摘要習語是語言的珍寶,是人類智慧的結晶。幾百年以來,動物一直被視為人類的朋友,在大量的英漢習語中,人們用不同種類的動物來表達他們的感情。英漢這兩種語言都有著豐富的動物習語,這些習語通過它們生動形象,以簡潔的方式來描述人們的感情或解釋一些復雜的規則或現象。英漢習語的完美翻譯呈獻給了目標語讀者一張生動的文化圖片。然而,由于中西方不同的歷史淵源,地理環境,風俗習慣,宗教信仰等因素,完全透徹地理解一種文化中的動物習語對于生活在另一種文化中的人們而言是有難度的。本文從其影響因素如：地理環境、風俗習慣、宗教信仰、社會歷史等方面入手，探討動物習語的文化內涵、翻譯策略等。第一章，對研究背景以及研究的必要性進行簡單的介紹；第二章，將講到習語的定義并對其進行一個分類；第三章，詳細探討影響動物習語的幾大因素，并舉例說明；第四章，分析在中西方文化中動物習語的文化內涵，包括分析中西方文化中動物詞匯的象征意義；最后一章，文中將介紹動物類習語的翻譯方法，包括直譯法，意譯法和套譯法。關鍵詞：動物詞匯，動物習語，文化涵義，文化差異，翻譯策略AbstractIdiomsarenotonlythetreasuresofalanguagebutalsothewisdomofhumanbeings.Animalshavebeenconsideredasgoodfriendsofhumanforhundredsofyears,andChinesepeopleusedifferentkindsofanimalstoexpresstheirfeelings.BothEnglishandChinesehavemanyanimalidiomswhichareusedbypeopletoexpresstheirfeelingsorexplainsomecomplicatedrulesandphenomenainaconciseway.However,duotodifferenthistory,customs,geographicalenvironmentsandreligiousbeliefs,itisdifficultforpeopletocompletelyunderstandtheanimalidiomsinotherculture.Inthisthesis,wewilldiscusstheculturalconnotationsandthetranslationstrategiesoftheanimalidioms,fromthefactorsthatinfluenceit,suchasgeographicalconditions,customs,religionshistoryandsoon.Inchapteronewewillmakeabriefintroductionoftheresearchingbackgroundandthenecessityoftheresearch.Inchaptertwo,we’lltalkaboutthedefinitionofidiomsandtheclassificationofidioms.Andinchapterthree,adetaileddiscussionwillbegiventothefactorsthatinfluencetheanimalidiomsandillustratethem.Inthelastchapter,wewillintroducesometranslationstrategiesaboutanimalidioms,includingdirecttranslation,freetranslationandmodelingapplication.Intheend,therewillbeaconclusionforthisresearchandtalkaboutwhatwehavelearnedfromthisthesis.Keywords:Animalwords，animalidioms，culturaldifferences，Culturalmeaning，TranslationstrategiesContentsAcknowledgmentsⅰAbstractinChineseⅱAbstractinEnglishⅲ1Introduction71.1ResearchingBackground71.2TheNecessityandSignificanceoftheResearch72TheDefinitionandtheclassificationofidioms92.1TheDefinitionofIdioms92.2TheClassificationofIdioms103Factorsofinfluencingtheculturaldifferencesofanimalidioms...123.1InfluenceofGeographicCondition123.2InfluenceofCustoms133.3InfluenceofReligions143.4InfluenceofHistory154DifferentConnotationsofAnimalWordsinEasternandWesternCultures164.1SymbolicSignificanceofAnimalWordsinEasternandWesternCultures164.2ConnotationsofAnimalIdiomsinEasternandWesternCultures175TheTranslationStrategiesofIdiomsandAnimalWords205.1DirectTranslation205.2FreeTranslation215.3ModelingApplication22Conclusion24Bibliography251.IntroductionIdiomsarenotonlythetreasuresofalanguagebutalsothewisdomofhumanbeings.Animalshavebeenconsideredasgoodfriendsofhumanforhundredsofyears,andChinesepeopleusedifferentkindsofanimalstoexpresstheirfeelings.BothEnglishandChinesehavemanyanimalidiomswhichareusedbypeopletoexpresstheirfeelingsorexplainsomecomplicatedrulesandphenomenainaconciseway.1.1ResearchingBackgroundEnglishistheofficiallanguageusedbymostcountriesintheworldanditisalsotheworld’smostextensivesecondlanguage.Chinesehasalonghistoryandusedbylargeamountofpeople.Bothofthelanguagesarenoteasytolearn.ThetranslationbetweenEnglishandChineseisdifficultandthetranslationofidiomsevenharder.Itisnotenoughforustotranslateidiomsonlyfromtheliteralmeaning.PeoplewhohavelearntEnglishmayfacesomedifficultieswhentheyreadoriginalEnglishbooksorwatchEnglishoriginalfilms.Oneofthemajorreasonsisthatthey’reunfamiliarwiththeEnglishidioms.Inthelate1960s,asoneofthemajorfiguresofthelinguisticschool,EugeneNidaproposedtheFunctionalEquivalenceTheory.Thisthesisholdsthattranslationistobringoutthemostappropriateequivalentwhenwetranslatethesourcelanguageintothetargetlanguage.Makesurethatthereisnodifferencebetweenthereflexofthetargetreadersandthatofthesourcereaders.TheanimalimageisanimportantcarrierintheEnglishidioms,andhowtodealwiththeculturaldifferencesisembodiedinthetranslationoftheanimalimage.So,itisofgreatimportanceforustotranslatetheidiomsafteranalyzingtheanimalimageinit,insteadoftranslatingitonlyfromtheliteralmeaning.1.2TheNecessityandSignificanceoftheResearchAnIdiomisoneofthecolorfulelementsinlanguagewithgreatenergy.Itisanimportantpartoflanguageandalsoaspecialkindofexpressingwayoflanguageorakindofartofhumanlanguage.Therefore,idiomsarenotmerelyfolklanguagebutalsoonepartofmassculture.Withthedevelopmentofhumanlanguage,peopleindifferentcountriesmayhavedifferentunderstandingofthesymbolicmeaningofanimals.InordertocomprehendthelanguageandcultureofEnglish-speakingcountriesandtranslatetheirlanguagecompletely,whatweshoulddoistolearnmoreabouttheEnglishidioms.Duotodifferentculturalbackgrounds,bothorientalcountriesandwesterncountrieshavetheirownfeatures.Thesameanimalimageindifferentculturalbackgroundsmayrepresentacompletelydifferentevenoppositemeaning.Forinstance,inChina,thedogrepresentsinferiorsocialstatusandbadbehavior,whileinwesterncountries,dogsbecometheirfavoritepetsandintimatefriends.ThusitcanbeseenthatitisvitaltostudytheculturaldifferencesbetweenChinaandthewesterncountries.Theidiomstudyofothercountriesisbenefitforustoimproveourunderstandingabouttheirpolitics,culture,especiallytheirlife.Itmaydeepenourunderstandingofothercountiesinallrespectssothatwecanspeeduplearningtheculturalknowledgeandscienceandtechnologyofadvancedcountries,meanwhile,itcanalsoenhancetheenthusiasmforpeopletolearnEnglish.2.TheDefinitionandtheclassificationofidiomsIdiomsaretheessenceoflanguageanditisalsoanintegralpartofthelanguage.Idiomsarefixedphrasesorsentenceswhichwereusedforalongperiodoftime,includingsetphrases(成語）,proverbs（諺語）,two-partallegoricalsayings(歇后語）,slang（俚語）,commonsayings（俗語）orfolkadages,ect.Nowlet’stalkaboutthedefinitionandtheclassificationofidioms.2.1TheDefinitionofIdiomsTheword“idiom”isusuallytranslatedinto“習語”inChinese.However,youcanseldomfindtheterm“習語”inmanyChinesedictionary.Chineseresearcherswouldliketouse“熟語”whichmeansexpressionsformedbythefixedwordswhosestructuresusuallycannotbechangedatrandomwhenused.TheEnglishword“idiom”comesfromtheGreekword“idioma”Andthemeaningofidiomaisspecialorspecialty.Herearesomedefinitionsof“idiom”:(1)Agroupofwordsinafixedorderthathaveaparticularmeaningthatisdifferentfromthemeaningsofeachwordunderstoodonitsown.(CambridgeAdvancedLearner’sDictionary)(2)Anexpressionestablishedintheusageofalanguagethatispeculiartoitselfeitheringrammaticalconstructionorinhavingameaningthatcannotbederivedasawholefromtheconjoinedmeaningsofitselements.(Webster’sThirdNewInternationalDictionary)Agroupofwordswhichhaveadifferentmeaningwhenusedtogetherfromtheoneitwouldhaveifthemeaningofeachwordweretakenindividually.(CollinsCobuildDictionaryofIdiom)Fromthesedefinitionabove,itcanbeseenthattheretwofeaturesofidioms.Oneisthestabilityofthestructure,andtheotheristhespecialtyofthemeaning.Idiomshavetwoconstructionforms,phrasesandsentences.Thestabilityofthestructure,thatistosay,eachpartoftheidiomisfixedandwecannotseparatethem,replacedthem,orexchangethemwithotherelements.Thespecialtyofthemeaningisthatanidiomisanentiretyinsemanticswhichcannotbeseparatedatrandom.Themeaningofanidiomisnotthecombinedmeaningofeachword(theliteralmeaning)butanewmeaningofthisidiom.Thereforeweshouldcomprehenditasawholeunit.“Iwaspullingyourleg.”Inthissentence,“pullsb’sleg”isanidiom;itmeans“playajokeonsb”butnottheliteralmeaningpullone’sleg.Inaddition,itsstructureisfixedwhichcannotbeseparatedorexchanged.Forinstance,“Itisrainingcatsanddogs.”cannotbeexchangedby“Itisrainingdogsandcats.”Addingelementstoanidiomatwillisalsoincorrect.“Ontopoftheworld”isrightwhile“onthetopoftheworld”iswrong.Wecan’tcutdowntheelementatwill.“Onceinabluemoon”isnot“inabluemoon”.2.2TheClassificationofIdioms Idiomsincludesetphrases(成語）,proverbs（諺語）,two-partallegoricalsayings(歇后語）,slang（俚語）,commonsayings（俗語）orfolkadages,ect.Theyareknownas“熟語”inChinese.Themeaningofanidiomisnotclearfromthemeaningofitsindividualwords.SetphraseswerewidelyusedinChinese.WecanstillseetheminspokenChineseandvernacularChinesewritings.AccordingtoPracticalModernChineseDictionary(《實用現代漢語詞典》），setphrases,alsocalledchengyu,areformedbyfixedphrasesorshortsentenceswhicharebriefinstructure,incisiveinmeaningandlong-timeusedidiomaticallybypeople.Mostsetphrasesarefour-wordphrases.Let’sbringsomeexamples:Fishintroubledwaters渾水摸魚Birdsoffeather一丘之貉Asbusyasabee忙碌至極Anoldhorseknowstheway老馬識途Heridesatigerisafraidtodismount.騎虎難下Intermsofproverbs:Everydoghashisday人人皆有得意之日Alionathomeamouseabroad.在家如獅，外出如鼠Abirdinthehandisworthtwointhebush.一石在手勝于兩鳥在林Thewolfhasawinninggamewhentheshepherdsquarrel.鷸蚌相爭漁翁得利。Fortwo-partallegoricalsayings:Loveme,lovemydog.愛屋及烏。Aslowsparrowshouldmakeanearlystart.