Biaoqing: China’s Most Indispensible Meme“表情”：中國最不可或缺的模因

Somewhere between rage faces1 and reaction GIFs， “biaoqing” have evolved to become an essential part of the Chinese internet.

夾在“暴漫臉”與反應(yīng)動圖之間的“表情”已逐步演變?yōu)橹袊ヂ?lián)網(wǎng)的重要組成部分。

Linguists have found that human language， like bird song， may evolve to accommodate its environment through acoustic adaptation2. I believe that on the internet， a similar phenomenon happens to our visual languages： our memes hold something of the digital landscapes they proliferate in.

語言學(xué)家發(fā)現(xiàn)，人類的語言就像鳥鳴一樣，可能會通過改變發(fā)聲方式來適應(yīng)周圍環(huán)境。我認(rèn)為，人類在互聯(lián)網(wǎng)上的視覺語言也出現(xiàn)了類似現(xiàn)象：我們使用的模因承載著它們賴以繁衍壯大的數(shù)字化景觀。

In China， the digitally-active keep folders of biaoqing， which literally means “facial expression.” In the digital world， biaoqing refers to any image that adds a visual and emotive layer to text-dominant online conversations： at its most expansive， it refers to everything from emoticons to reaction GIFs.

中國的網(wǎng)絡(luò)活躍用戶都存有“表情”文件夾，這個名稱在字面上就是“面部表情”的意思。在互聯(lián)網(wǎng)上，“表情”指的是為文字主導(dǎo)的線上對話增添視覺效果和情感內(nèi)涵的所有圖像。在最廣義的層面上，從表情符號到反應(yīng)動圖，“表情”無所不包。

Though they’ve borrowed elements of memes from Reddit and 4chan3， biaoqing have evolved into a specific form unique to the Chinese internet， complete with its own traditions and conventions. Like other mature internet meme systems， biaoqing are a grassroots， fast-evolving visual vernacular that surfaces and catalogues the shared experiences and emotions of the Chinese interneting public， a Rosetta Stone4 of sorts for identifying and interpreting shared cultural references.

盡管借鑒了紅迪網(wǎng)站和四葉網(wǎng)站上的模因元素，但如今“表情”已演變成中國互聯(lián)網(wǎng)獨有的特殊模因，自有一套傳統(tǒng)和慣例。與其他成熟的網(wǎng)絡(luò)模因系統(tǒng)一樣，“表情”是一種發(fā)源于草根階層并快速進(jìn)化的視覺方言，展現(xiàn)并記錄了中國網(wǎng)民的共同經(jīng)歷和情感共鳴。在某種程度上，“表情”如同羅塞塔石碑，能用于確立和解讀群體共識共享的文化參照物。

Consider this an introductory guide to the Chinese biaoqing.

就當(dāng)本文是一篇中國“表情”的入門指南吧。

Anatomy

剖析起源

Almost all biaoqing are made up of an image （or animation） and a caption. The text does most of the semantic heavy lifting; the visual component mostly indicates the overall tone， often in a slapstick way.

幾乎所有的“表情”都由一張圖像（或一段動畫）和一句說明文字組成。傳達(dá)語義信息的繁重工作大部分由文本承擔(dān)，而視覺部分主要表明整體基調(diào)，通常以搞笑的形式表現(xiàn)。

Biaoqing feed on the rich substrate of contemporary media popular among internet users in China and distill all of it down into icons thick with meaning. The most literal of the lot are often screencaps from iconic TV shows， like the 1986 TV adaptation of Journey to the West and beloved ’90s historical comedy Huan Zhu Ge Ge.

當(dāng)代深受中國網(wǎng)民歡迎的媒體中有五花八門的素材，“表情”從中汲取內(nèi)容，并將其提煉成富有意味的圖像符號。其中最直觀的往往是經(jīng)典電視劇的截圖，比如1986年改編的電視劇《西游記》，以及1990年代風(fēng)靡全中國的古裝喜劇《還珠格格》。

Given China’s geographical and cultural proximity to Japan， it’s no surprise that otaku culture （referred to in China as “ACG” for Anime， Comics， Games） is massively popular， especially for young Chinese people born in and after the ’90s. Many biaoqing feature popular anime and manga characters as a result.

