On The Translation Of Euphemism From A Cross-Cultural Perspective

Euphemism, apparently a common linguistic phenomenon, has always beeninterwoven with cultural and psychological factors ever since antiquity when it came intobeing. It has proved to be an effective way of lubricating communication. In our era of a"global village", cross-cultural contacts are increasing on an unprecedented scale, whichmakes euphemism translation a matter of vital importance for cross-culturalunderstanding and communication. Therefore, linguistic as it appears to be, translation ofeuphemism naturally entails a cross-cultural perspective.This paper starts with a brief introductionto the definition, formation, principlesgoverning the ebb and flow of euphemism, and then focuses on the cultural implicationsof euphemism on the basis of the close relationship between language and culture.Drawing on Susan Bassnett's cultural translation theory, this paper pays special attentionto a cross-cultural perspective adopted for euphemism translation, which emphasizescultural awareness and "culture-representation-transmission" creativity on the part of thetranslator. With cultural psychology taken into full account, this paper finally suggestssome strategies for the translation of euphemism with a view to providing some practicalguides for a further study of euphemism and its translation.