英汉颜色词的文化内涵对比与翻译（修改页码）

毕 业 论 文

院 别 政法学院

系 别 政法系 专 业 法学 年 级 08级 学生姓名 郑迪珩 学 号 200824022123

论文题目 英汉颜色词的文化内涵对比与翻译 指导教师 张琼 完成时间 年 月

肇庆学院教务处制

A Contrastive Study of Color Words in Chinese and English and Their Translation

Zheng Diheng

A Thesis

Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the

Requirements for Foreign Language School

At Zhaoqing University

November 3, 2011

A Contrastive Study of Color Words in Chinese and English and Their Translation

Abstract

When translating, translators may feel some confused in color words. We need to know the different meanings between Chinese and English if we want to translate correctly. Chinese and English have many differences from each other. Language is a part of one culture. In this paper, the writer will give a contrastive study of color words in Chinese and English and use some methods to solve the problems.

Key Words: Color Words; Culture; A Contrastive Study; Translation

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A Contrastive Study of Color Words in Chinese and English and Their Translation

内容摘要

在中英翻译的过程中，有时会遇到一些颜色词的翻译，要想正确翻译颜色词，就要先了解中英颜色词文化的内涵，寻找中英两种语言中颜色词使用的异同。由于诸多因素影响,彼此存在着很大差异。语言是文化不可分割的一部分,因而汉英两种语言的差异成为中西文化差异的一面镜子。本文从颜色词入手,通过比较的方法对英汉基本颜色词的异同进行了分析探讨,提出了颜色词翻译的几种不同方法,以解决颜色词翻译过程中的文化不等值现象。

关键词：颜色词；文化；对比；翻译

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A Contrastive Study of Color Words in Chinese and English and Their Translation

Acknowledgments

On the completion of my thesis, I should like to express my deepest gratitude to all whose kindness and advice have made this work possible. I am greatly indebted to my supervisor, Miss Zhang.

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A Contrastive Study of Color Words in Chinese and English and Their Translation

Outline

Thesis Statement: Recent studies of contrast and analysis of Chinese and western culture in the symbolic meaning of color words that we in the practical life better appropriate and application of words of color in Chinese and western culture. 1. Introduction

2. Color Words in Chinese and English 2.1 Black 2.2 White 2.3 Red 2.4 Green 2.5 Yellow 2.6 Blue

3. The Translation of Color Words

3.1 Literal Translation 3.2 Free Translation 4. Conclusion

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A Contrastive Study of Color Words in Chinese and English and Their Translation

Table of Contents

1. Introduction …………………………………………………………………………1 2. Color Words in Chinese and English……......……………………………………….1 2.1 Black.........................................................................................…………………1 2.2 White………………………………………........................................................2

2.3 Red………………………………………. .............................................……….2 2.4 Green....................................................................................................................3 2.5 Yellow...................................................................................................................4 2.6 Blue.......................................................................................................................4 3. The Translation of Color Words……...………………………………………..….…5

3.1 Literal Translation………….........……………………………………………...5 3.2 Free Translation…………………………………………................……………5 4. Conclusion...................................................................................................................6 Notes ………………..………………………………….…………………………....7 Bibliography ……………………………..…………….………………………….....7

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A Contrastive Study of Color Words in Chinese and English and Their Translation

I. Introduction

From the scientific definition, color is a visual phenomenon launched, reflected or caused through certain light wave by the object; it is one kind of visual essential features of human eye.1 In my opinion, color words are used to describe colors of things and they have traits of national culture. Since different country have different customs, culture background and religions, the same color may have different meanings. As a result, it is important for the translators to consider about the exactly definition of the color words. In this way, translations will be clearer and true. On the basic color words, there is not so much difference in English and in Chinese. In Chinese, there are 赤, 橙, 黄, 绿, 青, 蓝, 紫,while in English there are red, white, black, green, yellow, blue and purple. Owing to the different historic cultural background of the two cultures, the same color words have different symbolic meanings. The following will list the same and the differences between Chinese and English in the same color word.

II. Color Words in Chinese and English

Here I will site six color words –black, white, red, green, yellow and blue, to show the same and the difference between Chinese and English culture.

