Cultural Differences Between English and Chinese Proverbs and Their Translation Strategies英汉谚语的文化差异及 13页

CulturalDifferencesBetweenEnglishandChineseProverbsandTheirTranslationStrategies英汉谚语的文化差异及翻译策略[摘要]　通过比较英汉谚语的文化差异并结合实例，分析文化差异在理解谚语上的重要性,同时指出译者在翻译谚语时可采取三种策略：即直译，意译和直译与意译的结合。直译可以保留原文的信息和形式，但直译并非逐字对应翻译；有些谚语不能用直译翻译，译者可采用意译的方法，而意译要求译者具有广泛的源语和目的语的文化知识。[关键词]英汉谚语文化差异翻译策略Abstract:ThroughthecomparisoninEnglishandChineseproverbsandsometypicalexamples,Ianalyzetheimportanceofculturaldifferencesinunderstandingproverbs.Atthesametime,Ilistthreestrategies,namely,literaltranslation,freetranslationandthecombinationofthesetwomethodstotranslateproverbs.Literaltranslationisagoodchoiceasitkeepstheoriginalmessageandform.Butliteraltranslationisnotword-for-wordtranslation.Someproverbsshouldnotbetranslatedliterally.Thentranslatorsshouldusefreetranslation，whichcallsforextensiveculturalknowledgeofbothsourceknowledgeandtargetknowledge.Keywords:EnglishandChineseproverbs;culturaldifferences;translationstrategies1IntroductionProverbsdatebackfromlife.Itreflectsthemarrowofculture.Becauseofthedifferencesoforigins,religiousbeliefs,humanisticideals,moralviewsandlifeandworkexperiences,EnglishandChineseproverbscarryondifferentculturalcharacteristicsandinformation.Ithaseverythingwithcultureandcan’tbeseparatedfromeachother.Inthispaper,IsetsometypicalexamplestodiscusstheculturaldifferencesbetweenEnglishandChineseproverbsfromtherespectsofreligiousbeliefs,humanisticideals,moralviewsandlifeandworkexperiences.DuetoculturaldifferencesinEnglishandChineseproverbs,thesamewordsmaydisplaydifferentideals.Translationplaysanimportantrole.Beliteraltranslation,freetranslationorliteraltranslationcombinedwithfreetranslation,itshouldbeinaccordancewithlanguagefeaturesandculturalbackgrounds.Nomatterwhatmethodtochoose,wemustfollowit,“Translationconsistsinreproducinginthereceptorlanguagetheclosestnaturalequivalentofthesourcelanguagemessage,firstintermsofmeaningandsecondlyintermsofstyle.”(EugeneA.Nida,1893)13 2InfluenceofEnglishandChineseCulturesonTheirProverbs2.1CultureandProverb2.1.1WhatisCulture?WhatisProverb?Differentpeoplehavedifferentviewsonculture.CulturederivesfromtheLatinword“culture”,whichmeans“cultivatedmaterials”and“humancultivatednature”.Amongvariousdefinitions,thefirstgenerallyacceptedandcomparativelycompletedefinitionispresentedbyananthropologist—SirEdwardTylorinPrimitiveCultures(1871).Hedefinescultureas“thatcomplexwholewhichincludesknowledge,belief,art,law,morals,customs,andanyothercapabilitiesandhabitsacquiredbymanasamemberofasociety”.Somelinguistsconsidercultureasthedeedandthoughtofasociety.Somefamoustranslationtheoristsdefinecultureasthewayoflifeofapeculiarcommunity,whichisexpressedbyalanguage.Culture,inANewConciseCourseonLinguisticsforStudentsofEnglish,meansthetotaloflifeofapeople,includingthepatternsofbelief,customs,objects,institutions