1、第八節(jié)反譯法 由于講英語(yǔ)國(guó)家的歷史、地理、社會(huì)文化背景和生活習(xí)性與我國(guó)不同，因此這些國(guó)家人們的思維方式和生活習(xí)性亦與我國(guó)不同。這種差別體現(xiàn)在語(yǔ)言習(xí)慣七，便產(chǎn)生了兩種語(yǔ)言各自不同的表達(dá)形式。在表示否定意義時(shí)，這種差異顯得尤為突出。有的英語(yǔ)句子形式上是否定的而實(shí)質(zhì)上是肯定的，有的形式上是肯定的而實(shí)質(zhì)上是否定的。在翻譯某些英文句子時(shí)，應(yīng)當(dāng)特別注意兩點(diǎn)：一是英語(yǔ)里有些從正面表達(dá)的詞語(yǔ)或句子，漢譯時(shí)可以從反面來表達(dá)，即正說反譯法；二是英語(yǔ)里有些從反面表達(dá)的詞語(yǔ)或句子，漢譯時(shí)可從正面來表達(dá)，即反說正譯法。例如：(1)The kind of machine is far from being complic

2、ated 這種機(jī)器一點(diǎn)也不復(fù)雜。 這個(gè)句子如果譯成“這種機(jī)器離復(fù)雜甚遠(yuǎn)”就使人感到不知所云。 (2)He wrote three books in the first two years，a record never reached before 他頭兩年寫了3本書，打破了以往的記錄。 原文從反面表達(dá)，譯文從正面表達(dá)。如譯成“這是他從前從未達(dá)到的記錄”則顯得很別扭。(3)I have read your articles，but，expect to meet an older woman 我讀過你的文章，但沒料到你這樣年輕。 本句如譯成“我讀過你文章，但我料想會(huì)見到一個(gè)年紀(jì)更大的女人”則不符合

3、漢語(yǔ)表達(dá)習(xí)慣。 從以上例中可以看出，有些句子從正面譯不順，不妨從反面譯；反面譯不順，則不妨從正面譯，因?yàn)橥粋€(gè)概念，一個(gè)民族正著說，以為是合乎表達(dá)習(xí)慣的，而另一個(gè)民族則認(rèn)為反著說才順口。因此，在恰當(dāng)?shù)膱?chǎng)合靈活運(yùn)用反譯法不失為確保譯文語(yǔ)義明晰、文從字順的有效手段。 一、正說反譯法 英語(yǔ)中有些否定概念是通過含有否定意義或近似否定意義的詞來表達(dá)的。一些語(yǔ)言學(xué)家稱這些詞為“含蓄否定詞”，另一些語(yǔ)言學(xué)家則稱之為“暗指否定詞”。英語(yǔ)中的含蓄否定詞或含蓄否定短語(yǔ)一般都要譯成漢語(yǔ)的否定詞組。 (一)名詞 (1、Shortness of time has required the omission of som

4、e countries 由于時(shí)間不夠，沒能訪問某些國(guó)家。 (2)All international disputes should be settled through negotiations and avoidance of any armed conflicts 一切國(guó)際爭(zhēng)端應(yīng)通過談判，而不是武裝沖突來解決。 (3 1 There was complete absence of information on t11e oil deposit in that country 關(guān)于該國(guó)的石油儲(chǔ)量情況，人們毫無所知。 (4)Politeness is not always the sign o

5、f wisdom，but the want of it always leaves room forthe suspicion of folly 盡管有禮貌并不一定標(biāo)志著此人有智慧，但是無禮貌卻總是使人懷疑其 愚蠢。 (5)A lack of awareness of cultural differences or local customs Can create problems 不注意文化差異或當(dāng)?shù)仫L(fēng)俗可能會(huì)產(chǎn)生問題。 作為名詞用的含蓄否定詞還有：defiance(不顧，無視)，denial(否認(rèn)，否定)，exclusion(排除)，freedom(不，免除)，refusal(不愿，不允許

6、)和loss(失去)等。(二)動(dòng)詞或動(dòng)詞短語(yǔ) (1) Scientists reject authority as an ultimate basis for truth 科學(xué)家不承認(rèn)權(quán)威是真理的最終根據(jù)。 (2)Water is a good lubricant, if you can devise a way to keep it from leaking out or evaporating. 如果能設(shè)法使水不漏出來或蒸發(fā)掉，那么水就是一種很好的潤(rùn)滑劑。 (3)English differ from French in having no gender for nouns. 英語(yǔ)和法語(yǔ)不

