4)凤姐儿道：“琏儿不配，就只配我和平儿这一对烧糊了的卷子和他混罢。”（第四十六回）

杨译：

“Lian doesn't deserve her，”said Xifeng.“He'll have to make do with scarecrows like Ping'er and me. ”

霍译：

‘Lian doesn't deserve her，’said Xi-feng.‘All he's fit for is a couple of sad old dumplings like me and Patience!’

5)凤姐儿听了，忙道：“依我说，竟别碰这个钉子去。……这会子回避还恐回避不及，倒拿草棍儿戳老虎的患子眼儿去了！太太别恼，我是不敢去的。......，’（第四十六回）

杨译：

“If I were you，I wouldn't run my head against a brick wall，”replied Xifeng promptly. “…He'd do better to try to avoid offending her further instead of ‘tickling the tiger’s nose with a straw. ’Please don't be annoyed, madam, but I haven't the courage to approach her....”

霍译：

Xi-feng put on what she hoped was a disarming smile.

‘I don't think it's worth trying. I think it would be merely asking for trouble. ...Yet if you insist on approaching Grandma about this，I'm afraid that that's what will happen. It will be like poking a straw up a tiger's nostril. I hope you won't be offended，but I'm afraid I daren't approach her about this....，

例3与例4的霍泽本以metaphor的形式保留了原文的借喻辞格，以及具体的喻体形象，比杨译更忠实于原文的语义和修辞。例5 是连用借喻的情形。邢夫人要凤姐帮忙向贾母讨鸳鸯给贾赦作小老婆，凤姐用“钉子”喻贾母，用“拿草棍儿戳老虎的鼻子眼儿去”比喻邢夫人不顾及贾母的威风，以及“老太太离了鸳鸯，饭也吃不下去的，那里就舍得了”的事实。杨霍两人对第二个借喻的翻译同样表现了对原文语义与修辞的忠实；而对于“钉子”这一喻体，霍译本避而不译，杨译 本将“碰钉子”（to bump one’s head against a nail)变成“撞南墙”（run my head against a brick wall)，是对原文喻体形象的随意篡改。

由此可见，借喻的翻译是否成功，与前文通过对明喻和暗喻的译文进行分析比较后所得出的结论基本上是一致的。

相对而言，两位译者对这样简洁有力、富有启发性的比喻，更多地采取了直译法，从而最大程度地保存了原文的修辞特色和意境。这一点可以通过下面的示例得到进一步的证明：

6)他三人如此一理，更觉比凤姐儿当差时倒更谨慎了些。因而里外下人都暗中抱怨说：“刚刚的倒了一个‘巡海夜叉’，又添了三个‘镇山太岁’，越性连夜里偷着吃酒顽的工夫都没了。”（第五十五回）

杨译：

Thus the three of them controlled things even more strictly than when Xifeng was in charge.“We're only just rid of one demon patrolling the sea，and here come three guardian mountain spirits instead!” all the servants started grousing secretly.“We’ve not even a chance now to drink and play cards at night. ”

霍译：

Working together in this way they soon came to feel that they had evolved a system of supervision more careful even than Xi-feng's — a view amply borne out by the grumbles of the domestics themselves：

‘No sooner is the Terror of the Seas put out of action than along come these three Scourges of the Mountains to take her place. Nowadays you can’t even take time off for a quiet drink of a night or a little game of cards!'

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