idioms are used as words in the practical speech, while the majority of proverbs are indep
8、endent sentences or become independent of sentences. Idioms usually express general ideas, while proverbs mainly give judgments and inference.(陈文伯,2004：2)Deng Yanchang and Liu Runqings Language And Culture says:“ Proverbs are short sayings of folk wisdomof well-known facts or truthsexpressed succinc
9、tly and in a way that makes them easy to remember. Because the sayings are so pithy, they have universal appeal.” (邓炎昌，刘润清，1989：42)“Proverbs may provide interesting little glimpses or clues to a peoples geography, history, social organization, social views, and attitudes. People who live along sea c
10、oasts and whose livelihood is dependent on the sea will have proverbs about sailing, about braving the weather, about fish and fishing. Nomadic people, such as the Arabs, will have sayings about the dessert or pastureland, about sheep and horses or camels, about wolves and jackals. In cultures where
11、 old age is reversed, there will be proverbs about the wisdom of the elders. And in societies where womens status is low, there will be a number of sayings demanding them.” (邓炎昌，刘润清，1989：42)In my opinion, proverb is the popular short, pithy sayings that express a profound percept. It is the crystall
12、ization of peoples wisdom, and is handed down from generation to generation.2.2 The Source of English ProverbsThe English proverbs originate from two forms: one is oral and the other is written. The former one always comes from folk communication. People are the creators and users of the proverbs. T
13、hey use them to record their experience and rational knowledge in industrial and agricultural production and life. For example, nothing to be got without pains but poverty.(译文：只有贫穷可以不劳而获。) The later one generally comes from Bible, the Greek and Roman mythology, Shakespeares works and so on. For exam
14、ple, life is a shuttle. （译文:人生如梭。）It is condensed from “My days pass by without hope, pass faster than a weavers shuttle. 译文：我的时日无望地流逝，流逝得比织梭更快。）”, which is from Biblethe Old TestmentBook of Joshua. The proverb “All cats love fish but fear to wet their paws.（猫都爱鱼，却怕湿脚。）is from Othello. The English s
15、peaking countries mainly believe in Christianity. Therefore, most of the English proverbs come from Bible. It plays an important role in the origin, enrichment and development of the English proverbs. 2.3 The Features of English Proverbs Not like speech, it is informal. Not like joke, it is meaningf
16、ul. Not like allegory, it is concise. Sometimes it has rhythm and antithesis. So it is easy to be memorized and understood. As mentioned in the Chinese and English Proverbs and Culture, it has several features: proverb is the languages vocabulary unit and is one kind of the idiomatic phrases. prover
17、bs language characteristics: it is the fixed sentence that has relatively complete semanteme. It has metre and rhyme scheme. The choices of words are popular. The figures of speech are vivid. And it is concise and to the point. proverbs content characteristics: it is the valuable results of peoples
18、living experience and the glistening of peoples wisdom, which covers special cultural detailed content. proverbs social functions: it enlightens life, guides people behavior, teaches experiences, gives moral lessons, does propaganda and agitation and so on. proverb source: generally speaking, it com
19、es from peoples living experience. Its main source is folk oral language. And some come from written documents, such as religious classics and literature.（王得春，杨素英，黄月圆，2003：11）As Bao Huinan says in the Culture situation and Language Translation, there are three main features of the proverb. First, it
20、 has concise words and tidy sentence structure. For example, no mill, no meal. （译文：不劳动者不得食。）Second, it has harmonious sound and can be read fluently and smoothly. For instance, man proposes, God disposes. （译文：谋事在人，成事在天。） Third, it has vivid metaphors and deep-going implications. For example, time is
21、 money. （译文：一寸光阴一寸金。）(包惠南，2001：160)2.4 The Functions of English ProverbsEvery nation has their own way to express their feelings especially when they are working, such as the work song to synchronize movements and alleviate fatigue, with one person leading and the others responding in chorus and bri
22、ef, simple and vibrant folk song sung during work in the fields or in mountain areas, popular in rural or mountain areas in south China. So is the proverb. It summarizes peoples experience and lessons learned in daily life. But it is more vivid and acceptable than preaching to somebody. If we use pr
23、overbs in our conversation or writing properly, it will make the conversation or writing more beautiful. And it will make the conversation go on smoothly and make the atmosphere more friendly and active. It is just like the epigram that tells a general truth or gives lessons to us. No matter you are
