2004年試題分析
Part B
Directions:
The relation of language and mind has interested philosophers for many centuries. (61) The Greeks assumed that the structure of language had some connection with the process of thought, which took root in Europe long before people realized how diverse languages could be.
Only recently did linguists begin the serious study of languages that were very different from their own. Two anthropologist-linguists, Franz Boas Edward Sapir, were pioneers in describing many native languages of North and South America during the first half of the twentieth century. (62) We are obliged to them because some of these languages have since vanished, as the peoples who spoke them died out or became assimilated and lost their native languages. Other linguists in the earlier part of this century, however, who were less eager to deal with bizarre data from "exotic" language, were not always so grateful. (63) The newly described languages were often so strikingly different from the well studied languages of Europe and Southeast Asia that some scholars even accused Boas and Sapir of fabricating their data. Native American languages are indeed different, so much so in fact that Navajo could be used by the US military as a code during World War II to send secret messages.
Sapir's pupil, Benjamin Lee Whorf, continued the study of American Indian languages. (64) Being interested in the relationship of language and thought, Whorf developed the idea that the structure of language determines the structure of habitual thought in a society. He reasoned that because the structure of habitual thought in a society. He reasoned that because it is easier to formulate certain concepts and not others in a given language, the speakers of that language think along one track and not along another. (65) Whorf came to believe in a sort of linguistic determinism which, in its strongest form, states that language imprisons the mind, and that the grammatical patterns in a language can produce far-reaching consequences for the culture of a society. Later, this idea became to be known as the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, but this term is somewhat inappropriate. Although both Sapir and Whorf emphasized the diversity of languages,Sapir himself never explicitly supported the notion of linguistic determinism.
61.[答案] 希臘人認(rèn)為, 語言結(jié)構(gòu)與思維過程之間存在著某種聯(lián)系。這一觀點(diǎn)在人們尚未認(rèn)識到語言的千差萬別以前就早已在歐洲扎下了根。
[分析] 難度 0.548; 區(qū)分度 0.601?？忌骄梅?1.10 分?？傮w上講, 該題的難度適中, 考生只要能正確理解 "assume" 的詞義和含 "before" 的非限定性定語從句的句意就能譯出全句。
此句的難點(diǎn)有三處:1) 主句謂語動詞 "assumed" 的譯法。該詞應(yīng)譯為:" 認(rèn)為 " 、 " 以為 ", 但許多考生將其譯成 " 推測 " 、 " 假想 " 。這里反映了如何正確選擇詞義的問題。 像"assume" 這樣的單詞, 一般都是多義的。考生應(yīng)當(dāng)根據(jù)上下文, 選擇其中符合句意的詞義。2) 非限定性定語從句 "which took root in Europe……" 的處理?？忌鷳?yīng)當(dāng)知道, 既然是非限定性定語從句, 那就可以單獨(dú)譯成一句; 而且還得弄清楚該從句中關(guān)系代詞 which 所指代的應(yīng)當(dāng)是主句中的 "the structure of language had some connection with the process of thought" 這樣一個觀點(diǎn)。3) 該非限定性定語從句用的是 "……before … " 句型。按照翻譯技巧, 可以把 before 后面的部分處理成否定的意思, 如 "在人們尚未認(rèn)識到語言的千差萬別以前就早已在歐洲扎下了根"。類似的例子有 :We do want to buy something before prices go up. 在價格還沒上漲之 前, 我們真的是想買點(diǎn)兒東西。
