四六级翻译新题型

1. 中秋习俗

在中国月饼是一种特殊的食品，广受海内外华人的欢迎。中秋吃月饼就好比圣诞节吃馅饼(mince pies)。为了庆祝中秋节，中国人通常做两件事：一是观赏满月。二是品尝美味的月饼。中秋节是每年农历八月十五日。据说，这一天的月亮是一年中最圆的。而月亮正是庆贺中秋的全部主题。在中国人眼中，月饼象征着全家人的大团圆。

参考译文：

Moon cakes are aspecial kind of food in China. They are very popular with the Chinese at homeand abroad. Moon cakes are to Mid-Autumn Festival what mince pies are toChristmas. To celebrate Mid-Autumn Festival, Chinese usually do two things:enjoy the full moon and eat delicious moon cakes. Mid-Autumn Festival falls onthe 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar. Itis the time when the moon is said to be at its brightest and fullest. And themoon is what this celebration is all about. In the eyes of the Chinese people ,a moon cake symbolizes the reunion of all family members.

讲解：第二句中的“……就好比”可以用“……s like…”，但译文中所用句型更好地表达这个含义。如：“智力之于大脑，犹如视力之于躯体。“ Intellect is to the mind what sight is tothe body.”

2.传统艺术

皮影戏又称“影子戏”。它是中国著名民间戏剧形式之一。表演时艺人通常一边演唱一边操纵用兽皮或纸板制作的人物形象。它们的影子通过灯光出现在帘布上。这营造了有人物在活动的幻象。有时表演者需要控制三到四个偶人。皮影戏在我国历史悠久，元代时还曾传到世界上很多国家，迷倒了不少国外戏迷，被人们亲切地称为“中国影灯”。

参考译文

The shadow puppetplay, also known as ‘shadow play’, is one of China’s famous folk opera forms.During the performance, players usually sing while holing/manipulating humanfigures, which are made of animal skin and paper board. The shadows of thosehuman figures are reflected on a curtain through the light. This creates theillusion of moving images. Sometimes the performer needs to control three orfour puppets. Shadow puppet play enjoys a long history in China. It was introducedto many countries during the Yuan Dynasty and attracted many foreign audience.They call the art form Chinese shadow play.

3.社交饥渴

手机，是一项伟大的发明。但很显然，手机也刷新了人与人的关系。会议室门口通常贴着一条公告：请与会者关闭手机。可是，会议室里手机铃声仍然响成一片。我们都是普通人，并没有多少特别重要的事情。尽管如此，我们也不会轻易关掉手机。打开手机象征着我们与这个世界的联系。显然，手机反映出我们的“社交饥渴症”。(thirst for socialization)

参考译文

The cell phone is agreat invention. But obviously, It has altered the relationship among people.There is usually a notice on the door of the meeting room, which reads, “Pleaseturn off your hand-set.” However, phones ring now and then when the meetinggoes on. We are but ordinary people and have few urgencies to tackle with.Nevertheless, we will not switch off our phones easily. Phones-on symbolizesour connecting with this world. Obviously, cell phone has been reflecting our“thirst for socialization”.

4.北京介绍

北京是座有三千年历史的古城。早在公元前十一世纪，北京就是燕国的国都，因此北京有燕京之称。在以后的几千年里，北京又成为金、元、明、清各朝的国都。北京是中国的六大古都之一，其他五个是西安、南京、洛阳、开封和杭州。北京是座既古老又年轻的城市，有许多名胜古迹。从故宫、天坛到颐和园，你们可以看到北京保留了许多昔日的风采。

参考译文

Beijing is anancient city with a history of 3,000 years. As early as the 11th century, B.C.,it was the capital of the Kingdom of Yan; that's why Beijing is also known asYanjing. In the few thousand years afterwards, Beijing again served as thecapital for the Jin,Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties. Beijing is one of China'ssix ancient capitals; th e other five are Xi’an，Nanjing, Luoyang, Kaifeng, and Hangzhou.Beijing is a city both old and young, with many places of historical interestand scenic beauty. From the Forbidden City, the Temple of Heaven, and theSummer Palace, you can see that Beijing has retained a lot of color of oldChinese life.