24、 knowledgeable or not, you can manage to use it.In China, we have our own idioms. They are concise and meaningful phrases or short sentences that have long been in public usage. And most Chinese idioms have a historical origin and consist of four Chinese characters. Likewise, some of the English pro
25、verbs have their historical origin and are the conclusions that are made after telling a story. But the English proverbs are always sentences or phrases and have no limitation about the number of the words. Whats more, different culture has entrusted different meanings to its languages. As language
26、is the carrier of the culture, the English proverbs are the results of the English speaking countries.3. English Proverbs and Culture3.1 Cultural Differences in English ProverbsDifferent languages, cultural origins, geography location, religious belief, moral standards and so forth result in the cul
27、tural differences. So it is very necessary to deal with the cultural differences in English proverbs. To achieve it, we should not interpret them without understanding. The basic knowledge of different culture, history and background and the efficient consultation are essential acquirement. The Conf
28、ucians hold the opinion that “People are good and honest when they were born.” But we can see different opinions in “Our sins and our debts are often more than we think.” If we just translate the proverbs with our own subjective opinion, it will make the cultural differences be more and deeper. Abou
29、t friendship, you can see “Love your friend, but look after yourself.(译文：爱朋友但要照顾自己。)”considers individual interest to be the most important. On the contrary, we consider the national interests collective interest to be the most important. And friendship is more important than individual interest. Th
30、ere is a proverb that shows a kind of social phenomenon in western society. That is “One law for the rich and another for the poor.”So we must have full consideration and try to avoid the cultural differences.3.2 Cultural Connotation in English Proverbs TranslationCultural connotation is the deep-go
31、ing meaning of the proverbs. Without it, the target language will lose the faithfulness of the source language. The English speaking people use varied ways to present the meaningful cultural connotation.First, they use the animal as the subject. We can see “cat” is used to substitute for different k
32、inds of people. In “Ale will make cat speak.”, it refers to people who gets drunk. In “All cats love fish but fear to wet their paws.”, it refers to people who is not willing to pay for what he wants to get. In “A cat may look at a king.”, it refers to the unimportant person. But in “A cat has nine
33、lives.”, it means having great vitality. We should consider both the similarities and differences the word “cat” brings to us between daily life and literary.Second, they use some images that are typical and reflect their religious belief “Why ask the Bishop when the Popes around.” If we know the Po
34、pe is more superior to the Bishop, we will understand it easily. “We must not lie down, and cry, God help us.” It tells us not to depend on others and try to do it by yourself. After surmising the cultural connotation, we use “神” to translate the word “God”. “神” refers to man with magic power and ap
35、pears in mythology. “I fear the Greeks, even when bring gifts.” According to the Greek legend, we are familiar with the story of Trojan horse. Then we can translate it properly. “Man proposes, God disposes.” Here we use “天” to translate the word “God”. “天” means the ruler of the natural world. So it
36、 is important to understand the cultural connotation and learn to make appropriate adaptation.Third, some of the English proverbs use concise expressions but profound meanings. For example, the child is the father of the man. (译文：从小看大，三岁看老。)The structure is not complex, but the puzzlement is “ how c
37、an a child be a mans father”? If we consider over and over again and translate it in a concrete context, it will be easily solved. Another two examples show peoples opinions on status in social relations and attitudes towards love or marriage. “Let beggars match with beggars.” “Like begets like.” On
38、e is very vivid image “beggars”, while the other is very general image “like”. As we know, beggars are people who live in the lowest stratum of a society. On the contrary, the word “龙” and “凤” are the highest stratum of feudal society in ancient China. Today, people use “龙” and “凤” as “hope ones son will amount to something when he grows up”, which expresses parents great expect on children.The acquirement of knowledge is a process of being accumulated day by day. So is the handle and grasp of the cultural differences and connotations. 5