笨鳥先飛。Monkeyface--out猴兒的臉——說變就變CatbellyTigertanktoughup貓肚子放虎膽——兇不起來FromtheseexamplesaboutidiomswecanseethattherearesomedistinctionsbetweenChineseidiomsandEnglishidioms,particularlythedifferencesbetweenChineseanimalimagesandEnglishanimalimages.Wecanalsolearnthateachcountryhasitsownunderstandingaboutanimalimages,suchasfish,bees,dogsandsoon.Chinesepeopleregardmanychildrenasgoodfortune,sotheylikeusingtheimageoffishtoexpressthemeaningofcontinuousofgenerationswhilewesternpeopleonlyconsiderfishasagility.BothinChinaandwesterncountries,beesarealwaysusedtosymbolizepeoplewhoarebusywiththeirwork.Dogs,inwesterncountries,arepeople’sintimatefriends.However,inChina,thephrasesrelatedtothedogareusuallyderogatoryterms.3.FactorsInfluencingtheCulturalDifferencesofAnimalIdiomsCulturehasavitalinfluenceonanimalidioms.Inthischapter,let’smakeadetailedanalysisofculturalinfluencesonEnglishandChineseanimalidiomsfromthefollowingaspects.3.1InfluenceofGeographicConditionOnaccountofthedifferencesofgeographiccondition,laborandlivinghabits,differentnationshavetheirownunderstandingofidioms.PeopleinwestandChinahavetheirownwaysofthinking.Britainisanislandsurroundedbysea,withdevelopedbusinessandseafaring.Asaresult,mostoftheidiomsofBritainarerelevanttobusinessandsea.ChinaislocatedinAsiancontinentandpeople’sdailylivesarecloselyrelatedtotheland,so,Chineseidiomsarealwaysconnectedwithgeographicalconditions.Forinstance,ourcountryisrichinbamboo,forthat,Chinesepeopleoftenuse“bambooshootsafteraspringrain”todescribetherapiddevelopmentandnumerousproductionofthings.However,inEnglish“bamboo”seldomappearsintheirwrittenorspokenlanguage.Theyusemushroomratherthanbamboobecausewesternpeopleknowlittleaboutbamboo.BeforetheIndustrialRevolution,mostBritainpeoplemadelivingsasfishermenandfisheryissignificantthere,sotherearemanyEnglishidiomsconcernwithfish.drinklikeafish牛飲haveotherfishtotry另有打算Neveroffertoteachfishtoswim.不要班門弄斧。Itisasillyfishthatiscaughttwicewiththesamebait.聰明人不上兩回當。Inaddition，idiomsinwesterncountriesdeeplyaffectedbytheiranimalhusbandry.Therefore,someoftheidiomsareassociatedwithanimalhusbandry.blacksheep害群之馬asstrongasahorse力大如牛abullinaChinashop肆意搗亂horselaugh縱聲大笑Ifyousellthecow,yousellthecow,yousellhermilktoo.賣了母牛吃不著奶。Fromtheexamplesabove,welearnthat“horses”appearsmorefrequentlythan“cattle”.Itallisbecauseinancienttime,westernpeoplecultivatedlandmainlybyhorsewhileChinesepeoplediditbycattle.QuitedifferentfromBritain,Chinaisanagrariansociety.TheancestorsofChinalivealongourmotherriver,theYellowRiverandChinaisacountrymainlybasedonagriculture.Thus,ouridiomsaremainlyrelevanttolandandcattleareourmainlaborsource.Goodhorseneverstopsrunningandgoodoxenneverstopplowing.好馬不停蹄，好牛不停犁。