7、同，英語(yǔ)名詞沒有性的變化。 (4)To preserve the fiction，he refrained from scolding his son until the guests left. 為了不漏破綻，他強(qiáng)忍著不責(zé)罵自己的兒子，直到客人們離去。 (5)An investment in the money market fund has tied up the money until the end of the term of the investment投資于貨幣市場(chǎng)的資金在投資期滿之前是不能動(dòng)用的。 類似的動(dòng)詞還有refuse(不愿，不肯，無法)，lack(缺乏，沒有)，defy

8、(不服從，不遵守，不讓)，forbid(不許)，stop(不準(zhǔn))和ignore(不理，不肯考慮)等。 (三)形容詞或形容詞短語(yǔ)(1)My younger brother would be the last man to say such things 我弟弟決不可能說這種話。(2)They were watching the fluid situation with concern 他們關(guān)切地注視著動(dòng)蕩不安的局面。(3)It is said that it is only a marginal agreement 據(jù)說那只不過是一個(gè)無關(guān)宏旨的協(xié)議。(4)These official docum

9、ents shall form an integral part of this contract 這些正式文件是合同不可分割的組成部分。(5)These elements are shielded SO that they are free from the influence of magnetic field 這些元件已加屏蔽，因此不受磁場(chǎng)的影響。 類似的形容詞及其短語(yǔ)還有：absent(不在，不到)，awkward(不熟練，不靈活，使用起來不方便)，bad(令人不愉快的，不受歡迎的，不舒服的)，blind(看不到，不注意)，dead(無生命的，無感覺的，不毛的)，difficult(不

10、容易的)，：foreign to(不適合的，與無關(guān))，short of(不夠)和poor(不好的，不幸的)等。 (四)介詞或介詞詞組(1)That kind of thing is very extraordinary. It seems against nature.不過那種事情很不尋常，似乎不符合自然規(guī)律。(2)These planes were held back to protect our home inlands instead of being used where they were badly needed 這些飛機(jī)被留在后方保衛(wèi)后方本島，未用于其他急需的地方。(3)It w

11、as beyond your power to sign such a contract 你無權(quán)簽訂這種合同。(4)It is generally believed that the men who are habitually behind time are as habitually behind success 人們普遍相信，習(xí)慣不準(zhǔn)時(shí)的人通常也不會(huì)成功。(5)Only one of us has ever gone to live in the village and he was back in town within five months 我們中只有一個(gè)人真正在鄉(xiāng)村生活過，不過這

12、個(gè)人待了不到5個(gè)月就返回了城里。(五)副詞(1)Slowly the old man pulled the letter out of the envelope，and unfolded it 這位老人不慌不忙地從信封里抽出信紙，然后打了開來。(2)The officers and soldiers blazed away until they had no ammunition left 官兵們連續(xù)不斷地射擊，直到用盡所有的子彈。(3)The subversion attempts of the enemy proved predictably futile 不出所料，敵人的顛覆活動(dòng)證明毫無

13、效果。(4)Time is what we want most，but what many use worst 時(shí)間是我們最缺少的，但許多人卻最不善于利用時(shí)間。(5)So far，experts have had about the same degree of success as stockmarket forecasters，which is to say they do badly 到目前為止，匯率預(yù)測(cè)專家的成功率與股票市場(chǎng)上的預(yù)測(cè)者大體一樣， 這就是說他們做得不好。(六)連接詞及其短語(yǔ)(1)He is too careful not to have noticed it 他那么小心，

14、不會(huì)不注意到這一點(diǎn)的。(2)Unless English team improves their game，they are going to lose the match. 如果英格蘭隊(duì)不改進(jìn)打法，就會(huì)榆掉這場(chǎng)比賽。(3)The old lady would rather be buried with her money under a mountain of rock than trust another bank 老太太寧可和她的錢一起被葬入石山下，也不再相信任何一家銀行了。(4)Until he spoke I had not realized he was foreign他要是不說話

15、，我還一直不知道他是外國(guó)人。(七)某些固定短語(yǔ)(1)The restaurant was anything but satisfactory 這家餐館太不讓人滿意了。(2)Both sides thought that the peace proposal was one they could accept with dignity 雙方認(rèn)為，那個(gè)和平建議他們可以接受，而又不失體面。(3)1 was at a loss to understand what she alluded to 我無法領(lǐng)會(huì)她談話中的所指。(4)The escaped criminal is still at large

