英语习语的隐喻意义及翻译方法_英语论文

On Metaphorical Meaning and the Translation of English Idioms

摘要

在过去几千年人们使用并不断发展语言的过程中，有许多约定俗成的短语和断句被总结提炼出来成为习语。作为民族文化的载体之一，习语具有鲜明的隐喻意义。一直以来，因为东西方文化习俗及习惯不尽相同甚至大相径庭，所以英语习语的翻译都是翻译的难点之一。本文从英语习语的隐喻意义方面切入，探讨了三种基本的隐喻类型：本体隐喻，方位隐喻，结构隐喻，并介绍了在这些隐喻类型下常用的翻译方法，旨在提高对英语习语隐喻意义的理解，从而进行更恰当的汉语翻译。 

关键词：英语习语；隐喻；翻译方法

Abstract

As fixed phrases refined from the long-term usage of             language, idioms are the carrier of national culture featuring obvious metaphorical meaning and integration. First and foremost, this thesis will introduce the definition and elementary characteristics of idioms to help readers have a detailed learning about metaphorical meaning of idioms. Then, it will analyze three types of metaphor meaning, including ontological metaphors, orientational metaphors and structural metaphors. The third part will put forward several translation methods and skills to help us do better on the basis of these three metaphors. This paper aims to provide a brief analysis of metaphorical meaning of idioms, and persuade readers to notice the necessities and significance of translation, thus making progress in the translation of English idioms. 

Keywords: English idioms; metaphors; translation methods

Contents

1. Introduction 1

2. Literature Review 2

3. Definitions and Features of Idioms 2

3.1 Definition of idioms 2

3.2 Metaphorical meaning 3

3.2.1 Ontological metaphors 3

3.2.2 Orientational metaphors 4

3.2.3 Structural metaphors 5

4. Approaches of Translating Idioms 5

4.1 From ontological metaphors 6

4.2 From orientational metaphors 7

4.3 From structural metaphors 9

5. Conclusion 10

Works Cited 12