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Chapter One
Introduction of
Chinese and English Euphemisms
1.1 General Background
With
the deepening of reform and opening up and the
development of
communication
tools,
the
distance
between
China
and
the
world
is
getting
shorter and shorter. While economic
exchanges are booming, cultural
exchanges are also flourishing. Today,
with the increasing frequency of
cross-
cultural
communication,
people
need
to
understand
the
world
and
at
the same time let the world know China.
In many countries, more and more
people
speak English, so it is inevitable to understand
Chinese and
English culture. People
need language communication. In order to make
communication smooth and avoid
unpleasant, the use of euphemisms is one
of the important contents. The author
makes some comparisons between
Chinese
and English euphemisms.
1.2 A Brief
History of Euphemisms in English and Chinese
As early as the
early 1860s,
British
writer Gorge Blunt
first quoted the
word
good of favorable interpretation of a
bad word. Neamanetal (1990:12)
pointed
out in A Thesaurus of Euphemisms:
device that uses offensive or pleasant
words to replace some
straightforward
and offensive words, that is, to cover up facts
with
pleasant
words
rhetoric
belongs
to
Euphemism
in
a
broad
sense.
For
example, in
Li
Cuilian
uses
various
roundabouts
to
avoid
mentioning
the
in
the
name
of
Prince
and
Prince
Nine.
For
example,
dish
refers
to
and
of one's father's
brother
(English-Chinese Dictionary).
The Random House College Dictionary
(1979) defines euphemism as the
substitution
of
a
mild,
indirect,
or
vague
expression
for
one
thought
to
be
offensive,
harsh
or
blunt,
which
means
to
replace
unpleasant,
rude
and
harsh
words with pleasant, polite and pleasant-sounding
words.
Euphemisms
are
widely
used
in
our
daily
life.
No
wonder
American
scholar
Hugh
Rawson
said,
are
so
deeply
embedded
in
our
language
that
none of us, even those
who claim to be straightforward, can spend a day
without using them.
English
euphemisms became popular in the Norman conquest
of England in
1066. At that time, the
conqueror Norman feudal lords refused to accept
the local language. They
thought it was
impossible to
hear
it. Latin was
used by
the upper class to form some words to distinguish
them from the
common people's language.
In the 17th century, King James I of Great
Britain made a rule that anyone who
spoke blasphemous words must pay a
fine
of 12 pounds.
The 19th
century
was very
conservative, so some words
involving
part of the body and private life people were
replaced by
euphemisms.
Euphemism
is
not
only
a
linguistic
phenomenon,
but
also
a
sociolinguistics
phenomenon.
Euphemism is also widely used in literary works
and has
irreplaceable rhetorical
function. Euphemism can not only make the
expression appropriate and beautiful,
but also create a beautiful image
and
artistic conception, so that people can have
beautiful associations
and enjoy
beauty.
Euphemism
is
an
important
part
of
English.
As
an
integral
part
of
English
vocabulary, English euphemism has
always attracted the attention of
linguists and scholars. Euphemism has
strong persuasion and good
decorative
effect. The use of euphemism can make human
language
interesting, humorous, and can
resolve embarrassing situations.
Euphemism is a linguistic phenomenon,
an important means of regulating
interpersonal
relationships
with
language
and
also
a
kind
of
language
art.
Euphemism is also an important
rhetorical device. It refers to the
implicit and obscure speech, avoiding
or concealing some taboo words or
unpleasant
and
harsh
words
in
order
to
avoid
embarrassing
and
embarrassing
situations and
achieve better linguistic effects. Euphemism makes
full
use
of
the
implicit
meaning
of
language
in
conveying
information.
It
does
not
directly express its original meaning, but as
tactful and implicit
as possible.
Therefore, it has the aesthetic function of
language. This
kind
of
beauty
has
much
to
do
with
the
psychological
mechanism
of
euphemism
-- distance
principle.
When taboos have to be
mentioned in daily communication, people use
euphemistic
expressions
to
widen
the
distance
between
linguistic
symbols
and their meanings, thus creating a
psychological distance. At the same
time,
relevant
principles
are
used
to
make
euphemisms
to
a
certain
extent
related to the original linguistic
symbols, so as not to cause
difficulties in readers' understanding,
but also to avoid direct
transmission.
