The cultural connotations of Chinese color words and their English translation 英语专业毕业论文.doc

the cultural connotations of chinese color words and their english translationmay 2013contentsabstract(english)9abstract(chinese)101. introduction112. cultural connotation of chinese color words112.1 cultural connotation of red in chinese112.2 cultural connotation of black in chinese122.3 cultural connotation of green in chinese132.4 cultural connotation of white in chinese142.5 cultural connotation of yellow in chinese153. translation of chinese color words163.1 literal translation163.2 annotation translation173.3 free translation174. conclusion18references20acknowledgements21abstract as culture-loaded words, chinese color words have cultural connotations only chinese people possess, and is also a hot issue that is being discussed in recent years. the paper, starting with a discussion of some basic chinese color words, red, green, black, white and yellow, and analyzing lots of examples, explains their cultural connotations and introduces strategies and skills of their english translation relatively. the purpose of this paper is to offer us more concrete and effective ways of understanding the cultural connotations of chinese color words and translating, which can help us to solve the problem of bilingual translation.key words: chinese color words; cultural connotations; strategies and skills of english translation 摘 要 作为文化的载体，汉语颜色词有着汉民族独具特色的文化内涵，也是近些年讨论的热点话题。本文从一些基本的汉语颜色词红、绿、黑、白、黄出发, 通过大量的材料分析，解释了它们的文化内涵，并介绍了对应的英译策略和技巧。文章旨在为汉语颜色词的文化涵义提供更加具体有效的理解和翻译途径，从而帮助大家排除英译过程中的障碍。关键词：汉语颜色词；文化内涵；英译技巧 1. introduction language is the most important communication tool of human communication. it is a part of culture. at the same time, the language is like a mirror, which reflects a certain social collective worldview, values and customs habits and etc. although language of color words is only a small part of the language vocabulary, but it is the same as other parts, bearing the distinctive cultural information, and has the profound cultural connotation. as we all know, chinese and english belong to different families of languages, and in addition, different countries have different cultures. so, dealing with cultural connotations in the process of translating is a complex project. in his essay cultural comparisons in translation,wang zuoliang pointed out “a translator must be a real culturist. a translator must grasp two languages; indeed, he must. but without understanding the social cultural connotation in one language no one can really master the language” (wang zuoliang, 1997:18). the previous scholars have studied the connotation of color from different sides, like a cultural comparison of color terms and their translation by defu zhang. most of them concentrated on the symbolic meaning of the color. the paper mainly focus on the cultural connotation and translation techniques of chinese color words. first, it explores chinese cultural connotations of five common color words, red, black, green, white and yellow. then, combined with specific instances, it puts forward some practical and flexible translation methods. 2. cultural connotation of chinese color words culture is a concept of covering and containing everything. it is a complex whole obtained by members of society, including knowledge, belief, art, morals, rule, law, custom, and any other capabilities and habits (edward taylor, 1871:10). chinese color words have rich cultural connotations, and they are closely linked with chinese nations geographical environment, historical background, economic life, customs habits, religion, psychology, value concept and so on. the section explores the cultural connotation of the main chinese color words. 2.1 cultural connotation of red in chinese “red” is an ancient color to human. in ancient time, people get warm and light vitality from the sun, and fire was used to cook. the impression from the sun and fire were “red”, so they thought “red” is a warm and respectable color that can bring us into excitement, great delight, good luck, success, happiness and prosperity. this view is handed down from the ancient time and becomes a tradition. as a result, during the spring festival, people stick red couplets, hang red lanterns and wear red clothes. during the lunar new year, the elders give away “red packets” (红包) to the children. “红双喜” is a traditional symbol of happiness. “开门红” and “红运当头” mirror the good luck. “红男绿女” refers to boys and girls who are well-dressed. people call the person who helps girls and boys get married “红娘”. other expressions such as “红人”, “走红” and “红极一时” are used to describe someone who is very successful and famous. also, in the book dreams of a red mansion written by cao xueqin, “red” here refers to happiness and prosperity. secondly, red color is widely used in the traditional chinese wedding, which symbolizes the prosperous life and happiness in the couples future. so, people put up the character “喜”, the bride is dressed in red, the bridegroom wears a red flower on his breast. in the third place, “red” has the most pronounced political color, and is frequently used to stand for revolution and progress. the first regime of the communist party is “红色政权”, and the first armed forces “红军”, “红卫兵” (the red guard), “红色根据地” (the red base area). at the same time, “red” can also represent the dangerous signal in chinese. the fire truck and the alarm light in china are also red. whats more, “红烛” (the red candle) stands for dedication. “red” also means beautiful and pretty. a ladys splendid dress is called “红妆”, a beautiful young woman is “红袖” or “红颜”. in chinese, “red” is also the description of the erotic event. for example, “红杏出墙” means a wife is disloyal to her husband. 