【英語委婉語的起源及其社會(huì)交際功能【論文】】

英語委婉語的起源及其社會(huì)交際功能TheOriginofEnglishEuphemismanditsSocialCommunicativeFunctionContentTOC\o"1-3"\h\u103981Introduction 1111362OverviewofEnglishEuphemism 284752.1OriginofEuphemism 2238602.2ClassificationofEuphemism 211193TheCommunicativeFunctionofEuphemism 4152493.1"Taboo"Function 4255973.2"Politeness"Function 4256343.3"Disguise"Function 433654ThePhenomenonofPragmaticFailureinCross-culturalCommunication 653004.1Cross-culturalCommunication 675974.2InappropriateUseofTaboos 6277485CausesofDifferencesinEuphemismbetweenEnglishandChineseCultures 8219655.1DifferencesbetweenChineseandWesternValues 846915.2DifferentReligiousBackgroundsinChinaandtheWest 8179656StrategiestoPromotetheApplicationofEnglishEuphemisminCommunication 10131296.1StrengtheningCulturalIntroduction 10171906.2Enhancingculturalsensitivity 10313436.3EncouragingLearnerstocontacttheoriginalEnglish 116822Conclusion 1214265Reference 131IntroductionWiththefurtherdeepeningofChina'sreformandopeningup,theaccelerationofglobaleconomicintegration,theincreasinglyactivemarketeconomyandtheincreasingfrequencyofforeigneconomicandtradeexchanges,internationalcommercialrelationsbetweenChinaandforeigncountrieshavedevelopedunprecedentedly.Englishhasbecomeanimportantlanguagetoolininternationalinteraction.Euphemismisoftenusedasanimportantrhetoricaldeviceincommunicationandwrittenexpression,orinnegotiation.Thisstudycannotonlymakereadersunderstandmoreeuphemismexpression,butalsomakeanimpressionontheexpressionofeuphemismfromitsoriginandtheory.Theoreticallyspeaking,itisnotonlyconducivetootherresearchers'in-depthresearchonEnglishcommunicationskills,butalsocaneffectivelypromotethesuccessofcross-culturalcommunication.Theapplicationofthisruleisnotonlyrelatedtoculture,butalsorelatedtocommerce.Itplaysadecisiveroleinthedevelopmentofthetwocountriesandevenallovertheworld.

2OverviewofEnglishEuphemismSincethe1970s,oneofthebiggestchangesinContemporaryEnglish,especiallyAmericanEnglish,isthereturnofEnglish.Euphemism,asacommonlanguagephenomenoninlanguageuse,isalsoahistoricalculturalphenomenonintheprocessofhumandevelopment.2.1OriginofEuphemismEuphemismcomesfromGreek.Theprefix"EU"means"good",andthestem"phemism"means"speech"[1].Inotherwords,"euphemism"literallymeans"favorablewords"or"goodwords",alsoknownas"pleasantwords","decorativewords"or"comfortingwords".Inthe1580s,GeorgeBrontedefinedeuphemismas"euphemismisagoodorfavorableinterpretationofbadwords".Generallyspeaking,euphemismisdefinedasapleasantorambiguousdiscourse,ratherthananunpleasantmeaningordisrespectfulexpression.2.2ClassificationofEuphemism2.2.1TraditionalEuphemismandStylisticEuphemismTangHeng(2016)divideseuphemismintotraditionaleuphemismandstylisticeuphemismineuphemismdictionaryandvertigo[2].Thedifferencebetweentraditionaleuphemismandstylisticeuphemismmainlydependsonthetabooexpressionofthings.Ifexpressingsomethingistabooandcan'texpressitdirectly,thewordweuseiscalledtraditionaleuphemism.Traditionaleuphemismsusedifferentexpressionstoexpresstaboosthatcannotbeexpresseddirectly.Ifsometaboosareexpresseddirectly,somewillmakepeopleuncomfortableandvulgar,suchasbirth,aging,disease,death,gender,excreta,etc.However,ifweuseEuphemismtoexpressit,itiseasytobeaccepted,andwewillnotfeelstiffandashamed.Forexample,usinglovechildtoexpressillegitimatechildrenwillavoidalotofshame.Thegovernmentusuallyusesthisstylisticeuphemismtodeceive