The embarrassment of words such as irreverence,
indecent
and unlucky. From the
perspective of the psychological mechanism of
euphemism, many famous English and
American works mainly avoid taboos,
which
belong
to
traditional
euphemisms.
They
can
be
roughly
divided
into
two
categories:
one
is
the
avoidance
of
evil
words
out
of
fear;
the
other
is the
avoidance of words involving sex and excretion due
to the sense
of honor and shame among
the people.
1.3 The Organization of
This Dissertation
The dissertation
consists of four parts: The first chapter is the
introduction, which mainly introduces
the research background of this
paper,
the development history of euphemism in Chinese
and English, and
the structure of the
article. Chapter two presents the characteristics
of
new
euphemisms,
including
the
definition,
classification
and
formation.
The third chapter
makes a detailed comparison of English and Chinese
Euphemisms
from
several
perspectives,
namely,
Cultural
Models,
Religious,
Social Customs and Social Ideologies.
The last part is a brief summary
of the
research content.
Chapter Two
Literature Review
Through
the analysis and comparison of the purpose and
communicative
function of English and
Chinese euphemisms, some studies have revealed
the influence and restriction of
different cultural backgrounds, social
systems,
humanistic
history
and
linguistic
features
on
the
formation,
use
category
and
communicative
function
of
euphemisms,
and
further
elaborated
the cultural
differences reflected in euphemisms between
English and
Chinese.
2.1
Literature Review on the Studies of Euphemism
2.1.1 Views on Euphemism
The
Oxford Dictionary of Advanced Students (new
edition) defines the
details of
euphemism:
Use of other, usu. less
exact but milder or less blunt, words or phrases
in place of word required by truth or
accuracy. Another definition of
euphemism
explains:
a
mild,
indirect
word
or
phrase
to
replace
a
straight
or stricter word.
For example,
is
a
modern
euphemism
for
in
age
refers
to
someone who is old.
In Chinese
dictionary, it is interpreted as follows:
There are three definitions of
euphemism: (1)
to
replace
expressions
that
are
unpleasant
and
disrespectful
(Dictionary
of
Language
and
Linguistics,
by
Stoke
and
Hartmann
et
al.).
(2)
is the use of
euphemism or mild way to express certain facts or
ideas in
order to reduce its
vulgarity
are unwilling to say taboo
things or actions and have to specify such
things or actions, they use beautiful
words to replace them, metaphors
to
imply them, and tortuous expressions to prompt
them.
In
1989,
Professor
Wu
Tieping
used
vague
semantics
to
classify
euphemisms
into
four
categories,
including
the
use
of
vague
words
to
replace
precise
words, such as red
light district to replace all entertainment
places;
the use of large words to
replace small vague words; the use of a word
that does not belong to the same series
to replace another word, with an
accurate word to express other precise
meanings.
In the process of language
learning, people often encounter things that
make
people
feel
unhappy
by
using
direct
expressions
or
things that
have
to
be
expressed
indirectly
in
order
to
avoid
some
taboos.
These
indirect
expressions are
usually expressed by means of euphemism.
Euphemisms are
used
either
to
glorify
bad
things
or
to
avoid
evil
or
to
avoid
embarrassing
situations.
In
today's
increasingly
frequent
cultural
exchanges
between
Chinese
and
English,
people
need
to
know
the
common
euphemisms
in
English
and
Chinese,
so
that
when
dealing
with
English
speakers,
it
will
not
make
the two sides unhappy,
make the communication more harmonious, so as to
promote the development of
communication.
2.1.2 Studies of
Euphemism
Euphemism
is
not
only
a
kind
of
euphemism,
but
also
a
way
of
communication
in which euphemism is used actively.
Euphemism creates psychological
alienation between the signified and
signifier of linguistic symbols in
an
attempt to replace, conceal and attenuate taboos,
directness and
vulgarity of euphemism
(
?
, 1999). It exists in
certain speech
societies,
and
is
bound
to
be
influenced
by
specific
social
factors,
such
as age, occupation,
gender of social members, and the relevant context
and culture in the use of euphemism.
Liang Fangfang and other scholars
(2013) sighed the similarities and
differences between Chinese and
English
euphemisms under register theory, and found that
euphemism is a
common
form
of
language
communication
in
daily
communication.
Its
essence
is to
cover up some things which easily make people
disgusted and
embarrassed, so that
people's communication activities can proceed
normally. As euphemism is used in
certain speech societies, it is bound
to
be
influenced
and
restricted
by
social
factors.