由于中國與日本是近鄰，而且雙方文化有相似之處，所以“御宅族文化”（在中國被稱為ACG，即動畫、漫畫和游戲）在中國非常盛行也就不足為奇了，尤其在1990年代以及之后出生的中國年輕群體中受眾頗廣。因此，許多“表情”以熱門動漫角色為主題。

But the majority of biaoqing （and the strain that’s the most uniquely Chinese） resemble a panda： distilled， iconic， a Photoshopped blend of photographic sources and crude illustration. The idea of rendering down recognizable figures into minimalist black-and-white facial expressions seems to have started as a Chinese response to rage faces， but an entirely separate pantheon has emerged.

然而，大多數(shù)（也是最具中國特色的）“表情”都很像熊貓——這種“表情”是在提煉出極具辨識度的元素后，用Photoshop將原始圖片與粗糙插圖融合而成。起初，用極簡又抽象的黑白“面部表情”表現(xiàn)群體共同認(rèn)知的形象似乎只是中國網(wǎng)民對“暴漫臉”的回應(yīng)，但如今“表情”已蓋成獨屬于自己的萬神廟。

These standardized faces are sometimes combined with captions as-is5， but the real magic happens when they are crafted into a variety of outfits and settings to represent a wide range of emotions and situations.

這些標(biāo)準(zhǔn)化的面孔有時會原封不動地與說明文字搭配在一起。然而，一旦通過精心加工，將這些面孔與五花八門的服飾與場景元素融合，用以表現(xiàn)各種各樣的情緒和情景，真正的魔力便會顯現(xiàn)。

Biaoqing embody the same internet ugly aesthetic as their Rage Comics forebears—their creators and editors tend to use cut-and-paste or low-effort Microsoft Paint-style drawing with little regard for perfectionism. Because they’re used in apps that optimize images for mobile display， biaoqing are often heavily compressed over and over again， leaving them glitchy with enlargement and compression artifacts. Like a zine6 growing fuzzy with repeated photocopying， biaoqing deteriorate with use and modification.

與其靈感來源“暴走漫畫”一樣，“表情”也體現(xiàn)出互聯(lián)網(wǎng)的審丑——創(chuàng)作者和編輯者制作“表情”，往往只是剪切粘貼或者用微軟“畫圖”之類的軟件隨手一畫，很少追求完美。為適應(yīng)移動設(shè)備的顯示屏，移動端應(yīng)用程序會對圖像進(jìn)行優(yōu)化，所以應(yīng)用其中的“表情”經(jīng)常被反復(fù)高度壓縮，進(jìn)而在縮放過程中出現(xiàn)瑕疵。就像一本愛好者雜志因反復(fù)影印而變得模糊不清，“表情”的畫質(zhì)也隨著使用和編輯越來越差。

Sidenote： though their heyday is past in the US， rage faces and comics are still massively popular in China. In fact， Baozoumanhua （literally Rage Comic） is a company based in Xi’an that has built a small media empire around the concept， producing everything from videos explaining Chinese history using rage faces to a widely watched Daily Show-esque comedy news web series hosted by a host wearing a rage face mask.

旁注：盡管“暴漫臉”和“暴走漫畫”在美國熱度已退，但在中國仍然非常受人喜愛?？偛课挥谖靼驳墓尽氨┳呗嫛眹@“暴漫”這一主題發(fā)展壯大，成為網(wǎng)生內(nèi)容巨頭，旗下作品豐富多樣，包括用“暴漫臉”講解中國歷史的連載視頻，以及廣受歡迎的網(wǎng)絡(luò)搞笑新聞節(jié)目——這個節(jié)目模仿《每日秀》的形式，由頂著“暴漫臉”頭套的主持人播報。

Natural habitat

扎根平臺

As a word， biaoqing’s closest English relative might be “emoticon.” That’s partially because they’re more or less direct descendants of the custom emoticon sets created by online message board communities.

英語中和“表情”最為相近的概念可能是emoticon（表情符號），部分原因在于兩者都或多或少算是在線留言板社區(qū)自定義表情合集的直系后代。

As new platforms for talking and joking became popular—QQ， Weibo， WeChat—biaoqing migrated over and adapted to their new environments. They tend to be bigger than their message board dwelling ancestors now in both physical and file size， but they are still constrained by the limitations of these new platforms： lack of consistent GIF support， small mobile displays， and the desire to minimize data usage.