16、 逃犯仍未捉拿歸案。(5)The islanders in this small country found themselves far from ready to fight the war 這個(gè)小國(guó)的島民們發(fā)現(xiàn)自己遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)沒有做好作戰(zhàn)準(zhǔn)備。(6)There are many energy sources in storeThe problem has been to use the energy at a reasonable cost 有許多能源尚未開發(fā)。問題在于要以一個(gè)合理的代價(jià)利用這些能源。(八)句子(1)Let me watch you at it again 再讓我逮著，可饒不了你

17、。(2)If it worked once，it Can work twice 一次得手，再次不愁。(3)ItS human nature to want something better 人總是不滿足于現(xiàn)狀。(4)We are wiser than to believe such stories 我們還不至于蠢到竟然相信這種謊言。(5)Her grandfather is already 80，but he carries his years lightly 她祖父已80歲了，可是并不顯老。 (九)某些含有否定意義的諺語(yǔ)和警句 英語(yǔ)中有些諺語(yǔ)和警句翻成漢語(yǔ)時(shí)，也可采用正說反譯法，盡可能用簡(jiǎn)練

18、的漢語(yǔ)或相應(yīng)的漢語(yǔ)成語(yǔ)來表達(dá)。例如： (1)Seeing is believing 百聞不如一見。 (2)Better to reign in hell than serve in heaven 寧為雞頭，不為牛后。 (3)Let sleeping dog lie莫惹事生非。(4)Bite off more than one Can chew 貪多嚼不爛。(5)Call a spade a spade 直言不諱。(6)A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush 雙鳥在林不如一鳥在手。 二、反說正譯法 反說正譯法指的是將英語(yǔ)中有些與not等否定詞連用的

19、詞語(yǔ)或帶有否定詞綴的詞語(yǔ)譯成漢語(yǔ)的肯定形式。這樣做有時(shí)是為了將原文中某些否定形式所具有的肯定含義清楚地表達(dá)出來；在另外一些時(shí)候也許是為了將譯文組織得更加自然流暢。當(dāng)然，也常常可能兩種目的兼而有之。(一)名詞(1)It was said that someone had sown discord among us. 據(jù)說有人在我們中間挑撥離間。(2)The dishonesty of the government officials was exposed by the newspaper. 政府官員們的欺詐行為在報(bào)紙上披露了出來。(3)A look of disbelief replaced

20、the smile on her face 懷疑的神色取代了她臉上的微笑。(4)He manifested a strong dislike for his mothers job 他對(duì)他母親的工作表示出強(qiáng)烈的厭惡情緒。(5)These slums ale a disgrace to the city government. 這些貧民窟是市政府的恥辱。(6)They were puzzled by the sudden disappearance of their guide. 他們向?qū)У耐蝗皇й櫴顾麄兏械嚼Щ蟛唤狻?7)There has been serious disagreement

21、between the two countries over this question 關(guān)于這個(gè)問題兩個(gè)國(guó)家之間存在著嚴(yán)重分歧。(二)動(dòng)詞(1)Tle employer could dismiss any employee who had ever displeased him 雇主可以解雇任何曾得罪過他的雇員。(2)How he longed to unsay his tactless words! 他多么希望收回他那些不得體的話啊!(3)The mother gently disengaged her hand from that of her sleeping daughter 母親小

22、心翼翼地從熟睡的女兒手里抽出自己的手。(4)We are now unprovided with the techniques necessary for the manufactoring of rags into paper我們目前缺乏用破布造紙所需的技術(shù)。(5)The thief jumped over a neighboring garden wail and disappeared among the crowds 這個(gè)小偷從鄰居的花園墻頭上翻了出去，在人群中消失了。(三)形容詞(1)This kind of bird is unusual winter visitors to Am

23、erica. 這種鳥冬季很少到美國(guó)來。(2)It was inconsiderate of her to mention the matter in his hearing. 她實(shí)在輕率，競(jìng)當(dāng)著他的面談?wù)摯耸隆?3)All the articles are untouchable in the museum. 博物館內(nèi)一切展品禁止觸摸。(4)APEC will have to be non-discriminatory and it will have to seek to be open rather than closed in its approach 亞太經(jīng)濟(jì)合作組織必須一視同仁，而且

