http://s11/orignal/4979cdaa339f54175e2fa

http://s4/orignal/4979cdaaf737a81f7d003

http://s9/orignal/4979cdaa477e74919c9c8

http://s12/orignal/4979cdaab94ad4671d23b

A.    A: One monk fetches water to drink, two monks carry water to drink, when three monks are together, they have no water to drink.

 B.   B:  Everybody's business is nobody's business.

C. CC: One boy is a boy, two boys half a boy, three boys no boy.

This idiom is imbued with a strong sense of a national flavor. Let’s extend a little bit deeper into the denotation of the Chinese expression“和尚”. “和尚”, in essence, is a kind of title in Buddhism which equals lecturer in university. The title “和尚”can be generally called regardless of sex as shown in “释大智(女尼姑)和尚” that can be translated into Monk Shi Dazhi. Titles in Buddhism rank according to the grade as follows: Master, Abbat, Monk, and Sha Mi. The English version A is literal translation in which the Chinese basic meaning is retained while the metaphorical image of a bucket carrying water in Chinese culture is lost. Furthermore, the word “monk” is often misleading. I recommend replacing it with bonze, which especially refers to Chinese and Japanese Buddhist monk as Mr. Qian Gechuan translates “做一天和尚撞一天钟” into “So long as I remain a bonze, I go on tolling the bell”.

The version B states that everybody is irresponsible and nothing can be done, which transfers the metaphorical meaning but neglects the national cultural flavor of the Chinese idioms.

The version C excels in delivering faithfully the original flavor and retaining the metaphorical image without harming the reader’s understanding and association. Boy used as monk’s substitute is apt to avoid miscomprehension, but for those who have little knowledge about Chinese allusion are likely to fail to savor the original cultural flavor.

Therefore, translators should try their utmost to transfer the culture difference of the source language according to different culture contexts.