5.生活习惯

多少年来，我养成了一个习惯：每天早晨四点在黎明以前起床工作。我不出去跑步或散步，而是一下床就干活儿。因此我对黎明前的北京的了解是在屋子里感觉到的。我从前在什么报上读过一篇文章，讲黎明时分天安门广场上的清洁工人。那情景必然是非常动人的，可惜我从未能见到，只是心向往之而已。

参考译文

For many years, Ihave been in the habit of getting up before daybreak to start work at four.Instead of going out for a jog or walk, I’ll set about my work as soon as I’mout of bed. As a result, it is from inside my study that I've got the feel ofpredawn Beijing. Years ago, I hit upon a newspaper article about streetcleaners in Tian’anmen Square at daybreak. It must have been a very movingscene, but what a pity I haven’t seen it with my own eyes. I can only pictureit in my mind longingly.

6.保护动物

目前，人类的生存环境正在遭到破坏，美丽的大自然已经不那么美丽了。保护野生动物，也就是保护人类自己。我强烈呼吁：不要再捕杀黑猩猩，不要再捕杀野生动物了，让我们人类多一些地球上的朋友，多给我们下一代保留一些野生动物吧! 否则，地球将毁灭在人类手中，人类将毁灭在自己手中。

参考译文

Atpresent, man’s living environment is being ruined, and beautiful nature is nolonger so beautiful. Protection of wild life is protection of man himself. So Iappeal strongly to all to stop killing the chimpanzee or any other wild animal.Let us human beings have more friends on the earth, and leave more wild lifefor future generations. Or the earth would be destroyed by man, and man by manhimself.

7.学习英语

到中国来旅游观光的人很少不会注意到中国人学习英语的劲头。公园里有专门的英语角，老老少少会定期聚在一起操练。马路上外国游客常常被学习英语的人围住交谈，从天气到政治，无所不谈。各种英语班如雨后春笋在到处出现。

参考译文

Fewvisitors to China will fail to notice the eagerness of the Chinese to learnEnglish.2) In public parks there are special corners where English learners oldand young gather at regular time to practise their spoken English.3) Foreignvisitors are often besieged on streets by English learners who want to talkwith them in English abut anything from weather to politics.4) English classesare mushrooming across the land.

8.发明创造

过去50年其实并不是发明创新的黄金时期。从1900年到1950年，改变人类生活的发明有汽车、飞机、

电话、收音机、电视机——当然还有核武器和计算机。而近50年来，只有为数不多的发明。难道发明的

源泉已经枯竭了吗？答案并非如此。事实上，发明的新时代刚刚开始。

参考译文

Actually the lastfifty years was not the golden age of invention and innovation. From 1900 to1950, human life was transformed by such invention as cars, aeroplanes,telephones, radios and television sets, not to mention nuclear weapons and thecomputer of course. In the recent 50 years since only a few inventions havebeen made, was the wellspring of invention drying up? Not likely. Indeed, a newage of invention is just beginning.

9.电脑技术

有些人担心电脑技术的广泛使用会进一步恶化就业形势。但另一种观点认为尽管这对个人来说会丢掉饭碗，对整个社会来说由于提高了生产率，因而有利于经济的发展。不管对社会影响如何，有一点是肯定的：有技术的人变得越来越吃香，没技术的人工作越来越难找。

参考译文

Some people areworrying that the wide use of computer technology will cause furtherunemployment. Another argument however holds that although some individualswill lose their jobs society as a

whole will benefit economically throughincreases in productivity. Despite its effects on society one thing is certain:the technically trained will become ever more valuable while the jobs for theblue-collar population will become less available

10.个人集体

不管是在一个公司，还是在一个政府里，重大的决定总是个人作出的，而不是集体。我们需要集体的讨论，因为可以交流看法和经验。但是集体讨论不能代替个人的作用。理由很清楚，如要作出一个重大的决定，集体总是不能对迅速变化的事件作出同样迅速的反应。

参考译文

An importantdecision is always made by individuals not by committees whether it involves acompany or a government. We need commi ttees because that’s where people couldshare their opinions and experiences. But they could not replace individuals.The reason is obvious: a committee faced with a major decision can’t alwaysmove as quickly as the events it is trying to respond to.

