AN INVESTIGATION INTO ENGLISH VIETNAMESE TRANSLATION OF EUPHEMISM

1 i DECLARATION MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING UNIVERSITY OF DANANG Except where reference is made in the text of the thesis, this thesis contains no material published elsewhere or extracted in whole or in part from a thesis by which I have qualified for or been awarded another degree or PHAN THỊ THU THỦY diploma No other person’s work has been used without due acknowledgement in the thesis This thesis has not been submitted for the award of any degree or AN INVESTIGATION INTO ENGLISH - VIETNAMESE TRANSLATION OF EUPHEMISM diploma in any other tertiary institution Danang - 2011 Phan Thị Thu Thủy Subject Area : The English Language Code : 60.22.15 M.A THESIS IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE Supervisor: TRẦN ĐÌNH NGUYÊN, M.A DANANG - 2011 ii iii ABSTRACT TABLE OF CONTENTS Page This thesis has been done in an effort to investigate how euphemism is DECLARATION i translated from English into Vietnamese in translated works as well as to ABSTRACT ii find out what are the main approaches taken by translators in translating TABLE OF CONTENTS iii euphemism from English into Vietnamese A collection of samples taken from literary works written in English and their Vietnamese versions have LIST OF FIGURES vi CHAPTER - INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale been analyzed to explore ways in which euphemisms are transferred 1.2 Signification of the Study Besides, quantitative analyses have also been carried out to show 1.3 Scope of the Study distribution of ways of translating, on the basis of which to identify 1.4 Research Questions preferences The findings, it is hoped, will help to put forward some 1.5 Definition of Terms suggestions for the translation as a profession and for the teaching and 1.6 Organisation of the Study learning of English to overcome the misunderstandings and barriers during CHAPTER - LITERATURE REVIEW AND THEORETICAL the cross-cultural communication BACKGROUND 2.1 A Review of Previous Studies 2.2 Theoretical Background 2.2.1 Theory of Translation 2.2.1.1 Definitions of Translation 2.2.1.2 Language and Culture 2.2.1.3 Translation Equivalence 2.2.1.4 Translation Methods 11 2.2.1.5 Communicative Translation and Semantic Translation 14 2.2.2 Euphemisms 16 2.2.2.1 Concepts and Definitions of Euphemisms 16 2.2.2.2 Characteristic Features of Euphemisms 19 2.2.2.3 Euphemisms and Other Linguistic Units 21 iv v 2.2.3 Semantic Characteristics of English Words 25 4.2.2 Translation of Euphemism into a Non-equivalent Euphemism by 2.2.3.1 Word Meaning 25 Translating the Euphemistic Meaning of the SL text or by 2.2.3.2 Sense Relations 27 Adding Footnotes and Explanatory Words in the TL text 81 2.2.3.3 Componential Analysis in Translation 28 4.2.3 Translation of Euphemism into a direct form in the TL text 82 2.2.4 Classification of Euphemisms and Theorists’ Ways for CHAPTER – CONCLUSIONS 83 Translation of Euphemisms 29 5.1 Summary of the Findings 83 2.2.4.1 Classification of Euphemisms 29 5.2 Implications for Translation 85 2.2.4.2 Theorists’ Ways for Translations of Euphemisms 31 5.3 Implications for Language Teaching and Learning 85 CHAPTER - METHOD AND PROCEDURE 34 5.4 Some Limitations of the Study 86 3.1 Aims and Objectives 34 5.5 Some Suggestions for Further Research 87 3.1.1 Aims 34 REFERENCES 88 3.1.2 Objectives 34 QUYẾT ĐỊNH GIAO ĐỀ TÀI 3.2 Research Design 34 3.3 Method of Research 35 3.4 Data Collection and Description 35 3.5 Research Procedures 36 CHAPTER - DISCUSSIONS OF FINDINGS 37 4.1 The Ways of English-Vietnamese Translation of Euphemisms as Manifested in Translated Works 37 4.1.1 Translation of Euphemisms expressing Death 37 4.1.2 Translation of Euphemisms expressing Sex 49 4.1.3 Translation of Euphemisms expressing Pregnancy 63 4.1.4 Translation of Euphemisms expressing Childbirth 71 4.2 Three main Approaches to Translation of Euphemism 79 4.2.1 Translation of Euphemism into an Equivalent Euphemism by Finding the Exact Counterpart in the TL text 79 vi CHAPTER LIST OF FIGURES INTRODUCTION Title Page Figure 4.1 Proportion of Distribution of Euphemism expressing Death in the SL Text Transferred into the TL Text It is well known that human culture, social behavior and thinking 49 Figure 4.2 Proportion of Distribution of Euphemism expressing Sex in the SL Text Transferred into the TL Text ethnic and cultural values as well as the norms of behavior of a given language community Obviously, ideas, notions and feelings are actually 70 Figure 4.4 Proportion of Distribution of Euphemism expressing Childbirth in the SL Text Transferred into the TL Text cannot exist without languages Being a social and national identity and a means of human communication, languages cannot help bearing imprints of 62 Figure 4.3 Proportion of Distribution of Euphemism expressing Pregnancy in the SL Text Transferred into the TL Text 1.1 RATIONALE universal but the way we describe them in different languages is very unique Therefore, translation plays a crucial role in enhancing better understanding 78 each other, transmitting information, exchanging experiences and getting knowledge However, translating from one language into another is no easy task Translation must take into account a number of constraints, including the context, the rules of grammar of the two languages, their writing conventions, and their idioms The most important idea is that translators have to be honest in relaying the meaning, especially from one culture to another It can be said that one of the greatest difficulties that challenges translators are translating figures of speech in general and euphemism in particular Euphemism, a very important culture-loaded figure of speech, is often employed in communication and reflects the historical, political, economic and ideological situations of a nation with its own characteristics The translation of euphemism has become more and more important with the development of the inter-cultural communication This thesis attempts to study the figures of speech on the aspect of translation to give some considerations and propose methods in translating these figures of speech in general and euphemism in particular 2 Keeping effect as closely as possible 1.2 SIGNIFICATION OF THE STUDY Second reader-centered We hope this study will offer some help to the translators when doing the translation of euphemism and assist them to overcome the 1.6 ORGANIZATION OF THE STUDY misunderstandings and barriers during the cross-cultural communication This research paper consists of five chapters: 1.3 SCOPE OF THE STUDY Chapter one: Introduction This study investigates the ways used in translating euphemism from In this chapter we would present the statements of the problem, the English into Vietnamese The investigation will focus on works of English justification for the study, the scope of the study, the organization, as well as literature and their Vietnamese versions definitions of terms Chapter two: Literature Review 1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS The research has attempted to answer the following questions: How euphemism is translated from English into Vietnamese as seen in examples taken from works of literature? What are the main approaches taken by translators in translating euphemism from English into Vietnamese? The chapter covers a review of literature on translation of euphemism Prior studies on the problems are reviewed for the groundwork of the research This chapter also introduces some theoretical preliminaries on the translation theory, the definitions and classification of euphemism and the area of semantics Chapter three: Method and Procedures 1.5 DEFINITIONS OF TERMS - “Source language” is the language in which a text was originally This chapter provides the aims and objectives of the study, the research methods used in order to achieve these aims Next comes the research written - “Target language” is the language in which a text is translated - “Euphemism” is a figure of speech It is used as an alternative to an expression, in order to avoid possible loss of face: either one’s own face or through giving offense, that of the audience, or of some third party - “Semantic approach” is an approach to translation which has these procedures which include the research questions, the hypothesis, data collection and analysis Chapter four: Finding and Discussions This chapter presents the findings and discussion of ways used in translating euphemism from English into Vietnamese The discussion also covers the main approaches taken by translators in translating euphemism features: from English into Vietnamese SL bias Keeping semantic and syntactic structures as closely as possible Author- centered - “Communicative approach” is an approach which has these features: TL bias Chapter five: Conclusions This chapter consists of the conclusion of the whole study, the implications for the translation and for the teaching and learning Limitations in doing the research and suggestions for further studies are also mentioned in this chapter CHAPTER In “Phong cách học Tiếng Việt” (2001), Đinh Trọng Lạc [4, p.126] LITERATURE REVIEW AND THEORETICAL puts forward the basic theoretical background of euphemisms in the BACKGROUND Vietnamese language He assumes that euphemism is the delicate expression 2.1 A REVIEW OF PREVIOUS STUDIES Translation is a complex process where fragile balance is achieved between the equivalence of the text translated and the linguistic means chosen In reality, translation of euphemism from one language into another language is a complex work which poses great difficulties to the translator so there are many researchers dealing with euphemism translation in different aspects They can be seen in the following studies: In “Introduction to Semantics and Translation” (1990), Barnwell [23, p 62-64] introduces some features of euphemism and also presents some notes on translating euphemisms In “Euphemism and Dysphemism - Language Used as Shield and Weapon” (1990), Allan and Burridge [21] mentions about the development, the classification of English euphemisms and the differences among euphemism, slang, dysphemism and taboo D.J Enright [30] in “Fair of Speech” (1986), introduces euphemisms and sex, death, politics, the media, the law and many others as well as mentioned about the uses of euphemism In “Stylistics” (1977), Galperin [31] gives a definition of euphemism and also divides them into several groups according to their spheres of application: 1) religious, 2) moral, 3) medical, 4) parliamentary In Vietnamese, euphemisms have been discussed by some linguists: Bằng Giang [1] in “Tiếng Việt phong phú” (1997), investigates over 1,000 variants of the word death with illustrations in communicative situation in which the addresser feels uncomfortable to talk about taboo topics because he is afraid that it will hurt or offend the addressee “Uyển ngữ phương thức diễn ñạt tế nhị hoàn cảnh giao tiếp mà người nói không tiện nói sợ phũ phàng sợ xúc phạm ñến người nghe” Trương Viên [19] (2003; Ph.D Thesis) focuses on the linguistic features of euphemisms by analyzing their formation by syntactic, phonetic, lexical and stylistic means With the contrastive analysis, the author also pointes out some features related to the method of translation Nguyễn Thị Lê [15] (2006; M.A thesis) focuses on the study on commonly-used euphemisms in English and Vietnamese newspapers in three aspects: syntax, semantics and pragmatics On doing this research, we have followed the viewpoint of linguistics in doing an investigation into common ways for translating euphemism from English into Vietnamese and found out the main approaches taken by translators in translating euphemism from English into Vietnamese 2.2 THEORETICAL BACKGROUND 2.2.1 Theory of Translation 2.2.1.1 Definitions of Translation Translation, by dictionary definition, consists of changing from one form to another, to turn into one 'own or another' language (The Merriam Webster Dictionary, 1974) Some authors have given the following different definitions of translation: In the book “A Linguistic Theory of Translation”, Catford [25] defines Furthermore, Vũ Văn Đại [20] claims that there is an unequivalence in that translation is not a dangerous technique in itself provided its nature is culture of translators and original texts, so in order to become good understood, and its use is carefully controlled and translation is in itself a translators, it is very necessary to enrich the cultural and national knowledge valuable skill to be imparted to students Furthermore, translation is an of the TL operation performed in languages and also a process of substituting a text in Peter Newmark’s theory [48] is different from the point of view of one language for a text in another More specifically, translation is the above mentioned authors He defines that translation is rendering the meaning replacement of textual material in one language (SL) by equivalent textual of a text into another language in the way that the author intended the text material in another language (TL) Briefly, the starting point of translation is a message This message is Benjamin [61] states that translation goes beyond enriching the expressed in a specific language, which is called the SL When doing language and culture of a country which it contributes to, beyond renewing translation, we aim to re-express that message in another language (TL) We and maturing the life of the original text, beyond expressing and analyzing the have already known that the form of each language is unique Thus, most intimate relationships of languages with each other and becomes a way translation will involve some changes of form This does not matter provided of entry into a universal language that that the meaning of the message is retained unchanged Moreover, Other researchers, Meetham and Hudsan [45, p.53] mention that translation not only involves understanding the general meaning of the translation is the replacement of a presentation of a text in one language by a communication but also calls upon the ability to understand the culture of the presentation of equivalent text in a second language communication Before we can translate a message, we must understand the According to B Hatim & I Mason [32, p.3], translation is a process, involving the negotiation of meaning between producers and receivers of texts In other words, the resulting translated text is to be seen as the evidence total meaning