,techniques,andlanguagethatcharacterizethelifeofthehumancommunity(戴炜栋，2002：127).Nomatterwhatitsdefinitionis,culturecoverseveryaspectofourlife,fromenvironmenttocultivatednature,fromsocialproductiontospiritualworks.Proverbisashortwell-knownsayingthatstatesageneraltruthorgivesadvice(霍恩比,2002:1192).Proverbscomefromlifeandreflectculture.AsBaconsays,“Geniuswitandspiritofanationarediscoveredbytheirproverbs”andasanEnglishproverbsays,“Aproverbisashortsentencebasedonlongexperience”(Whiting,1977:285).Theproverbsofanationarecloselyassociatedwithitsculture.EnglishandChineseproverbsarenoexceptiontotherule.EnglishandChinesereligiousbeliefs,humanisticideals,moralviews,andlifeandworkexperiencesareallstampedontheirproverbs.2.2InfluenceofReligiousBeliefsuponEnglishandChineseProverbs2.2.1FourReligiousBeliefsAsanimportantpartofpeople’sspiritualactivities,religiousbeliefsposetosomeextentinfluencesonnationalcultures.Asweallknow,Buddhism,TaoismandConfucianismarethe13 threegreatreligionsinChinaandhavedeepinfluenceonChineseculture,whereastheEnglisharefaithfultoChristianity.SotherearemanyproverbsreflectingthemainidealsofBuddhism,TaoismandConfucianism,suchas“善有善报，恶有恶报”(Betrueinwordandresoluteindeed.),“种瓜得瓜，种豆得豆”(Asyousow,soshallyoureap.),“物极必反，否极泰来”(Nowealwithoutwoe.),“受人滴水之恩，应以涌泉相报”(Graciousnessofthewaterdrop,whenthebubblingspringreports.),“有志者事竟成”(Nothingisimpossibletoawillingheart.),“夫唱妇随”(Abadhusbandmakesabadwife.)andsoon.InBritainandotherEnglish-speakingcountries,duototheirfaithinChristianity,thereareproverbsasfollows:Manproposes,Goddisposes;Doasyouwouldbedoneby;Godprovidesforhimthattrusts;Theloveofmoneyistherootofallevilandsoon.2.2.2DifferentInfluencesofBeliefsonProverbsThere’remanydifferencesbetweenBuddhism,Taoism,ConfucianismandChristianity.SohereI’llanalyzethemfromthefollowingthreeaspects:Firstly,theytakedifferentattitudestowarddeity.InChina,somepeoplethinkthereisnodeityintheworld.Othersmaythinkitispossibleforeveryonetobecomeadeity,thatistosay,thereexistmanydeities.However,ChristiansadmitsonlyoneGodandthinkitasthedominatorofalllivesintheworld,peopleincluded.TherelationshipbetweenGodandhumanbeingsislikenotonlyfatherandsonbutalsohostandservant.AndpeoplemustsubmitthemselvestotheGod,whoisconsideredtoknoweverything.SoanumberofproverbssuggestthesovereigntyandgloryoftheGod.Forexample,“Godisaboveall”.What’smore,ChristiansconsidertheGodtobetheparamountdeity,meaningtheyshowpietytotheirreligiontoacertaindegree,therebeinganexample“GodiswhereHewas”.However,theChineserecommendvarioustheoriesaccordingtodifferentneeds.SoCuiXilianghaseversaid,“大致说来，中国古代知识分子得意时倾向于孔孟，失意时倾向于老庄；青壮年时倾向于入世，晚年时倾向于出世”(王德春,杨素英,黄月圆,2003:94)andthereareproverbssuchas“平时不烧香，临时抱拂脚”(Neverburnincensewhenalliswell,butclaspBuddha’sfeetwhenindistress).Secondly,equalityisobviousinEnglishproverbs;andhierarchyinChineseproverbs.Peopledon’thaveanyotheridolexcepttheGod,whichresultsintheequalityamongpeople.Therefore,Isetseveralexamplestoexplainit.