日益严重的土地荒漠化不仅导致了生态环境恶化,还降低了资源的质量和数量……
大家觉得“日益严重的土地荒漠化”该怎么翻译呢?
“日益严重的”可以用一个单词翻译,即growing,rising,increasing。
如外刊中这句:Further research needs to be done to better understand the implications of technology on growing youth unemployment and how technology can be harnessed in youth education. 有必要进一步研究,更好地了解技术对日益严重的青年失业问题的影响,了解如何在青年教育方面利用技术。
还比如外刊和报告中我看到的一些:rising xenophobia日益严重的仇外心理;in an age of rising air pollution在空气污染日益严重的时代;Crime is a growing problem. 犯罪是一个日益严重的问题;Address the increasing economic and social divides at home解决国内日益严重的经济社会分化问题;an accelerating health crisis一场日益严重的健康危机。
还比如un上这句:oil extraction on health and livelihoods as well as of growing desertification in the North and its related effects on the health.
所以,这句“日益严重的土地荒漠化”可以翻译为:
Growing desertification,也可以翻译为:Desertification, a growing issue/problem/crisis/threat,还可以翻译为:The growing issue/problem/crisis of desertification。
“日益严重的”也可以翻译为increasingly serious,一般修饰issue或problem。如柯林斯词典中这句:Crime is an increasingly serious problem in modern society. 还比如华盛顿邮报中这句:The group branded human excrement an “increasingly serious problem,” adding it was also concerned about the volume of litter being left behind by visitors.
所以“日益严重的土地荒漠化”也可以翻译为The increasingly serious issue/problem of desertification.
因此:日益严重的土地荒漠化不仅导致了生态环境恶化,还降低了资源的质量和数量……
翻译为:
Growing desertification/Desertification, a growing issue/problem/crisis/threat//The growing issue/problem/crisis of desertification leads/contributes to ecological deterioration/degradation//deterioration of the eco-environment/the ecological environment and reduces the quality and quantity of resources.
02
讲到“日益严重的”的几种翻译,我想给大家说下简明英语,虽然increasingly serious在un等报告和国内报告中也有,但是外刊中使用频率高的是growing,这说明了英语发展的一种趋势,即简明英语,言简意赅而又准确才是我们应该努力学习和追求的。
在《通过翻译学英语》这本书中,作者也对简明英语作了简单的一句话概括,即能用短语的地方尽量不用从句,能用单词的地方尽量不用短语。
举例来说,He behaved in a polite manner.这句话就可以简单改为He behaved politely. 再比如说,The girl, who is wearing a red skirt, is my little sister. 可以改为The girl wearing a red skirt is my little sister.
我们再看看书中这个例句:
汉语:在一个中国式的家里,厨房不过是一个煮东西的地方;但在许多西方式的家里,厨房不但是煮饭和吃饭的地方,还是一个家人或朋友们聚会的地方。(选自李学平《通过翻译学英语》实例38)
不好译文:In a Chinese house, the kitchen is only a place for cooking things; but in many Western houses, the kitchen is not only a place where people cook meals and eat them but also a place where the family members or friends usually meet each other.
较好译文:In a Chinese house, the kitchen is nothing more than a place for cooking; but in many Western houses, the kitchen is not only where people cook and eat but also where the family members or friends usually come together.
很明显,作者删去了一些多余的名词,还把be sth+定语从句改为了表语从句。