of the message within its own cultural context 2.2.1.2 Language and Culture Dealing with language and culture, Whorf who endorsed Sapir’s of a transaction, a means of retracting the pathways of the translator’s theory declares firmly that “No language can exist unless it is steeped in the decision-makings context of culture; and no culture of natural language.” [24, p.14] Language, Another author, Nguyễn Hồng Cổn [11] mentions that the activity of then, is the heart within the body of culture, and it is the interaction between translation is still a language activity and language plays core and basic roles the two that results in the continuation of life energy In the same way that the However, he says that together with the attention to linguistic problem, surgeon, operating on the heart, cannot neglect the body that surrounds it, so translators also need to pay attention to the problems relating to the SL and the translator treats the text in isolation from the culture at his peril TL such as social environment, culture and religion According to Claire Kramsch [41, p.37], language is the principle means whereby we conduct our social lives When it is used in contexts of communication, it is bound up with culture in multiple and complex ways 2.2.1.3 Translation Equivalence “Language expresses cultural reality” as the words people utter refer to Equivalence can be said to be the central issue in translation although common experience They express facts, ideas or events that are its definition, relevance, and applicability within the field of translation theory communicable because they refer to a stock of knowledge about the world have caused heated controversy, and many different theories of the concept of that other people share “Language embodies cultural reality through all its equivalence have been elaborated within this problem Translation verbal and nonverbal aspects” People also create experience through equivalence occurs when a SL and a TL text or item are relatable to (at least language They give meaning to it through the medium they choose to some of) the same features of substance The greater the number of situational communicate with one other, for example, speaking on the telephone or face- features common to the contextual meanings of both SL and TL texts, the to-face, writing a letter or sending an email message The way they use “better” the translation spoken, written, or visual medium itself creates meanings that are According to Peter Newmark, translation equivalence is an unwritten understandable to the group they belong Language is a system of signs that is rule about translation which people know and which influences the form of seen that having itself a cultural value “Language symbolizes cultural translating exchange “Translation equivalence will not be achieved word for reality” as speakers identify themselves and other through their use of word, collocation for collocation, clause for clause, sentence for sentence, but language; they use their language as a symbol of their social identity possibly only paragraph for paragraph, or, rarely, text for text For this Edward Sapir claims that “language is a guide to social reality” and reason, translation equivalence, like the term ‘unit of translation’, is that human beings are at the mercy of the language that has become the sometimes a useful operational concept, but it can be only roughly and medium of expression for their society Experience, he asserts, is largely approximately indicated for a stretch of language.” [49, p.123] determined by the language habits of the community, and each separate Mentioning translation equivalence, Eugene Nida [51, p.26] structure represents a separate reality He also affirms that “no two languages distinguishes two types of equivalence: formal equivalence and dynamic are ever sufficiently similar to be considered as representing the same social equivalence Formal equivalence focuses attention on the message itself, in reality The worlds in which different societies live are distinct worlds, not both form (poetry to poetry, sentence to sentence, concept and concept) and merely the same world, with different labels attached.” [24, p.13] content (gloss translation, aim to allow the reader to understand as much of Peter Newmark [49, p.94] indicates that culture is the way of life and the SL context as possible) However, dynamic equivalence is based on the its manifestations that are peculiar to a community that uses a particular principle of equivalent effect, i.e that the relationship between receiver and language as its means of expression Frequently, where there is cultural focus, message should aim at being the same as that between the original receivers there is a translation problem due to the cultural “gap” or “distance” between and the SL message the SL and TL 10 11 J.C Catford [25, p 47] claims that SL and TL texts or items are equivalence conditions and modifies both the other elements Equivalence translation equivalents when they are interchangeable in a given situation overall results from the relation between signs themselves, the relationship Catford's approach to translation equivalence clearly differs from that adopted between signs what they stand for and those who use them by Nida since Catford had a preference for a more linguistic-based approach In general, to achieve translation equivalence requires translators to to translation and this approach is based on the linguistic work of Firth and produce the same effect (or one as close as possible) on the readership of the Halliday Catford proposed very broad types of translation in terms of three translation as was obtained on the readership of the original The translation criteria: the extent of translation (full translation vs partial translation); the equivalence is showed in some rules and principles which are very useful for grammatical rank at which the translation equivalence is established (rank- the translators The focus is to assure the equivalence in translation of bound translation vs unbounded translation); the levels of language involved participants for translating to take place smoothly and effectively These in translation (total translation vs restricted translation) principles help people best achieve their goals not only in communication but Moreover, Popovic [23, p.25] distinguishes translation equivalence into four types: also in translating: exchanging information and establishing and maintaining social relations (1) Linguistic equivalence, where there is homogeneity on the linguistic level of both SL and TL texts, i.e word for word translation 2.2.1.4 Translation Methods In order to have a good translated version, the translator should have (2) Paradigmatic equivalence, where there is equivalence of the knowledge about translation theory When we mention translation, we also elements of a paradigmatic expressive axis, i.e elements of grammar, which refer to a process which involves the negotiation of meaning between Popovic sees as being a higher category than lexical equivalence producers and receivers of texts Translation plays such an important role in (3) Stylistic (translational) equivalence, where there is “functional equivalence of elements in both original and translation aiming at an expressive identity with an invariant of identical meaning” (4) Textual (syntagmatic) equivalence, where there is equivalence of the syntagmatic structuring of a text, i.e equivalence of form and shape In trying to solve the problem of translation equivalence, Newbert [47] life that there have been many researchers who mention it with many different methods Peter Newmark [49, p.24] mentions the difference between translation methods and translations He indicates that, "While translation methods relate to whole texts, translations are used for sentences and the smaller units of language" He goes on to refer to the following methods of translation: postulates that translation equivalence must be considered a semiotic category (1) Word-for-word translation: is the process the SL word order is consisting of the components (syntactic, semantic and pragmatic) These preserved and the words translated singly by their most common meanings, components are arranged in a hierarchical relationship, where semantic out of context equivalence takes priority over syntactic equivalence and pragmatic 12 (2) Literal translation: is the process the SL grammatical constructions are converted to their nearest TL equivalents, but the lexical words are again translated singly, out of context 13 (3) Intersemiotic translation or transmutation (an interpretation of verbal signs by means of nonverbal sign systems.) The translation in these three types properly describes the process of (3) Faithful translation: it attempts to produce the precise contextual transferring from the SL to the TL He goes on immediately to point to the meaning of the original within the constraints of the TL grammatical central problem in all types: while messages may serve as adequate structures interpretations of code units or messages, there is ordinarily no full (4) Semantic translation: differs from “faithful translation” only in as far as it must take more account of the aesthetic value of the SL texts (5) Adaptation: is the freest form of translation, and is used mainly for equivalence through translation Engene Nida [51] provides the model of the translation process consisting of the following stages: plays (comedies) and poetry; the themes, characters, plots are usually SL TL preserved, the SL culture is converted to the TL culture and the text is TEXT TRANSLATION Analysis Restructuring rewritten (6) Free translation: it produces the TL texts without the style, form, or content of the original (7) Idiomatic translation: it reproduces the “message” of the original but tends to distort nuances of meaning by preferring colloquialisms and idioms where these not exist in the original (8) Communicative translation: it attempts to render the exact contextual meaning of the original in such a way that both content and language are readily acceptable and comprehensible to the readership Transfer For example: SL TL HELLO ÇA VA? Friendly greeting on arrival Decision to distinguish between forms of greeting available Mentioning linguistic aspects of translation, Roman Jakobson [38, p 232-239] distinguishes three types of translation: Transfer (1) Intralingual translation, or rewording (an interpretation of verbal signs by means of other signs in the same language) (2) Interlingual translation or translation proper (an interpretation of verbal signs by means of some other language) Firth [24, p 22] defines meaning as “a complex of relations of various kinds between the component terms of a context of situation” He points out that, in determining what to use in English, the translators must: 14 (1) Accept the untranslatability of the SL phrase in the TL phrase on 15 Source Language (Bias) Target Language (Bias) Literal Free Faithful Idiomatic Semantic Communicative the linguistic level (2) Accept the lack of a similar cultural convention in the TL (3) Consider the range of the TL phrases available, having regard to the presentation of class, status, age, sex of the speaker, his relation to the listeners and the context of their meaning in the SL (4) Consider the significance of the phrase in its particular context- i.e as a moment of high tension in the dramatic text (5) Replace in the TL the invariant core of the SL phrase in its two He admires that all of the translation versions in some degree contain the both semantic and communicative, social and individual According to referential systems (the particular system of the text and the system of culture Peter Newmark [48], in communicative translation approach, the only part of out of which the text has sprung) the meaning of the SL which is translated is the part which fits the TL Moreover, dealing with translation methods, Levy [24, p 22], the great reader’s understanding of the identical message In this translation, the Czech translation scholar, insists that any contracting or omitting of difficult translator has the right to modify, correct and improve the translation version, expressions in translating was immoral The translator, he believes, had the but the translator has to consider what extents of the SL should be suitable to responsibility of finding a solution to the most daunting of problems, and he the knowledge, intelligence of the TL readers Communicative translation declares that the functional view must be adopted with regard not only to addresses itself solely to the second reader, who does not anticipate meaning but also to style and form The translator cannot be the author of the difficulties or obscurities, and would expect a generous transfer of foreign SL texts, but as the author of the TL texts has a clear moral responsibility to elements into his own culture as well as his language where necessary the TL readers Communicative translation is likely to be smoother, simpler, clearer, more In brief, there are different methods of translation and each method has direct and more conventional, conforming to a particular register of language its own strong and weak points A good translator, then, is a person who Communicative translation emphasizes “the force” rather than the content of flexibly applies the suitable method or effectively combines these methods in the message his or her texts Semantic translation, in contrast, is a translation in which the translator 2.2.1.5 Communicative Translation and Semantic Translation is loyal to the author of the SL It means that he has to translate the meaning Differently from other authors, basing on the points of view of reader, of the SL material into the TL text However, if the text is not updated, the Peter Newmark [48, p 39] makes a distinction between two kinds of translation version has to be put into modern language Semantic translation translation; semantic and communicative attempts to render, as closely as the semantic and syntactic structures of the 16 17 second language, the exact contextual meaning of the original Semantic in our daily communication Therefore, there have been a lot of researches translation remains within the original culture and assists the readers only in about English euphemism because of its importance and prominence its connotations if they constitute the essential human (non-ethnic) message of In “Introduction to Semantics and Translation”, Katherine