“Sixfeetofearthmakeallmenequal”,“WeareallAdam’schildren”,and“Everyoneisamasterandservant”.Underthecontrolofequality,13 peoplewillbelittleimperialpower,suchas“AcatmaylookataKing”.And“Kingsgomad,andthepeoplesufferforit”.Converselyspeaking,theChinesearedividedintoseveralranksinthatthere’snodeityintheirhearts.“大鱼吃小鱼，小鱼吃虾”and“鸡蛋碰不过石头”allrevealit.Thirdly,bestowandcauseandeffectarerevealedintwokindsofproverbs.Let’sbeginwiththeproverb“There,butforthegraceoftheGod,goI”.ItmeansthatiftherewerenocharitygivenbytheGod,Iwouldbeinabadluckandmisfortuneswouldbefallme;however,withiteverybadthingwouldbedealtwith.Here’sanotherexample,“Godtempersthewindtotheshornlamb”,whichcomesfromL·Sterne’snovel.Itmeansweakorvulnerablepeoplehavedivineprotectionfromtheworstmisfortunes;it’salsousedwhensuchpeoplearetreatedwithcompassionbytheirfellowmen(马丁.H.曼瑟,2004:119).ItisGodthatgivesbountytotheunfortunate.SeeingfromthetwoEnglishproverbs,wecaneasilyknowChristianitytrustsbestow.DifferentfromwhatChristianitysaid,Buddhismpaysmoreattentiontopersuadingpeopleintodoinggoods,especiallyretribution.Soitiseasyforustoknowproverbslike“善有善报，恶有恶报”(Betrueinwordandresoluteindeed)and“勿以恶小而为之，勿以善小而不为”(Wemustdogoodratherthanevil,onhoweverhumbleascale).2.3InfluenceofHumanisticIdeasUponEnglishandChineseProverbsHumanism,asystemofthoughtthatconsidersthesettlementofhumanproblemsthroughreasoningmoreimportantthanreligiousbeliefs,emphasizesthefactthatthebasicnatureofhumanbeingsisgood(霍恩比,2002:862).Itgivesheedtopeopleaswell.Thoughattitudestowardshumanbeingsvaryfrompersontopersonandquestionsinvolvedinpeopleaccountfortoomanyareas,humanismdevelopsdifferentlyinEnglishspeakingcountriesandChina.ThenthischapterusessometypicalexamplestocompareandanalyzethedifferencesbetweenEnglishandChineseproverbsfromthepointofhumanisticideas.Firstofall,“Lookafternumberone”,“Self-preservationisthefirstlawofnature”and“Selfcomesfirst”—alltheseproverbsshowusthattheWesternhumanistsconsiderselfasthecenter.Onlyaftertakingselfintoconsiderationcantheywelllookaftertheirfamilies,collectivesandevencountries.ButinChinapeople,influencedbyConfucianism,firstdon’tputselfinthefirstplace.Theyregardthemselvesaschessmenwhomustfightforcollectiveandsocialinterestsdespiteofthesacrificeofthemselvessometimes.Thatiswhywecanseesomanyproverbsrevealingwell-treatofothers.Let’ssetsomeexamples:“严于律己宽以待人”,“一人不成阵，独木不成林”,“国泰民可安，国强民也富”.13 