11.学习机会

上大学给人们提供了在无边无际的知识海洋里遨游探索的机会。为了丰富多彩的人生，大学生应该充分利用目前读大学的大好时光。他们应该意识到上大学决不仅仅意味着得到一个学位，得到一个好的工作。他们如果不满足于专业课内容，就会终生受益。

参考译文

College provides achance to explore the vast areas of unlimited knowledge. To have a rich fulllife a college student should make the most of the opportunities at hand. Heshould realize that going to college means a lot more than earning a degree andsecuring a good job. If he can explore beyond his immediate career objectiveshe will enjoy the rest of his life.

12.文化交流

文化是不同国家的人们互相理解的最佳媒体。通过举办文化节，许多中国城市在世界上的知名度提高了。已经证明，对促进中国人民和世界其他地方人民之间的交流来说，这是最好的途径之一。这种交流不仅仅限于文化方面，还扩大到了经济和其他领域。

参考译文

Culture is the bestmedium for people of different countries to understand each other. Throughculture festivals, many cities in China have raised their prestige in theworld. As has been proven that, this is one of the best ways to promote thecommunication between Chinese people and the people from different parts of theworld. This kind of communication is not only confined to culture, but extendsto economy and other fields.

13.大四生活

现在大学生的学习压力相当重。除了大四，他们开始找工作了，其余的学生总是忙于学习，而不愿参加校园团体和俱乐部，不愿参加体育锻炼和其他课外活动，不愿与他们的朋友玩玩，不愿关心和学习没有关系的事。总之，他们就像一个机器人。压力大，时间少，功课多。看到同寝室里的人都上图书馆去学习，到深夜闭馆才回，而自己却去看电影，他们就会有一种内疚感。一想到白天什么事都没干，心里就感到不安，会整夜因此睡不着觉。他们学习太紧张，几乎没有时间好好品尝生活，干些其他事，成为一个全面发展的人。读大学使他们失去太多的个人幸福和健康。

参考译文

College studentsnow bear heavy academic pressure. You will find them—except seniors who arebeginning to look for a job—always too busy in studies to join campusorganizations, too busy to take part in sports and other extracurricularactivities, too busy to share the interests of their friends and too busy topay attention to anything that is not connected with their studies. In shortthey have become nothing but a robot. They are under pressure to do too muchwork in too little time. If their roommates are studying in the library untilit closes at midnight while they go to a movie they will feel guilty. The veryidea of doing nothing during the day will make them uncomfortable and sleeplessall night. They study so hard that they have hardly had time to savor life andto pursue other interests to grow as well-rounded people. The pursuit ofcollege education costs them too much personal happiness and health.

14.人物介绍

徐霞客一生周游考察了十六个省，足迹几乎遍及全国。他在考察的过程中，从不盲目迷信书本上的结论，从不把权威看作是真理的唯一基础。他发现人研究的地理记载中有许多不很可靠的地方。为了进行真实细致的考察，他很少乘车坐船，几乎全靠双脚翻山越岭，长途跋涉；为了弄清大自然的真相，他总是挑选道路艰险的山区、人迹稀少的森林进行考察，发现了许多奇山秀景；他常常选择不同的时间和季节，多次重游各地名山，反复观察变换的奇景。他不仅善于观察，观察的精确、耐心、客观、而且对观察的结果锲而不舍地进行思考。

参考译文

During his lifetime Xu Xiake visited 16 provinces leaving his footprints nearly everywhereacross the land. He never blindly accepted the conclusions given by books nordid he treat authority as the sole basis for truth. As a result he found manyinaccuracies in the travel notes on geography written by his predecessors. Inorder to get a detailed and truthful picture of the particular places hepreferred to travel on foot instead of by cart or boat despite long distancesand even ventured into mountainous areas and jungles which are rarely traveledby people and full of dangers. The payoff for his effort was his discovery ofmany fantastic landscapes which attracted him to return in different seasonsand even different hours of the day to observe their kaleidoscopic spectacles.He was not only a good observer accurate patient and objective but also appliedpersistent thought to the observations he made.