3.2InfluenceofCustomsAnyindividualinasocietywillbeimmersedinthediversesocialcustomfromthebeginningoflife.People’sbehaviorsandexperiencewillbeformedbythesocialcustoms.Asanimportantpartofculture,languageisalsoinfluencedbycustoms.Theexpressionofidiomscontainsdifferentculturalconnotationofdifferentnationanddifferentcustomembodiesdifferentculturalcharacteristic.People’sattitudestowarddogsarediverse,too.Ifyouhaveseenhowwesternpeopletreattheirdogswithyourowneyes.Youwillfindthatdogsaremen’s“dearones”intheiropinion.Theyappreciatedogs’loyalty,courageousandresolute.Thus,theidiomsinwesterncountryareusuallycommendatory.Forexample,”Loveme,lovemydog（愛屋及烏）.”“Iftheolddogbarks,hegivesthecounsel(老狗叫，是忠告）.”“agaydog(一個快樂的人）.”“asadogwithtwotails(非常開心）.”Onthecontrary,ChinesePeopleregarddogsasbadthingsandscornonthiskindofanimals,suchas“狼心狗肺”“狗仗人勢”“狗急跳墻”“狗血噴頭”“喪家之犬”“狗咬呂洞賓不識好人心”“狗嘴里吐不出象牙”andalloftheseidiomscontainderogatorysense.ChinesepeoplebelieveinthedragonandinChina,sometraditionalfestivalsarecloselyassociatedwithdragon.Forinstance,“二月二，龍抬頭”、“龍游淺灘遭蝦戲，虎落平陽被犬欺。”、“望子成龍”、“龍生龍，鳳生鳳，老鼠的兒子會打洞。”AndinDragonBoatFestival,atraditionalfestivalinChina,inmemoryofQuyuan,peoplealwaysrowdragonboatsandeatricedumplings.Foranotherfestival,namedTomb-sweepingDay,thereisasaying“清明不戴柳，死后變黃狗。”InChina,peopleusuallyputwillowbranchesontheirroofsothattheycandriveoutevilspirits.AncientChinaisanagriculturalsocietyandpeoplecouldnotlivewithoutcattle.Thus,theygavecattledeepemotion.“力大如牛”“健壯如牛”,theyuse“牛飲”todescribesomeonedrinkabigmouthfulwater.However,inwesterncountries,peopleusehorseratherthancattle.“toworklikeahorse”insteadof“力大如牛”,“todrinklikefish”insteadof“牛飲”and“killthegoosetogettheeggs”insteadof“殺雞取卵”.Itisobviouslythatduototheculturaldifferences,themetaphoricalobjectsaredifferent,too.3.3InfluenceofReligionsReligionscultureisavitalpartofhumancultureandtherearemanyidiomsassociatedwithreligioninbothEnglishandChineseidioms.ChinesepeoplerevereConfucianismandfollowBuddhism.AgreatdealofidiomsinChinaisconcernedwithBuddhismandConfucianism.Like“借花獻福”、“道高一尺，魔高一丈”、“閑時不燒香，臨時抱佛腳”、“佛要金裝，人要金裝”“一人得道，雞犬升天”and“一人得道，雞犬升天”、“八仙過海，各顯神通”arerelevanttoTaoism.BritishandAmericancultureisgreatlyinfluencedbyreligion.Religionisaspiritualpowerinthewest.Inmanywesterncountries,peoplebelieveinChristian.TheybelieveinGodsoplentyofEnglishidiomsareassociatedwithreligion.Forexample,“everymanmustbearhisowncross(人人都得背自己的十字架）”.TheHolyBiblehasagreatinfluenceonEnglishspeakersandmanyanimalidiomscomefromtheHolyBible.“lionintheway(攔路虎）”,ItcomesfromtheBible“Theslothfulmansaith,thereisalionintheway;alionisinthestreets”.