修辭這里主要指修辭格。從文體學(xué)的角度來(lái)說(shuō)，所有修辭格都是正常表現(xiàn)法的偏離，通過(guò)“突出前景”（foregrounding)，加強(qiáng)語(yǔ)言的表達(dá)效果，從而更有效地打動(dòng)讀者和感染讀者。英漢語(yǔ)都有豐富的修辭格，英語(yǔ)中常用的修辭格大多數(shù)都能在漢語(yǔ)中找到對(duì)應(yīng)的修辭格，比如明喻（simile)、暗喻（metaphor)、借代（metonymy )、擬人（personification)、夸張(hyperbole)、反語(yǔ)（irony )、排比 (parallelism)、設(shè)問(wèn)(rhetorical question )等。為了忠實(shí)地傳譯原文的修辭格，再現(xiàn)原文的修辭美,翻譯時(shí)譯者可以盡量采用與原文相應(yīng)的修辭格。下面我們來(lái)看一則英譯漢：

（1）只見府門洞開,兩邊燈籠照如白晝，亂哄哄人來(lái)人往，里面哭聲搖山震岳。（《紅樓夢(mèng)》第13回）

譯文：Arriving in haste at the entrance of the Ning-guo mansion，they found the gates flung wide open and lanterns on either side turning the night into noonday. Despite the hour, a multitude of people were hurrying through it in both directions while from inside the house issued a sound of lamentation that seemed to shake the very buildings to their foundations.

這里描寫秦可卿去世后，寧國(guó)府上下人等忙亂舉哀的情景。短短一句話，用了比喻和夸張兩個(gè)修辭格。比喻句“兩邊燈籠照如白晝”非常自然地譯為“l(fā)anterns on either side turning the night into noonday”，保留了原文的比喻。而用 “a sound of lamentation that seemed to shake the very buildings to their foundations”譯“哭聲搖山震岳”卻似乎比原文更為貼切。"搖山震岳"之類的夸張說(shuō)法 在我國(guó)話本小說(shuō)中用得太濫，反而不及英文的“to shake the very buildings to their foundations”更富有生命力，并且這樣譯也更為符合當(dāng)時(shí)具體的語(yǔ)境。

然而，在有些情況下，譯者試圖保留原修辭格的努力卻難以收到好的效果。例如：