What’smore,theyalsoshowdifferentattitudestowars.InWesterncountries,peoplealwaysthinksomuchaboutthemselvesthattheyoftendoubtwhetherthewarhasagoodintentionornot.Asaresult,theymoreoftenthannotdissatisfywars.Forexample，“WaristhesportofKings”,“Puttheheadsofstatesinafieldandletthemfightitout”,and“Warsbringscars”.Theyhatewars.JustoppositetotheviewsoftheEnglish,theChinesethinkthatitisnotwarthatistoblame.Warshaveeverbeenconsideredasajusticialmove.There’resomepeoplewhofeelhonoredifsatisfiedfortheircountry.Theydon’tdenyorrejectbutappreciateandextolwars.Soitisnotstrangetoread“枪杆子里面出政权”and“养兵千日，用在一时”.Tosumup,thankstotheirdifferentcultures,wecanseevariousproverbsinrelationtohumanisticideas.2.4InfluenceofMoralViewsUponEnglishandChineseProverbsPeoplelivingindifferentcountriesandtimehavedifferentmoralviews.Iwillillustrateitinthefollowingthreeaspects:First,despitetheyhavesomeincommon,suchasglorifyingdiligence,honesty,fameandsoon.There’remanydifferencesreflectedintraditionalmoralviewsbetweenEnglishandChineseproverbs.Firstofall,let’sstartwithproverbsaboutfriendshipandmakingfriends.Aswehavementionedbefore,individualbenefitissuperiortoanyotherinterest.Inotherwords,friendsarelessimportantthanself.“Friendsarethievesoftime.”isacaseinpoint.TheChinesethinkfriendshipisinahigherpositioncomparedwithself.Somanypeopleaccepttheidea“海内存知己，天涯若比邻”.InChina,whenwespeakofmakingfriends,we’rereadytohelpthemwhenthey’reintroubleandsharethewealandwoewiththem.Asaresultofcapitalism,theEnglishareforMammonismandUtilitarianismwhichinducethemtopursuemutualbenefit.“Hungerknowsnofriend”and“Nevercatchatafallingknifeorafallingfriend.”hastestifiedit.What’smore,let’stalkabouttheirattitudestowarddebt.WeChinesepeopleattachgreatimportancetobenevolenceandrighteousness.Benevolencerequiresone’smercy;righteousnessmeansoneshouldbereadytohelpothersonthegroundsthatheisveryrighteous.Hereisanexample,“济人之急，救人之危”.Onthecontrary,theEnglishproverbsare“Lendyourhorseforalongjourney,youmayhavehimreturnedwithhisskin”,“Borrowingdullstheedgeofhusbandry”,and“Bettergiveashillingthanlendandlosehalfacrown”.Furthermore,proverbsongossipareofgreatdifference.BecausetheChinesevaluetheirreputation,theyareinfearofthegossipwhichdoes13 harmtothem.Quiteanumberofproverbssuchas“人言可畏”(Gossipisafearfulthing)suggestthispoint.TheEnglishtreasurefameaswell.Aslongastheynolongerendangertheirsocietyandbreakthelaw,others’evaluationofthemisunimportant.“Sticksandstonesmaybreakmybones,butwordswillneverhurtme”and“Hardwordsbreaknobones.”aregoodexamples.Second,givingtheanalysisoffilialpiety,womenpietyandlove,wecandefinitelyfindtheyaredifferentfromeachother.Fromthefilialpietyaspect,inChinaitmeansonemustshowfilialpietytoone’sparents,forparentsmakeone’sbodyandlife.Therearemanyotherfactsconcerningwithbeingfilialtoparents,suchaslisteningtothemcarefully,takingcareofthemhereandthere,showingrespect,supportingthemwhenthey’retoooldtoearnmoneyandsoon.SotheChineseproverbsare“养儿防老，积谷防饥”and“父母教，须敬听；父母责，须顺承”.InWesterncountries,thechildrendon’tneedtodoanythingastheirparentstellandhavetheirownpersonalityeventhoughtheyalsorespecttheirparents.“Childrensuckthemotherwhentheyareyoung,andthefatherwhentheyareold”,whichiscontraryto“养儿防老”.Thenlet’sspeakofwomenpiety,duringthefeudalsocietyinoldChina,womenbearmoreoppressionthanthoseofanyothertime.Nomatterwheresheis,shemustcomplywithothersnotthemselves.Theirstandingislowandtheyhavenoopportunitytogotoschoolwithmen.