Barnwell the text Semantic translation would be more informative but less effective gives a definition that “A euphemism is the use of an expression which has a Semantic translation tends to be more complex, more awkward, more meaning quite different from its apparent surface meaning It is an indirect detailed, more concrete and pursues the thought-processes rather than the way of saying something, usually used in order to avoid being offensive” [23, intention of the transmitter It tends to overtranslate, to be more specific than p 98] the original and to include more meanings in its search for one nuance of meaning Allan and Burridge [21, p 57] define euphemism as “an alternative to a dispreferred expression, in order to avoid possible loss of face: either one’s In summary, a translator who wants to be successful in his translation own face or, through giving offense, that of the audience, or of some third needs to know how to combine these two methods fluently because there are party” The dispreferred expression may be taboo, fearsome, distasteful, or often sections in one text that require both semantic and communicative some expressions with negative connotations translation Moreover, if we use only one method, the translation might be According to Galperin [31, p 76], "Euphemism is a word or phrase rigid and less flexible So, accuracy, clarity and flexibility are highly needed used to replace an unpleasant word or expression by a conventionally in the language transfer For this reason, the translators tend to combine acceptable one" The origin of the term “euphemism” discloses the aim of the communicative and semantic methods appropriately, sensibly in their device very clearly, i.e speaking well (from Greek - eu = well + pheme = translation process speaking) He also shows that euphemism is sometimes figuratively called "a 2.2.2 Euphemisms whitewashing device" According to him, euphemisms may be divided into 2.2.2.1 Concepts and Definitions of Euphemisms several groups according to their spheres of application The most recognized It is obviously that euphemism is one language performance form spheres are the following: 1) religious, 2) moral, 3) medical, 4) parliamentary which people seek in the social communication It is created for ideal In “Style Guide”, Pam [55, p 620] defines euphemisms as “the fine- communication effect because of its powerful abilities Together with sounding words and phrases we used for things which are not so fine or increasingly enhancement of social civilization, speech skill and good beautiful The word itself goes back to the Greeks and Greek civilization, interpersonal relationship also profoundly affect our life, thus, more and more suggesting that they had found the need for inoffensive expressions to refer to euphemisms will be produced in the language Euphemism has been always what was unpalatable, unacceptable and unmentionable in their culture" played an important part in English and especially it is chiefly the core point Moreover, Geoffrey Leech [43, p 102] insists that “euphemism is the practice of referring to something offensive or delicate in terms that make it 18 19 sound more pleasant or becoming than it really is” Therefore, people use “nhã ngữ biến thể uyển ngữ, ñó từ ngữ nhã nhặn, lịch euphemisms to get rid of the negative meaning or connotation the word or ñược dùng ñể thay từ ngữ thô lỗ, khó nghe, không ñúng mực” topic 2.2.2.2 Characteristic Features of Euphemisms Euphemistic expressions occur at all levels of society, but throughout a Universality the history people have found certain areas to be more uncomfortable and Universality is something that is well-known and accepted by all of the unpleasant to discuss than others These include sex, death, killing, crime, people Though euphemism is indirect and it doesn’t come straight to the diseases and different functions of the human body point, people can easily infer its deeper implication Some taboos connecting Mentioning euphemism, Crystal [26, p 61] claims that “euphemisms with sex, death, or body functions are replaced by euphemisms And the are the use of a vague or indirect expression in place of one which is thought public has accepted this kind of use For when we refer to death, we seldom to be unpleasant, embarrassing or offensive Euphemisms are typically used say “die” For example, in the sentence “David … fell asleep and was laid to replace expressions to with death, sexual activities and other bodily with his fathers”, the phrase “fell asleep” is an indirect way of saying “died” functions” b National feature In Vietnamese, Trương Viên proposes a definition of euphemism in his There is no doubt that each language has its own euphemism, the doctoral dissertation “uyển ngữ (euphemism) từ hay ngữ cố ñịnh meanings of which are quite clear to a native speaker of the language This is ñược cấu tạo lại, diễn ñạt lại nội dung ñã có ñể thể cách thích the national feature of euphemism For example, in Vietnam, it is natural for hợp, tế nhị, thẩm mỹ; lời nói ñược sử dụng tình hay văn people to experience adult, middle age, old age and death However, to giao tiếp lịch sự, sang trọng, ñầy tri thức văn hóa, liên quan ñến ñẹp westerners, old age means worthless and the old will be looked down upon or việc dùng từ ngữ.” [19] even deserted Therefore, no one would like to admit that he is old People Đinh Trọng Lạc [3, p 18] mentions that “uyển ngữ (euphemism) dread about old age so much that they see the word “old” as a taboo Instead, hình ảnh tu từ ñó người ta thay tên gọi ñối tượng (hoặc various indirect ways of referring to “old” was used: “the advanced in age”, tượng) miêu tả dấu hiệu nó, việc nêu “the mature”, “the longer living”, “seasoned man”, “senior citizens”,etc lên nét ñặc biệt nó, tạo hình cho lời nói không tạo nên ñối tượng mà miêu tả ñối tượng nhã ngữ” c Indirectness One of the essential aspects of euphemism is to avoid mentioning some He also distinguishes between “uyển ngữ” and “nhã ngữ” However, he unpleasant phenomenon or arrangements directly In other words, people used finally concludes that “nhã ngữ” is a variant of “uyển ngữ”, in which pleasant an indirect way to mention these unpleasant topics Therefore, indirectness is and decent words are used to replace for impolite, harsh or unacceptable ones obviously one of the main features of euphemism For example, in western countries, compared with mental work, physical labor is regarded as humble 20 21 and inferior People always use euphemistic ways to describe such jobs This am in my birthday suit” Both of them immediately burst into laughter “In indirect feature is common in a lot of professions such as: beautician = hair one’s birthday suit” is one of euphemistic words about nakedness dresser, elevator = member of the vertical transportation corps, under-take = funeral service practitioner, mechanic = automobile engineer, dustman = sanitary engineer d Localization g Figurative feature As a stylistic device, euphemisms are figurative Euphemisms can be achieved by many stylistic devices such as circumlocution, metonymy, hyperbole and understatement, and so on We can find figurative expressions Different regions have different customs, history, culture and these like “the cavalry’s come” for “I’ve got my period” and “go to the happy differences embody the localization of language Many euphemisms are hunting grounds” for “die” Or a metaphor for “vagina” is “the miraculous related to the folklore and its localization is clear People comprehend the pitcher that holds water with the mouth downfalls” notion of so-called euphemism in different ways For example, in the sentence In fact, we use euphemisms to soften the reality of what we are “He is in the bathroom”, American may think he is in the toilet but English communicating to a given listener or reader; to avoid stimulating, comfort for may consider that he is taking a bath because the word “bathroom” in British the human When replacing the taboo language, it can eliminate vulgarly and English has the meaning of “bathing” but in American English, it becomes to give people elegant impression Simultaneously, euphemisms sometimes may be a substitution of toilet be showy and also have the sense of humor Being good at euphemizing is a e Obscure feature manifestation of high accomplishment, but using it excessively will give A lot of euphemisms make use of obscurity in language This people affected feeling Therefore, we must pay attention to the usage of euphemistic way can enlarge the meanings of some words We often say “He euphemisms in our daily communication to make our life more colorful is unwise” or “He is mentally challenged” instead of using “He is stupid” The 2.2.2.3 Euphemisms and other linguistic units use of such words or phases as “unwise” or “mentally challenged” could be a Euphemisms and Dysphemisms more politely According to Allan and Burridge [21, p.26], “a dysphemism is an f Humorous feature expression with connotations that are offensive and it is substituted for The use of euphemism can increase the sense of humor This makes neutral or euphemistic expression for just that reason” In referring to a interactions between people more interesting For example, once a man was particular communicative intention in a given context, speaker must choose bathing without locking his door, one of his friends rushed into his room for either to use or not to use a euphemism in order to create a certain effect on a emergency and found he was naked They both felt embarrassed Then the given occasion For example, when referring to one’s death, we can say “He man with nothing on said, “You are the one besides my mother who has seen I passed away” or “He kicked the bucket” Obviously, the second is intentionally dysphemistic by comparison with the first 22 23 Like euphemisms, dysphemisms are motivated by fear and distaste, but words, the safest way to talk about these taboos is to use euphemisms also by hatred and contempt; and in contrast to euphemisms, they are Therefore, it can be said that taboo is one of the motives for the formation of motivated by the desire to offensively demonstrate such feelings and to euphemisms downgrade the denotatum or addressee when deliberately used “Taboo is a cultural or religious custom that forbids people to do, Euphemisms and dysphemisms may seem self-contradiction, but in fact touch, use or talk about a certain thing” (Oxford Dictionary) [54, 1213] A they are not Euphemistic dysphemism and dysphemistic euphemisms have taboo is a strong social prohibition relating to any areas of human activity or locutions which are at odds with their illocutionary point The expletive social custom declared as sacred and forbidden The term was originally “Shit!”, which typically expresses anger, frustration, or anguish, is ordinarily borrowed from Tongan “tapu” or the Fijian “tabu” These words usually a dysphemism However, it is remodeled as euphemism “Sugar, Shoot, or mean “not allowed” or “forbidden” The use of the word “taboo” in English Shilvers” It is clear that the locution is recognized as euphemism even was dated back in 1777 by an English explorer, Captain James Cook though the illocutionary act might be dysphemistic So these expressions are Euphemisms can eventually taboo words themselves through a process considered as euphemistic dysphemisms Similarly, there exist some called the euphemisms treadmill by Pinker In this process over the course of dysphemistic euphemisms For example, terms referring to menstruation such time, a word that was originally adopted as a euphemism acquires the as have the curse, woman’s complaint, be feeling that way, off the roof, and so negative connotations of the original word The process can happen many on are dysphemistic euphemisms for some occasions With dysphemistic times, and may still continue to be happening An example of this is euphemisms, the locution is dysphemistic, but the illocution is not euphemisms for the word “toilet”, it can be referred to as “WC, bathroom, b Euphemisms and Taboo loo, the smallest room”, and “I am just going to powder my nose”, all of According to Peter Pam [55, p.741], “taboo words are words that many which avoid using the word “toilet” people avoid because of the offensive they may give” Taboos can include Taboo words and expressions are perhaps less obvious in our society restrictions on sexual activities, gender roles and relationships with other than euphemisms, which are used to “dress up” certain areas in life Hence people (e.g fornication, adultery, interreligious marriage, homosexuality, the use of euphemisms becomes more presentable Euphemistic words and incest, bestiality and so on.); restrictions of bodily functions (burping, expressions allow us to talk about unpleasant things and neutralize the flatulence, urination, masturbation, nose picking and spitting) in public; unpleasantness They also allow us to give labels to unpleasant matters in an restrictions on state genitalia; restrictions on showing body parts attempt to make them sound better (pornography and nudity); restrictions on gestures; restrictions on the use of c Euphemisms and Slang offensive language known as obscenity and vulgarity In order to avoid “Slang is the use of highly informal words and expressions that are not referring to these restrictions, a pleasant kind of words is resorted In other considered standard in the speaker’s dialect or language It is often used as a 24 25 way to say words that are not appropriate It is often not found in the euphemisms instead of using some simple value-laden jargons We can say standard dictionary for the language” (Wiki.) “These students are educationally and socially disadvantaged” (not These Slang refers to informal lexical items used by a special group such as student are lazy), or “They are underachievers” (not stupid) Not all jargons musicians, soldiers, prisoners, teenagers, thieves and so forth The peculiar are euphemistic or dysphemistic There is a portion of jargon remaining the property of slang is to be esoteric; hence slang is often understood by a certain outsiders of any particular social group social group itself For example, slang terms are only used by Londoners in 2.2.3 Semantic Characteristics of English Words Cockney such as “needle and pin” for “gin”; “bees and honey” for “money”; 2.2.3.1 Word Meaning “storm and strife” for “wife” As we all know, communication becomes more and more a crucial There is a relationship between slang and euphemism when referring to factor