15.节日联欢

在这明月当空的中秋之夜，我很高兴能应邀出席贵公司的庆祝晚宴，同各位一起度过一个轻松、难忘的夜晚。我们平时忙于各自的工作，几乎没有时间坐下来交谈。我希望这次晚会可以让我们无所拘束地相互沟通，增进友谊。在这个高度竞争的时代，人际关系越来越紧张，似乎缺少了传统意义上的那种人间温暖的关怀。我国的中秋节不仅给人们提供了团聚的机会，其意义还包含了关怀、融洽和奉献。我为有幸参加这次中秋聚会，再次表示感谢。

参考译文

On this mostbeautiful moon-lit mid-autumn evening, I'm very glad to be invited to attendyour company's celebration evening party, and share a relaxing and memorableevening with you. We are so busily engaged in our work that we have virtuallylittle time sitting down and talking to each other. I hope this party will givean opportunity to talk to each other freely, and to increase / enhance personalfriendship. In this era of intensive competition, interpersonal relationsbecome increasingly intense. What appears to be lacking are the traditional humanwarmth and care. China's Mid-autumn Festival does not only provide an occasionfor getting together, but also implies opportunities for care, harmony anddedication. I wish to thank you again for your invitation to / giving me theopportunity to attend this mid-autumn evening party.

16.香港简介

香港坐落在中国南端的一个弹丸小岛上。在日趋全球化的经济中，香港正起着一个非常重要的角色。由于香港的战略位置，面向国际的商业氛围，和优越的通讯条件，使她成为世界贸易的活动中心和亚太地区的神经中枢。香港已和世界上170个国家和地区的公司有商业往来。与亚洲其他国家和地区的贸易大幅度增长。香港的集装港口是世界上最繁忙的，而且还在进一步扩建。虽然香港开始成为世界金融中心还是最近二十年的事，但现在海外贷款已占到香港银行提供的总贷款的一半以上。当这颗东方明珠重新回到中国的掌上时，中国人民眼中的香港未来比过去任何时候都更加光明灿烂。

参考译文

Hong Kong a tinyisland perched on the tip of Southern China plays a pivotal role in anincreasingly globalized economy. Given its strategic location internationallyoriented business culture and excellent communications it has become a crossroadof world trade and the nerve center of the Asia—Pacific region. Commerciallinks reach out to corporations in over 170 countries and regions. Its tradewith the rest of Asia has increased substantially. Its container port is nowthe busiest and is undergo ing further expansion. Although Hong Kong’s emergenceas a world financial center came in recent 20 years offshore loans account formore than half of the total loan provided by its banks. As the “Pearl of theOrient” returns once again to China’s palm， its people see her future as brighter thanever.

17.人际关系

有时候，在工作中重要的倒是能否处理好人际关系而不是有多大的才能。人际关系就是一种善于听取别人的意见，体察别人的需要，虚心接受批评的能力。善于处理人际关系的人敢于承认错误，敢于承担自己的责任，这是对待错误的一种成熟和负责任的态度。这就是为什么许多平平庸庸的公司雇员在大调整中保住了位置，而有才能的人反而下岗。因为他们很注意处理各方面的关系，所以八面玲珑，到处有缘。而人际

关系差的人往往不能处理好批评。碰到错误，他们首先想到自己，拒不承认自己有错，或情绪低落或大发雷霆，成为有刺的人，难以相处。

参考译文

Sometimes it isinterpersonal skills rather than professional skills that really counts in yourcareer. Interpersonal skills are nothing but the ability to be good listener tobe sensitive toward other s’ needs to take criticism well. People with skill insocial relations admit their mistakes and take their share of blame which is amature and responsible way to handle an error. That’s why many mediocreemployees survive violent corporate upheavals while pe ople of great talent arebeing laid off. Sensitive in their dealings with others they are well likedeverywhere. People with poor interpersonal skills have trouble takingcriticism. When confronted with a mistake they let their ego get in the way. Theydeny responsibility and became moody or angry. They mark themselves as“prickly”.