62.[答案] 我們之所以感激他們(兩位先驅(qū)), 是因?yàn)樵诖酥? 這些 (土著) 語言中有一些已經(jīng)不存在了,這是由于說這些語言的部族或是消亡了, 或是被同化而喪失了自己的本族語言。
[分析] 難度 0.509; 區(qū)分度 0.511。多考生反映, 該題有一定難度, 主要難在 "be obliged to " 的譯法和 as 引導(dǎo)的從句的理解和翻譯上。此題的難點(diǎn)在于 :1) 對動詞 "oblige" 的用法的掌握。 oblige 常用成被動的形式 :be obliged to, 表示 " 感激、感謝 ", 如 :We are obliged to you for dinner. 我們感謝你請我們吃飯。 2) 考生還得弄清楚 "obliged to " 后的 "them" 是指誰? 前一句中提到了 兩位人類學(xué)家兼語言學(xué)家 Franz Boas 和 Edward Sapir, 稱他們是" 先驅(qū) ", 按照英語代詞指代的就近原則,"them" 應(yīng)該指他們, 可以譯成 "兩位先驅(qū)"。 3) 由as引導(dǎo)的從句的理解和譯法。首先, 應(yīng)當(dāng)明確 as 從句的性質(zhì), 弄清楚它究竟是由 because 引 導(dǎo)的原因狀語從句中的時間狀語從句還是原因狀語從句。從句子的意思看,as 從 句應(yīng)當(dāng)屬于說明有些語言為什么 "vanish" 消失或不復(fù)存在的緣由的原因狀語從句, 因此在譯該從句時, 可以用加詞法, 譯成 " 這是由于說這些語言的部族或是消亡了, 或是被同化而喪失了自己的本族語言"。
63.[答案] 這些新近被描述的語言與已經(jīng)得到充分研究的歐洲和東南亞地區(qū)的語言往往差別顯著, 以至于有些學(xué)者甚至指責(zé) Boas 和 Sapir 編造了材料。
[分析] 難度 0.501,分度 0.621。翻譯的部分盡管只有一句, 但該句結(jié)構(gòu)完整, 用 "so……that ……" 串連而成, 意" 如此……以至于…… " 。其次, 句型 "be different from" 也值得注意, 意思是 "與……不同/差別 " 。再有就是 "accuse somebody of doing something", 意為 "指責(zé)某人做某事"。在詞匯方面,"newly described languages"和 "well studied languages"屬于相互對比的對象,譯成"新近被描述的語言"和"得到充分研究的語言", 注意兩個過去分詞都用漢語的"被"和"得到"進(jìn)行翻譯。"Strikingly"作為副詞修飾形容詞 "different", 表示程度, 因此在英譯漢中可以用表示程度的副詞來表達(dá), 如"差別顯著" 、"驚人的差異"、"很大的不同" 等;"Fabricate"這個詞有許多詞義,包括"制造、編造、捏造",根據(jù)上下文,這里譯成"編造"更符合該文的語氣。
64.[答案]Whorf對語言與思維的關(guān)系很感興趣, 逐漸形成了這樣的觀點(diǎn): 在一個社會中, 語言的結(jié)構(gòu)決定習(xí)慣思維的結(jié)構(gòu)。
[分析] 難度 0.722; 區(qū)分度 0.524;均得分1.44 分。該題由于結(jié)構(gòu)簡單, 難度最低。絕大部分考生都譯得不錯。此題相比62和 65題, 結(jié)構(gòu)很簡單, 現(xiàn)在分詞短語 "being interested……" 作表示原因的狀語放在句首, 譯成 "(由于)Whorf 對語言與思維的關(guān)系很感興趣 "; 從句 " that the structure of language determines the structure of habitual thought in a society" 屬于同位語從句, 進(jìn)一步說明 "the idea"。在詞匯方面, 主句謂語動詞 develop 有許多意思, 根據(jù)上下文, 可以看出 Whorf 的這個思想是經(jīng)過長期的研究逐漸形成的, 因此譯成 " 逐漸形成 "。
65.[答案]Whorf 進(jìn)而相信某種類似語言決定論的觀點(diǎn), 其極端說法是: 語言禁錮思維, 語言的語法結(jié)構(gòu)能對一個社會的文化產(chǎn)生深遠(yuǎn)的影響。
[分析] 難度 0.378; 區(qū)分度 0.582。這個句子是五句中最難的一句, 但并非難在句法上, 而是在以下三個詞組上 :"came to believe", "in a sort of linguistic determinism", "far-reaching consequences",以及插入語"in its strongest form" 上。在翻譯這句話之前,應(yīng)讀懂前面的那一句:"He reasoned that because it is easier to formulate certain concepts and not others in a given language, the speakers of that language think along one track and not dong another." (Whorf 推導(dǎo), 既然在某種語言中形成某些概念要比形成其他概念更加容易, 因此, 說這種語言的人會沿著一種軌跡而不是另一種軌跡進(jìn)行思考。) 在前一句的基礎(chǔ)上, 可以得知 Whorf 在他的推導(dǎo)之后 " 進(jìn)而相信 " 某種類似語言決定論的觀點(diǎn),"a sort of" 是指一種不確定的觀點(diǎn), 這種觀點(diǎn)在后面以 which 引導(dǎo)的同位語從句中表達(dá)清楚了。在 which 引導(dǎo) 的同位語從句中,"which" 作為關(guān)系代詞, 既代替 "linguistic determinism", 又作為 同位語從句的主語, 該從句謂語動詞states 后面跟了兩個that 引導(dǎo)的賓語從句, 一句是 "language imprisons the mind"( 語言禁錮思想/思維 ); 另一句是 "the grammatical patterns in a language can produce far-reaching consequences for the culture of a society"( 語言的語法結(jié)構(gòu)能對一個社會的文化產(chǎn)生深遠(yuǎn)的影響) 。最后的難點(diǎn)是整個語句的插入成分"in its strongest form"。既然是插入成分, 首先要明確its所指代的是什么。它是插在which之后的, 而 which 又是指代 "linguistic determinism"這個觀點(diǎn)的, 因此可以把 "its strongest form" 理解成"語言決定論這個觀點(diǎn)的極端形式/說法/表述"。