“女子无才便是德”and“臣为君死,妻为夫亡”.However,inEnglish–speakingcountries,womendonothavesolowstatusastheChinesewomendo.LotsofEnglishproverbsemphasizetheimportanceofwomen,suchas“Hewhodoesn’thonorhiswife,dishonorshimself”and“Avirtuouswomanisacrowntoherhusband”.Lastly,thedistinctivecontrastcomesfromlove.InoldChinafreeloveisforbidden.Manyaremercenarymarriages,so“父母之命，媒妁之言”comesintobeing.Itisnodoubtthatinthissituationthere’snolovebetweenthem,letalonetosaythecrystaloflove.Therefore,“嫁鸡随鸡，嫁狗随狗”canbeunderstood.Whilefromthe14thcentury,allpeoplehavebeeninpursuitoffreedom.Sotheyadvocatefreelove.Forexamples,“Loveisfree”,“Loveisthetouchstoneofvirtue”and“Lovelaughsatlocksmiths”.Third,consideringthatmoralviewsvaryfromtimetotime,proverbsaredevelopingwiththedevelopmentoflanguages.NowI’llcomparethesocialistmoralsinChinawithcapitalistmoralsinWesterncountriesinmoderntimes.SincethefoundingofthePRC,peoplehavesupportedtheequalitybetweenwomenandmen,andfundamentallyabolishedarrangedmarriage.What’smore,theyadvocatemonogamy.Thereareexamplestosupportit,suchas“两情相愿，结为亲眷”and“一张结婚照，百年记相好”.But“Marriageisalottery”,“Lovingcomesbylooking”—Englishproverbsturnouttobeatendencyofuniversallove.13 2.5InfluenceofLifeandWorkUponEnglishandChineseProverbsEverynationaccumulatesprolificlifeandworkexperiences,whicharereflectedonitsproverbs.Speakingoflifeexperiences,weknowChinaisabigagriculturalcountrywithmuchexperienceofagriculture,forestry,stockraisingandfishery,suchas“惊蛰不浸谷,小暑禾不熟”and“今年栽竹，明年吃笋”.However,“Whenthewindisintheeast,it’sgoodneitherformannorforbeast.Whenthewindisinthewest,theweather’satthebest”.Whatdothesetwosentencesmean?Sowemustknowtheculturalbackground.Geographicalenvironmenthasanimpactonclimate,andclimateinfluenceslanguagesandconnotativemeaningofwords.Forexample,“东风”inChineseand“eastwind”inEnglishhavecorrespondingwordsinChineseandEnglishcultures,however,theyhavedifferentconnotativemeanings.InChina,therearehighmountainsinwesternarea,facingoceanintheeast.InChinesepeople’smind,“东风”symbolizes“springandwarmth”.WhileInBritain,eastwindblowsfromnorthEuropeancontinentandtheylikewestwind.BecausewestwindblowsfromAtlanticOcean,justlike“东风”inChina(郭建中，1998：126).Therefore,Britishpeopledislikeeastwind.Buttheylikewestwind,whichrepresentswarmthandspring.TherearetwofamoussentencesfromShelley’sOdetotheWestWind:O,wind,ifwintercomes,canspringbefarbehind?Ontheotherhand,Britainisanislandcountry,withtheAtlanticOceantothewestandnorth,theEnglishChanneltothesouthandtheNorthSeatotheeast,soBritishculturecanberegardedasseaculture.SeeingfromthisEnglishproverb“Iftheraincomesbeforethewind,loweryourtopsails,andtakethemin;ifthewindcomesbeforetherain,loweryourtopsails,andhoistthemagain”,weknowthatitnotonlyguidessailorswhentohoistandtakeintopsails,butalsocanbeservedasacommonclimaticphenomenon,thatis,iftheraincomesbeforethewind,itwillcontinuouslyrain;ifthewindcomesbeforetherain,itwillstoprainingsoonerorlater.3TranslationStrategiesandMethodsForthesakeofusingproverbscorrectlyandappropriatelyincross-culturalcommunication,wemustfirstlybeawareoftheculturaldifferencesandnationalcharacteristicsofEnglishandChineseproverbsandthenmasterthefollowingthreeskills:3.1LiteralTranslation13 Literaltranslationreferstotranslateasentenceoriginally,keeptheoriginalmessageform,includingconstructionofsentence,meaningoftheoriginalwords,metaphoroftheoriginalandsoon.Translationwouldbecomprehendedbytargetlanguagereaders.IftherearemanysimilaritiesbetweenEnglishandChineseproverbs,wecanusethismethod.Forexample:光阴似箭，稍纵即逝—Timefliesanarrow,andtimelostneverreturns.做一天和尚撞一天钟—Goontollingthebellaslongasoneisamonk.烈火见真金，患难识真情—Fireisthetestofgold,adversityoffriendship.城门失火，殃及池鱼—Afireoncitywallbringsdisastertothefishinthemoat出生牛犊不怕虎—New-borncalvesmakelittleoftigers.(冯庆华,2001:134)Fromtheaboveexamples,weareawarethatduetothecommonpartsoftwocultures,wereaderscaneasilyunderstandthetranslationwell.Butonthecontrary,ifwetranslatetheseproverbsinfreetranslation,forexample:出生牛犊不怕虎—Youngpeoplearefearless.Obviouslyitisinferiortothatofliteraltranslationbecauseofitslackofvigor.Everyproverbhasitsownfeaturesnamely:phonologicalfeatures,semanticfeatures,vocabularyfeatures,grammaticalfeaturesandsoon.Wehavenotonlyoneideathatisliteraltranslationifweanalyzethefollowingexample:失之东隅，收之桑榆—Whatonelosesontheswingsonegetsbackontheroundabouts.Ifonetranslatesitinto“losewherethesunrisesandgainwherethesunsets”,theEnglish-speakingpeoplewillfeelpuzzled.Soifwecanfindpropercounterpartsinanotherculture,wecanusefreetranslationtomakereadersunderstandandacceptwell.Thisreferstoanothertranslationstrategy.3.2FreeTranslationFreetranslationrefersto,accordingtothemeaningoftheoriginal,withoutpayingattentiontothedetailsandtranslationwouldalsobefluentandnatural.Freetranslationneednotpayattentiontotheformoftheoriginal,includingconstructionoftheoriginalsentences,meaningoftheoriginalwords,metaphoroftheoriginalandsoon.Butfreetranslationdoesnotmeantodeleteoraddcontenttotheoriginalandtranslatorsmustconsidertheoriginalcarefully,knowitsstress,translateitnaturally,expressthemeaningoftheoriginal.Freetranslationisaskillwhichtranslatorsmustknowthecultureofbothsourceknowledgeandtargetknowledge,andmust13 haveextensiveknowledge.Forexample,“TheDevil,too,hasAchilles’heel”.Ifwetaketheliteralstrategy,itcanbetranslatedinto:魔鬼也有阿基里斯的脚后跟,whichwillpuzzlereaders.However,asweallknow,Achilles,aheroinGreekmyth,canwinswordandspearafterbeingdrownintheriverexcepttheheel,whichbecomeshisgreatestdisadvantages.Afterknowingthat,itcanbetranslatedintoanotherversion,whichis“就连魔鬼也有致命之处”.Comparedwiththeformerone,itismorevividandcorrect.Therearesimilarones:庆父不死，鲁难未已—Therewillalwaysbetroubleuntilthetrouble-makerisremoved.