人际隐喻这一说法是来自系统功能语言学中的人际纯理功能,主要是指“语气”(Mood)和“情态”(Modality)。例如:“What was in her mind?”是一个语法隐喻,因为原文的陈述语气被翻译成了疑问语气。因此,北京找我翻译公司认为这个隐喻也是人际隐喻。
如果我们从另外一个角度来分析例句:I looked at her with surprise and said no more. what was in her mind? How could I ever guess?中的“我想知道她这时的心情”和它的两译文,就可看出,“她这时的心情(怎么样)”是“想知道”的内容,即“她这时的心情(怎么样)”是一个“被投射”成分,而 “投射句”“我想知道”没有被翻译出来,而是直接译出了被投射成分“她这时的心情(怎么样)”。根据北京找我翻译的说法,这种情况也属于人际隐喻。
下面再看一个例子(摘自巴金的中篇小说《春天里的秋天》第二节;英译文14a摘自外文出版社出版的:
例如:“他为什么自杀?”她探索地问。
“我不知道,”我直率地回答。心里捅苦地想,她为什么老是想这些不愉快的事,一个年青女子不应该知道的事。
译1: “Why did he killhimself?” she probed.
“I don’t know,” I replied frankly. Why did she keep dwelling on unhappy things about which a young girl should know nothing? I asked myself sadly.
在这里,原文中被投射的陈述部分、“想”的内容在译文中被单独翻译成一个疑问句,而原文的投射句则在译文中被单独翻译成另外一个小句。如果我们拿上面的译1与下面的译2相比较,便可看出,就语法结构而言,译2的译文更加接近原文:
译2: “Why did he kiD himself?” she probed.
“I don't know,” I replied frankly. I then asked myself sadly why she kept dwelling on unhappy things about which a young girl should know nothing.
因此,北京找我翻译公司认为译1中的“Why did she keep dwelling on unhappy things about which a young girl should know nothing? I asked myself sadly.”是—个阉喻式,与它对应的一致式是译2中的“I then asked myself sadly why she kept dwelling on unhappy things about which a young girl should know nothing.”例句中的语法隐喻也是人际语法隐喻。