18.网上聊天

网上聊天指的是两个或多个人之间通过计算机来同时进行的文学交流。这种交流是同步的－个人在他的键盘上键入信息，和他聊天的人在其电脑屏幕上看见信息后便可以马上回复。网络聊天也在其特定的专业术语。它们容易键入，使交流更快速。经常上网聊天的人使用缩略语，例如BRB意思是“马上回来”，IMHO 是指“依本人之拙见”。数年前还鲜为人知的电子网络产业，时至今日已成为一个国家国民生活的重要组成部分。越来越多的网民使用人们所知道的“信息高速公路”。

参考答案

Online chat refersto the simultaneous text communication between two or more people via computer.It is synchronous-one person types a message on his keyboard, and the peoplewith whom he is chatting see the message appear on their monitors and respondalmost immediately.

Chat has its ownjargon. They are easy to type and make the communication more efficient. Peoplewho chat commonly use abbreviations. BRB, for example, means ”be right back”.IMHO means “in my humble opinion”.

The electronicnetwork industry, which was virtually unknown years ago, has become an vitalpart of a country’s national life. An increasing population of netizens makeuse of what is popularly known as the “information superhighway”.

19.外贸发展

在过去20年中，世界上没有任何一个国家的外贸发展速度像中国那么快。日本用了20多年时间才将其外贸总额翻了一番而中国却翻了两番。中国现在已是全球第三大电器生产国，并且正在成为全球电器市场上的主角。中国还是世界上劳动密集型(labor-intensive)产品的主要生产国。间才将其外贸总额翻了一番，而中国却翻了两番。

参考译文

Over the last twodecades, no country in the world has expanded its foreign trade as fast asChina. Japan took more than 20 years to double its foreign trade, while China,for the same length of time, has quadrupled its foreign trade (has increasedits foreign trade by three times .. Already the world' s third largest producerof electric appliances, China is now playing a major role in the global marketof the electric wares. China has also become a major producer oflabor-intensive manufactured goods in the world.

20.经济地位

自1978年改革开放以来，中国经济增长了90倍，是增长最快的主要经济体。预测2011至2015年，年均GDP增长会保持9.5%。中国是世界最大的出口国，第二大进口国。它也是世界第二大奢侈品消费国。目前的GDP位于世界第二，大约6万亿美元，相当于美国的四成。中国是世界工厂。每三件家具，三件玩具，两双鞋子，两件衣服中，就有一件是由中国制造的。

参考译文

Since economic opening up and reform policy beganin 1978, China’s economy h as grown 90 times bigger, and isthe fastest growingmajor economy in the world. China’s annual average GDP growth is predicted tobe 9.5 percent for the period of 2011-2015. It is the world’s largest exporterand the second largest importer of goods. It is al so known as the world’ssecond biggest consumer of luxury goods. It now has the world’s second largestGDP at about 6 trillion US dollars, 40 percent of the United States. China

is the world’s factory. One out of every three household appliances/three toys/ two pairs of shoes/ two shirts are made in China.

21.中国概况

中国人民共和国，简称中国，位于东亚，与14个国家或地区接壤。它是世界上人口最多的国家，有13亿人口。中国有56个民族，汉族占总人口92%。汉语是世界上使用最广泛也是外国人最难懂的语言之一。汉语方言很多，使用最广的是普通话和粤语。汉语发源于象形文字(hieroglyph)，有超过四万个汉字。受过良好教育的人能认识约六千个字。阅读报纸需要认识三千字左右。

参考译文

The People’s Republic of China, commonly known asChina, is located in East Asia, and borders14 nations or districts in theworld. It is the most populous state in the world with a 1.3 billionpopulation. China’s made of 56 distinctive ethnic groups, with Han Chinesemaking the 92% of its whole population. Chinese is the most widely spokenlanguage in the world as well as one of the most complicated for foreigners.There are many regional dialects of Chinese although the most widely spoken isMandarin and Cantonese. Chinese characters evolved over time from earlier formsof hieroglyphs. Chinese contains over 40,000 characters, but a well-educatedperson can recognized around 6,000 characters. Some 3,000 are required to reada newspaper.

六、补充阅读材料

1.Chinese Festival

Chinese traditionalfestivals and rituals, a part of Chinese culture, are the results of itslegends of ancestors and agricultural production experiences. As early as theXia dynasty (21-16 century B.C.), the first day of the first moon in the lunarcalendar was known as the "head of year". But it was not until theHan dynasty (206 B.C. - 220 A.D.)that the day became a widely celebrated holiday. After the 1911revolution, however, the Gregorian calendar officially replaced the traditionalChinese calendar and the "beginning of the year" became known as theSpring Festival. In post-1949 China, the Spring Festival has become a nationalholiday which is celebrated throughout the entire country.