塞翁失马，安知非福？—Alossmayturnouttobeagain.(冯庆华,2002:135)Consequently,weshouldaccumulateasmuchculturalbackgroundknowledgeaspossibleinsteadoftakingproverbsliterally,whichmayleadtomisunderstandingsoreven“cultureshock”Aswe’vespokenofbefore,whenweusefreetranslation,moreattentionmustbepaidto.HereI’llillustratefromoneaspect,thatis,translatorsshouldn’taddChinesenameorplaceintotheEnglishproverbs,viceversa.Otherwise,itwillmakepeoplelaugh.Let’sanalyzethisexampletogether:“IsSusanbeautiful?”askedMrs.Taft.“Sheisanythingbutbeautiful,”repliedMr.Taft.“HowcouldoursillyJohnfallinlovewithsuchagirl?”Mrs.Taftwassurprised.“Whynot?‘Beautyliesinthelover’seyes,’asthesayinggoes,”Mr.Taftansweredwithagentlesmile.“苏珊漂亮吗？”塔夫脱太太问道。“一点也不漂亮。”塔夫脱先生答道。塔夫脱太太感到惊讶:“我们的傻约翰怎么会去爱上这样一个女孩子呢？”塔夫脱先生温和的笑道:“有傻大惊小怪的？俗话说的好:‘情人眼里吃西施’”TheChinesereaderscan’thelpasking:Is“西施”inaforeigncountry?AndisMr.Taftsoeruditethatheknowsthisuniqueword?Soweshouldtranslatetheproverbinto“情人眼里出美人”.Let’shavealookatanotherexample:大伯笑呵呵地对我说:“我们北方人都喜欢睡炕，你也将就点吧。俗话说:‘入乡随俗’嘛。”Unclesaidtomesmilingly,“Wenorthernersliketosleeponourkangs.You’llhavetoputupwithit.Astheproverbgoes,‘DoastheRomansdo.’”(包惠南,包昂,2003:208)13 ReadersmaybeastonishedthathowtheuncletoknowtheWesternproverbs.Therefore,itcanbeconvertedinto“Doasthelocalpeopledo.”Sotranslatorsshouldfirstcomprehendtheoriginalthoroughly,thentranslateitcorrectlybytargetlanguage.Thoroughcomprehensionoftheoriginalisonthebasisofextensiveknowledgeandexcellentconversion.Solongasdoingthis,readerscanbetterunderstandtheproverbs.Fromthisaspect,freetranslationisofgreatimportanceintranslation.However,insomecases,itisnotappropriateforustojustemployliteraltranslationorfreeway.Asaresult,wecanflexiblycombinethetwowaysoftranslationtoachievetheappropriateness.Ontheonehand,thecombinationsupplementsthemessagethatcan’tbeconveyedbyusingliteraltranslation.Ontheotherhand,itaddsnationalcharacteristicsthatcan’tbemaintainedbyemployingfreetranslation.Inaddition,thepurposeoftranslationistoexchangeideasandculture.Bymixingliteraltranslationandfreetranslation,wecanintroduceculturalbackgroundsofthesourcelanguageproverbstousersofreceptorcultureandenrichthelanguageproverbs.3.3CombinationofLiteralTranslationandFreeTranslation“三个臭皮匠，合成一个诸葛亮”，“诸葛亮”isknownbyeveryChinese.Heistherepresentativeofwisdom.Butforeignersmaynotknowwhoheis,whatrelationshiphehaswith“臭皮匠”.Ifweuseliteraltranslation,wecan’tconveyrichhistoryculturewhichiscontainedinthissentence.Therefore,onlybyadoptingthemethodofcombinationofliteraltranslationandfreetranslationcanwemakeculturalinformationoforiginallanguagereappear.Wecantranslatethissentencelikethis:ThreecobblerswiththeirwitscombinedequalChukehLiang,themastermind.