[總評]
從以上 5 句的答題情況看, 考生應(yīng)注意以下幾點(diǎn) :1) 要理清句子結(jié)構(gòu)和各成分之間的語法和邏輯關(guān)系 ;2) 學(xué)會根據(jù)上下文判斷所譯語句的特殊詞義, 尤其是在一詞多義的情況下;3) 學(xué)會掌握由as引導(dǎo)的從句的譯法, 還有非限定性定語從句、同位語從句的理解和譯法。 4) 學(xué)會 ……so ……that…… 句型的譯法; 插入語的譯法;5) 在詞匯方面, 學(xué)會 be obliged to, accuse sb.of sth. 和 come to believe 的譯法。
Part B
Directions:
The relation of language and mind has interested philosophers for many centuries. (61) The Greeks assumed that the structure of language had some connection with the process of thought, which took root in Europe long before people realized how diverse languages could be.
Only recently did linguists begin the serious study of languages that were very different from their own. Two anthropologist-linguists, Franz Boas Edward Sapir, were pioneers in describing many native languages of North and South America during the first half of the twentieth century. (62) We are obliged to them because some of these languages have since vanished, as the peoples who spoke them died out or became assimilated and lost their native languages. Other linguists in the earlier part of this century, however, who were less eager to deal with bizarre data from "exotic" language, were not always so grateful. (63) The newly described languages were often so strikingly different from the well studied languages of Europe and Southeast Asia that some scholars even accused Boas and Sapir of fabricating their data. Native American languages are indeed different, so much so in fact that Navajo could be used by the US military as a code during World War II to send secret messages.
Sapir's pupil, Benjamin Lee Whorf, continued the study of American Indian languages. (64) Being interested in the relationship of language and thought, Whorf developed the idea that the structure of language determines the structure of habitual thought in a society. He reasoned that because the structure of habitual thought in a society. He reasoned that because it is easier to formulate certain concepts and not others in a given language, the speakers of that language think along one track and not along another. (65) Whorf came to believe in a sort of linguistic determinism which, in its strongest form, states that language imprisons the mind, and that the grammatical patterns in a language can produce far-reaching consequences for the culture of a society. Later, this idea became to be known as the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, but this term is somewhat inappropriate. Although both Sapir and Whorf emphasized the diversity of languages,Sapir himself never explicitly supported the notion of linguistic determinism.