in social organization and meaning plays such an important role in some decent topics, especially taboo ones Some slang terms are considered communication Meaningless utterances have no value in communication; conventional euphemisms such as the use of “over-shoulder boulder-holders” they can only make their language users a laughing stock, which is why for “bra”; or the use of “doodle, diddle, dink, dong” for “penis” understanding the meaning is very important for the language users The d Euphemisms and Jargons meaning of a word is not merely the result you get from your search in a good Newmark [50, p.131] defines jargon as “an idiom peculiar to a trade or dictionary because it depends on many factors concerned profession, an occupational register of language, or an esoteric slang In “Meaning in English”, Lesley Jeffries [39, p.124] states that unintelligible to the layman” Actually, jargons are technical words or “meaning is a kind of invisible unclothed being waiting for the clothes of expressions used by a particular profession or group of people and hard for language to allow it to be seen, which is why it is very necessary to take off others to understand The jargons are well known in the English language: the the clothes of language to understand the real meaning of words, phrases, and jargon of thieves and vagabonds, the jargon of surgeons, the jargon of the sentences” For example, “the red flag at the seaside of a resort” means army, the jargon of sportsmen, the jargon of procurers or procuresses, and “danger” many others For example, the word “grease” means “money”; “loaf” means “head”; “a trick or a john” means “a prostitute’s client” The subject matter plays an important role in recognizing the jargons as euphemisms or dysphemisms Some euphemistic jargons are common in In the book “Semantics”, Geoffrey Leech [43, p.121] shows seven types of meaning: a Conceptual meaning (sometimes called “denotative” or “cognitive” meaning) funerals’ language such as remains (=corpse), long home (=graveyard), Denotative meaning refers to the literal meaning of a word For sanitary treatment (=embalmment), dismal trade (= the arrangement of example, the meaning of the word woman can be specified as +human, -male, funerals for payment) In the field of education, people tend to use 26 +adult Three properties “human”, “adult”, and “female” provide a criterion of the correct use of the word woman 27 e Reflected meaning Reflected meaning is the meaning which arises in case of multiple b Connotative meaning conceptual meaning, when one sense of a word forms part of our response to Connotative meaning is the communicative value an expression has by another sense virtue of what it refers to, over and above its purely conceptual meaning f Collocative meaning In other words, according to him, it refers to the associations that are Collocative meaning consists of the associations a word acquires on connected to a certain word or the emotional suggestions related to that word account of the meanings of words which tend to occur in its environment For The connotative meanings of a word exist together with the denotative example: “pretty” and “handsome” share common ground in the meaning meanings The connotations for the word woman can include not only its ‘good-looking’, but may be distinguished by the range of nouns with which denotative meaning but concomitants of womanhood (“capable of speech”, they are likely to co-occur or collocate: pretty girl, boy, flower, garden, etc “experienced in cookery”, “skirt-or-dress wearing”) as well as some and handsome boy, man, car, vessel, etc traditional attitudes such as frail, prone to tears, emotional or other qualities such as beautiful, gentle, compassionate, sensitive, and hard-working c Stylistic meaning g Thematic meaning Thematic meaning is what communicated by the way in which the message is organized in terms of order and emphasis Stylistic meaning is that which a piece of language conveys about the Moreover, mentioning word meaning, in “Semantics and Translation”, social circumstances of its use In this style of meaning, a word can be Katherine Barnwell [23, p 60-64] analyses meaning with five different kinds recognized by the typical dimensions: Individuality (the language of Mr X, of of associative meaning, in which includes: connotative meaning, stylistic Mrs Y, and so on); Dialect (the language of a geographical region or of a (social) meaning, affective meaning, reflected meaning, collocative meaning social class); Time (the language of the eighteen century, ect); Style (the 2.2.3.2 Sense Relations language of poetry, the language of journalism, and so forth); Singularity (the In order to understand euphemisms comprehensively, we must rely style of Dickens, of Hemingway, ect ) d Affective meaning upon the uses of themselves through various types of meaning as well as in the relations of senses According to Leech [43, p.125], affective meaning is often explicitly conveyed through the denotative or connotative content of the words used He - Polysemy: James Hurford (1997) defines “A case of polysemy is one where a word has several very closely related senses.” [35, p.123] also claims that affective meaning is largely a parasitic category in the sense Ex: Mouth (of a river vs of an animal) is a case of polysemy The two that to express our emotions we rely upon the mediation of other categories of senses are clearly related by the concepts of an opening from the interior of meaning – denotative, connotative, or stylistic 28 29 some solid mass to the outside, and of a place of issue at the end of some long emotional tone, generality or technicality and, finally, in the pragmatic effect narrow channel of its sound composition - Synonymy: Lyons [40, p.165] defines two expressions as full synonymous if the following conditions are met: • All their meanings are identical • They are synonyms in all contexts 2.2.4 Classification of Euphemisms and Theorists’ Ways for Translation of Euphemisms 2.2.4.1 Classification of Euphemisms Euphemism can be classified into many categories according to • They are semantic equivalent in all aspects of their meaning different criteria, rules or principles For instance, euphemism can be divided - Homonymy: According to James Hurford [35], a case of homonymy into euphemism in the Middle Ages, euphemism in the Victorian Age, is one of an ambiguous word whose different senses are far apart from each euphemism in the twentieth century, and contemporary euphemism In terms other and not obviously related to each other in any way For example, of the prevailing time, whether it is long or short, euphemism can be divided “Bank” (the edge of a river vs a financial institution) makes a good example into temporary euphemism and persistent euphemism of homonymy So does the word “Ba” in Vietnamese, which suggests both “father” and “three” There is no uniform standard, but the motives of the different classifications are to discover and understand the characteristics of - Antonymy: Antonymy is the relation of opposite meanings euphemism from different angles The following is a brief introduction to For example: Good/Bad; Fast/Slow are some examples of antonymy some representative classifications of euphemism 2.2.3.3.Componential Analysis in Translation a Positive Euphemism and Negative Euphemism The basic process in translation is to compare a SL word with a TL Hugh Rawson [57, p 211] divides euphemisms into two general word which has a similar meaning, but it not an obvious one-to-one types—positive and negative Positive euphemisms can also be called stylistic equivalent, by demonstrating first their common and then their differing sense euphemisms or exaggerating euphemisms “The positive ones inflate and components The SL word normally has a more specific meaning than the TL magnify, making the euphemized items seem altogether grander and more word, and the translator has to add one or two TL sense components to the important than they really are.” In order to avoid thrill, to be polite or to corresponding TL word in order to produce a closer approximation of achieve cooperation, British and American people, especially contemporary meaning The sense components of a lexical unit may be referential and/ or Americans, prefer using the technique of exaggeration to euphemize pragmatic Comprehensively, a SL word may be distinguished from a TL something unpleasant and embarrassing word on the one hand in the composition, shape, size and function of its The positive euphemisms include the many fancy occupational titles, referent; on the other hand, in its cultural context and connotations, as well as which save the egos of workers by elevating their job status For example, in its currency, period, social class usage and its degree of formality, “exterminating engineers” for “ratcatchers”, “beautician” for “hairdressers” 30 31 “The negative euphemisms deflate and diminish They are defensive in nature, Conscious euphemisms are widely employed, which involve more offsetting the power of tabooed terms and otherwise eradicating from the complex categories When people communicate with each other, speakers are language everything that people prefer not to deal with directly.” [57, p.214] conscious to say tactfully, and the listeners understand their implied The negative euphemisms can be called traditional euphemisms or meanings For example, when a lady stands up and says that she wants to narrowing euphemism They are extremely ancient, and closely connected “powder her nose” or “make a phone call” at a dinner party, the people with the taboos A euphemism and its corresponding taboo are in fact two present realize the euphemism means “something else”, that is, “going to the faces of the same coin They refer to the same thing though they have ladies’ room” different looks, the euphemism having a much more pleasant face than the c Semantic Classifications of Euphemism taboo In many cultures, it is forbidden to pronounce the name of God So there are euphemisms such as “Jeeze”, “Jeepers Creepers” , or “Gee” for Beside the divisions mentioned above, according to their contents concerned, euphemisms can be semantically divided into: “Jesus”, “Jesus Christ” or “Christ”, “Goodness” for “God” or “My Gum” for • Euphemisms expressing death “My God” The names of the tabooed subjects as the dead, and the animals • Euphemisms expressing sex that are hunted or feared, may also be euphemized this way • Euphemisms expressing pregnancy b Conscious Euphemism and Unconscious Euphemism • Euphemisms expressing childbirth Euphemisms, whether positive or negative, can be divided into • Euphemisms expressing prostitutes unconscious euphemisms and conscious euphemisms The criterion is the • Euphemisms expressing genitals euphemistic meaning whether correlative with the original meaning or not • Euphemisms expressing occupation Unconscious euphemisms, as its name implies, were developed long • Euphemisms expressing unemployment ago, and are used unconsciously, without any intent to deceive or evade For • Euphemisms expressing disease… example, “Indisposition” has been a substitute for “disease” for a long period; 2.2.4.2 Theorists’ Ways for Translation of Euphemisms people seldom realize that its original meaning is incapable of dealing with something Or “Dieter”, the original meaning “taking food by a rule or Mentioning translation of euphemisms, in “Semantics and Translation”, Katharine Barnwell [23, p.68] states that: regulation” has been substituted by the euphemistic meaning “the one moderate in eating and dining for loosing weight” From the above we can • Sometimes a euphemism in the SL can be translated by a direct form in the TL conclude that unconscious euphemisms were developed so long ago that few can remember their original motivations • Sometimes a euphemism in the SL has to be translated by a euphemism in the TL, often quite different in form but having equivalent meaning in the TL 32 33 • Sometimes something which is referred to directly in the SL may have to be translated by a euphemism in the TL in order to avoid an • a euphemism in the SL is translated by an equivalent euphemism in the TL • a euphemism in the SL is translated by a non-equivalent one in the expression which would be offensive in the target culture According to M L Larson [42, p 87], a euphemism in the SL needs to TL be translated by an equivalent euphemism in the TL It is important that the In summary, this chapter has presented the theories on translation, translator must recognize the euphemistic nature of euphemism in SL and semantics, concepts, general features of euphemisms, classification of translate it into TL with euphemistic equivalence euphemisms and theorists’ ways of translation of euphemisms to support the As stated by Alan Duff in “Translation” [21, p 144 ], idiomatic investigation to count the percentage of each way used in translating expressions are notoriously untranslatable These include similes, euphemism, euphemisms from English into Vietnamese and then give some remarks on proverbs and saying, jargon, slang and colloquialisms and phrasal verbs He the popularity of each way also shows that if the expressions can not be directly translated, try any of the following: - Retain the original word, in inverted commas: “phở” , “chèo” - Retain the original expression with a literal explanation in brackets: “áo dài”(a long close-fitting blouse) The golden rule is: if the idiom does not work in the TL, not force it into translation As we know, in reality, there are a lot of euphemisms with high idiomatic and sometimes we must use metaphor to reach to euphemistic nature of euphemisms As a result, this principle of Alan Duff can be employed in translating euphemisms In short, due to some limitations of time and materials, in this thesis, the author has just only carried out an investigation on the translation of euphemisms expressing death, sex, pregnancy and childbirth basing on ways of translation of euphemism, namely: • a euphemism in the SL is translated by a direct form in the TL 34 CHAPTER METHOD AND PROCEDURE 35 - Collecting and classifying euphemisms due to theorists’ ways of translating euphemisms and drawing some conclusion on the frequency of each way used in translating euphemisms 3.1 AIMS AND OBJECTIVES - Simultaneously, describing and analyzing the collected data to find 3.1.1 Aims This study aims: out main approaches taken by translators in translating euphemism from - To identify how euphemism