英文关係代名词的翻译技巧
本篇讲解关係代名词的翻译技巧。关係代名词是英文中特有的一种表达情境或补充说明的手段,许多老美用得炉火纯青之后,简直就把它当成连接词使用,用来接续说话的逻辑与思绪。
这篇贴文并非讲解如何使用关係代名词,而是着重于翻译技巧。版主日后会另闢文法解说的单元,好好讲解这个困扰华人、但又极为重要的英文文法观念。英文关係代名词翻译技巧
下面是版主参考过去上课 (王力文教授) 内容所整理出来的例句,中文是版主执笔翻译,仅供网友参考。
◎ That is the man whose house has been burned down.
就是那位男士,他的房子烧毁了。
那位男士的房子烧毁了。
(解析) 如果要强调男士的话,中文就得重复翻译关係代名词。
◎ I’ll take whoever wants to go.
谁想去我就带谁去。
* You could ask Jane or Mary or whoever really.
你可以去问 Jane 或 Mary,甚至任何人都可以。
◎ I looked at the boy, who was silently watching his fly, and it was my hands that held his rod, my eyes watching.
– ‘ Once More to the Lake’ by E. B. White
我看着儿子静静注视那隻蜻蜓。似乎握住他钓竿的,是我的手;而凝视那隻蜻蜓的,是我的眼睛。
(解析) who 是属于关係代名词的补述用法,说明他儿子的行为。如果去掉逗号改成限定用法,可以会让人以为他当时身边不只一位儿子。
It was … that … = > 这是一种强调的写法。
◎ A pessimist is a man who has been compelled to live with an optimist. – Elbert Hubbard
所谓悲观者,就是被迫与乐观者同住的人。
(解析) 这句话其实是一种“定义”句型 (A *** is a ** who/which/with/without …) ,请网友多加注意。比方说下句:
* A snake is a reptile without legs.
* A pessimist is a person who has had to listen to too many optimists. – Don Marquis
所谓悲观者,就是必须要听从许多乐观者意见的人。
◎ A man who is not a fool can rid himself of every folly but vanity. – Rousseau
人若不蠢,虽可避免犯下任何愚行,却不能躲避虚荣。
(解析) A man who is not a fool => If a man is not a fool, …
◎ To a man who is afraid, everything rustles.
人一害怕,草木皆兵。
(解析) 同上一句。
◎ He who does not enjoy solitude will not love freedom. – Arthur Schopenhauer
不喜欢独处的人不会喜欢自由。
人若讨厌独处,便不会喜欢自由。
◎ He who does not prevent a crime when he can, encourages it. – Seneca
能制止犯罪而不去行,等于是鼓励犯罪。
◎ Our most important thoughts are those which contradic our emotions. – P Valery
我们最重要的思想,是与我们情感衝突的 (思想)。
◎ Vows begin when hope dies. – L Da Vinci
希望一灭,誓言便会出口。
希望破灭,誓约就出现。
(解析) Vows begin at the time when hope dies.
◎ The world, where much is to be done and little to be known. – S. Johnson
这世界要做的是太多,然而要懂的事却太少。
◎ We’re living in a world where natural disasters are increaing.
如今世界上的自然灾害不断增加。
(解析) 要跳脱英文关係代名词的束缚,理解之后以中文语法来翻译。
◎ A small town is a place where everyone knows whose check is good and whose husband is not. – Sid Ascheer
小镇就是这样的地方:大家都知道谁的支票靠得住,谁的老公靠不住。
小镇就是如此,彼此都知道谁的支票靠得住,谁的老公不老实。
◎ The most beautiful things are those that madness prompts and reason writes. – A Gide
由疯狂激发但靠理智撰写的作品是最优美的。
最优美的作品,是由疯狂激发但以理智来撰写。
(解析) 这里最好不要用 which 来代替 that (即便文法允许)。
◎ I’m lazy. But it’s the lazy people who invented the wheel and the bicycle because they didn’t like walking or carrying things. – Lech Wales
我很懒,但就是因为懒人既不爱走路,又不爱提东西,他们才会发明轮子与脚踏车。
◎ It may be more convenient to carry traveller’s checks, which are insured against loss.
– Nancy Church and Anne Moss. How to Survive in the U.S.A.
因为旅行支票保有失窃险 (有投保以防止失窃),携带它或许会比较方便。