Domestic
scholars
have
used Halliday's
register theory to interpret the similarities and
differences
between
Chinese
and
English
euphemisms
from
the
perspectives
of discourse
scope, mode and object. The concept of register
was first
proposed by Reid when he
studied bilingual phenomena, but it originated
from context of situation and context
of culture by Malinowski, an
anthropologist. On this basis, Firth of
the London School proposed that
exists
in
context
(
娈靛織楂
?
,
2009).
Later,
Halliday
inherited
his contextual theory and established
his own contextual theory. He
believed
that
language
would
produce
different
register
variants
because
of different occasions. He classifies
the situational context of
linguistic
features into three linguistic variables: field,
mode and
Tenor. These factors combine
to form a linguistic communicative
environment
that
restricts
register
variants.
Field
refers
to
the
purpose
and subject-matter
of the communication (
?
,
2000:46). It
includes topics of
conversation, activities attended by speakers and
other participants, such as fishery
jargon, educational jargon, medical
jargon, etc.
speech or
writing
?
, 2000:46), i.e.
play
through
what
means,
such
as
letters,
recordings,
etc.
(
娈靛織楂
?
,
2009).
Tenor:
relations
between
participants
< br>(
?
,
2000:46),
that
is,
their
relationship.
Previous studies have
shown that euphemism, as a linguistic variation,
reflects the relationship between
language, social culture and
communicative context. Halliday's
register theory gives us a new
perspective on Sociolinguistics and
language research. In theory, any
change in the three elements of field,
potential and mode will produce
register
changes,
which
will
affect
the
use
and
understanding
of
language.
Through the
analysis of Chinese and English euphemisms, people
can find
that under certain conditions
the use of euphemisms is roughly the same
but
different.
Therefore,
in
cross-cultural
communication,
people
should
understand
the
social
differences
of
different
cultures,
so
as
to
improve
our communicative
competence.
2.2 Scope of Euphemism
Euphemism is not only a linguistic
phenomenon, but also a cultural
phenomenon.
It
is
the
symbol
of
culture
in
communication.
There
is
no
doubt
that there are many euphemisms in
English and Chinese. They have
similarities and differences.
Euphemism, as a cultural phenomenon, is
like a mirror reflecting the deep
structure of different cultures,
specific
values,
ethics
and
national
psychology.
Like
everything
else
in
the
world,
language
is
constantly
changing,
and
euphemism
is
no
exception.
Although it is
complicated, some rules can be found. Shanfen He
(2012:377-382), a professor of Hunan
Normal University, in his book A
Contrastive Study of English and
Chinese Languages, systematically
introduces the following composing
methods of euphemism.
There are many
ways to compose English euphemism. Generally
speaking,
English
classes
use
word
formation,
pronunciation,
spelling,
vocabulary,
metaphor, and semantic conversion. 1)
Blending: Blending is the
combination
of two or more words into one word. For example,
goes under
night pot. 2) Initial ism:
Euphemisms consisting of the first letter of
taboo or non-inference. 3)
Mispronunciation: Mispronunciation is to
deliberately
distort
the
pronunciation
of
taboos
in
order
to
avoid
taboos.
For
example:
gad,
gosh,
God;
buggy
/
blurry
(bloody)
damn.
4)
Borrowing:
Borrowing refers
to the substitution of loanwords for words
considered
vulgar
in
native
languages.
Many
taboo
euphemisms
in
English
are
borrowed
from
Latin
and
French.
For
example,
enchain
and
derriere
are
borrowed
from
French to replace pregnant and use in
English, while urination and
copulation
are borrowed from Latin to replace piss and fuck
in English,
and cemetery is borrowed
from Greek to replace graveyard. 5) Semantic
Ascension:
It
includes
replacing
vulgar
and
ugly
taboos
with
mild
and
less
stimulating words to avoid taboos and
elegance, as well as using better
and
pleasant neutral words to cater to other people's
self-esteem and
vanity.
For
example:
fat
-
plump;
ugly
-
plain
/
homely.
Chinese
characters
are ideographs pictographs, not pinyin,
so the methods of euphemism
formation
are
different
from
English.
But
the
methods
adopted
by
Chinese
are
basically
similar
to
English,
mainly
including
the
methods
of
semantic
promotion,
circuitous, metaphor, conversion, broad ambiguity
and so on.
Chapter Three
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