is translated from English into English into Vietnamese 3.3 METHOD OF RESEARCH Vietnamese - To come to main approaches taken by translators in translating euphemism from English into Vietnamese To fulfill the aim of the study, the main methods to be used are quantitative method and qualitative method The quantitative method in the study is conducted by calculating the 3.1.2 Objectives To achieve the above-stated aims, the following objectives are identified: percentage of each way used in translating euphemism from English into Vietnamese and arranges these ways in the preference - Examine ways of translating figures of speech in general and of euphemism in particular as discussed by translation theorists - Examine how these ways are manifested in literary works translated from English into Vietnamese The qualitative method in this study is mainly based on pairs in which the SL is English and the TL is Vietnamese Library research is used for literature review, in which different approaches to translation of euphemism are presented and contrasted to find - Decide if any generalizations can be made of ways adopted by translators when translating euphemism from English into Vietnamese - And finally put forward some considerations and recommendations for translation of euphemisms and for teaching and learning this figure of speech out the ways which are used more popularly than the others Simultaneously, main approaches taken by translators in translating euphemism from English into Vietnamese are also analyzed and presented 3.4 DATA COLLECTION AND DESCRIPTION Data collection has been carried out on translated works of literature 3.2 RESEARCH DESIGN from English into Vietnamese Data are collected from printed sources or This research is a combination of qualitative and quantitative approaches to carry out an investigation into translating euphemisms as seen in contemporary translated works from English into Vietnamese The research design is planned to carry out such important things as: from the Internet An estimated corpus of about 500 euphemisms translated from English into Vietnamese is taken from short stories, novels, etc written in British English or American English and translated into Vietnamese by different authors - Providing some basic theoretical concepts related to translation, semantics as well as theories of euphemisms 36 3.5 RESEARCH PROCEDURES The steps involved in the study are as follows: - Collecting euphemisms from some various bilingual sources translated from English into Vietnamese 37 CHAPTER FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 4.1 THE WAYS OF ENGLISH-VIETNAMESE TRANSLATION OF EUPHEMISMS AS MANIFESTED IN TRANSLATED WORKS - Doing literature work 4.1.1 Translation of Euphemisms Expressing Death - Sorting out euphemisms translated according to different categories Nowadays, life is much better than it used to be, and for most people - Sorting out euphemisms translated according to different ways death no longer comes as a welcome release It is hard to view human - Examining the frequency of occurrence of each way that translators existence solely as preparation for death, and to be consoled by the thought of choose when translating euphemisms from English into Vietnamese and a better future life The inevitability of death as a natural event was also putting them in order of frequency something that never used to be questioned In English, death is a Fear-based - Calculating the exact percentage for each way used in translating euphemism Taboo Death taboos are motivated by the following fears: a) Fear of the loss of loved ones; b) Fear of the corruption and disintegration of the body with - Putting forward some considerations and recommendations for which one has so long been familiar in life is suddenly to become abhorrent; translation of euphemisms and for teaching and learning this figure of speech c) Death is the end of life, and there is fear of what follows – there can be no first hand experience of death for the living; d) Fear of the malevolent spirits, or the souls of the dead People feel terrified of death and they extremely reluct to name it directly, thus, it is not to be used when talking to people in normal daily polite conversations In an attempt to find more socially acceptable terms and also to keep death at arm’s length by masking its reality, people may use various euphemisms – mild, indirect or vague terms In the Vietnamese language, there is also a long list of euphemisms for death or dying, which are in common with the ones in the English language The aim of those words is to lessen the pain and sorrow of the deceased’s family, relatives and friends and to show sympathy for them The translation of euphemisms expressing death from English into Vietnamese as manifested in translated works can be either direct, equivalent or non-equivalent Let us have a look at the following examples: 38 39 “No, Meggie, Hal’s not better in the way you mean, but he’s at peace He’s gone to God, he’s out of his pain.” [27, p.87] SL Text TL Text Hal ñã trở với Chúa He’s gone to God - Không, Meggie Hal không ñỡ chút mong, em ñã yên nghỉ Hal ñã trở với Chúa, không ñau khổ [16, p.92] In English speaking countries, Christianity is the most popular religion As for them, Christians would be free from the burden of original sins if they Dying, being killed Chết, bị giết Euphemism: gone to God Euphemism: trở với Chúa Transfer followed Jesus’ teachings and examples and believed in him as the Son of God Hence, according to them, death is regarded as being reunited with the Father God or simply going home So, “die” means “Gone to God” In , the death of Hal is so shocking that the very words to denote it are avoided SL Text TL Text không ñau khổ he’s out of his pain and more neutral words “been at peace”, “gone to God”, “out of pain” are used instead to lessen the regret and misery for the losses of his relatives Interestingly, very similar words are used in the TL text: “yên nghỉ”, “trở với Chúa”, “không ñau khổ” Dying, being killed Chết, bị giết Euphemism: out of his pain Euphemism: không ñau khổ Let us look at the diagrams, based on a model by Nida: SL Text Transfer TL Text em ñã yên nghỉ he’s at peace Only lately the day of my demise seems a lot closer than it used to, and I feel oh, I don’t know Dying, being killed Chết, bị giết Euphemism: been at peace Euphemism: yên nghỉ [ 27, p.44] Tôi có cảm giác ngày số mệnh gần kề tin Ồ! Tôi [16, p 53] Death is the end of life and in this situation, Mrs Carson is in fear of Transfer her life, of what follows, thus, a very word to denote it is avoided and a metaphorical expression “the day of my demise” is applied instead Equivalently, the expression “cái ngày số mệnh” in the TL text is also used: 40 41 SL Text People have regarded death as the start of the soul’s journey into the TL Text the day of my demise seems a lot ngày số mệnh gần kề closer than it used to afterlife and to begin a new life Therefore, they have buried the dead with all sorts of paraphernalia to help them on the way Accordingly, death is represented euphemistically as a journey and the notion of death as a state of rest from the pains of life Similarly, some euphemistic words such as Dying, being killed Chết, bị giết Euphemism: the day of my demise Euphemism: ngày số mệnh Transfer “lying”, “lost”, “rest”, “sleep on”, “is gone” are used to denote Dane’s death and equivalent words are used in the TL text: “nằm xuống”, “ñã mất”, “yên giấc” I wouldn’t have minded going, why did it have to be him? Why couldn’t it have been me? I’m so old! [27, p 392] Để cho ñi có phải ñơn giản không Tại lại mà tôi? [16, p.345] Normally, we fear confrontation with death because of its strong reminders of our own finiteness that we might dread to And certainly, people feel unworthy to be living when a person they love has died In this case, the death of Dane is so sudden that the word denoting it is avoided and a more He must come home! I’d hate to think of him lying somewhere far from Drogheda [27, p 391] Dane phải trở nhà! Mẹ không muốn em nằm xuống nơi khác Drogheda [16, p.344] SL Text TL Text I’d hate to think of him lying Mẹ không muốn em nằm somewhere far from xuống nơi khác Drogheda Drogheda neutral word “go” is used instead and a very similar word is used in the TL text: “ra ñi” SL Text TL Text Để cho ñi có phải I wouldn’t have minded going Dying, being killed Chết, bị giết Euphemism: lying Euphemism: nằm xuống ñơn giản không Dying, being killed Chết, bị giết Euphemism: going Euphemism: ñi Transfer Transfer ”Dane’s lost,” she said “No one can find him; he’s been buried somewhere on Crete [27, p.392] - Dane ñã Meggie nói Không tìm thi thể Dane ñược Nó ñược chôn cất nơi ñó ñảo Crete xa xôi! [16, p.345] 42 43 SL Text yet, as it sometimes happens that a person departs this life who is TL Text Dane ñã Dane’s lost really deserving of all the praises the stone cutter carves over his bones [60, p.6] Song có người từ giã cõi ñời mà lại thực Dying, being killed Chết, bị giết Euphemism: lost Euphemism: ñã xứng ñáng với lời xưng tụng bác thợ ñá khắc vào bia dựng nắm xương tàn họ Transfer [17, p.15] SL Text TL Text có as it sometimes happens that Sleep on, Dane, because only the good die young Why we mourn? người từ giã cõi a person departs this life ñời [27, p.396] Dane, yên giấc, có người ñược Chúa chọn chết trẻ Tại lại ñau xót? [16, p.352] SL Text TL Text Sleep on, Dane Dying, being killed Chết, bị giết Euphemism: departs this life Euphemism: giã cõi ñời Dane, yên giấc Transfer and so descended to the grave, after two bailiffs had quarrelled Dying, being killed Chết, bị giết Euphemism: sleep on Euphemism: yên giấc Transfer over his corpse [60, p.11] Rồi ông ta nằm xuống mộ, sau ñã bị hai viên mõ tòa cãi lộn thi thể [17, p 24] SL Text There is belief that after death, the soul of a dead man will, in some TL Text and so descended to the grave Rồi ông ta nằm xuống mộ shape or form, goes to the land of death, which is sometimes considered a happy place, but sometimes a place of sadness Often, the land of death seems to be a continuation of the current life but in another type of existence Thus, Dying, being killed Chết, bị giết Euphemism: descended to the grave Euphemism: nằm xuống mộ people are less apt to “die” and more apt to “pass on” or “pass away” or “depart this life” or “descend to the grave” or “go out this world” as in the Transfer following examples: 44 45 Mr Crawley had tended that otherwise friendless bedside She went out of the world strengthened by such words and comfort as he could give her SL Text TL Text where Lady Crawley had slept nơi Crawley phu nhân trước ñã her last ngủ giấc ngủ cuối ñời bà [60, p 111] Crawley ñã săn sóc bên giường bệnh người trơ trọi Anh ta ñã ngào an ủi, tiếp thêm sức mạnh cho bà khỏe khoắn từ giã cõi trần [17, p 139] SL Text TL Text She went out of the world Bà khỏe khoắn từ giã cõi trần Dying, being killed Chết, bị giết Euphemism: went out of the world Dying, being killed Chết, bị giết Euphemism: slept her last Euphemism: ngủ giấc ngủ cuối Transfer Wayne sleeping peacefully and eternally, free from pain Euphemism: từ giã cõi trần Uâynơ ñang ngủ giấc yên bình vĩnh cữu, xa lìa khổ ñau [19, p 49] Transfer SL Text The death is often compared as a sleep with the purpose to lessen the regret and misery for the losses of relatives and friends We can see the TL Text Uâynơ ñang ngủ giấc Wayne sleeping peacefully yên bình vĩnh cữu, xa lìa and eternally, free from pain khổ ñau similarity between a sleeping body and a dead one, and sleep has often been regarded as a temporary death, a period when the soul leaves the body to return when it awakens For this reason, “sleep” is a common euphemism for “die” to pretend that as mentioned below: with the handles muffled up in paper, into the great front bedroom, where Lady Crawley had slept her last Dying, being killed Chết, bị giết Euphemism: sleeping Euphemism: ñang ngủ giấc peacefully and eternally yên bình vĩnh cữu Transfer [60, p.53] Những tay nắm cánh cửa gian phòng ñều bọc giấy kín; cuối hai người ñi ñến phòng ngủ, nơi Crawley phu nhân trước ñã ngủ giấc ngủ cuối ñời bà [17, p.78] In some cases, the euphemisms expressing death in the SL text can be translated by non equivalent euphemisms or by a direct form in TL text as follows: 46 47 It’s so far away! How could he rest so far from Drogheda? [27, p 392] who IS a good Christian, a good parent, child, wife, or husband; who actually DOES leave a disconsolate family to mourn his loss Không thể ñể Dane nằm xuống nơi xa Drogheda ñến thế? [16, p.345] SL Text người vợ người chồng xứng ñáng, họ chết ñi, thực có khiến cho thân nhân phải thương tiếc không nguôi ñược TL Text Không thể ñể Dane nằm How could he rest so far from xuống nơi xa Drogheda? Drogheda ñến thế? SL Text Chết, bị giết Euphemism: rest Euphemism: nằm xuống họ chết ñi, thực có who actually DOES leave a khiến cho thân nhân thân disconsolate family to mourn nhân phải thương tiếc không nguôi ñược Dying, being killed Transfer [17, p.15] TL Text his loss Dying, being killed [60, p 6] nghĩa chiên ngoan ñạo, người bố, người mẹ, người con, Chết ñi Euphemism: loss Transfer “ He is gone, and she must surely feel by now that you are gone, too After all, you haven’t even been home to visit her.” ñi Thật em chẳng thăm viếng bà SL Text [16, p 363] TL Text Dane ñã nằm xuống He is gone Many years after her ladyship's demise, Sir Pitt led to the altar [27, p 409 ] Dane ñã nằm xuống buộc bà phải nghĩ em không Dying, being killed Chết, bị giết Euphemism: is gone Euphemism: nằm xuống Transfer Rosa [60, p 49] Vợ chết ñược thời gian lâu, tôn ông Pitt dẫn cô Rosa ñến bàn thờ Chúa làm lễ cưới [17, p 64] SL Text TL Text Many years after her Vợ chết ñược thời gian ladyship's demise lâu Dying, being killed Chết Euphemism:ladyship's demise Transfer 48 49 In these cases, plain expressions “chết ñi”,”chết” are used to translate the euphemisms in the SL text SUMMARY It is widely known that the real beauty of a language is what lies under the shade of the literal meanings of the words of the language components People should bear in mind that meaning translation not only stops at word by word translating because such translation, in many cases, leads to clumsy transferring In English and Vietnamese there are a lot of words relating to death and when transferring a word denoting death in English into Vietnamese, translators not often go directly to the meanings of the words It is clear that experiencing the death of a loved one, or witnessing the death