Spring Festival isas important to Chinese as Christmas to westerns. It is the Chinese New Year,known also as "passing the year" in Chinese, marking the mostimportant and popular of all Chinese festivals.

Spring FestivalActivities:

hang red lanterns

paste " Fu" (good fortune) upside down

paste "theimage of the god of wealth" onto doors, window or walls

ignite firecrackersto drive away the legendary animal " Nian "which would bring omen,that's how the alternative name of Spring Festival " Guo Nian " cameforth.

make dumplings

lantern play, lionplay, dragon play, Shehuo play etc.

Lantern Festivalfalls on the 15th day of the first month in the Chinese lunar calendar. Thename of this festival is in fact derived from a Tang dynasty(618-907) custom ofhanging out lanterns on the night of the festival. The Lantern Festival is alsocelebrated with round dumplings made of glutinous rice flour and filled with avariety of sweet fillings, known as Yuan Xiao (literally "the night of thefirst full moon"), which is another name for the festival.

Festival of PureBrightness, called as Tomb-sweeping Day, it is the occasion for all the Chineseto honor their ancestors. As it is early spring and usually falls around April4, it is usually breezy and drizzly. But urban dweller prefer to go to thecountryside during the season.

Paying respects tothe dead in the third month in lunar calendar is related to the custom offuneral. Sweeping tomb has been an indispensable custom since Qin Dynasty, butthis is not only one of the twenty-four solar terms, it is also anold traditional festival. The day before tomb-sweeping day is called “HanshiFestival” which is also in the third month of lunar year. This festival is inmemory of a famous minister of Jin kingdom during the Spring and Autumn Period.

Customs related toPure Brightness Festival: not eating food, sweeping the tomb of ancestors,going out to suburb, having a swing, flying a kite, cockfighting, and playingthe ball, etc.

Dragon BoatFestival is on the 5th day of the fifth month in the Chinese lunar calendar.This festival was established in commemoration of Qu Yuan (c.340-278 B.C.), astatesman and poet of the Warring States Period (475-221 B.C.). An official ofthe State of Chu, Qu Yuan was thwarted in his ambitions to save the country andthrew himself into the Biluo River when the State of Qin conquered Chu. Zongzi,glutinous rice dumplings wrapped in bamboo leaves, are served on the festivaland Dragon Boat races are held, which are strenuous and become popular inSouthern provinces.

Traditionally thedragon boat festival is " Sanitation Festival " as well. On that daypeople would sweep the floor in the yard, hang moat, sprinkle arsenic sulphideon the floor and drink alcohol made of arsenic sulphide, in order to sterilizeand defend illness.

The Seventh Eveningof the Seventh Month Festival The seventh evening of the seventh month festivalis originated from a touching tale. It is also called as " meeting ofstars ". It is said that a herd-boy from mundane world and aweaving-girl from heaven loved each other. They were separated bythe Milk Road by the order of Wang Mu-the goddess ruling the heaven, and werepermitted to meet only once a year. The herd-boy and the weaving girl becamethe stars Altair and Vegra. They would meet on the seventh day of the seventhlunar month every year. People regarded the date of wedding as " meetingof stars " so far.

The Double NinthFestival is on the ninth day of the ninth of Chinese lunar month. It is afestival of field amusement. The customs of the festival include: climbing themountain, enjoying the

chrysanthemum, drinking the wine made of mum, insertingsee below and eating a kind of cake. The Double Ninth Festival is also TheGraybeard Festival. The old people enjoy the chrysanthemum and climb the hill,which can build their body and exert a favorable influence.

Mid-Autumn Festivalfalls on August 15 in thelunar calendar. Originally it is the when people celebrate harvesting, andlater it became a date when family get reunited wherever family members are.The festival also related to a beautiful legend " Chang'e Ran to the Moon".