2. 1 Black

\is the very darkest color, like night or coal. It also means \light; completely dark\

In Chinese, the \黑\is always together with \reactionary and evil, misfortune, illegal and covered\黑市, 黑帮, 黑心肠, 黑社会, 黑客\Chinese traditional culture, black and white both belong to the Five Colors. In Chinese funeral, people usually wear a black armband to show their mourns to the death relative. On one hand, black stands for solemn and just, such as Baozheng ; On the other hand, it stands for evil and reactionary, like黑幕, 黑手. Black also stands for illegal and commit such as走黑道,黑店 is the hotel the does illegal deals,背黑锅 means be treated unjustly. Besides, black means misfortune, such as 黑材料, 黑五类, 黑夫妻, 黑后台 and so on. In English, \depressing\2 For example, \\sheep\sinister, such as Black Mass, to wear black for her mother, black words, a black letter day, Black Friday. Black symbolizes wicked and guilty, for example, black man, a black deed, black guard, Black-hand, black-hearted. And it means disgrace, such as a black mark; a black eye, A black sheep. And black means dejected and resent: black dog, black future, a black look, and black thoughts. Although black means dead and evil, it also stands for solemn and dignified. Black suit is the westerner’s favorite traditional dress. In solemn

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A Contrastive Study of Color Words in Chinese and English and Their Translation

occasions, the officials and celebrities would prefer to dress in black. There is no greatly discrimination by using \

2. 2 White

In Chinese , \白\洁白无暇\雪白\清白无辜\白\ \died his family members must dress in white, and hold a funeral and this is called 白事. \白\白拿\白给\白\白费力气\and \白白浪费一天的时间\In Chinese feudal society, the common people were forbidden to dress in any other colors except white, so they were called 白衣 or 布衣. The persons with no position are 白丁 or 白身, their houses are 白屋.

In English, \like \（白衬衫）, \ (一口洁白无瑕的牙齿). \（吉日）, \（一个做好事的巫师）, \（善意的谎言）. Sometimes, \as a sheet\（苍白如纸）, \（懦弱胆小的）for example. White in the western culture is usually an esteem color. White is considered pure. White is the traditional color for the brides at weddings, and to wear white at funerals would be offensive. As white is the color of the snow, so there is a white Christmas and a white winter. Lily white means as white and pure as lily. White stands for honest and upright, such as a white spirit, white man, and white hand. White also stands for lucky, such as one of the white days in somebody's life, white magic, and white hope is a person who is expected to bring success to a team. White stands for legal and non-malice, such as white market, white list. Besides, white also has derogatory meanings; show the white feather means act in a cowardly way, the same as white lipped, a face white with fear, as white as a sheet. White flag symbolizes giving up on something.

2.3 Red

In Chinese, \红\红榜\红红火火\红灯笼\走红运\and \红\分红\culture is a basic esteem color. In the Chinese's mind, it signifies excitement and succeeding, lucky, loyal and flourishing. In Chinese traditional wedding, people put up the character 喜, the bride is dressed in red, the bridegroom wears a red flower on his breast. On happy days, people decorate their houses with red lanterns and doublets. 红火 means prosperous, 红尘 means the world of mortal, 红包 is a red envelop containing money as a gift, tip or bonus. We say someone 走红 when he has his good lot, and 红人 means the one who is trusted unduly by his superiors. In Chinese, red has the most pronounced political color, and is frequently used to stand for revolution and progress.

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A Contrastive Study of Color Words in Chinese and English and Their Translation

The first regime of the Communist Party is 红色政权, and the first armed forces is 红军.And 红卫兵 the red guard, 红色根据地 the red base area. Besides, 红烛 the red candle stands for dedication. Red also means beautiful and pretty. A lady's splendid dress is called 红妆 , a beautiful young woman is 红袖 or 红颜.

In English, \red letter day\（是一个喜庆的日子）, \（表示红地毯并可引申为隆重欢迎的意思）. But \（血战）, \（紧急警报）,\（火灾）, \（血淋淋的）, \（负债累累）. In these words, \

Red in the western culture mainly refers to color of blood, and in minds of the westerner, blood is the \violence and dangerous, for example red hands, red revenge, and a red battle. It also stands for radical and violent, such as red revolution, red activities, red-headed; like a red rag to a bull means likely to cause strong violence. It also stands for dangerous and tense, such as red alert, a red flag. Red in the west also has commendatory meaning, which is joyous, such as paint the town red means \bars or night-clubs\something happen on it\is given to an important guest. In accordance with some textual research, the commendatory meanings are from the Far East.