of others can be one of the most profound events in one’s life and one’s sudden death can leave his or her relatives and friends with unfinished business with the deceased Therefore, in English or Vietnamese, euphemisms are used to show the commemoration and respect to the dead and sympathy for his or her relatives In terms of frequency, the translation of euphemism expressing death from the English language into Vietnamese is shown in the chart below: Figure 4.1: Proportion of Distribution of Euphemism Expressing Death in the SL Texts Transferred into the TL Texts It can be seen clearly from the chart that there is a significantly statistical difference between English and Vietnamese point of view in expressing death Among 100% of euphemisms expressing death in English language that are transferred into Vietnamese, the equivalent euphemisms account for 73%, the non-equivalent euphemisms account for 13% and the direct form account for 14% However, the discrepancy is not remarkable 4.1.2 Translation of Euphemisms Expressing Sex There is no doubt that there are a lot of taboos relating to sex and it is the power of taboos that keeps language users from avoiding the forbidden concepts and compels them to preserve or violate it This ambivalence towards taboo seems to be especially noteworthy in the case of sex, an area of interdiction particularly fruitful in lexical generation In fact, sex is pervasive in our everyday life and it has perhaps been on most people’s minds But how does one talk about this very sensitive realm? Many people think that the 50 51 subject of sex, of bodily love is best dealt with silence, the ultimate In , the euphemistic use of “had a love affair” with the meaning of euphemism To many others, sex may be spoken tenderly, lyrically and “had extramarital copulation” in SL text is easier to reach to the reader beautifully Hence, they resort to euphemism as to elicit embarrassment for Similarly, the euphemism “lo chuyện ân ái” is used to translate equivalently in others and to go so far as to say healthily, welcome Therefore, in the sexual the TL text realm, English language writers use many euphemistic words to denote the sexual intercourse In verbal disguising of copulation, euphemisms like “sleep” or “sleep together” - one of the key verbal “sexual intercourse” euphemisms, “getting According to the traditional belief of the Vietnamese, issues related to into bed with” for “have sex with” or “had a night with”, an even more sexual intercourse often bring people about the feeling of vulgarity As a circumlocution than “sleep” are widely used in the SL text Interestingly, result, the speakers often avoid mentioning sexual intercourse And similar euphemisms: “ngủ”, “việc ngủ”, “qua ñêm”, “những buổi ân ái” are euphemisms expressing sex, thus, are generated instead translated into TL text as in , , and As we know, the Anglo-Saxon peoples in general and the British in “I’ll have to go and see him, tell him And, much as I loathe the particular are famous for being embarrassed by sex Thus, the English idea, sleep with him.” “I’m two weeks overdue, and I’m never a day overdue language contains more euphemisms for sexual activity than other topics Let The only other time I was, Justine was starting I’m pregnant, Anne, I know I us examine the following examples: am!” affair all summer and got this girl with child and now I suppose you'll sneak off." [27, p 250] Em phải ñi tìm anh phải tìm cách ngủ với anh Em ñã bị trễ "That's just another example of your sneakiness You had a love hai tuần Kinh nguyệt em ñúng Chắc chắn em ñang có thai, Anne [33, p.227] [16, p 151] Chính ñó lại thêm ví dụ khác tâm ñịa nham hiểm anh Suốt mùa hè anh lo chuyện ân khiến cho cô gái có mang ñoán không lầm anh tính quất ngựa truy phong SL Text SL Text TL Text And, much as I loathe the [8, p.252] phải tìm cách ngủ với anh idea, sleep with him TL Text You had a love affair anh lo chuyện ân Copulating, having sexual Quan hệ, Giao cấu intercourse Having a relationship which Quan hệ ngôn nhân involves extramarital copulation Euphemism: sleep with him Euphemism: lo chuyện ân Euphemism: had a love affair Euphemism: ngủ với anh Transfer Transfer 52 53 “Had it not been for the new life she was sure was growing in SL Text her, getting into a bed with Luke ever again would have been the ultimate sin against her-self” TL Text Chúng ta ñã qua ñêm We had a lovely night [27, p 252] thần tiên Nếu mầm sống mà nàng biết ñang tượng hình việc ngủ với Luke lúc tội lỗi tha thứ với [16, p 151] SL Text TL Text Giao hợp Had sexual intercourse Euphemism: qua ñêm Euphemism: had a lovely night getting into a bed with Luke việc ngủ với Luke lúc ever again would have been the tội lỗi tha thứ ultimate sin against her-self với thần tiên Transfer In dealing with sexual realm, different figures of speech are often applied, in which circumlocutions and metaphors for sexual activity are Copulating, having sexual intercourse Euphemism: getting into a bed Quan hệ, Giao cấu commonly used to denote copulation and stimulatory activities These two Euphemism: việc ngủ figures of speech help to create the beautiful euphemisms as well as to arouse an aesthetic image for the readers or the listeners Copulation is well Transfer camouflaged in the texts behind evasive circumlocutions, which mostly seems to involve general companionship rather than the act itself as in the examples "How are you, darling?" she said "Isn't it a lovely day?" below: "How you feel?" "I feel very well We had a lovely night." That girl was beautiful and she was the greatest piece of ass I’ve [33, p.230] - Anh khỏe không anh yêu? - Nàng hỏi - Trời ñẹp tuyệt ever had and I’ve had them all over the world She could suck you out like a water pump - Tuyệt Chúng ta ñã qua ñêm thần tiên [56, p 52] Con bé ñẹp, ân tuyệt vời, chưa gặp phụ nữ - Em cảm thấy nào? [8, p.255] vậy… [10, p 83] 54 55 SL Text Let us have a look at the following example: TL Text she was the greatest piece of Con bé ñẹp, He could not get away from it, he could not get away from her, ass ân tuyệt vời from the thoughts at the back of his mind, from the hungers natural to his age and manhood [27, p 67] Anh ta xua ñuổi nỗi ám ảnh ấy, tách rời mẹ với A person viewed sexually Một người quyến rũ Euphemism: ass Euphemism: ân suy nghĩ ñen tối ñang vây hãm Rồi ñòi hỏi tự nhiên lứa tuổi sung mãn người ñàn ông ñã dậy lên anh Transfer SL Text Rồi ñòi hỏi tự nhiên The euphemistic word “embrace” is also used to denote the sexual caress in the SL text and equivalent words “âu yếm, vuốt ve” are used in the TL text from the hungers natural to lứa tuổi sung mãn his age and man-hood người ñàn ông ñã dậy lên anh Oh that his left hand were under my head, and that his right hand embraced me [19, p 164] Ôi bàn tay trái chàng ñỡ lấy ñầu Và bàn tay âu yếm, vuốt ve SL Text [16, p 38 ] TL Text [19, p 164] sexual hungers Đòi hỏi, ham muốn quan hệ Euphemism: hungers natural Euphemism: ñòi hỏi tự nhiên TL Text his right hand embraced me Transfer bàn tay âu yếm, vuốt ve Knowledge and understanding about human sexual intercourse is euphemized by an interesting metaphor “the birds and the bees”, which shunts sexual caress Mơn trớn gợi tình Euphemism: embraced Euphemism: âu yếm, vuốt ve Transfer the embarrassing connotation on non-human species and interestingly, the equivalent euphemism “chim bướm” is used in the TL text as manifested in the following example: The word “nature” generally indicates the quality or essence of something and it is frequently used as euphemistic omnibus to denote the sexual organs of a man The term nicely avoids direct reference to the organs themselves The nature of men is considering debilitating to them It is viewed as their life force and sexual intercourse because it drains men of their nature “Do you know anything about women, Dane?” she asked suddenly, opening her eyes again He smiled “The birds and the bees, you mean?” - Con có nghĩ ñến chút phụ nữ không Dane? Meggie hỏi giọng băn khoăn 56 57 Dane mỉm cười Chim bướm, có phải mẹ muốn nói thế? [16, p 186] SL text [27, p 333] TL text “The birds and the bees, you - Chim bướm, có phải mẹ mean?” muốn nói thế? Human sexual intercourse Chuyện quan hệ nam nữ Euphemism: The birds and the bees Euphemism: Chim bướm SL Text TL Text Một người phụ nữ A woman can live without it không cần chuyện ñó Human sexual intercourse Chuyện quan hệ nam nữ Euphemism: chuyện ñó Euphemism: it Transfer Transfer ”I don’t know, Vittrio I wish I did! At the time it just seemed the In the area of sex intercourse, the vague euphemism “it” appears so many times that it is considered as the king of the sex euphemisms The only thing to I’m not gifted with Promethean foresight, and emotional involvement makes one a poor judge Besides, it simply happened! euphemism “it” depends on the particular interpretation upon context, either [27, p 262] of situation or of collocation And “it” in SL text is sometimes in inverted Con ñược, Vittorio Con muốn biết thật sao! Nhưng commas or otherwise typographically marked if the points need to be lúc này, hành ñộng khác Hơn chuyện xảy hammered home In the TL text, “it” is translated equivalently as “chuyện cách tự nhiên ñó”, “chuyện ấy”, “cái chuyện ñó”, “chuyện ” as in the following examples: A woman can live without it quite well for years at a stretch, but it was nice, when it was the one man [16, p 158] SL Text TL Text Besides, it simply Hơn chuyện xảy hap-pened! cách tự nhiên [27, p 311] Một người phụ nữ không cần chuyện ñó nhiều năm thật hạnh phúc ñược sung sướng với anh ấy, người ñàn ông nàng [16, p 180] Human sexual intercourse Chuyện quan hệ nam nữ Euphemism: chuyện Euphemism: it Transfer “Oh, no, you didn’t offend me, truly! I suppose I’m not very used to it … I was frightened, not offended.” [27, p 183] 58 59 - Ồ không ñâu! Anh không xúc phạm em Không ñâu, thật mà! Chỉ có ñiều em không quen chuyện ñó Anh làm em hoảng sợ xúc phạm It’s only in the most private part of our life together that she ever displays any feeling, and even then she never speaks SL Text [27, p 79] Chỉ lúc riêng tư, tình vợ chồng, cô ñể [16, p 119] lộ xúc ñộng mình, lúc ñó cô không nói lời TL Text I suppose I’m not very used to Chỉ có ñiều em không quen it … chuyện ñó Human sexual intercourse Chuyện quan hệ nam nữ Euphemism: it Euphemism: chuyện ñó [16, p 46] SL Text TL Text It’s only in the most private Chỉ lúc part of our life together riêng tư, tình vợ chồng sexual moments Khoảnh khắc quan hệ Euphemism: private part of Euphemism: lúc riêng tư, our life together tình vợ chồng Transfer There are some cases in which the euphemisms expressing sex in the SL text are transferred into non- equivalent euphemisms in the TL text as Transfer follows: You said you’d been in love once, so I thought you knew the ropes I’m sorry, Meghann [27, p 183] Cô có nói với cô ñã yêu, ñó suy ñoán cô hiểu ñôi chút chuyện Tôi ân hận, Meghann SL Text [16, p 119] Even more so was the fact that as nat-ural-ly as if she came into a man’s arms every day of her life, her arms had gone up around his neck, and linked tightly [27, p 123] Meggie ñã áp sát người vào Ralph cách buông thả người vợ ñêm âu yếm chồng Rất tự nhiên, hai tay Meggie bấm vào cổ Ralph TL Text so I thought you knew the ñó suy ñoán cô ropes hiểu ñôi chút chuyện Human sexual intercourse Chuyện quan hệ nam nữ Euphemism: the ropes Euphemism: chuyện … Transfer ôm Ralph siết mạnh [16, p 77] SL Text TL Text she came into a man’s arms every day người vợ ñêm âu of her life yếm chồng sexual caress Mơn trớn gợi tình Euphemism: came into a man’s arms Euphemism: âu yếm Transfer 60 61 "Poor, poor dear Cat And this was the price you paid for sleeping together” [33, p.297] Tội nghiệp Catherine yêu quý, tội nghiệp! Đó giá phải trả cho buổi ân SL Text quan hệ với phụ yearly vacation away from the nữ dịp nghỉ hè parish dịp xa xứ ñạo extramarital copulation quan hệ [8, p.322] SL Text TL Text if one limited women to the TL Text the price you paid for giá phải trả cho sleeping together” buổi ân Euphemism: limited Transfer Had sexual congress Giao hợp Euphemism: sleeping together Euphemism: buổi ân So she had abjured the flesh, preferring to wield power [27, p 42] Transfer Chính mà bà từ bỏ khoái lạc xác thịt, thích cầm lấy gậy quyền hành In the cases of , , , euphemistic words such as “limited”, “the flesh”, “the drives of the body” are used to denote the extramarital copulation, sexual pleasure, sexual temptation in the SL texts [16, p 24] SL Text TL Text Chính mà bà từ bỏ So she had abjured the flesh khoái lạc xác thịt But when translating into TL text, the writers tend to speak plainly or profanely about sex, namely: “quan hệ”, “khoái lạc xác thịt”, “vòng cám dỗ sexual pleasure xác thịt” One could get away with it for a while if one was discreet; khoái lạc xác thịt Euphemism: the flesh Transfer forever if one limited women to the yearly vacation away from the parish [27, p 144] Người ta bảo vệ ñược uy tín sáng thời gian ñịnh ñó, giữ ñược kín ñáo; uy tín ñó lâu quan hệ với phụ nữ dịp nghỉ hè dịp xa xứ ñạo [16, p 90] But now she was old enough to be officially beyond the drives of the body [27, p 42] Nhưng bà ñã lớn tuổi người ta biết bà vòng cám dỗ xác thịt [16, p 24] 62 63 SL Text The chart shows that there is mismatch in relations to the point of view TL Text to be officially beyond the drives of người ta biết bà between the two languages when mentioning sex Most of the sexual the body vòng cám dỗ xác thịt euphemisms in the SL texts are transferred into the TL texts equivalently, accounting for 58% The ones in SL texts that transferred into the TL texts non-equivalently account for 26% The percentage of sexual euphemisms in sexual temptation vòng cám dỗ xác thịt Euphemism: the drives of the body the SL text that are transferred directly in the TL texts is only 16% 4.1.3 Translation of Euphemisms Expressing Pregnancy Transfer Ayto [22, p.85] says that the taboos in Western society against referring openly to a condition in which its later stages is fairly obvious to all is on the SUMMARY wane, but it has left a rich legacy of double talk in the language Our lexicon Though sex exists around us and most of us have sex in our thoughts, men and women could not talk about sex openly and uneuphemistically and still hold it sacred due to cultural factors and social notions Talking freely about sex might go a long way towards shearing of its guilty excitement and thrilling shame As a result, euphemisms are used instead to denote the pillow talk The chart below shows us the proportion of distribution of