通称或泛称的运用

五、通称或泛称的运用

当难以讲明施事者时，汉语常常采用通称(generic person)或泛称(general term)做主语，如“有人”、“人们”、“大家”、“人家”、“别人”、“某人”等。英语也有相应的不定代词(如one，some，any，every，all，somebody，anybody，everybody等)，但其用途与汉语的通称不尽相同。英语在许多情况下宁可采用被动式也不用这类代词做主语，如大量的非人称被动式(impersonal passive)用it做主语(连淑能，1993)。例如:

1.运用通称或泛称

有人主张……　　　　　　　　It is asserted that□

有人觉得……　　　　　　　　It is believed that□

大家认为……　　　　　　　　It is generally considered that□

众所周知……　　　　　　　　It is well known that□

有人会说……　　　　　　　　It will be said that□

有人曾说……　　　　　　　　It was told that□

例1:有人看见工人们在修理机器。

The workers were seen repairing the machine.

例2:人人都把他看做英雄，可他认为自己仅仅是个普通市民。

He was regarded as a hero，even though he has always thought of himself as an ordinary citizen.

例3:人们必须联系世界环境去应对全球变暖问题。

The problem of global warming has to be dealt with in a world environmental context.

2.无主语被动式

希望……　　　　　　　　It is hoped that□

据报……　　　　　　　　It is reported that□

据说……　　　　　　　　It is said that□

据推测……　　　　　　　It is supposed that□

必须承认……　　　　　　It must be admitted that□

必须指出……　　　　　　It must be pointed out that□

由此可见……　　　　　　It will be seen from this that□

可以毫不夸张地说……　　It may be said without fear of exaggeration that□

例1:希望我们能够团结合作，顺利完成任务。

It is hoped that we will get united and work cooperatively to accomplish our project.

例2:据说他们20年前就在美国定居了。

It is said that they settled down in America 20 years ago.

例3:必须指出的是，要想学好翻译，应该先学会用中英文写作。

It must be pointed out that we should first learn to write in both Chinese and English before learning translation.