E-C Translation Of Metaphor In Public Speech

Owing to the uniqueness of the variety under investigation (public speech belongs to neither spoken nor written language but falls in-between), approaches to image transference of metaphor in general varieties sometimes can not be applied to translation of metaphor in public speech. This Paper classifies metaphor into three types according to the way the tenor and the vehicle imply and sustain each other, namely, regular metaphor, implicit metaphor and submerged metaphor. A regular metaphor is one in which both the tenor and the vehicle make appearances and are linked to each other by the marker o be An implicit metaphor is one in which the tenor is not specified but implied, while a submerged metaphor is one in which the vehicle is implied, or indicated by one aspect. Translation of metaphor in public speech involves two academic areas: translation studies and stylistics. Generally translation is processed through decoding and encoding. In terms of decoding, consulting a dictionary for the designative meaning is of high necessity. However, metaphor often goes beyond the designative meaning and comes under the influence of the situational context. In view of this, accurate understanding of the ground between the tenor and the vehicle in the specific context serves as the key to decoding. In terms of encoding, the acceptability of the metaphorical image in the target language is the yardstick to decide which approach is the most appropriate. Through comparison and analysis, this Paper indicates that regular metaphor and implicit metaphor are similar to each other in terms of image transference, while verb substitution is frequently employed to render submerged metaphor into Chinese as naturally and fluently as possible. hen it comes to approaching metaphor in public speech given to the Chinese audience, it has been found that different target receptors and a much less shared cultural background between the addresser and the addressee account for fewer culture-specific metaphorical utterances. An interesting yet surprising phenomenon is that this type of public speech denies nearly all access to submerged metaphor. In addition, one can not offer to ignore the fact that the translation of this type of public speech lays the groundwork for spontaneous or consecutive interpretation, to which annotation approach is totally out of the question. As regards regular metaphor and implicit metaphor, the encoding approaches are basically the same. This Paper concludes with the view that the acceptability of the original metaphorical image in the target language is rather the key to determining which encoding approach is the most favored.