2017 年 11 月翻译资格考试三级英语笔译实务真题及答案
Section 1: English-Chinese Translation (50 points)
It was just one word in one email, but it triggered huge financial losses for a
multinational company.
The message, written in English, was sent by a native speaker to a colleague for
whom English was a second language. Unsure of the word, the recipient found two
contradictory meanings in his dictionary. He acted on the wrong one.
Months later, senior management investigated why the project had flopped, costing
hundreds of thousands of dollars. “It all traced back to this one word,” says Chia
Suan Chong, a UK-based communications skills and intercultural trainer, who didn’t
reveal the tricky word because it is highly industry-specific and possibly
identifiable. “Things spiralled out of control because both parties were thinking
the opposite.”
When such misunderstandings happen, it’s usually the native speakers who are to
blame. Ironically, they are worse at delivering their message than people who speak
English as a second or third language, according to Chong.
The non-native speakers, it turns out, speak more purposefully and carefully,
typical of someone speaking a second or third language. Anglophones, on the other
hand, often talk too fast for others to follow, and use jokes, slang and references
specific to their own culture, says Chong.
“ The native English speaker is the only one who might not feel the need to
accommodate or adapt to the others,” she adds.
Non-native speakers generally use more limited vocabulary and simpler expressions,
without flowery language or slang. And then there’s cultural style, Zurich-based
Michael Blattner says. When a Brit reacts to a proposal by saying “That’s
interesting”, a fellow Brit might recognise this as understatement for, “That’s
rubbish.” But other nationalities would take the word “interesting” on face value,
he says.
In Berlin, Dale Coulter, head of English at one language course provider, saw German
staff of a Fortune 500 company being briefed from their Californian HQ via video
link. Despite being competent in English, the Germans gleaned only the gist of what
their American project leader said. So among themselves they came up with an agreed
version, which might or might not have been what was intended by the California staff.
It’s the native speaker who often risks missing out on closing a deal, warns
Frenchman Jean-Paul Nerriere, formerly a senior international marketing executive
at IBM.
“Too many non-Anglophones, especially the Asians and the French, are too concerned
about not ‘losing face’ — and nod approvingly while not getting the message at
all,” he says.
“When trying to communicate in English with a group of people with varying levels
of fluency, it’s important to be receptive and adaptable, tuning your ears into
a whole range of different ways of using English”, says Jenkins, professor of global
Englishes at the UK’s University of Southampton.
“People who’ve learned other languages are good at doing that, but native speakers
of English generally are monolingual and not very good at tuning in to language
variation,” she says.
In meetings, Anglophones tend to speed along at what they consider a normal pace,
and also rush to fill gaps in conversation, according to Rob Steggles, senior
marketing director for Europe at a telecommunications company.