“abirdwillrevealyoursecret(鳥會泄露秘密）”,ItisalsofromtheBible.The“bird”referstothepersonwholikestoaskaboutothers’secret.3.4InfluenceofHistoryDifferentnationshavedifferenthistoryanddifferenthistoricalbackgroundsresultinvariouscharacteristicsofidioms.Thus,wehavecolorfulidiomstoday.TherearealargenumberofidiomsinEnglishandChineselanguagesareformedbyhistoricalallusions.Thestructureofthemissimpleandtheirmeaningisprofound.Therefore,tocomprehendthetruemeaningsofidioms,weshouldlearnthehistoricalbackgroundofthem.IntheHolyBibleandthemythsofGreeceandRome,wefindlotsofidioms.Forinstance,“loveisblind(情人眼里出西施）”，“Talkofthedevilandheissuretoappear(說曹操曹操到）”.Likewise,thehistoryofChinaalsoprovidesmuchmaterialforChineseidioms.Forexample,“不入虎穴，焉得虎子”.Ithasthesamemeaningwith“Nopain,nogain.”ItwasaChinesehistoricalstoryaboutBanChao,afamousgeneralduringtheEasternHanDynasty.“狡兔三窟(Asmartmousehasmorethanonehole)”,itcomesfromtheStrategiesoftheWarringStates,afamousworkinChinawhichcontainsnumeroushistoricalstory.4.DifferentConnotationsofAnimalWordsinEasternandWesternCulturesLanguageisthecarrierandcontainerofdifferentculture.Humanoftenassociatedtheirfeelingswithlotsofanimalsaccordingtoanimals’characteristics.Somanyanimalwordshavebeenakindofsymbolinpeople’smind.However,theconnotationsofanimalwordsaresometimesquitedifferentindifferentcountrybecauseofsomefactors.Inthischapter,weattempttotalkaboutthedifferentconnotationsofanimalwordsineasternandwesterncultures.4.1SymbolicSignificanceofAnimalWordsinEasternandWesternCulturesAsweallknow,animalsareusuallygivensomesymbolicmeanings.Duototheculturaldifference,differentnationshavedifferentunderstandingsofanimalsymbolicmeanings.Alloftheseleadtothesimilarorevenoppositemeaningsofanimalwords.Tomakeacontrastforthedifferentmeaningsoftheanimalwordsineasternandwesternculture,wecanlearndifferentcharacteristicsofdifferentnations,thusmakeabetterunderstandingoftheculturaldiversity.Sometimes,someanimalwordshavethesamesymbolicmeaninginbothChinaandEnglish-speakingnations.Forinstance,theanimalword“sheep”letpeoplethinkofapersonwhohaveasweetpersonality.Theword“pig”mayletpeoplethinkoflazinessandstupid.Andtheword“mouse”isthesymboloffurtivebehavior.However,therearealsosomeotheranimalwordsthathavedifferentmeaninginEnglish-speakingnationsandChina.Forexample,inChinese,theword“bat”hasthesamepronunciationwiththeChinesecharacter“福”，thus,ithasthemeaningoffortunateandauspicious.Whileinwesterncountries,thebatisakindofsinister,uglyandblindanimal.Andtheword“magpie”representsauspiciousnessandhappinessinChinesewhileinEnglish,itusuallyreferstogabbers.Snakescanrepresentnotonlygoodimagesbutalsobadimages.Forinstance,MadamWhiteisagoodpersonwholearnsmedicinewellandcuresthesick.Butinwesterncountries,thesnakeistherepresentofevilintheHolyBibleandintheAesop’sFables,snakesaredescribedasvicious.Therearealsosomeanimalimagesthathavethesamesymbolicmeaning.InChinese,theword“lion”donothasasmuchmeaningastheword“tiger”.Weuse“tiger”toexpressmightyandvalorous.