In the remote past,there were ten suns in the sky, which fiercely roasted the land, and sea watergetting dry. Men couldn't make a living. For the sake of saving the localpeople, a hero named Hou Yi climbed up the Kunlun Mountain, he exerts all hisstrength to drag the bow and shot down nine of the ten suns. People were saved.After a few years, he married a beautiful woman named Chang'e. One day, Hou Yiwent to the Kunlun Mountain to meet his friend. He happened to encounter thequeen of the heaven. He asked her for amaranthine medicine, and the queen gaveit to him. It was said that if one took the medicine he could become a immortalimmediately. However Hou Yi didn't have the heart to leave his wife so he gavethe medicine to Chang'e.

Unfortunately, anunderling named Feng Meng saw everything. When Hou Yi went out, he came to HouYi's home and bullied Chang'e to give the medicine to him. Chang'e knew thatshe couldn't beat Feng Meng so she took the medicine. After taking themedicine, she felt her body flying in the air, at last she fly to the heaven.Missing her husband very much, she fell on the moon because it is the nearestto the earth and thus she became the goddess of the moon. When Hou Yi returnedhome, handmaids sobbed out everything to him. Hou Yi's heart was broken. Helooked up the sky and cried out for his lover. Suddenly he foundthat the moon that night was so bright and round, and there was a swayingfigures so much like his wife. He hurriedly asked the servants to put anincense burner table with fruits and sweeties under the moon to memorizeChang'e. People learned about the message, they all put an incense burner tableunder the moon impetrating that Chang'e would bring them safety and luck. Fromthen on, holding a memorial ceremony at the Mid-Autumn Moon has become atradition and spread throughout the country..

Laba is on the 8thday of the twelfth month in the Chinese lunar calendar. Laba was originally areligious holiday in celebration of Sakyamuni's attainment of Buddhism.Buddhists of the Han nationality would make an offering to the Buddha of asteamed pudding made of rice and fruit called "Laba pudding". Theholiday has long been secularized and the pudding remains very

popular.

2.ChongyangFestival

The Chongyang Festival falls on the ninth day ofthe nonth month of the Chinese lunar calendar,

so it is also known as theDouble Ninth Festival.

The festival is based on the theory of Yin andYang, the two opposing principles in nature. Yin

is feminine, negativeprinciple, while Yang is masculine and positive. The ancients believed that allnatural phenomena could be esplained by this theory. Numbers are related tothis theory. Even numbers belong to Yin and odd numbers to Yang. The ninth dayof the ninth lunar month is

a day when the two Yang numbers meet. So it iscalled Chongyang. Chong means double in Chinese.Chongyang has been an importantfestival since ancient times.

The festival is held in the golden season ofautumn, at harvest -time. The bright clear weather and the joy of bringing inthe harvest make for a festive happy atmosphere.The Double Ninth Festival isusually perfect for outdoor activities. Many people go hiking and climbing inthe country, enjoying Mother Nature's final burst of color before she puts onher dull winter cloak. Some will carry a spray of dogwood.

Early in theWestern Han Dynasty, about 2,000 years ago, people used to climb a highplatform outside the capital city of Chang'an on the occasion of the ChongyangFestival. For many, it was the last outing of the year before the onset ofwinter. The custom evolved into its present form, when people go climbing toget some exercise as well as enjoy the autumn scenery.

But what aboutthose people who live in flat regions far from any mountain? The problem issolved by going for a picnic and eating cakes. The Chinese word for cake isGao, a homonym of the Chinese word for high. Mountains are high, so eating cakecan, by a stretch of the imagination, take the place of going for a climb.

Since nine is thehighest odd digit, people take two of them together to signify longevity.Therefore, the ninth day of the ninth month has become a special day for peopleto pay their respects to the elderly and a day for the elderly to enjoythemselves. It has also been declared China's day for the elderly.

https://www.360docs.net/doc/9616884466.html,nternFestival

The LanternFestival is a traditional festival in China. It falls on the15th day of thefirst lunar month--Yuanxiao Jie. The way of making the lanterns differsaccording to the natural environment. Lanterns are different in the north andthe south. In Northern Shaanxi Province, women in the countryside use sorghumstalks to make lantern frames, then they paste red paper on the frames. In thisway, they make all sorts of lanterns, such as pumpkin lanterns, persimmonlanterns and sheep lanterns. They also cut potatoes into a bowl shape. Thenthey put oil into the bowl-shaped potatoes and place lamp wicks in them andcover the potatoes with red paper lampshades. People hang red lanterns over thegates of their cave dwellings. Willow trees are also decorated with colouredpaper.

