the translation of chinese and english idioms containing figures 英语专业大学学位论文.doc

The Translation of Chinese and English Idioms Containing Figures 1. Introduction It is well recognized that language and culture are inseparable. On the one hand, language plays a very important role in reflecting and expressing culture. A language is an essential part of the culture of a people and through it the other parts of culture are expressed. So to speak, without language there would be no culture descending from ancient times. On the other hand, since culture is defined succinctly as “the totality of beliefs and practices of a society”, language is strongly influenced and shaped by culture. Changes in culture often give rise to new characteristics of language. Both English and Chinese are the languages in the world enjoying the longest history. During the long-term development, they have accumulated a large number of idioms, including the idioms containing figures, which refer to the idioms containing cardinal numbers and ordinal numbers. As an indispensable part of idioms, Chinese and English idioms containing figures are closely related to their own cultures, conveying different cultural features and messages of their own nations. Usually, idioms containing figures reflect their cultural background knowledge with figure connotations. As we all know, figures are typical of the culturally loaded words. Not only do they belong to the digital realm, they are also used in idioms and phrases with cultural connotations. The Chinese and English peoples may have the same or similar concepts for figures, but because of their cultural diversities, they use figures in different ways with connotative meanings. In the 21st century, with the rapid development of economic globalization, cultural communication and cooperation between nations become more frequent, the research field of Chinese and English idioms correspondingly presents a new tendency. The idioms containing figures, as a crucial part of idioms, have become the main object for Chinese and other nations’