隨著QQ、微博、微信等網(wǎng)絡(luò)社交和娛樂休閑的新平臺流行起來，“表情”也遷移過去，適應(yīng)了新環(huán)境?！氨砬椤痹趫D像面積和文件大小上都比在線留言板社區(qū)固有的自定義表情大，但仍然受到新平臺的限制，比如：新平臺并非一致支持動圖；移動端的顯示屏太?。淮嬖谧畲笙薅葴p少數(shù)據(jù)使用量的需求。

Creation and reproduction

創(chuàng)造與再造

Like reaction GIFs， biaoqing are spread naturally through the course of online conversation—one person shares one to emphasize their mood， and a recipient or viewer might download it to use themselves in the future. People deeper into online fandoms make it a point to collect newer sets or even make their own variations for their favorite celebrities， TV shows， and movies. At its simplest， this new creation could be nothing more than adding a new caption onto an existing image. More advanced pixelworkers will also create GIFs and screencaps from new video footage， distill new expressions， and create new remixes layered with references.

就像反應(yīng)動圖一樣，“表情”在線上對話中自然傳播——有人分享一個“表情”來強調(diào)自己的情緒，收到或看到的人可能會下載這個“表情”以供自己將來使用。深陷網(wǎng)絡(luò)飯圈的人會特別注意收集新的“表情包”，甚至?xí)樗麄冏钕矚g的明星和影視作品制作專屬“表情包”。制作新“表情”，最簡單的方法就是在現(xiàn)有圖像上添加一句新的說明文字。技術(shù)水平更高的“像素制圖師”還可以從新的視頻片段中截取動圖和圖像，提煉新的表現(xiàn)方式，將各種附注分層放置，合成全新的“表情”。

Pheona Chen， a Beijing-based researcher studying Chinese fandoms， says， “More importantly， biaoqing have to be easily modifiable. The captions on our biaoqing are constantly being updated with the latest sayings and slang， and the pictures have even more variation. Each fandom， whether it’s of a celebrity or a show or movie， creates and uses their own set of biaoqing. When a new popular movie comes out， we might switch all of our biaoqing to a new set overnight.”

北京一位研究中國飯圈的研究員費奧娜·陳（音譯）說：“很關(guān)鍵的一點是，‘表情’必須易于修改。‘表情’的說明文字不斷更新，用的都是最新的流行語和俚語，圖像也更加多元。無論是明星、電視劇還是電影的飯圈，個個都會創(chuàng)造并使用自己的一套‘表情’。一部新的熱門電影上映時，我們可能會連夜把所有的‘表情’都換成新的?！?/p>

（譯者為“《英語世界》杯”翻譯大賽獲獎?wù)?；單位：北京理工大學(xué)）

1“暴漫臉”源自四葉網(wǎng)站（4chan）上由匿名用戶創(chuàng)作的“暴走漫畫”（rage comic）。這類漫畫由鼠標(biāo)在微軟“畫圖”軟件中繪成，線條簡陋、內(nèi)容通俗，主要描繪日常生活中的瑣事。 2語言學(xué)家將生物根據(jù)自身所在環(huán)境改變發(fā)聲方式的行為稱為“聲學(xué)適應(yīng)”（acoustic adaptation）。2015年，美國與法國的語言學(xué)家在第170屆美國聲學(xué)學(xué)會（Acoustical Society of America）大會上發(fā)表研究報告稱，一個地區(qū)的生態(tài)環(huán)境因素會對當(dāng)?shù)氐恼Z言發(fā)音造成影響。

3美國人克里斯托弗·普爾（Christopher Poole）模仿日本著名論壇網(wǎng)站“雙葉”（2chan）而創(chuàng)建的網(wǎng)站，原為分享圖片和討論日本動漫文化，現(xiàn)亦與互聯(lián)網(wǎng)的次文化和運動相關(guān)。四葉網(wǎng)站的用戶大部分以匿名身份發(fā)文，許多網(wǎng)絡(luò)流行內(nèi)容均源于此。 4 1799年拿破侖遠(yuǎn)征埃及時發(fā)現(xiàn)于尼羅河口的羅塞塔附近，因而得名。碑身自上至下刻寫了內(nèi)容相同的三種文字，為后人釋讀古埃及文字提供了有利條件。

5 as-is原樣地；不加修飾地。 6 zine愛好者雜志，通常由對某主題感興趣的非專業(yè)人士編寫。