Translate the following proverbs into Chinese and discuss how they reflect the insular culture of the U.K.
Rats desert a sinking ship.
A small leak will sink a great ship.
Any port in a storm.
Let another’s shipwreck be your seamark.
【正确答案】：Rats desert a sinking ship.船沉鼠要逃。或：树倒猢狲散。
A small leak will sink a great ship.小漏沉大船。或：蝼蚁之穴能溃千里之堤。
Any port in a storm.船在暴风中不择港口。或：慌不择路。
Let another’s shipwreck be your seamark.別人的沉船，就是你的航标。或：前车之覆，后车之鉴。
The proverbs above are all related to navigation. Among them the last four best represent an insular culture, while their equivalents in Chinese demonstrate a continental culture. “A sinking ship”, “a great ship”, “port” and “shipwreck” are all associated to navigation which is very important to an insular country. And “树”,“蝼蚁之穴”, “路” and “前车之覆” are all related to human experience on land. Of course, these expressions, either the English ones or the Chinese ones, are used metaphorically. The sharp contrast is that when expressing these similar ideas, English speakers turn to their experience in the sea for vivid and witty expressions, while Chinese speakers turn to their experience on land for similar expressions.
【题目解析】：参见教材P194.195。
掌握“Proverbs”知识点。