euphemisms expressing sex in the SL texts transferred into the TL texts of pregnancy can be roughly divided into two categories: the delicate circumlocution and the colorful metaphor The first treads gingerly round the subject without ever getting to the point, and its classic weapon is the impenetrably vague condition…The notion of looking forward to the time of birth provides a key pregnancy euphemism “be expecting” In Vietnamese culture, there are taboos in pregnancy that manipulate social behaviors Pregnant Vietnamese couples tend to reserve about the good news of their pregnancy In particular, those who have experienced with abortion are somewhat secretive about pregnancies Thus, it is a common practice to withhold the good news until after the first trimester Vietnamese elders may share superstition regarding pregnancy with expectant mothers, often warning pregnant women to avoid attending funerals, redecorating or moving into a new residence, as these activities are believed to result in birth defects Therefore, they often use euphemistic words and expressions to denote the pregnancy However, from what we have found out from the data, the translation of Figure 4.2: Proportion of Distribution of Euphemism Expressing Sex in the SL Texts Transferred into the TL Texts pregnancy euphemisms from English into Vietnamese can be either direct, 64 65 equivalent or non-equivalent as below: SL Text The key pregnancy euphemism “be expecting” in the SL text is TL Text It's almost three months gone gần ba tháng translated equivalently into the TL text euphemism “mang thai” as in All healthy women But when they’re expecting a baby they stop until after the baby is born [27, p 98] Tất phụ nữ khỏe mạnh ñều bị Nhưng mang thai, ngưng lại cho ñến ngày sinh em bé be pregnant có bầu Euphemism: three months gone Euphemism: ba tháng Transfer [16, p 56] SL Text TL Text But when they’re expecting a baby When the pregnancy is unwanted or when the woman is unmarried but Nhưng mang thai pregnant, the time-honored euphemism is the vague “in trouble” in the SL text Interestingly, in the TL text, “in trouble” is translated equivalently as “gặp rắc rối” as in the example be pregnant có bầu Euphemism: are expecting Euphemism: mang thai "No, I'm not But you mustn't mind, darling I'll try and not make trouble for you I know I've got you into trouble now But you have been a Transfer good girl until now You never knew it, did you?" [33, p 128] - Không, không, em ñừng quan tâm ñược việc ñó em yêu Anh cố The use of euphemism “three months gone” to denote the period of làm cho em không buồn Anh biết anh vừa khiến cho em gặp rắc rối Nhưng từ time elapsed during a pregnancy in the SL text is transferred equivalently into trước ñến em thiếu nữ ñứng ñắn Anh không nghi ngờ the TL text as “ba tháng rồi” ñiều ñó "I'm going to have a baby, darling It's almost three months gone You're not worried, are you? Please please don't You mustn't worry." [8, p 153] SL Text TL Text I've got you into trouble anh vừa khiến cho em gặp rắc rối [33, p 127] Em có anh ạ, gần ba tháng Anh không lo chứ? Nói cho em biết ñi anh Em van anh ñấy Anh không nên lo lắng chuyện ñó [8, p 152] unwanted pregnancy có bầu mong muốn Euphemism: got you into Euphemism: khiến cho em gặp trouble rắc rối Transfer 66 67 The euphemism “over-due” which is used in case of failing to Holder [34, p.232] mentions that the euphemism “to make a child” is menstruate at the expected time but not necessarily of an unwanted pregnancy perhaps his least favorite euphemism It is slightly cloying and means “to in the SL text was translated equivalently into the TL text as the euphemism become a parent” In the examples and , the euphemisms “to make “bị trễ” you a fine boy” and “a little baby” in the SL text are transferred into the TL “I’m two weeks overdue, and I’m never a day overdue The only other time I was, Justine was starting I’m pregnant, Anne, I know I am!” text as the equivalent euphemisms “sanh cho anh thằng bé xinh xinh” and “một cháu bé” Does she understand that? She will make you a fine boy A fine [27, p 250] Em ñã bị trễ hai tuần Kinh nguyệt em ñúng Chắc chắn em ñang có thai, Anne blonde like she is That's fine That's all right What a lovely girl SL Text hung nàng Được rồi, tốt lắm, ñược Thật cô gái ñáng TL Text Em ñã bị trễ hai tuần I’m two weeks over-due yêu! [8, p.115] SL Text be pregnant có bầu Euphemism: over-due [33, p 90] Nàng sanh cho anh thằng bé xinh xinh bé tóc [16, p 151] Euphemism: bị trễ TL Text Nàng sanh cho anh She will make you a fine boy thằng bé xinh xinh Transfer to become a parent lên chức bố mẹ Euphemism: make you a Euphemism: sanh cho anh “Had it not been for the new life she was sure was growing in her, getting into a bed with Luke ever again would have been the ultimate sin against herself” fine boy [27, p 252] Nếu mầm sống mà nàng biết ñang tượng hình thằng bé xinh xinh Transfer việc ngủ với Luke lúc tội lỗi tha thứ với [16, p 151] SL Text There is a ship upon the ocean bringing to you and me a little TL Text Had it not been for the new life Nếu mầm sống baby [19, p.165] Có thuyền mặt biển…mang ñến cho anh em…một be pregnant cháu bé có bầu Euphemism: the new life [19, p.165] Euphemism: mầm sống Transfer 68 SL Text 69 TL Text SL Text bringing to you and me a …mang ñến cho anh little baby em…một cháu bé TL Text người phụ nữ they’re expecting babies chờ ñợi sinh con? be pregnant có bầu be pregnant có bầu Euphemism: a little baby Euphemism: cháu bé Euphemism: expecting babies Euphemism: chờ ñợi sinh Transfer Transfer In the cases of examples and , the euphemistic expression “expecting babies” in the SL text is transferred into the TL text by non- As seen clearly in , the euphemism “with child” in the SL text is equivalent euphemisms such as “ñang mang người mầm sống mới” used to mention the pregnancy, but when transferring into the TL text, the and “ chờ ñợi sinh con” writer seems to emphasize by speaking plainly “có mang” That’s how women tell they’re expecting babies.” [27, p 98] "That's just another example of your sneakiness You had a love Chính tắt kinh, người phụ nữ biết ñang mang affair all summer and got this girl with child and now I suppose you'll sneak người mầm sống [16, p 56] SL Text ñang mang người they’re expecting babies off." [33, p.227] - Chính ñó lại thêm ví dụ khác tâm ñịa nham hiểm anh Suốt TL Text mầm sống mùa hè anh lo chuyện ân khiến cho cô gái có mang ñoán không lầm anh tính quất ngựa truy phong SL Text got this girl with child be pregnant có bầu Euphemism: expecting babies Euphemism: mầm sống cô gái có mang be pregnant Transfer có mang Euphemism: with child Why they stop when they’re expecting babies?” [27, p 98] Tại máu ngưng chảy người phụ nữ chờ ñợi sinh con? [16, p 56] [8, p.252] TL Text Transfer 70 71 pregnant euphemisms in the SL texts that are transferred directly into the TL SUMMARY It can be summed up that pregnancy in both English speaking countries texts accounts for only 10% and Vietnam is something sacred, expecting and happy Directly mentioning 4.1.4 Translation of Euphemisms Expressing Childbirth pregnancy is considered blunt and harsh to some extent Instead, it requires Ayto [22, p.88] mentions that the taboos of childbirth have fallen away politeness and tactfulness when mentioned As a result, a lot of euphemisms rapidly in Western society over the past half century (one of its few residues for “pregnancy” are used to show this happy event in Britain is the ban on male midwives) The sight of a woman giving birth on In relation to frequency, the translation of euphemisms expressing television is relatively commonplace, and the husband or male partner who pregnancy from the English language into Vietnamese is shown in the chart does not wish to be present and assist at the birth of his child may be below: considered distinctly preserve With the taboos has gone the language used to circumvent them Most English euphemisms for “childbirth” now have very dated air To Vietnamese people, giving birth to a baby is a very important job In the past time, a large family of children, a busy family is a source of pride and a big dream For each couple, having children is not only a wish to maintain the race but also the result of love until flowering, fruiting Vietnamese women attach great importance to children, especially their first children Moreover, there is a belief that "youth trusts father, the elderly trusts youth”, thus, having a child means that there is a place to rely on at the old age Therefore, Vietnamese people have a lot of taboo referring women during childbirth and euphemisms for childbirth are therefore used instead Figure 4.3: Proportion of Distribution of Euphemism Expressing Pregnancy in the SL Texts Transferred into the TL Texts As can be seen clearly from the chart, there is not much difference However, the translation of euphemisms expressing childbirth from English into Vietnamese is not in the same form as shown in the following examples: between English and Vietnamese point of view in expressing pregnancy The results indicate that when mentioning pregnancy, the English writers and Vietnamese writers employ a variety of equivalent euphemisms (70%), the non-equivalent euphemisms account for 20% Meanwhile, the percentage of In the example , the euphemistic expression “came into the world” is used to indicate the action “give birth to a baby” in the SL text, and, equivalently, the euphemism “chào ñời” is used when translated into the TL text 72 73 “This is no different from the way you came into the world yourself, and it deserves the same respect It isn’t dirty When you insult Daddy, you insult me.” [27, p 67] SL Text TL Text Chúng biết We knew the happy event có Chính chào ñời kết Điều xấu xa; chửi cha con, ñã chửi mẹ ñấy! SL Text [16, p 38] Sự ñời ñứa trẻ The birth of a child TL Text Euphemism: happy event the way you came into the Chính chào ñời world yourself Euphemism: có Transfer The use of euphemism “with the help” to indicate the period of giving birth in the SL text is transferred non-equivalently into the TL text as “ngày be born ñược ñẻ Euphemism: came into the Euphemism: chào ñời world khai hoa nở nhụy” as in So serene and beautiful, with the help that was to come to her so near Transfer [19, p.165] Trong an bình diễm lệ, ngày khai hoa nở nhụy ñến với nàng [19, p 165] According to Ayto [22, p 88], the euphemism “happy event”, which SL Text TL Text probably emerged in the late 19th century , reminds us that we are still not with the help that was to ngày khai hoa nở nhụy ñến always inclined to be terribly up-front and frank when talking about come to her so near với nàng childbirth And in the case , the euphemism “happy event” which denotes the birth of a child in the SL text is transferred into a non-equivalent Childbirth việc sinh Euphemism: with the help Euphemism: ngày khai hoa nở nhụy euphemism “sắp có con” We knew the happy event was very close now and it gave us both Transfer a feeling as though something were hurrying us and we could not lose any time together [33, p 289] Chúng biết có con, ñiều ñó khiến hai có cảm giác vội vã không ñể lỡ dịp bên cạnh [8, p 314] In the example , the euphemistic expression “young Catherine” in the SL text is transferred into the TL text by the non-equivalent euphemism “ra ñời” 74 75 "If the winter is over and the rain keeps up it won't be fun up SL Text here How long is it before young Catherine?" "About a month Perhaps a little more." TL Text There aren't many people Ít có người ñàn bà có reach my time mang tám tháng em [33, p.284] Nếu mùa ñông tàn trời tiếp tục mưa ñây chẳng có vui Còn trước bé Catherine ñời? Độ tháng chút [8, p.309] SL Text the happening of childbirth có mang tám tháng that subject to a taboo TL Text How long is it before young Còn trước Catherine? bé Catherine ñời Euphemism: my time Transfer In the examples and , the euphemistic use of “labour” with Childbirth việc sinh Euphemism: young Catherine Euphemism: ñời the meaning of “effort involved in giving birth” in the SL text is easier to reach to the readers Surprisingly, the plain word “sanh” is used in the TL text Transfer "The first labor is usually protracted," the nurse said.[33, p 291] Sanh so thường thường lâu - Bà y tá nói As seen in , in the SL text, the euphemism “time” means that the SL Text woman is going to give birth, but when transferring into the TL text, the writer seems to emphasize by speaking plainly “có mang tám tháng” [8, p 316] TL Text The first labor is usually Sanh so thường protracted thường lâu "Baby clothes There aren't many people reach my time without baby things." [33, p 285] childbirth Quần áo cho nhỏ Ít có người ñàn bà có mang tám tháng em mà quần áo cho trẻ sơ sinh Sanh so Euphemism: first labor [8, p 310] Transfer "What you at this hour?" the old man asked "My wife is in labor at the hospital." [33, p.292] Ông làm ñây sớm vậy? Nhà sanh bệnh viện 76 [8, p 317] 77 SL Text TL Text My wife is in labor SL Text Nhà sanh childbirth ñến trưa Catherine the delivery room nằm phòng sanh sanh Euphemism: in labor TL Text At noon Catherine was still in Childbirth room Phòng sanh Euphemism: delivery room Transfer Transfer In the area of childbirth, the vague euphemisms “delivery” is used for childbirth popularly in the SL texts However, when translated into The euphemism “maternity work” which refers to childbirth and the Vietnamese, the plain expressions “phòng sinh”, “phòng sanh” are used as in succeeding period in the SL text is replaced by a plain word “ñỡ” as in the the examples , case of example "Where is Madame Henry?" What a lovely girl I could teach her I will be a patient here "A lady has just gone to the delivery room." [33, p 293] - Bà Henry ñâu, thưa cô? that? - Người ta ñưa bà ñến phòng sinh [8, p 318] SL Text TL Text A lady has just gone to the Người ta ñưa bà ñến delivery room phòng sinh Childbirth room phòng sinh Euphemism: delivery room We had gone to the hospital about three o'clock in the morning At noon Catherine was still in the delivery room [33, p 90] Thật cô gái ñẹp Tôi dạy nàng học Tôi muốn thành bệnh nhân nằm ñây Không, ñỡ không công cho [8, p 115] SL Text TL Text No, but I will all your Không, ñỡ maternity work free không công cho Childbirth Đỡ Euphemism: maternity work Transfer [33, p 294] Chúng ñến bệnh viện lúc ba sáng mà ñến trưa Catherine nằm phòng sanh myself No, but I will all your maternity work free Does she understand [8, p 319] Transfer 78 79 SUMMARY 4.2 THREE MAIN APPROACHES TO TRANSLATION OF EUPHEMISM In general, for English speaking countries