“虎虎生威”，“生龍活虎”arebothdescribetheconditionofpeople.Inwesterncountries,theword“lion”hasthesamemeaningwith“tiger”but“lion”isfarbeyondthe“tiger”inChinese.IntheHolyBible,thereisafamoussentence“Whatissweeterthanhoney?Whatisstrongerthanlion”?Itprovesthehighstatusof“lion”inEnglish.Inaddition,whenitcomestothecattleinChinese,wefirstthinkoffatigue.So,wehavetheidiom“俯首甘為孺子牛”，whileinEnglishtheyuse“horse”insteadof“cattle”.4.2ConnotationsofAnimalIdiomsinEasternandWesternCulturesAsasignificantpartoflanguage,idiomscontainpronouncednationalcoloranddistinctivecultureconnotation.Idiomsaretherelativelyfixedcollocationwhichisusedbypeopleforalongperiodoftime.Withoutsocialhistoryandculturalbackground,therearenoidioms.Discrepancyofgeographicalcondition,customs,religionineasternandwesterncountriesleadtothedifferencesbetweenEnglishandChineseidiomsincludingsetphrases,two-partallegoricalsayings,proverbs,slang.Next,Iwilltalkaboutthespecificapplicationofanimalwordsinsetphrases,proverbsandtwo-partallegoricalsayings.1)Intermsofsetphrases,forexample:birdsoffeather一丘之貉killtwobirdswithonestone一箭雙雕cockthestabledoorafterthehorseisstolen亡羊補牢amousecanseeonlyaninch鼠目寸光evenawormwillturn狗急跳墻2）Intermsofproverbs,forexample:Birdsofafeatherflocktogether.物以類聚，人以群分。Catshidetheirclaws.知人知面不知心。Acowisneverthewhiterforwashingherselfoften.江山易改，本性難移。Everydoghashisday.人人皆有得意時。Neveroffertoteachfishtoswim.不要班門弄斧。Intermsoftwo-partallegoricalsayings,forexample:Monkeyfaceout猴兒的臉說變就變CatbellyTigertanktoughup貓肚里放虎膽兇不起來FromlearningtheseidiomswecanseethedifferentsymbolicmeaningsofanimalimagesinEnglish-speakingcountryandChina.Mostoftime,theirsymbolicmeaningsaredisparate,however,sometimes,somesymbolicmeaningsaresimilar.Forexample,“wolf”,inbothwesterncountriesandChina,whenthinkofthisword,someadjectiveslikedevilryandferocitymayflashoverpeople’smind.Herearesomeconnotationsofsomeanimalwords:Thefirstone:cat.Chinesepeopleliketoraisecatsaspets,becausetheycancatchmice.However,catslikestealingfishathome.Therefore,peoplegiveanicknametothepeoplewhoaregreedy,“饞貓一只”.Whencatscatchmice,sometimestheydon’teatthemimmediately.Theymayputintheirmouthforamomentandletthemgoforamoment.So,inEnglish,peopleuse“toplaycatandmouse”toexpressthemeaningof“欲擒故縱”.Sometimes,catsfightwithdogs,“toleadacatanddoglife”means“像貓狗一樣不和”.Asweallknow,“貓有九條命”，thereisthesamesayinginEnglish”havemorelivesthanacat”.InEnglish,catsalsoberegardedasaspitefulorunpleasantwoman(心地惡毒或令人討厭的女人）.ThereisnosuchmeaninginChinese.Thesecondone:wolf.TheconnotationsofwolfsinChineseandEnglisharequitesimilar.Theyallconsiderwolfsassavage,greedyandcunning.Thus,therearesomeidiomsaboutwolfsinEnglish,forexample，“wolfdown(狼吞虎咽）”，“wolfinsheep’sclothing(披著羊皮的狼）”，“crywolf（虛張聲勢：報謊喊‘狼來了’）”，“haveawolfbyears(騎虎難下）”，“asgreedyasawolf(貪得無厭）”.“Hewhokeepscompanywithawolfwilllearntohowl.