2.2 cultural connotation of black in chineseblack denotes strength and authority and is considered to be a very formal, elegant, and prestigious color. the black color is the emperors unique color of the clothes, the common people are not allowed to wear the black clothes. and it also stands for honesty and justice in china. in the traditional beijing opera, the honest and good men all have the black faces to show their justice. the poets like to use the black to describe the healthy and the strong young boys or girls. “black” also stands for the evil signs in chinas traditional culture. besides, “black” implies gloom, disgrace, misfortune, extreme anger, and etc. in modern china, the derivatives of the black is always connected with the disaster, adversity. the black color has the reactionary connotation in chinas mainland. it often refers to the evil gang or some offenders and criminals. if we do not know this connotation during intercultural communication, it will cause trouble and obstacle. in china, “black” symbolizes terror, mystery, evil and illegality as in “黑名单，黑市， 黑心，黑货，黑帮，黑白颠倒”. at the same time, “black” is the color of death. chinese wear a piece of black cloth on their left arms to show their respect and sadness to the dead. with the exchange of culture and the culture assimilation, in modem society, “black” is also regarded as a color of formality, modesty and seriousness, such as “黑色西装” (black suit) and “黑色礼服” (black dress). therefore, famous scholars and important officials or businessmen usually wear black suit on formal occasions so as to show that they have attached much importance to the matter itself. similarly, symphony orchestra wear black suit while giving performance. judges and lawyers wear black robe in the court to show holiness and stateliness of the court. 2.3 cultural connotation of green in chinesein the chinese traditional culture, “green” ranks the first in the five colors, signifying everything grows. and also, chinese people often use it to indicate “life, vitality and hope” in “绿色希望”, “绿色生命” and “绿洲”. “green” is also a symbol of passing. “绿灯” is a traffic light that shows cars or pedestrians are allowed to go forward. in china, “green” signifying force is the color of chinese liberation army since its uniform is green. the army is also named “绿色长城” (green great wall). besides, “绿鬓” has been used to describe a girl who has thick, dark and shiny hair. the green facial makeup in chinese peking opera represents a character of hot temper and determination like wu tianqiu in qing dynasty. to begin with, “green” in chinese can indicate bravery, good-hearted and upright bandit. the people who lived in the forests helped the poor by robbing the rich, and they are heroes in the eyes of people named as “绿林好汉”, “绿林豪杰”. in addition, 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” is a symbol of low position in the official career. green also has the meaning of the failure of marriage. the phrase “戴绿帽子” (to be a cuckold) means that somebodys wife has love affairs with another man. 2.4 cultural connotation of white in chinese in chinese culture, “white” is contrary to red. it is adopted to describe ones poor complexion. for instance, we say “他脸色苍白”, “白” in “白发”and “花白” is often used to indicate the hair color of old man. “white” is a basic color taboo, which shows the chinese material and spirit disgust. in the traditional chinese perspective, “white” makes people tend to think of solemn mourning, originating from ancient times for color of superstition. white color in china is symbol of death, lifeless performance and bad omen. so when the people pass away, the relatives always wear the white clothes and hit the white long narrow flag to the funeral to mourn him or her. “白喜事”(mourning) is used to mean “funeral affairs”. it is because, in the funeral, the dead one will wear white underclothes; his close relatives wear white hats, white mourning apparels and white shoes, with a white rope tied in the waists; the flag used is a narrow piece of white clothe bound with a bamboo stick. in ancient times, if the parents were still alive, their children were not allowed to wear white clothes. secondly, “白” has some other connotations due to some political and historical reasons specific to china. in ancient china, no matter how low an official ranked, his robe was colored. but “white” had never been the color of official robes because it was the color of mourning dress. it was the color for the populace who were called “白衣” and later turned into “布衣”. those who got no scholarly honor or official rank were called “白丁”, and their residence was “白屋”. “白衣举人” is a successful candidate from a poor family in the imperial examinations at the provincial level in the ming and qing dynasties. when a government official was degraded in exile, he was compelled to “白衣从事 ”and “白衣从征”. at the same time, the psychological function of “white” is influenced by its political function. it implies reaction, failure, foolish and vain action. in other cases, “白” has nothing to do with color at all as in “白搭”, “白干”, “白拿”, “交白卷”, “白字” and “白操心”, all conveying the meaning of bearing no results. thirdly, “white” in china also has the commendatory meaning. it is associated with light, purity, innocence, goodness, and virginity, which is considered to be the color of perfection as in “洁白无瑕” (purity) and “清白无辜” (innocence). nurses are called “白衣天使” for their white uniform, looking like angels who bring life and brightness to patients. the young pioneers often wear white shirts. since the opening up and reform, chinese gradually accept the western custom of wearing white at wedding ceremony, seeking happiness and signifying purity of love. as opposed to black, “white” usually has a positive connotation, which refers to the bright future and hope. 2.5 cultural connotation of yellow