or Vietnam, the childbirth is From the translation of euphemisms in relations to death, sex, really sacred and of great importance Hence, taboos around childbirth arose pregnancy and childbirth, as presented above, we can see that there are three much and euphemisms for childbirth are used instead The chart below shows main approaches employed by translators In the previous chapter, we have us the proportion of distribution of euphemisms expressing childbirth in the mentioned the communicative functions of euphemism We cannot fail to SL texts transferred into the TL texts realize that with the development of society, more and more euphemisms will be widely shown up in movies, books, newspapers, etc Consequently, we English learners will undoubtedly encounter the questions of translating euphemisms, which involve both trans-linguistic and trans-cultural aspects When it comes to translation, there are three types of language: “non-literary, literary and poetic” as Peter Newmark claims in “Textbook of Translation” [49] It can be seen from the preceding discussions that euphemism obviously belongs to the second type because it is culture-bound Therefore, translation of euphemisms focuses on faithfully interpreting and conveying cultural connotations underlying euphemisms for readers or listeners There are sociocultural factors affecting the choice of a particular way in the translation of euphemisms as manifested in literary works: Figure 4.4: Proportion of Distribution of Euphemism Expressing Childbirth in the SL Texts Transferred into the TL Texts The chart shows us that when mentioning childbirth, there is much difference in relations to the point of view between the two languages Unlike translating euphemisms for death, sex or pregnancy, here, most of the euphemisms for childbirth in the SL texts are transferred into the TL texts directly, accounting for 60% The ones in SL texts that transferred into the TL texts non-equivalently account for 30% The percentage of childbirth euphemisms in the SL texts that are transferred equivalently into the TL texts 4.2.1 Translation of Euphemism into an Equivalent Euphemism by Finding the Exact Counterpart in the TL Texts Thanks to the common sphere of taboos and device of euphemizing, there exists an abundance of equivalent euphemisms both in Vietnamese and English In other words, some euphemisms have not only the same connotation and denotation contained both in Vietnamese and English but the similar forms Under these circumstances, literal translation is employed For example: yet, as it sometimes happens that a person departs this life who is really deserving of all the praises the stone cutter carves over his bones makes up 10% [60, p.6] 80 81 Song có người từ giã cõi ñời mà lại thực 4.2.2 Translation of Euphemism into a Non-equivalent Euphemism xứng ñáng với lời xưng tụng bác thợ ñá khắc vào bia dựng nắm by Translating the Euphemistic Meaning of the SL Texts or by Adding xương tàn họ Footnotes and Explanatory Words in the TL Texts [17, p.15] It can be seen that “departs this life” is a euphemism for “die” in Sometimes we not succeed in finding a complete equivalent because English and every reader familiar with Vietnamese cannot fail to understand there are still many lexical and cultural gaps between the two languages that “từ giã cõi ñời” is a euphemism for “chết ” In a similar way, we can find Certain words and cultural phenomena in the source language text are unique the Vietnamese counterpart for the English euphemism “gone to sleep-but and have their exotic ways of expression peculiar to their own backgrounds forever” and use it in translating process This rendering not only conveys the and can hardly be transferred In many cases, English and Vietnamese content and structure but also succeeds in bringing out the originally euphemisms are quite different in form and meaning, so to translate the rhetorical flavor Here are some more examples to illustrate the point: English Language At peace [27, p.87] Vietnamese Equivalents sleeping together” Gone to God [27, p.87] Về với chúa [16, p.92] Out of his pain [27, p.87] Không ñau khổ [16, p.92] The day of my demisse [27, p.44] Cái ngày số mệnh [16, p.53] Ra ñi [16, p.345] Lying [27, p.391] Nằm xuống [16, p.344] example: "Poor, poor dear Cat And this was the price you paid for Yên nghỉ [16, p.92] Going [27, p.392] euphemistic meaning is the way to go flexible Let us examine following [33, p.297] Tội nghiệp Catherine yêu quý, tội nghiệp! Đó giá phải trả cho buổi ân [8, p.322] The original meaning of “sleeping toghether” which means “ngủ với nhau” is a euphemism for “having sexual congress” If the translators go straight to the direct meaning it may reduce the effectiveness, emotiveness Sleep on [27, p.396] Yên giấc [16, p.352] and uniqueness of the message sent to TL readers As a result, the Went out of the world [60, p.111] Giã từ cõi trần [17, p.139] euphemistic meaning “những buổi ân ái” is applied instead Had slept her last [60, p.53] Ngủ giấc ngủ cuối [17, p.78] Sleeping peacefully and eternally Đang ngủ giấc yên bình vĩnh cửu [19, p.49] Sleep with him [27, p.2502] [19, p.49] Ngủ với anh [16, p.151] The birds and the bees [27, p.333]… Chim bướm [16, p.186]… The above is by no means a rare coincidence and similar cases are as follows: English Language Came into a man’s arms [27, p.123] Vietnamese Equivalents Âu yếm [16, p.77] Is Gone [27, p.409] Nằm xuống [16, p 363] Rest [27, p.392] Nằm xuống [16, p.345] Expecting babies [27, p.98] Đang mang người mầm sống [16, p.56] 82 83 Sometimes it is far enough to only reveal the euphemistic meaning or CHAPTER original meaning, so further explanation is needed as in these examples: That’s how women tell they’re expecting babies.” [27, p 98] Chính tắt kinh, người phụ nữ biết ñang mang người mầm sống CONCLUSIONS 5.1 SUMMARY OF THE FINDINGS Euphemism, as a variation of language, is applied everywhere in all [16, p 56] human societies and used in all human interactions The main function of It’s only in the most private part of our life together that she ever euphemism is to replace taboos, which are common social–cultural displays any feeling, and even then she never speaks [27, p 79] phenomena actually extending people’s self–protection psychology In speech Chỉ lúc riêng tư, tình vợ chồng, cô ñể interaction, out of politeness or tact, one may use a pleasant, less direct word lộ xúc ñộng mình, lúc ñó cô không nói lời instead of something unpleasant Euphemism is one of the ways people use to realize this purpose Therefore, resorting to euphemism is speakers’ active [16, p 46] O that his left hand were under my head, and that his right hand embraced me pragmatic strategy at a certain time and in a certain situations More [19, p 165] Ôi bàn tay trái chàng ñỡ lấy ñầu importantly, euphemism embodies the civilization and morality of human beings As people live in different times and societies, and the language they Và bàn tay âu yếm, vuốt ve [19, p 165] use belong to different categories, accordingly this kind of language variation 4.2.3 Translation of Euphemism into a Direct Form in the TL created by them are varied and reflect various social cultures and values Interestingly, sometimes we can find out that in English language, the shows itselfs in vocabulary New words and expressions appear as a result of authors use euphemistic expressions to denote something respectably or social and economic development and old words acquire new meanings on euphemisticality However, due to the different points of view and context, account of certain new social needs Euphemism, as a language form, also plain expressions are used to translate the euphemisms Let us consider the follows this trend As a result, it can be said that English or Vietnamese following examples: euphemisms share something in common in this respect, i.e the metabolic Texts Language is dynamic and in constant change The most obvious change English Language Vietnamese Equivalents feature of euphemism With the constant cultural exchange between east and His loss [60, p.6] Chết ñi [17, p.15] west, there seems a trend showing that some euphemistic expressions are on Her ladyship’s demise [60, p.49] Chết [17, p 64] the track of unification This tendency embodies that different cultures can Limited [27, p.144] Quan hệ [16, p.90] influence and infiltrate each other The Flesh [27, p.42] Khoái lạc xác thịt [16, p.24] With child [33, p.227]… Có mang [8, p.252]… After studying some theorists’ ways of translating euphemisms, we carried out investigating the English - Vietnamese translation of euphemism 84 basing on three ways as follows: 85 Among them the method of translating a euphemism the SL into an • a euphemism in the SL is transferred into a direct form in the TL equivalent euphemism by finding the exact counterpart in the TL texts is the • a euphemism in the SL is transferred into an equivalent euphemism most common one in the translating process in the TL • a euphemism in the SL is transferred into a non-equivalent one in the 5.2 IMPLICATIONS FOR TRANSLATION In translation theory, there are two different main approaches: authorcentered and second reader-centered, of which the second approach is more TL Employing these ways as the framework, we have investigated the likely to create an equivalent effect and is more favored by translators reality and practice of translating euphemism from English into Vietnamese However, how the second approach works, in fact, brings translators many as manifested in published translated works We have found that most of the big difficulties because it relates to factors such as linguistic context, euphemisms in the SL are transferred equivalently into the TL texts, some in situational context and cultural context The quality of a translation SL texts are translated by non-equivalently euphemisms in the TL texts and sometimes has nothing to with the original work or with the original finally, a small number are translated directly in the TL texts, which are listed writer; rather, it depends on the theoretical knowledge and practical skills of as follows: the translator Translators have to carefully choose the most suitable ways of (1) a euphemism in the SL is replaced with an equivalent euphemism in the TL: 45% (2) a euphemism in the SL is replaced with a non-equivalent one in the TL: 30% (3) a euphemism in the SL is replaced with a direct form in the TL: transferring for each context to make translation more meaningful and colorful 5.3 IMPLICATIONS FOR LANGUAGE TEACHING AND LEARNING Translation in general and the translation of English euphemism in particular is not an easy task so it requires both teachers and learners to learn and research carefully with their best efforts to grasp the texts in the SL and 25% Moreover, the research also identifies the main approaches taken by translators in translating euphemism from English into Vietnamese, namely: (1) Translation of euphemism into an equivalent euphemism by finding the exact counterpart in the TL texts produce a TL text that bears a close resemblance to the SL texts Thanks to this thesis, both teachers and students will have a chance in enriching their knowledge of euphemism Moreover, they also discover polysemy of words which may facilitate vocabulary learning as well as develop their English (2) Translation of euphemism into a non-equivalent euphemism by vocabulary Simultaneously, they can know more about the cultures of translating the euphemistic meaning of the SL texts or by adding footnotes English and Vietnamese and also find the importance of culture in translating and explanatory words in the TL texts euphemism so that they can recognize it is necessary to teach and learn not (3) Translation of euphemism into a direct form in the TL texts only linguistics but also non-linguistics or socio-cultural factors 86 5.4 SOME LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY 87 5.5 SOME SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH Though there have been many books on English- Vietnamese Whatever effort has been made in conducting the research, there is still translation so far, few of the authors have mentioned or done really thorough room for our study Some notions of these occurred in the course of doing research on euphemism translation as we have done in our thesis This is also this research However, due to the lack of time we cannot present them all a big challenge for our work during the process of collecting data and writing From the practical point of view, we suggest further research should be up this paper Besides, due to the limitation of time and knowledge of the focused on: writer in the translational perspective, and the shortage of material sources, - Idiomatic euphemism or other kinds of euphemism this study has only limited itself to three mainly ways: 1) a euphemism in the - Cultural overlap as well as cultural distance between English and SL is translated by a direct form in the TL; 2) a euphemism in the SL is Vietnamese which influence euphemism translations translated by an equivalent euphemism in the TL and 3) a euphemism in the Besides another source of data for research should also be investigated SL is translated by a non-equivalent one in the TL and identifies the main such as newspapers, magazines, and other mass media publications to make approaches taken by translators in translating euphemism from English into the research more reliable and persuasive Vietnamese namely: Translation of euphemism into an equivalent euphemism by finding the exact counterpart in the TL texts; Translation of euphemism into a non-equivalent euphemism by translating the euphemistic meaning of the SL text or by adding footnotes and explanatory words in the TL texts; Translation of euphemism into a direct form in the TL texts and the data is mainly collected from some famous English novels of literature and their Vietnamese versions As a result, the research has failed to address all linguistic aspects and mention all translation ways, and some of the conclusions drawn from the findings are rather subjective and the issues mentioned are still somewhat general Therefore, to some extent, Chapter Four of the thesis has not accomplished a satisfactory depth as it should However, with the samples clearly classified into distinguished parts and fully analyzed, the author believes that this chapter contains some useful findings and this, we hope, will add additional value and make 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