(郭建中,1998:156)Todealwiththeseproverbs,herewecanusethefollowingtwomethods:3.3.1LiteralTranslationPlusAnnotationAnnotationisthewaytoaddnotestogivefurtherexplanation.Thecombinedwayofliteraltranslationandannotationmaykeeptheoriginalimagesaswellastransferthesourcelanguageculture.Forexample:司马昭之心，路人皆知—:ThisSimazhaowasaprimeministerofWeiwhonursedasecretambitiontousurpthethrone.13 3.3.2FreeTranslationPlusLiteralTranslationThisapproachisatwo-stepwayoftranslation.Firstly,inordertohelpusersoftargetlanguagetounderstandbetter,weneedtoparaphrasethesourcelanguageproverbs.Secondly,wemayaddaword-for-wordtranslationtothoseproverbstoreservethenationalcolorsandintroducecultureheritagestothereceivers.Forexample:万事俱备，只欠东风—Allisreadyexceptwhatiscrucial.AstheChinesesayinggoes,“Everythingisready,allweneedistheeastwind.”Stillwaterrunsdeep—静水流深，大智若愚Cutyourcoataccordingtoyourcloth—量布裁衣，量入为出EvenHomersometimesnods—荷马也有瞌睡时，智者千虑，必有一失Ifhavelostthering,yetthefingersarestillthere—戒指虽丢失，手指仍存在；留得青山在，不怕没柴烧Fromtheaboveanalysis,wecanconcludethatthismethodcanmakeupfortheliteraltranslation’sexpressivenessaswellasfreetranslation’scloseness.4ConclusionTosumup,proverbshasalonghistory,fullwithgreatwisdom,becomingoneoftheoldestandmostvaluablelanguageformsintheworld.Sointhispaper,I’vecomparedtheculturaldifferencesbetweenEnglishandChineseproverbs,whichnotonlyintroducetheessenceofforeignculturebetter,widenourvisionofnationalcultureandenrichournationallanguageandculture,butalsohelpusenhanceourculturalawarenessofinterculturalcommunications.Onlywhenweareawareoftheculturalcharacteristicsofproverbs,andgathermoreculturalbackgrounds,canwebetterunderstandEnglishandChineseproverbs.OnlywhenwerealizetheculturaldifferencesbetweenEnglishandChineseproverbs,areweabletoavoidmistakescausedduetolackofculturalawarenessintranslatingandusingthem.Sotherearefourstepsforustofollow:Firstly,wemustimproveourlanguageleveltocomprehendmoreproverbs.Secondly,wecanmakecomparisonbetweenthesetwokindsofproverbstolayfoundationforthenextstep.Thirdly,weshouldaccumulateasmuchcultureaspossibletoraiseourculturalcompetence.Lastly,thestrategiesfordealingwithtranslationareofgreatimportance.Translatorsshouldkeep13 culturaldifferencesinmind.Onlybydoingthiscanwegivethereintooursubjectiveinitiative,seekvariouswaystotranslateeffectively,tryourbesttominimizeandeliminatedifficultiesandbarriersoftranslatingandculturalcommunicationcausedbyculturedifferences.Allinall,weexplaindifferencesbetweenChineseandWesternculturesinordertoseekbetterwaysforproverbstranslation,weseekbettertranslationinordertoexchangeculturewell,tocommunicatewithforeignersbetter,andtopreventfromculturalshock.13 References:[1]Whiting,B.L.EarlyAmericanProverbsandProverbialPhrases.Cambridge,Mass:BelknapPressofHarwardUniversityPress[2]包惠南,包昂.中国文化与汉英翻译.北京:外文出版社，2003.[3]戴炜栋,何兆熊.新编简明英语语言学教程.上海:上海外语教育出版社,2002.[4]冯庆华.实用翻译教程:英汉互译.上海:上海外语教育出版社,2001.[5]郭建中.翻译中的文化因素，异化与归化.外国语,1998,2.[6]牛津高阶英汉双解词典.牛津大学出版社,2004.[7]王得春,杨素英,黄月圆.汉英谚语与文化.上海:上海外语教育出版社,2003.[8]（英）曼瑟.英语谚语典故词典.北京:中国对外翻译出版公司,2004.13