61.[答案] 希臘人認(rèn)為, 語言結(jié)構(gòu)與思維過程之間存在著某種聯(lián)系。這一觀點(diǎn)在人們尚未認(rèn)識到語言的千差萬別以前就早已在歐洲扎下了根。
[分析] 難度 0.548; 區(qū)分度 0.601?？忌骄梅?1.10 分?？傮w上講, 該題的難度適中, 考生只要能正確理解 "assume" 的詞義和含 "before" 的非限定性定語從句的句意就能譯出全句。
此句的難點(diǎn)有三處:1) 主句謂語動詞 "assumed" 的譯法。該詞應(yīng)譯為:" 認(rèn)為 " 、 " 以為 ", 但許多考生將其譯成 " 推測 " 、 " 假想 " 。這里反映了如何正確選擇詞義的問題。 像"assume" 這樣的單詞, 一般都是多義的。考生應(yīng)當(dāng)根據(jù)上下文, 選擇其中符合句意的詞義。2) 非限定性定語從句 "which took root in Europe……" 的處理?？忌鷳?yīng)當(dāng)知道, 既然是非限定性定語從句, 那就可以單獨(dú)譯成一句; 而且還得弄清楚該從句中關(guān)系代詞 which 所指代的應(yīng)當(dāng)是主句中的 "the structure of language had some connection with the process of thought" 這樣一個觀點(diǎn)。3) 該非限定性定語從句用的是 "……before … " 句型。按照翻譯技巧, 可以把 before 后面的部分處理成否定的意思, 如 "在人們尚未認(rèn)識到語言的千差萬別以前就早已在歐洲扎下了根"。類似的例子有 :We do want to buy something before prices go up. 在價格還沒上漲之 前, 我們真的是想買點(diǎn)兒東西。
62.[答案] 我們之所以感激他們(兩位先驅(qū)), 是因?yàn)樵诖酥? 這些 (土著) 語言中有一些已經(jīng)不存在了,這是由于說這些語言的部族或是消亡了, 或是被同化而喪失了自己的本族語言。
[分析] 難度 0.509; 區(qū)分度 0.511。多考生反映, 該題有一定難度, 主要難在 "be obliged to " 的譯法和 as 引導(dǎo)的從句的理解和翻譯上。此題的難點(diǎn)在于 :1) 對動詞 "oblige" 的用法的掌握。 oblige 常用成被動的形式 :be obliged to, 表示 " 感激、感謝 ", 如 :We are obliged to you for dinner. 我們感謝你請我們吃飯。 2) 考生還得弄清楚 "obliged to " 后的 "them" 是指誰? 前一句中提到了 兩位人類學(xué)家兼語言學(xué)家 Franz Boas 和 Edward Sapir, 稱他們是" 先驅(qū) ", 按照英語代詞指代的就近原則,"them" 應(yīng)該指他們, 可以譯成 "兩位先驅(qū)"。 3) 由as引導(dǎo)的從句的理解和譯法。首先, 應(yīng)當(dāng)明確 as 從句的性質(zhì), 弄清楚它究竟是由 because 引 導(dǎo)的原因狀語從句中的時間狀語從句還是原因狀語從句。從句子的意思看,as 從 句應(yīng)當(dāng)屬于說明有些語言為什么 "vanish" 消失或不復(fù)存在的緣由的原因狀語從句, 因此在譯該從句時, 可以用加詞法, 譯成 " 這是由于說這些語言的部族或是消亡了, 或是被同化而喪失了自己的本族語言"。
63.[答案] 這些新近被描述的語言與已經(jīng)得到充分研究的歐洲和東南亞地區(qū)的語言往往差別顯著, 以至于有些學(xué)者甚至指責(zé) Boas 和 Sapir 編造了材料。
[分析] 難度 0.501,分度 0.621。翻譯的部分盡管只有一句, 但該句結(jié)構(gòu)完整, 用 "so……that ……" 串連而成, 意" 如此……以至于…… " 。其次, 句型 "be different from" 也值得注意, 意思是 "與……不同/差別 " 。再有就是 "accuse somebody of doing something", 意為 "指責(zé)某人做某事"。在詞匯方面,"newly described languages"和 "well studied languages"屬于相互對比的對象,譯成"新近被描述的語言"和"得到充分研究的語言", 注意兩個過去分詞都用漢語的"被"和"得到"進(jìn)行翻譯。"Strikingly"作為副詞修飾形容詞 "different", 表示程度, 因此在英譯漢中可以用表示程度的副詞來表達(dá), 如"差別顯著" 、"驚人的差異"、"很大的不同" 等;"Fabricate"這個詞有許多詞義,包括"制造、編造、捏造",根據(jù)上下文,這里譯成"編造"更符合該文的語氣。