(近朱者赤，近墨者黑）”.Thelastone:turtle.Asweallknow,turtlesenjoythelongestlifeinanimalsandarealsotheonlyexistinganimalamongthefourdeities.InChina,turtlessymbolizelongevity.Incivilsociety,peoplecallsomeonetimid“縮頭烏龜”,and“王八”isainsult.Generallyspeaking,turtleshavebothnegativeandpositivemeaningsinChinese.Inwesterncountries,thereisfewconnotationofturtles,theyjustakindofanimalwhichwalksmoothly.Theidiom“turnturtle”means“翻到過來，翻個底朝天”anditsconnotationis“無能為力”.ThusitcanbeseenthattheresomanyanimalidiomsinbothEnglishandChinese.Duotoseveralreasons,theyhavetheirconnotationsthatdifferentfromtheiroriginalmeanings.Therichcharacteristicsoftheseconnotationsaredeeplyaffectedbypeople.Moreover,westernpeopleusuallyuse“bird”todescribeperson,suchas“anoldbird”,itreferstosomeonewhoisweirdand“birdsofafeaturereferstothepersonwhohasthesimilarinterestwithyou.Inaddition,westernpeopleprefer“sheep”than“goat”.Becausesheepisakindofdocileanimalwhilegoatsarebellicose.Asaresult,intheiropinion,sheepreferstogoodpersonandgoatsrefertoevilmen.Forinstance,“sheepandgoats”(善人與惡人）anditcomesfromTheHolyBible.“Butterfliesinone’sstomach”meanssomeoneisnervous;“crocodiletears”meanstocrywhensomeoneisnotreallysadorsorry;“anolddog”wastranslatedinto“老伙計”.Therearemanysimilarusageslikethese.Whenwetranslatetheseidioms,whatweshoulddoistotakeafulloftheoriginalmeaningofthewordandpaymoreattentiontotheirimplicationsinordertotranslatethemaccurately.Todealwiththeproblemofidiomstranslation,variousskillscanbeadopted,includingdirecttranslation,modelingtranslation,freetranslationandsoon.5.TheTranslationStrategiesofIdiomsandAnimalWordsAnimalidiomsfrequentlyappearinbothChineseandEnglish.TheimpliedmeaningsofthesameanimalarepossiblydifferentsincethemodesofthinkingandculturalbackgroundsofChinaandEnglish-speakingnationsaredifferent.Ontheonehand,someanimalimageswhichhavethesamereferentialmeaningmayhavequitedifferentconnotations.Ontheotherhand,someanimalimageshaverichpragmaticmeaningsintheoriginallanguagebutnotinthetargetlanguage,thuscannotproduceequalimageassociation.Facingsuchdifficulties,translatorsshouldchoosepropermethodaccordingtothespecificsituation.Convertingthesourcelanguageandtargetlanguagewell,readerscanunderstandtheoriginaltextwell.LettheChinesereadersperceivetheendlesscharmofEnglishandlettheEnglishreadersunderstandtheprofoundcultureofChina.Therefore,translatorsshouldtakeafullaccountofnotonlytheoriginalmeaningofthewordbutalsotheimpliedmeaningintheprocessoftranslation.Todealwiththisproblem,manymethodscanbeadopted,suchasdirecttranslation,modelingtranslation,freetranslationandsoon.5.1DirectTranslationWhenthemetaphorandusageofChineseandEnglishwordsaresimilarorthesame,wecanadoptthedirecttranslation.Directtranslationmaintainstheformofthetextanddonotcausetheconfusionofunderstanding.Thusvirtuallyreducethedistanceofthetwolanguages.Foeinstance:fleamarket(跳蚤市場）papertiger(紙老虎）likeaswarmofbees(一窩蜂）bearhuge(熊抱）ascowardlyasrat(膽小如鼠）asstupidasadonkey(蠢驢）darkhorse（黑馬）ascunningasafox(老狐貍）crocodiletears(鱷魚的眼淚）toparrotwhatotherpeoplesay(鸚鵡學舌）tokillthebirdswithonestone(一箭雙雕）Itwaspackedlikesardines.(塞得像沙丁魚罐頭一樣）dumbasanoyster(沉默寡言）awolfinasheep’sclothing(披著羊皮的狼）