利 用 典 故
英漢兩種語言中存有大量由歷史典故形成的習(xí)語，如， “東施效顰”、“名落孫山”、“葉公好龍”等等。英語典故習(xí)語多來自《圣經(jīng)》和希臘羅馬神話，如Achilles’heel（唯一致命弱點(diǎn)）、meet one’s waterloo（一敗涂地）、Penelope’s web（永遠(yuǎn)完不成的工作）、a Pandora’s box（潘多拉之盒代表災(zāi)難、麻煩、禍害的根源）等。
有關(guān)典故的這些習(xí)語結(jié)構(gòu)簡單，意義深遠(yuǎn)，往往是不能單從字面意義去理解和翻譯的。
在翻譯利用典故的歇后語時(shí)，如果僅僅使用解釋性增補(bǔ)方法是遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)不夠的，我們還應(yīng)該對譯文加以注釋，從而從文化上和歷史上更準(zhǔn)確的傳達(dá)漢語歇后語所包含的民族和文化特色。
八仙聚會——又說又笑
a gathering of Eight Immortals——speaking and laughing; like the Eight Immortals at a gathering, they are talking and laughing merrily
Note: The Eight Immortals refer to the eight Taoists in a Chinese legend, namely, Han Zhongli, Zhang Guolao, Lü Dongbin, Tieguai Li, Han Xiangzi, Cao Guojiu, Lan Caihe and He Xiangu.
王羲之寫字——橫豎都好
a character out of Wang Xizhi’s hand——vertical strokes are as good as horizontal ones; like Wang Xizhi’s calligraphy, it is good in every way
Note: Wang Xizhi was a famous Chinese calligrapher and a Chinese character is usually composed of strokes, of which the vertical and horizontal ones are the most commonly used. Hengshu here has two interpretations: 1) the horizontal and vertical strokes; 2) horizontally or vertically, that is, in any way.
灶王爺扔石頭——砸鍋
the Kitchen God throwing stones——to break the pot or ruin the matter
Note: The literal meaning of zaguo is to break a pot but it is usually used to mean ruining the matter.
白骨精騙唐僧——一計(jì)不成又生一計(jì)
the White Bone Demon deceiving Monk Tang——when one scheme failed, she turned to another;
like the White Bone Demon in trapping Xuanzang, a famous monk from the Tang Dynasty, they have thought out one scheme after another
Note: On his way to the west to obtain Buddhist scriptures, Xuanzang, a famous monk of the Tang Dynasty, met the White Bone Demon, who thought out one scheme after another to deceive the monk so that she could eat the monk and then would prolong her life forever. However, this is the story contained in the fiction entitled Journey to the West.
秦叔寶賣馬——窮途末路
Qin Shubao selling his horse——the last resort to overcome his difficulty; like Qin Shubao selling his horse, they are driven into a dead end
Note: Qin Qiong, styled Shubao, was a famous general in the Tang Dynasty. Before becoming a general, he was once penniless and had no way out but to sell his own horse.
李林甫當(dāng)宰相——口蜜腹劍
Li Linfu serving as the prime minister——a man with honey at lips but swords at heart or a honey-mouthed but dagger-hearted man
Note: Li Linfu, a prime minister of the Tang Dynasty, was notorious for his cunning and people say that he was honey-mouthed but dagger-hearted.
歇后語翻譯方法的總結(jié)
對于比喻性歇后語可以直接采用直譯法。
對于諧音或雙關(guān)式歇后語應(yīng)當(dāng)采用解釋法。
對于引用典故的具有文化背景知識的歇后語則應(yīng)當(dāng)采取先翻譯字面意義，后翻譯常用意義或適當(dāng)?shù)赜枰躁U釋的方法。
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