He recommends making the same point in a couple of different ways and asking for
some acknowledg- ement, reaction or action.
参考译文:
区区电子邮件里的一个单词,导致一家跨国公司遭受巨大经济损失。
这封电子邮件是由一位英语母语人士用英语所写,而邮件接收人则是一位以英语为第二语言
的同事。该同事收到邮件后,发现该单词在字典里有两个截然相反的意思,他拿捏不准,并
最终选择了那个错误的意思。
数月过去,该跨国公司的高管开始调查这个项目失败并损失几十万美元的原因。谢宣童(Chia
Suan Chong)是一名交流技能和跨文化培训师,供职于一家总部设在英国的机构,她说:“所
有的调查线索最终指向这个单词”。谢宣童没有透露具体这个单词,因为该单词是某行业专
用词汇,透露该单词可能暴露这家跨国公司的身份。她还说:“由于双方的理解截然相反,
事件不断升级,最终失控。”
出现此类误解,责任在于英语母语人士。谢宣童认为,耐人寻味的是,英语母语人士在传递
信息方面比以英语为第二语言或第三语言的人士要糟糕。
谢宣童说:“众多英语母语人士对于英语成为世界通用语感到窃喜,因为他们觉得这省去了
学习其他语言的麻烦。”
谢宣童说,事实上,非英语母语人士,特别是会讲第二语言或者第三语言的人士,在传递信
息时更加谨慎、目的性更强,而英语母语人士在讲话时通常语速过快导致别人听不懂,并且
他们话语中还夹杂着笑话、俚语及自己文化特有的事物。
谢宣童补充说:“唯有……英语母语人士认为没必要体谅对方或为对方着想。”
由于世界上非英语母语人士居多,所以英语母语人士该停止那套旧做法。
詹尼弗·詹金斯(JenniferJenkins)是英国南安普敦大学的全球英语教授,她说:“母语各
不相同的人士在一起采用英语为通用语进行沟通时,英语母语人士处于不利的境地,这是因
为英语母语人士在理解其他人讲的英语方面存在障碍,而其他人在理解英语母语人士的英语
方面也同样存在障碍。”
非英语母语人士在讲英语时,通常使用数量有限的词汇和简单的表达方式,不花哨,也不夹
带俚语。此外,还有文化因素,布拉特纳(Blattner)说。一个英国人在评论一项提议时说
“That’s interesting”(“蛮有趣”),此时,另一个英国人会把这句话把理解为“太垃圾”
的含蓄说法,而其他国家的人则只会取“interesting”(有趣)的字面意思进行理解。
“不会讲其他语言的英语母语人士在讲英语时,通常缺乏国际意识。”
科尔特(Coulter)在柏林看见一家世界 500 强公司的德国员工通过视频连线听取加州总部
的情况通报。德国员工虽然英语不错,但只留心美国项目领导讲话的要旨。对于该情况通报,
德国员工内部达成一致意见,而这个意见与加州项目领导的意思可能相同或者可能相左。
科尔特说:“太多非英语母语人士,特别是亚裔人士和法国人,他们由于太怕‘丢面子’而
只会点头赞同,实际上却一点都没听懂。”
有鉴于此,内里埃(Nerriere)发明了全球化英语(Globish),这是一种简洁英语,将英语
词汇限制在 1500 字左右,并采用简单、标准的语法。奈易耶说:“全球化英语不是一种语言,
而是一种工具。”自 2004 年推出全球化英语以来,用 18 种语言编写的全球化英语教材销量
逾 20 万册。
奈易耶说:“能用有限的词汇、简单的语言进行高效沟通,既节省时间,又避免误解,消除
了沟通中的错误。”
詹金斯说,在与一群英语流利程度不一的人士用英语进行沟通时,保持包容和体谅,并接受
各种各样的英语表达方法,这很重要。
詹金斯说:“学习了其他语言的人士在这点上就做的很好,而英语母语人士通常只会英语这
个单一语言,他们不大适应英语的其他变种。”
斯戴格尔斯(Steggles)认为,英语母语人士在开会时倾向于按自己认为正常的语速说话,
在对话中则急于传递信息。
斯戴格尔斯建议采用多种方式表达同一个意思,并且需要对方做出一些认可、反应或行动。
Section2: Chinese-English Translation (50 points)
气候变化已不是单纯的环境保护问题,而成为人类生存与发展问题。中国需要改变以煤为主
的能源结构和高污染、高能耗的产业结构,以治理环境和应对全球气候变化。同时,积极应
对气候变化也是中国参与全球治理的责任,也是实现可持续发展的迫切需要。中国作为世界
最大的发展中国家,需要积极推动经济与能源的转型,以推动全球可持续发展。
长期以来,中国高度重视气候变化问题,把积极应对气候变化作为国家经济社会发展的重大
战略,把绿色低碳发展作为生态文明建设的重要内容,采取了一系列行动,为应对全球气候
变化做出了重要贡献。
到 2020 年单位国内生产总值二氧化碳排放比 2005 年下降 40%-45%,非化石能源占一次能源
消费总量的比重达到 15% , 森林面积比 2005 年增加 4000 万公顷,森林蓄积量 2005 年增
加 13 亿立方米。
中国还将在农业、林业、水资源等重点领域和城市、沿海、生态脆弱地区形成有效抵御气候
变化风险的机制,提高抵抗能力。
参考译文:
China attaches great importance to addressing climate change since long, making it
a significant national strategy for its social and economic development and
promoting green and low-carbon development as important component of the ecological
civilization process. It has already taken a series of climate actions which
represent a significant contribution to combating the global climate change.
China announced internationally that by 2020 it will lower carbon dioxide emissions
per unit of GDP by 40% to 45% from the 2005 level, increase the share of non-fossil
fuels in primary energy consumption to about 15% and increase the forested area by
40 million hectares and the forest stock volume by 1.3 billion cubic meters compared
to the 2005 levels.
China will continue to proactively adapt to climate change by enhancing mechanisms
and capacities to effectively defend against climate change risks in key areas such
as agriculture, forestry and water resources, as well as in cities, coastal and
ecologically vulnerable areas and to progressively strengthen early warning and
emergency response systems and disaster prevention and reduction mechanisms.