24、態(tài)度上必須是開放的，而不是封閉的。(5)Peter was an indecisive sort of person and could not be a good leader. 彼得這人優(yōu)柔寡斷，當(dāng)不了好領(lǐng)導(dǎo)。(四)副詞(1)The show was，unfortunately，one of the dullest we have ever seen. 可惜的是，這次演出是我們所看過的最乏味的演出。(2)She carelessly glanced through the note and got away. 她馬馬虎虎地看了看那張便條就走了。(3)All things invariabl

25、y divide into two 事物都是一分為二的。(4)“I dont know if I ought to have come，”he said breathlessly，grasping Sandys arm “我不知道我該不該來”，他氣喘吁吁地說，一把抓住了桑迪的胳膊。(5)Johnson believed that the Minister of Education had in fact dishonorably resigned from office 約翰遜認(rèn)為該教育部長(zhǎng)辭職實(shí)際上是很丟面子的。(五)短語(yǔ)(1)His escape was nothing short of

26、being miraculous 他的脫險(xiǎn)可以說是個(gè)奇跡。(2)The examination left no doubt that the patient had died of lung cancer. 調(diào)查結(jié)果清清楚楚地說明，人死于肺癌。(3) It would be foolish，not to say mad，to sell your house.你要賣房子真蠢，簡(jiǎn)直是瘋了。(4)There is nothing like mineral water to quench ones thirst 礦泉水是解渴的最好飲料。(5)She meant to help，no doubt，but

27、 in fact she has been a hindrance 她的的確確是想幫忙的，可實(shí)際上卻成了累贅。(6)The enemys spies were not going to lose sight of us 敵人的密探一直在監(jiān)視我們的行蹤。(7)A11 men between 18 and 45 without exception are expected to serve in the army during the War 所有18歲至45歲的男子統(tǒng)統(tǒng)要在戰(zhàn)時(shí)服役。(六)句子(1)For many years there was no closeness between the

28、 two countries 兩國(guó)關(guān)系曾疏遠(yuǎn)了很多年。(2)The significance of these incidents wasnt lost on us 這些事件引起了我們的注意。(3)The United Nations Organization has not，so far，justified the hopes which the people of the world set on it 到目前為止，聯(lián)合國(guó)辜負(fù)了世界人民寄予的希望。(4)A book may be compared to your neighbor；if it be good，it cannot last

29、too long；if bad，you cannot get rid of it too early 書好比鄰居，如果是本好書，相伴得越久越好；如果是本壞書，越早擺脫掉越好。(5)Knowledge about the most powerful computers man has ever developed is too valuable not to share 人類已經(jīng)開發(fā)出功率極大的計(jì)算機(jī)，這方面的知識(shí)極為寶貴，應(yīng)為人類共享。 三、英語(yǔ)中的雙重否定旬 英語(yǔ)中的雙重否定句，除了有時(shí)可以譯成漢語(yǔ)的雙重否定句外，一般說來應(yīng)譯成肯定句。不過，它是一種特殊的強(qiáng)調(diào)句式。以have to(不得不)

30、為例，兩個(gè)“不”字去掉以后意思不變，但語(yǔ)氣強(qiáng)度就差多了。例如： (1)There is no evil without compensation 惡有惡報(bào)。 (2)There is not any advantage without disadvantage 有一利必有一弊。 (3)There is no grammatical rule than has no exception 條條語(yǔ)法規(guī)則都有例外。(也可譯為“世上沒有不例外的語(yǔ)法規(guī)則”。) (4)It never rains but pours不雨則已雨必傾盆。(5)The charging of a condenser from a

31、battery is not unlike the filling of a tank from all oil reservoir 電池給電容器充電就像油罐給油箱加油一樣。(6)We cant be too careful in doing this kind of experiment 我們?cè)谧鲞@類實(shí)驗(yàn)時(shí)應(yīng)盡可能小心。(也可譯為“我們?cè)谧鲞@類試驗(yàn)時(shí) 無論怎樣小心也不過分”。)(7)I 8nl not reluctant to accept your proposal 我非常愿意接受你的建議。(也可譯為“你的建議我并非不愿接受”。)當(dāng)然，有的英語(yǔ)雙重否定句譯為漢語(yǔ)的雙重否定句更為通順。(1)

