A Metaphorical Cognitive Study On Visceral Manifestation Terms And Their Translation

Research objectives: The unprecedented importance attached to traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) makes it possible to boom, and thus many problems should be solved immediately. Inaccurate interpretation of TCM terms and their translation, visceral manifestation terms in particular, have influenced TCM progress and international communication. Starting from its unique thinking mode of TCM, the paper probes into the metaphorical cognition, the origin and the functional properties of visceral manifestation terms, trying to provide a new perspective for theoretical study of TCM. On the other hand, the paper studies the translation of visceral manifestation terms from a metaphorical perspective and suggests the principles and strategies of translation, aiming at expressing their academic connotation and ethnic features of medical terms.Research methods:(1) Literature research method. The academic materials of TCM as reference, the paper discusses the relations among xiang-thinking, analogy and metaphor, analyses the metaphorical features and working mechanism, thus revealing the metaphorical thinking in the formation and systematization of TCM terms.(2) Qualitative analysis method. Based on the four national and international standard terminologies, the paper analyses the types and construction modes of metaphorical visceral manifestation terms, and explains the metaphor of visceral manifestation in Canon of Medicine.(3) Comparative study method. Based on the viewpoints of cognitive metaphor translation and relevance translation theories, the paper makes a comparison of terms concerning visceral manifestation, suggests the major principles and strategies of translation, and tries to renew some inconsistent translation.Research contents: Based on visceral manifestation terms from four national and international standard terminologies, the paper studies two aspects.(1) The paper analyses the types and the construction modes of metaphor; explains the metaphorical cognitive basis of visceral manifestation theory by referring to the major chapters in Canon of Medicine.(2) The paper probes into the translation principles and strategies of TCM terms by referring to relevance translation theory; testifies the principles and strategies by comparing the translation of metaphorical visceral manifestation terms.Research conclusions:(1) Visceral manifestation terms are characterized by metaphorical feature, including orientational metaphor(in form of exterior-interior, up-down and central-peripheral relations), ontological metaphor(in form of container, conduit and personification) and structural metaphor(in form of qi, yin-yang and five-element). Yin-yang, five-element, correspondence between human and nature, and social-function show the holism of TCM and serve as the major modes in forming metaphorical visceral manifestation terms.(2) Metaphorical visceral manifestation term translation should follow two principles: meaning equivalence is the principle to express TCM theories in translation while maintaining or removing metaphorical image based on its value is the principle to show ethnic features.(3) Metaphorical visceral manifestation term translation should follow four strategies: to be established by popular usage, to maintain image of metaphorical value, to remove image for the sake of TCM theories and multi-equivalence for polysemous terms.