64.[答案]Whorf對語言與思維的關(guān)系很感興趣, 逐漸形成了這樣的觀點(diǎn): 在一個社會中, 語言的結(jié)構(gòu)決定習(xí)慣思維的結(jié)構(gòu)。
[分析] 難度 0.722; 區(qū)分度 0.524;均得分1.44 分。該題由于結(jié)構(gòu)簡單, 難度最低。絕大部分考生都譯得不錯。此題相比62和 65題, 結(jié)構(gòu)很簡單, 現(xiàn)在分詞短語 "being interested……" 作表示原因的狀語放在句首, 譯成 "(由于)Whorf 對語言與思維的關(guān)系很感興趣 "; 從句 " that the structure of language determines the structure of habitual thought in a society" 屬于同位語從句, 進(jìn)一步說明 "the idea"。在詞匯方面, 主句謂語動詞 develop 有許多意思, 根據(jù)上下文, 可以看出 Whorf 的這個思想是經(jīng)過長期的研究逐漸形成的, 因此譯成 " 逐漸形成 "。
65.[答案]Whorf 進(jìn)而相信某種類似語言決定論的觀點(diǎn), 其極端說法是: 語言禁錮思維, 語言的語法結(jié)構(gòu)能對一個社會的文化產(chǎn)生深遠(yuǎn)的影響。
[分析] 難度 0.378; 區(qū)分度 0.582。這個句子是五句中最難的一句, 但并非難在句法上, 而是在以下三個詞組上 :"came to believe", "in a sort of linguistic determinism", "far-reaching consequences",以及插入語"in its strongest form" 上。在翻譯這句話之前,應(yīng)讀懂前面的那一句:"He reasoned that because it is easier to formulate certain concepts and not others in a given language, the speakers of that language think along one track and not dong another." (Whorf 推導(dǎo), 既然在某種語言中形成某些概念要比形成其他概念更加容易, 因此, 說這種語言的人會沿著一種軌跡而不是另一種軌跡進(jìn)行思考。) 在前一句的基礎(chǔ)上, 可以得知 Whorf 在他的推導(dǎo)之后 " 進(jìn)而相信 " 某種類似語言決定論的觀點(diǎn),"a sort of" 是指一種不確定的觀點(diǎn), 這種觀點(diǎn)在后面以 which 引導(dǎo)的同位語從句中表達(dá)清楚了。在 which 引導(dǎo) 的同位語從句中,"which" 作為關(guān)系代詞, 既代替 "linguistic determinism", 又作為 同位語從句的主語, 該從句謂語動詞states 后面跟了兩個that 引導(dǎo)的賓語從句, 一句是 "language imprisons the mind"( 語言禁錮思想/思維 ); 另一句是 "the grammatical patterns in a language can produce far-reaching consequences for the culture of a society"( 語言的語法結(jié)構(gòu)能對一個社會的文化產(chǎn)生深遠(yuǎn)的影響) 。最后的難點(diǎn)是整個語句的插入成分"in its strongest form"。既然是插入成分, 首先要明確its所指代的是什么。它是插在which之后的, 而 which 又是指代 "linguistic determinism"這個觀點(diǎn)的, 因此可以把 "its strongest form" 理解成"語言決定論這個觀點(diǎn)的極端形式/說法/表述"。
[總評]
從以上 5 句的答題情況看, 考生應(yīng)注意以下幾點(diǎn) :1) 要理清句子結(jié)構(gòu)和各成分之間的語法和邏輯關(guān)系 ;2) 學(xué)會根據(jù)上下文判斷所譯語句的特殊詞義, 尤其是在一詞多義的情況下;3) 學(xué)會掌握由as引導(dǎo)的從句的譯法, 還有非限定性定語從句、同位語從句的理解和譯法。 4) 學(xué)會 ……so ……that…… 句型的譯法; 插入語的譯法;5) 在詞匯方面, 學(xué)會 be obliged to, accuse sb.of sth. 和 come to believe 的譯法。