.IthasbecomeatoolforBritishandAmericanpoliticianstocoverupthetruth,deceivevotersanddeceivepublicopinion.Thistypeofeuphemismdeviatesfromtheoriginalmeaningofeuphemism,buttocoverup[3].Itiscloselyrelatedtopoliticallife.Forexample,strikecanalsobecalledindustrialactioninadditiontostrike;admittingfailureiscalledconcedethevictoryto.Theessenceofstylisticeuphemismistousecomplimentsorcomplimentstomeetpeople'spsychologicalneeds.Atthesametime,bepoliteandavoidconflict.2.2.2IntentionalEuphemismandUnintentionalEuphemismEuphemismcanbedividedintounintentionaleuphemismandintentionaleuphemism,whichdependsonwhetherpeoplecanremembertheoriginalmeaningofeuphemism.Intentionaleuphemismisalanguagegame,thatis,whenpeopleuseit,theycangenerallyrealizethattheyexpressimplicitmeaning.Suchexamplescanbeseeneverywhere.Whentheguestsayshewantstowashhishands,thespeakerhasintentionandthelistenercanunderstand,whichmeanshewantstogotothebathroom.Thiseuphemismisverypopularindailycommunicationbecauseitmakesuseofthedualityofwordmeaning.Duetoitslonghistory,theoriginalmeaningofsomewordshasbeenforgotten.Later,euphemismwasregardedastheoriginalmeaning,whichwascalledunintentionaleuphemism.CemeteryoriginatedfromGreekandiswillingtoexpressdormitoryorsleepingplace,butafterdevelopment,ithasgraduallyevolvedintoaeuphemismofEnglishgraveyardsincethe14thcentury[4].2.2.3TemporaryEuphemismandGeneralEuphemismAccordingtothefrequencyofuse,euphemismcanbedividedintotemporaryeuphemismandgeneraleuphemism.Temporaryeuphemism,asthenamesuggests,referstoeuphemismwithobvious"temporary"andisnotcommonlyused.Thengeneraleuphemismreferstothereadyuseofacertainunitinapopularlanguage.ThiseuphemismhasbecomeanorganicpartofEnglishthroughrepeateduse[5].Forexample:"pregnancy","death","oldage","poverty","toilet","detoxification",etc.ItcanbefoundthatmanysynonymsandEuphemismsindifferentbooks.Forexample,theword"poverty"hassomanyeuphemisms:thenounphrasehaslowincome;adverbphrasesincludebadlyoff,etc;Prepositionalphrasesincludeoutofpocket,indifficulties;Adjectivesandadjectivephrasesincludeunderprivileged,need,disadvantage.

3TheCommunicativeFunctionofEuphemismAsaspeciallanguageform,Englisheuphemismaimstobetterexpressmeaningandpromotecommunication,soithasitsspecialcommunicativefunction.3.1"Taboo"FunctionEuphemismisrelatedtotheoriginoftaboosinEnglish,resultingfrompeople'swrongunderstandingofobjectivethingsandlanguagerelations.Inotherwords,comparingnameswithrealthings,realitycancausefear,whichcanonlybeexpressedbyeuphemism,whichhasbecomeataboo.Therefore,eliminatingfearhasbecomethefirstcommunicativefunctionofEnglisheuphemism.TheearlytaboowastheawesomeGodanddevil.Theirnamesandentitiesgainpowerbeyondnature.ThecharacteristicsofGodcanbedescribedbyitscharacteristics(suchasthunder)ortheatmosphereofitsactivities(suchasrock)[6].IntheoldHebrewTestament,thenameofGodappearedonlyinletterswiththesamepronunciation,usuallyLord.Theoriginofeuphemismiscloselyrelatedtoculturalfactors,andtabooscannotexistinonelanguage.Therefore,euphemismisalsoaself-protectionpsychologybasedoninstinctivelypursuinginterestsandavoidingdisadvantages.3.2"Politeness"FunctionAnotherfunctionofeuphemismistoavoidoffensivewords.Ifyouaredealingwithanunpleasantthing,youmustchooseeuphemismtoavoidtheotherparty'sfeelingssoasnottohurttheotherparty.Thetheoreticalbasisofthismotivationcanbefoundinthepolitenessprinciple.Thenegativeformof"PolitenessPrinciple"canbesummarizedas“trytoreduceimpoliteexpressions”[7].Atthesametime,trytoextendpoliteexpressionsasmuchaspossible.Therefore,thefunctionofeuphemismisconsistentwiththepolitenessprinciple.Itcanbesaidthatthepolitenessprincipleconstitutesthebasisfortheuseofeuphemisminlanguagecommunication.Forexample,inEnglish,whenthebossdismissesaworker,hewillnotsayfire,butcontinuetousesenddown;peoplewhoaregreedyforlifeandafraidofoldalsowanttobepunished.Therefore,speakersshouldtrytoavoiddirectlymentioningsomefunctionsofthebody,gender,diseases,etc.,becausetheuseofeuphemismisalsoakindofpoliteness.3.3"Disguise"FunctionAnotherreasonwhypeopleuseEuphemismincommunicationisthateuphemismisvagueandmisleading,whichmakesitatoolforpoliticiansandunscrupulouselements.Itwillbeverybeneficialforbusinesspeopletouseeuphemismwhenthepoliticalsituationchanges.AftertheWatergateincidentintheUnitedStates,thereweremanyeuphemismsbyofficialstocoverupthescandal.Suchaconspiracyplaniscalledascenario.Thepeoplewhostealinformationforthepurposeareplumbers.Intheeyesofbusinessmen,interestcomesfirst,andadvertisementsforimprovingproductqualitycanbeseeneverywhere[8].InAmericanshipping,firstclassisDeluxeinsteadoffirstclass,soeconomyclassisupgradedandsecondclassbecomesfirstclass.Socialproblemsinmodernsociety,suchaswarcrimes,drugabuse,raceandsoon,emergeoneafteranother.Iftheseproblemscannotbesolved,thiseuphemismwillnotdieout.

4ThePhenomenonofPragmaticFailureinCross-culturalCommunicationDuetothelackofunderstandingoftheuseofeuphemism,therewillalsobepragmaticfailureincross-culturalcommunication.Thischapterwillanalyzethetypicalfailurephenomena.4.1Cross-culturalCommunication4.1.1PragmaticLanguageFailurePragmaticerrorsrefertosomepragmaticdefectscausedbythespeaker'slanguageexpressiondoesnotconformtothelanguagehabitsofthelanguageandmisusetheexpressionofotherlanguages.Orthespeakerdoesnotunderstandthecorrectexpressionoftheforeignlanguageandintegratesthelanguagehabitsofthemothertongueintotheforeignlanguageexpression.Forexample,teacherscorrecteachother'sgreetingsinthefirstclasseveryyear,from"goodmorning,teacher"to"goodmorning,Miss/Mrs./Mr.+lastname".Thereasonforpragmaticfailureisthatmothertongueformsareusedtousemothertonguestrategiestoachievethetargetlanguage.4.1.2SocialPragmaticFailureSociopragmaticfailurereferstotheerrorsoflanguageformsmadebybothsidesofcommunicationduetodifferentculturalbackgrounds.Specialattentionshouldbepaidtotheidentity,registrationandpublicityoftheparties'information[9].Pragmaticfailureisalanguagebarrier.Socialpragmaticfailureisapartoftheculturalbackgroundandsocialstandardsofconversation.Forexample,aChineseandanAmericanfriendchatenthusiastically:A：Howmanychildrendoyouhave?B：Idon’tknow．InChinesetraditionalculture,thecommunicationbetweenpeoplepaysattentiontomutualcareandunderstanding,andthereisalmostnothingthatcannotbetalkedabout.However,westerncountriesareself-centered,advocateindividualismandpayattentiontoprivacy.Personalinformationthatpeopledon'twanttoknowisnotwillingtobesoughtandinterferedbyothers.Incross-culturalcommunication,theso-called"freetopic"oftalkingaboutmarriage,familystatus,incomeandotherprivacywithAmericanandBritishpeopleisnotgood,whichisakindofsocialpragmaticfailure.4.2InappropriateUseofTaboosWhenitcomestodeath,certainpartsofthebody,bodyexcreta,sex,etc.,thesewordsarecompletelytabooinpublic.Sodon'ttalkaboutitinpublic,includinginschooltextbooks.Althougheveryoneknowsthatthesearetaboos,theyneedtofindacorrecteuphemism,sotheyneedtouseeuphemismforcommunication.Differentlanguagesexpressthesesensitiveareasindifferentways,andeventhesamewordhasdifferentmeaningsindifferentlanguages.Ifwedonotunderstandthesedifferences,pragmaticfailurewilloccurincross-culturalcommunication.Inwesternculture,Westernersattachimportancetoindependenceandfreeself,soWesternersareveryconcernedaboutpersonalprivacy.InEnglish,thereisasaying"aperson'shouseishiscastle",whichmeansthataperson'sfamilyissacredtohimandnooneisallowedtoenterwithoutpermission[10].Thesameistrueofpersonallife.Privateissuessuchasage,religiousbelief,income,politicalviewsandfamilyaretaboosforchattingwithpeopleinwesterncountries.Ageandincomearethemaintaboos.

5CausesofDifferencesinEuphemismbetweenEnglishandChineseCulturesDuetothedifferentculturalbackgroundsandreligiousbeliefsbetweenChinaandthewest,therearesomedifferencesintheuseofeuphemism.Thischapterwillanalyzethereasonsforthedifferences.5.1DifferencesbetweenChineseandWesternValuesChineseculturefocusesoncollectiveinterests,whichareinterdependentandcooperativewithindividualinterestsandvaluesintheeyesoftheChinesepeople.Chinesepeopleareusuallymodestandcautious.Theyhavethetraditionalspiritofcollectivism.Intheirview,collectiveinterestsarethehighestinterests,andpersonalinterestscannotbegreaterthansocialandcollectiveinterests.Inwesternculture,everythingiscenteredonindividualisticvalues,andtheinterestsofindividualsarehigherthanthoseofsociety,thecollectiveandothers[11].Taketheattitudetowards"old"asanexample.Inordertoaddresstheelderlyorpeopleofhighmoralstanding,theword"lao"isusuallyaddedaftertheirsurnametoshowrespect,suchas"LaoZhangandLaoLi".Olderpeoplearecalled"oldcomrades,oldteachers,oldcadresandoldrevolutionaries".InourChinese,"old"representsmaturity,experience,knowledge,etc..Onthecontrary,thevalueof"old"isreflectedinBritishandAmericanculture,whichisasymbolofdecayandneardeath.Agingmeansnochildren,noonetotakecareofthemandnoeconomicsecurity.That'swhyitalsosymbolizestheoldlifeoflonelinessandhelplessness.Therefore,theBritishandAmericansaremostafraidofold,andtheyalsotaboothewordold.5.2DifferentReligiousBackgroundsinChinaandtheWestIntheHanculture,duetohistoricalandculturalreasons,mostpeoplebelieveinTaoismandBuddhism.TaoismisanativeChinesereligion.ThereligiousthoughtofTaoismexpressestheisolatedwayoflife.Reflectedindeath,euphemismsinclude"仙詩、別家、敦化、仙游"andsoon.Buddhismemphasizesthereincarnationoflifeanddeath.ItbelievesthatonlybyconvertingtoBuddhismcanwegetridofthepainofreincarnationandenjoythefunofheaveninheaven.Theeuphemismoftheirdeathis"遷化、圓寂、舍生、回歸凈土"[12].MostWesternersbelieveinChristianityandCatholicism.Theypaymoreattentiontotheirsins,sothattheirsoulsmaygotoheavenwithGodafterdeath.Therefore,theWesterneuphemismofdeathhasexpressionssuchasbewithGod,gotoabetterworld,beinheaven,etc.Duetodifferentreligiousandculturalbackgrounds,euphemismsinChinaandWesterncountriesareverydifferent.Soifyoutalkaboutreincarnationwithwesterners,theywillbeconfused.IfyoutalkaboutatonementwithChinesepeoplewhodon'tknowmuchaboutwesternreligions,theChinesepeoplewillbeataloss.Becausethecultureofeachcountryandregionisunique.Althoughtherearesimilarities,therearealsogreatdifferences.Inviewofthis,intheprocessofcross-culturalcommunication,everyonemustunderstandtheirowncultureandeachother's,otherwisetherewillbemanyproblemsintheprocessofcommunication.