2.4 Green

\reen\

or \For example, \with new growth.\雨天过后，大地一片新绿)

In Chinese, \绿\stand for \it often appear with \hills and clear waters\Chinese use \绿\青山绿水\绿叶成阴\绿茸茸\In the Chinese traditional culture, Green ranks the first in the Five Colors, signifying everything grows. In the feudal society, the dress of the government official on a lower level was regularized to be green, so it also symbolizes humble. \青衫绿袍\symbol of low position in the official career.

In English, \stand for \vigor\Like \be in the green of one's years\某人正风华正茂), \老当益壮) . At the same time, \means \greenhorn--a person who is not experienced. \\green with envy, both of them mean jealous and envious. However in Chinese眼红describes the same meaning. In Chinese 带绿帽子means to be a cuckold. If we translate it word by word, misunderstanding will arise.

No matter in English or Chinese, this symbolic meaning of green is all identical. Green in the western culture is mainly related to the color of the plants, it is the symbol of vigor and energy, for example, a green old age is associated with an old but vigorous man

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A Contrastive Study of Color Words in Chinese and English and Their Translation

or woman. And to remain green forever means to keep fresh and vigorous forever, and also in the green; green also means fresh, such as keep a memory green, a green wound, green meat; and it means immature, inexperienced and easily fooled, such as a green hand, a green horn refers to a raw, simple and inexperienced person, easily fooled or parted from his money. In some certain phrases, green has different meanings. For example, green-light means give permission to go ahead with.

2.5 Yellow

\淡黄色的花朵).

\黄色\黄色\which is always used in imperial house and it is the symbol of \黄袍\黄冠\黄门\黄色\黄色网站\黄色书刊\扫黄\center of the Five Colors. So far, yellow is still the symbol of old China.黄袍 is the emperor's dress,黄屋 is his carriage,黄钺is his guard of honor, 黄榜 is the proclamation published by him. And 黄道吉日 means an auspicious day.However, yellow in modern China has negative meanings, such as 黄色书刊, 黄色录象.Here yellow has an extended meaning of obscene and pornographic, while in English are \blue video\\

In English, from the Bible, we know that Juda is in yellow when he betrays Jesus. And from that time, \is use to describe as \and \For example, \（卑鄙小人）and \（可鄙的胆小鬼）. Yellow in the west mostly has derogatory meanings. Here are some examples: yellow alert: alert in advance; a yellow dog: a contemptible person; yellow looks: suspicious looks; yellow streak: tending to be coward and chicken-hearted. In English, yellow has some particular meanings in certain texts that have no relationship with sentiment. For example, the yellow pages is the telephone dictionary, yellow boy is the golden coins.

2.6 Blue

In Chinese, \蓝色\蓝天白云\\蓝田玉生\比喻名门出贤弟子)and \蓝图\. It seems that blue is a favorable word to Chinese.The blue sky, can arouse us to yearn for a better future.

In English, \have varied of meanings. The Black Americans like singing \—a sorrowful music when they are forced to manual labor. As a result, \not only a color word of a clear sky or the sea, but to describes the feeling of sadness. For example, \Monday\(倒霉的星期一), \the blue\垂头丧气). Besides, blue means \色情片), \下流的言论) \jokes\黄色笑话) and so on. Of course, \like \blood\出身名门贵族), \stocking\才女) and \chip\绩优股). In these words, \

In Western culture, however, blue does not associate with happiness and imagination,

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A Contrastive Study of Color Words in Chinese and English and Their Translation

but gloom and depression. He is in a blue mood means he is sad or gloomy. Blue is also often associated with high social status or being aristocratic. He is a real blue blood means he is from an aristocratic family. In addition, in U.S., a book with the names of famous figures, especially top government officials, is called blue book. Blue film means erotic film while in Chinese we call it 黄色电影. Here are more examples: blue about the gills: in depression blue devils; depression and gloom once in a blue moon: not very often at all

blue in the face: look pasty blue murder; horrible screaming and shouts sing the blues: in low spirits; very depressed

out of the blue: happening in a way that is sudden and unexpected

III. The Translation Methods of Color Words

From the above contrastive study of color words in Chinese and English, we know that the same color word contains different cultural meanings, because of the different history background, national mentality, religion and cultural tradition. Therefore, when translating between Chinese and English, we should use some translating methods to make our words more appropriate.