in chinesethe chinese people take pride in taking the yellow river as their place of origin. in china, there is a word called “天玄地黄”, in which “黄” refers to the color of earth, standing for the center of universe and symbolizing the territory and state, and is a primary color in the middle of the five elements. thus, we call ourselves proudly as “炎黄子孙”. and “yellow” also symbolizes emperial power, dignity and power-seizing. it is said that xuanyuan, a legendary ruler and one of the earliest ancestors of the han nationality, was called “黄帝”, namely “yellow emperor”, because he often wore yellow dress and yellow hats. gradually, the yellow color has become the color of emperors and the color term “黄” has been used to symbolize imperial power. later, emperor wudi in han dynasty changed officially the imperial dress into yellow as a respect to the earth. from han dynasty, chinese emperors are dressed in yellow, and many things in relation to them are yellow. besides, “黄道吉日” is a day suitable for doing anything, such as holding wedding and opening ceremonies, which is mystery but luck. so, “黄” is a much more respectable color in peoples mind.secondly, “金黄的麦穗” and “黄稼” both refer to the ripening crop, and “黄垄” describes the ridge when the crops are ripe. “黄澄澄” and “黄灿灿” are the golden color of ripe crops (and also the color of gold). “黄粱美梦” is used to indicate fond or pipe dream. “金黄的麦穗” obviously is about the riping crop. whats more, the color “yellow” in china conveys both the meaning of ripeness and immaturity. “黄发” refers to the symbol of aged people while “黄口小儿”, on the contrary, means innocent kids. however, in some cases, “yellow” means “withered”. “黄落”, “枯黄”, “黄萎” and “黄桑” refers to the yellow and withered grass and trees.thirdly, in china, “黄” is always associated with obscene or pornographic materials, such as “黄色电影” (obscene films), “黄色书刊” (filthy publications) and “黄色音乐” (vulgar music). besides, in colloquial chinese, “黄” in such expressions as “买卖黄了” and “我和我对象黄了” is used derogatorily, implying failure. while “黄账” is dead loan that can not be returned. in addition, “黄泉” is also a special term used for long time, indicating the underworld where dead people would have to go. 3. translation of chinese color wordsin the translation of chinese color words, it is necessary to carefully study their cultural meaning and the cultural characteristics. in the process of language conversion, it is required to avoid distortion of cultural transmission to make the translation better. the section puts forward some practical and flexible translation methods in terms of cultural meaning of chinese color words. 3.1 literal translation literal translation, or direct translation, is a way to translate a sentence originally, keeping the original forms of the source language including meaning of the original words, construction of sentences, styles, and metaphor of the original. in chinese and english, some color words are the same or similar both in literal meanings and cultural connotations. in this case, literal translation is acceptable, and its helpful to richen the expression of the target language. thus we can employ literal translation to translate them. some examples are as follows: (1) 赤橙黄绿青蓝紫，谁持彩练当空舞？ red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet-who is dancing, waving this colored ribbon against the sky? (2) 天下乌鸦一般黑。 crows are black all over the world. (3) 春风又绿江南岸，明月何时照我还? spring wind of itself turns the south shore green, but what bright moon will light me home? in the above examples, the translator not only reproduce the meaning, frame and style of the original but also keep their vivid image figure of speech and novel and unique expressive ways by translating literally. besides, the version is fluent and easy for target language readers to comprehend the origins literal grace. at the same time, it is beneficial for the cultural exchange between the two nations. in (3), the color term “绿” (green) has been highly evaluated for its magic power in conveying the poets feelings. on the one hand, the term vividly describes a sense of kinesthesia while spring wind is blowing; on the other hand, it visually portrays a sunlit and enchanting scene of early spring in the south. in this way, the poets deep and eager homesickness is revealed forcefully. 3.2 annotation translation annotation translation, also called literal translation with a proper note, means a method of combining a literal transfer of the source language to the target language with a necessary note to elaborate the rich cultural connotation of the source language. namely, sometimes, literal translation cannot express the meaning of the original language exactly and completely, in such case, it is reasonable to translate by adding explanation. (1) 又红又专 red and expert-both progressive and professionally expert.(2) 在他们分别之前，他送给她一颗红豆。 on the day before their departure, he gave her a red bean, which is a token of their love and remembrance. here, if the translator of (1) treated “红” as “red” literally, english speakers will be confused. but when the translator dealt with it by adding “both progressive and professionally expert”, the meaning of he original language was expressed exactly and completely. in the same way, by adding “which is a token of their love and remembrance”, the meaning of remembrance and miss “红豆” in (2) refers to can be expressed. 3.3 free translationfree translation is a skill of translation also called liberal translation, which does not adhere strictly either to the literal meaning or the word order of the original. it is a way to, according to the main meaning of the original passage, translate a sentence without paying attention to the details, such as, the form of the source language, figure of speech and the structure of s