32、There is no story without coincidence 無巧不成書。(2)The significance of this report and importance Can never be overemphasized 這個(gè)報(bào)告的意義和重要性，不管怎樣強(qiáng)調(diào)，也不算過分。四、委婉式肯定 英語(yǔ)中的這種句子是一種迂回的表示肯定的方式，字面上看似否定，實(shí)際上是委婉的肯定。例如： (1)I couldnt feel better 我感覺好極了。 (2)He cant see you quickly enough- 他很想盡快和你見面。 (3)I couldnt agree wit

33、h you more- 我太贊成你的看法了。 f41 He didnt half like the girl- 他非常喜歡那姑娘。 五、否定的陷阱 英語(yǔ)中的一些否定結(jié)構(gòu)如果按字面意義理解很容易出錯(cuò)，這些結(jié)構(gòu)我們稱之為“否定的陷阱”。下面就是一些有代表性的結(jié)構(gòu)。(一)cannottoo(怎么也不)(1)You cannot be too careful in proofreading. 校對(duì)時(shí)，越仔細(xì)越好。(2)We shall never be able to stress too much for his kindness. 不管我們?cè)趺锤兄x他，都不足以報(bào)恩于萬一。(3)The import

34、ance of this conference cannot be overestimated這次大會(huì)的重要性無論怎么強(qiáng)調(diào)也不過分。(二)notbecause(并非因?yàn)槎?(1)Dont scamp your work because you are pressed for time 不要因?yàn)闀r(shí)間緊而敷衍搪塞。(2)This project is not placed last because it is difficult to be put into practice 此方案并非因?yàn)樗缓脤?shí)施而被放在最后。(3)The engine didnt stop because the fuel

35、was finished 發(fā)動(dòng)機(jī)并不是因?yàn)槿剂虾谋M而停止運(yùn)轉(zhuǎn)的。(三)for all(盡管，不，說不定)(1)You may leave at once for all I care 你盡可立即離去，我才不管呢。(2)For all we knew，the files we were supposed to fetch were already on their way 說不定該由我們?nèi)ト〉奈募言谕局小?3)She seemed as fresh as ever，for all that I never saw her drink or eat 盡管我從未見到她喝點(diǎn)什么或吃點(diǎn)什么，她似乎仍然

36、精神飽滿。(四)bothnot(并非兩者都)(1)Both the instruments are not precision ones. 這兩件東西不都是精密儀器。(2)But you see，we both cannot go together 但是我告訴你，我們倆不能同時(shí)都走。(五)alleverynot(并非都)(1)All towns did not look like as they do today 在過去，城鎮(zhèn)并不都像今天這樣個(gè)個(gè)千篇一律。(2)All that glitters is not gold 發(fā)光的并一定都是金子。(六)It be+a+n+that(再也難免)(1)

37、It is all ill wind that blows nobody good 壞事未必對(duì)人人都有害處。(也可譯為“再壞的事也不是對(duì)人人都有害處”。)(2)It is a good workman that never blunders 智者千慮，必有一失。(也可譯為“再聰明的工匠也難免出錯(cuò)”。)(3)It is a long lane that had no end 路必有彎。(也可譯為“再長(zhǎng)的胡同也有盡頭”。)最后值得一提的是，在英漢翻譯過程中，反譯法的使用必須要針對(duì)具體情況靈活掌握，切不可一概而論，機(jī)械套用。有些英語(yǔ)詞語(yǔ)或句子正譯、反譯皆可，兩者并無實(shí)質(zhì)性差別，究竟采用何種譯法主要依

38、據(jù)個(gè)人行文習(xí)慣或視具體的上下文而定。 (1) We have found your terms and conditions agreeable 譯文l：我們同意你方條款。 譯文2：我們對(duì)你方條款沒有異議。 (2)Much to our regret，the packing of the landed goods is quite different from that you have promised 譯文l：十分遺憾，到貨的包裝與貴方承諾的相差很大。 譯文2十分遺憾，到貨的包裝與貴方承諾的大不相同。 (3)The works of art were left intact，the mon

39、ey gone 譯文l：藝術(shù)品還在，錢卻不翼而飛。 譯文2：藝術(shù)品原封未動(dòng)，錢卻不翼而飛。1將下列句子譯成漢語(yǔ)，并注意將斜體部分反說正譯。(1)The doubt was still unsolved after our repeated explanations(2)We are not completely satisfied with your manner of doing business(3)After the ship unloads at the dock，the goods will go to the container freight(4)Students，with no exception，are to hand in their papers tomorrow afternoon(5)The thought of returning to our native land never deserted us at that time(6)It is generally believed tha