3.1 Literal Translation

Some color words have the same meaning between Chinese and English. In this case, translators can translate literally. For example: ⑴他气得脸色发白。 He turned white with rage.

⑵The referee held up a red card. 裁判亮出了一张红牌。

⑶The murder took place in a cold, black night. 谋杀案发生在一个寒冷而漆黑的夜晚。 ⑷春风又绿江南岸，明月何时照我还？（王安石《泊船瓜洲》） Spring wind of itself turns the south shore green,

But what bright moon will light me home?(Tr.Burton Watson)

In example⑴, \meaning between Chinese and English.

In example⑵, \is the color of fresh blood. Example⑶is under the similar circumstance that \

In example⑷, in the Chinese line, the word of \绿\that the spring breeze blow gently, and the line express the emotion of the writer that he miss his hometown. The \绿\…green\also means \life\English. As we know, when in Christmas, westerns are always put charisma's trees in their house and decorate them.

3.2 Free Translation

As we all know, because Chinese and English have their own history backgrounds and national cultures, it is impossible to convey in the same way all the time. Similarly, the same color word may have different significance between Chinese and English. In this situation, translating literally may be unacceptable. For example:

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A Contrastive Study of Color Words in Chinese and English and Their Translation

⑸Neither of the two organizations uses public funds for direct support of abortions, but they do support groups which provide abortions with other funds a red flag for conservatives.

这两个组织都未动用公款直接资助堕胎，但他们所资助的团体却利用其他经费来资助堕胎，这就激怒了保守派人士。

⑹The competing interests groups confront each other with a show of passion and drama, sometimes over inconsequential matters or over a mere linguistic difference.利益冲突集团有时为了一些枝节问题或仅仅为了一个字眼而争得面红耳赤，剑拔弩张。 ⑺晓来谁染霜林醉，总是离人泪。（王实甫《西湘记》 Why like wine-flushed face is frosted forest red?

It’s dyed in tears the parting lovers shed. (Tr.Xu Yuanzhong) ⑻贾宝玉神游太虚境，警幻仙曲演红楼梦。 Jiao Baoyu visits the Land of Illusion;

And the fairy Disenchantment performs the Dream of Golden Days. ⑼贾宝玉品茶栊翠庵，刘姥姥醉窝怡红院。

Jia Baoyu tastes some superior tea at Green Bower Hermitage;

And Grannie Liu samples the sleeping accommodation at Green Delights.

In example⑸, it is wrong to translate \保守派人士的一面红旗\In Chinese, \flag\is the symbol of revolution. While in English, \waving a red flag in front of a bull\means something that is likely to make somebody very angry.

In example⑻and example⑼, the translator use \红楼梦\怡红院\but \

\means jealous and envious, like, green with envy, green as jealousy, green-eyed monster. \眼红\the American dolls are green, they use green to describe a person who is rich. For example:

In American political elections the candidates that win are usually the ones who have green power backing them.

在美国政治竞选中获胜的候选人通常都是些有财团支持的人物。

IV. Conclusion

A language can reflect the development of a nation's history and culture. The symbolic meanings of color words have great distinction in different cultures. They are shaped in the long-term development of the society. Translation is to change words into another language. Before translating, we need to contrast one language with another one, especially translating color words. At first, it seems simple to translate color words. But if you have a contrastive study of color words in Chinese and English, you will find that

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A Contrastive Study of Color Words in Chinese and English and Their Translation

there are many differences between them. The colors bring us a wonderful and splendid world, and color words make it easier to express our thoughts, and make our expression more apt and vivid. Correctly understanding colors and their deeper symbolic meanings will be a great help for people in different cultures to communicate. Of course, you can translate them literally when they have the same meanings. If not, you should be careful, look for the universality and individuality of the color words, and then translate them properly.

As the main reason to the similarities and individualities of color words between Chinese and English, we should pay more attention to the two different cultures. Color words as a code system have different uses and cultural backgrounds during cross-culture exchanges. Therefore, if we want to do a better job, we should have a comprehensive knowledge of them.

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A Contrastive Study of Color Words in Chinese and English and Their Translation

Notes

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