Red lanterns are hung here and there on willow trees. The trees arecalled lantern trees or spark trees.

Beijing was thecapital of several dynasties in Chinese history. On the Lantern Festival, allsorts of lanterns were hung in the palace. Artists made fancy lanterns, whoseframes ere made with carved fine wood. They covered lanterns with silk, gauze,glass and sliced ox horn on which pictures of landscapes, flowers and birdswere painted. At that Dengshikou (Lantern Fair Gateway) near Wangfujing Streetwas where lantern exhibitions were held at that time.

Harbin in NorthChina is called an ice city. All sorts of lanterns are made there with ice. Thesparking, crystal-clear lanterns are really beautiful.

Fujian has anabundance of rain, so the buildings on both sides of its streets all haveoverhanging upper storeys known as qi lou to shelter pedestrians from the rain.On the the Lantern Festival colourful lanterns are hung over the qi lou. Streetsometimes have thousands of coloured lanterns hung along them.

Lanterns come indifferent shapes, such as bird, animal, flower and fish. Some lanterns areshaped like fruit, such as oranges, litchis, pineapples and others. Some arevery modern like rocket and satellite lanterns. Fragrant smells waft in thebreeze from the lanterns. Sandalwood incense is burned in octagonal palacelanterns.

In previous times,young women and men did not have free social contact. Therefore, the LanternFestival became an opportunity to look for marriage partners. There is a famouslove story from ancient times among the people of Quanzhou. At the LanternHuang Wuniang. They fell in love at first sight. But Wuniang's father wasgreedy for San disguised himself as a tradesman who polished bronze mirrors. Hewent to Huang's home to polish their bronze mirrors. He went to Huang's home topolish their bronze mirror and broke the bronze mirror purposely. To pay forthe mirror, he sold himself into the Huang family as a slave. By doing so, hehad the chance to meet Wuniang secretly. At last he and Wuniang ran away fromthe family and got married.

4.Mid-autumnFestival

"Zhong QiuJie" which is also known as the Mid-Autumn Festival, is celebrated on the15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar. Mid-Autumn is a time forfamily members and loved ones to congregate and enjoy the full moon - anauspicious symbol of abundance, harmony and luck. Adults

will usually indulgein fragrant mooncakes of many varieties with a good cup of piping hot Chinesetea, while the little ones run around with their brightly-lit lanterns.

"Zhong QiuJie" probably began as a harvest festival. The festival was later given amythological flavour with legends of Chang-E, the beautiful lady in the moon.

According toChinese mythology, the earth once had 10 suns circling over it. One day, all 10suns appeared together, scorching the earth with their heat. The earth wassaved when a strong archer, Hou Yi, succeeded in shooting down 9 of the suns.Yi stole the elixir of life but to save the people from his tyrannical rule,his wife, Chang-E drank it. Thus started the legend of the lady in the moon towhom young Chinese girls would pray at the Mid-Autumn Festival.

In the 14thcentury, the eating of mooncakes at "Zhong Qiu Jie" was given a newsignificance. The story goes that when Zhu Yuan Zhang was plotting to overthrowthe Yuan dynasty started by the Mongolians, the rebels hid their messages inthe Mid-Autumn mooncakes. Zhong Qiu Jie is hence also a commemoration of theoverthrow of the Mongolians by the Han people.

During the Yuandynasty (A.D.1280-1368) China was ruled by the Mongolian people. Leaders fromthe preceding Sung dynasty (A.D.960-1280) were unhappy at submitting to foreignrule, and set how to coordinate the rebellion without it being discovered. Theleaders of the rebellion, knowing that the Moon Festival was drawing near,ordered the making of special cakes. Backed into each mooncake was a messagewith the outline of the attack. On the night of the Moon Festival, the rebelssuccessfully attacked and overthrew the government. What followed was theestablishment of the Ming dynasty (A.D. 1368-1644). Today, moon cakes are eatento commemorate this event.