THE TRANSLATOR'S GUIDE TO CHINGLKH
中 式 英 語 之 鑑
序
中式英語(Chinglish)
中式英語,因其半英半漢,不英不漢,被作者戲稱為「具有漢語特色的英語」。這樣的英語每天都在我們中間出現,見於街頭的廣告詞,見於我們的英語報刊,見於政府報告的英譯文本。
農業獲得豐收
表達為"there have been good harvests」蠻好，在後面添上"in agriculture"便成蛇足，因為"harvest」本來就指農業
生活水平不斷提高
有人譯為"living standards for the people continued to rise",其中的"for the people,也屬多餘。
紅就是「red」，「很少」就是"few」,既簡單又清楚,何必贅言"red in color", "few in number"
所謂「名詞腫脹症」,指的是句子裡名詞過多，且要位都被抽象名詞佔盡
A. The prolongation of the existence of this temple is due to the solidity of its construction.
書中沒有提供漢語原文,想來是「這座寺廟的能夠持久，是因為其建築的牢面」之類。經作者改譯,成為：
B This temple has endured because it was solidly built.
再轉譯人漢語，可作「這座寺廟建造得十分牢固，因此能歷久不敗"。
句A的四個抽象名詞在句B中由兩個動詞和一個副詞取代， 名詞當家一變而為動詞主宰，句子頓時有了生氣。作者主張多用動詞,少用名詞，多用意義具體的詞，少用抽象含混的詞。
在作者看來，「翻譯不是一門科學,而是一種手藝。」研究翻譯理論、構建翻譯學的人，聽了會作何想？或許我們 應該這樣來理解她的話：翻譯要想被尊為一門「學先得成為一種 「藝就像"烹飪學"那樣，寫一本烹調書，終不及做一手好菜更能 證明「學「的價值。
To the Reader
1 But to one degree or another, the work of all but the most highly trained and experienced among them will inevitably contain elements of Chinglish. >>
all but = almost
to one degree or another 或多或少
2 Chinglish, of course, is that misshapen, hybrid languages that is neither English nor Chinese but that might be described as "English with Chinese characteristics」.
3 This task is commonly entrusted to senior translators or editors or to foreign "polishers" (who may be more or less competent to perform it).
entrusted
~ A (to B) | ~ B with A to make sb responsible for doing sth or taking care of sb 委託；交託；託付:
He entrusted the task to his nephew.
他把這任務託付給了他的侄兒。
He entrusted his nephew with the task.
他把這任務託付給了他的侄兒。
4 But in principle, much of the work could be done by the original translators — or writers — themselves.
in principle
used for saying that something is possible in theory, although it has not yet been tried
In principle, there is no reason why the same cloning techniques should not work on human cells.
5 Translation is not a science but a craft, and craftsmen in any field may have different opinions as to the best solution to a given technical problem.
6 It may seem presumptuous for a person who knows little of the Chinese language to proffer a work of this kind.
presumptuous
/prɪˈzʌmptʃuəs/
showing too much confidence and not enough respect 冒昧的；自行其是的；放肆的
It would be presumptuous of me to decide what she wants.
由我來決定她想要什麼會很冒昧。
proffer
to offer sth such as advice or an explanation
提出,提供(建議、解釋等):
What advice would you proffer to someone starting up in business?
您對初入商界的人有何建議？
7 Even with this background, however, I could not have produced this Guide without the help of two invaluable consultants who have kindly read and reread my manuscript.
invaluable
/ɪnˈvæljuəbl/
extremely useful 極為有用的
The Internet is an invaluable resource for students.
網際網路對學生是一種極為有用的資源。
Part One: Unnecessary Words
1 All authorities on the style of English prose agree that good writing is concise. Careful writers say what they mean in as few words as possible.
2 Vigorous writing is concise. A sentence should contain no unnecessary words, a paragraph no unnecessary sentences, for the same reason that a drawing should have no unnecessary lines and a machine no unnecessary parts.
3 Any words which perform no useful function in the sentence — that is, which add nothing to the meaning — should be edited out.
4 Unnecessary words are the hallmark of Chinglish.
hallmark
a typical feature 特點；特徵
She treated us with the friendly professionalism that has become her hallmark.
她以友好的職業精神接待了我們——這是她的特點。
5 One of his most frequent marginal comments on translations of the works of Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai, Deng Xiaoping, and other leaders was a laconic "Unnec."
laconic
/ləˈkɒnɪk/
using very few words （語言）簡短的
a laconic response
簡潔的回答
6 Unnecessary nouns and verbs often go hand in hand.
Unnecessary Nouns and Verbs Nouns
Most unnecessary nouns in Chinglish appear not alone but in short phrases, combined with articles and prepositions. When you eliminate the nouns, you eliminate the articles and prepositions as well.
Many of these nouns are easy to recognize. They are plainly redundant because their sense is already included or implied in some other element of the sentence.
A: there have been good harvests in agriculture
B: there have been good harvests
["Harvests" implies agriculture: there are no harvests in industry. ]
A: living standards for the peoplein both urban and rural areas continued to rise
B: living standards in both urban and rural areas continued to rise
[The notion of living standards applies only to people. ]
A: these hardships are temporary in nature
B: these hardships are temporary
[Any adjective describes the "nature" or "character" of the noun it modifies. To say that hardships are "temporary in nature" is like saying that the Chinese flag is " red in color" or that pandas are "few in number. "]
A: the development of our economy in the future will, to a large extent, depend on . . .
B: the development of our economy will depend to a large extent on . . .
[ The future tense of the verb ("will depend") is sufficient to express futurity. ]
A: we should adopt a series of measures to ensure that . . .
B: we should adopt measures to ensure that .. .
[Here the plural form of "measures" covers the sense of a series.
A: following the realization of mechanization and electrification of agriculture
B: following the mechanization and electrification of agriculture
A; it is essential to strengthen the building of national defense
B: it is essential to strengthen national defense
A; these constitute important conditions in striving for the fulfillment of the general task in the transitional period
B: these are important conditions for fulfilling the general task in the transition period
A: at that time the situation in northeast China was still one where the enemy was stronger than the people's forces
B: at that time the enemy was still stronger than the people's forces in northeast China
["Situation" is a particularly dangerous noun. Not only is it generally unnecessary, but it drags other unnecessary elements after it (in this instance, "one where"). ]
A: the key to the solution lies in the curtailment of expenditure
B: the solution is to curtail ( or: cut back on) expenditure
["Key" is sometimes useful, but usually it too can be dispensed with. And like "situation," it often leads to further unnecessary complications (here, "lies in"). ]
Category nouns
The commonest unnecessary word in Chinglish.
The general noun that serves only to introduce a specific noun (or gerund) to follow: "a serious mistake in the work of planning." In such constructions, the first noun announces the category of the second; in this case, it tells readers that "planning" falls into the category of "work." That is something they already know. Accordingly, the first noun should be deleted: "a serious mistake in planning. "
Other examples:
A: promoting the cause of peaceful reunification
B: promoting peaceful reunification
A: reforms in the sphere of the economy
B: reforms in the economy
C or: economic reforms
A: to ensure a relationship of close cooperation between...
B; to ensure close cooperation between
A: we must oppose the practice of extravagance
B; we must oppose extravagance
A: these principles apply to all cases of relations between China and other countries
B: these principles apply to relations between China and all other countries
A: this, coupled with the factor of price instability, caused...
B: this, coupled with price instability, caused...
Whatever function the category noun serves in Chinese, in English it is generally useless. All it adds to the sentence is weight without substance.