6StrategiestoPromotetheApplicationofEnglishEuphemisminCommunicationThephenomenonofpragmaticfailureincross-culturalcommunicationgiveslanguageusersagoodenlightenment:onlybybeingfamiliarwiththeculture,etiquetteandhabitsofthecommunicationobject,canuseravoidpragmaticfailureandsuccessfullycarryoutcross-culturalcommunication.6.1StrengtheningCulturalIntroductionAtpresent,Chinesestudents'comprehensivelanguageabilityisrelativelygood,buttheircross-culturalcomprehensibilityispoorandtheylacksocialcommunicationskills.Infact,whentheleveloflanguageabilityimproves,culturalbarriersbecomemoreprominent.Pragmaticfailureandculturalmisreadingareeasytobedetected,whichwillleadtofrictionandevencommunicationbarriers[13].Itisgenerallybelievedthatpragmaticcompetencecanbecultivatedbylearningaforeignlanguage.Inotherwords,theconsciousintroductionofforeigncultureintolanguageeducationishelpfultocultivatestudents'pragmaticabilitytocommunicatewithpeopleinrelevantcountries.Becauselearningaforeignlanguageisnotonlytoprovidelanguageknowledge,butalsotocultivatestudents'communicativecompetenceandcross-culturalcommunicativecompetence.6.2EnhancingculturalsensitivityPragmatisminanycountryiscloselyrelatedtonationalinterests.Theanalysisoftheuseoflanguageiscloselyrelatedtothenationalculturalbackground.Underdifferentculturalbackgrounds,peoplewillhavedifferentwaysofthinkingandspeaking.ThepragmaticfailureincardculturecommunicationisduetothelackofsystematicresearchonWesternculture,especiallytheresearchontheculturaldifferencesbetweenChinaandtheWest.Therefore,languageusersmustactivelyunderstandculturaldifferencesandavoidlanguagechannelsandinterferencewithcommunication[14].Toimprovethesensitivitytoculturaldifferencesistocorrectlyunderstandthedifferencesbetweenlocalcultureandtargetculturethroughobjectiveandnonjudgmentalcomparisonandanalysis,andeliminatethesenseofracialsuperiorityonthebasisofacorrectunderstandingofanotherculture.Incontrast,weshouldunderstandthatdifferencesarenormal,notbad.Onlywheretherearecomparisonscantherebedifferences.Onlybycomparingthesimilaritiesanddifferencesbetweenthetwoculturescanweobtainthesensitivitytoculturaldifferences.6.3EncouragingLearnerstocontacttheoriginalEnglishWiththein-depthdevelopmentofChina'seconomicreform,theatmosphereofforeignlanguagelearningisbecomingstrongerandstronger,andEnglishmagazinesemergeoneafteranother.Schoolsandsocietycanrecommendexcellentjournalstostudents,guidestudentstograduallycontactbooks,notesandoriginalworks,readsomeliteraryworksandexpandtheirreadingvolume.Internet,radioandtelevisionarealsoshortcutstoenrichforeignlanguagecoursesandextracurricularEnglishlearning,sothatstudentscancultivatecertainlanguagecommunicationabilityandaestheticability.Atthesametime,Americanfilmandmusicalsoprovideawealthofknowledge.Someexcellentfilmsprovidestudentswithexperience,extendstudents'languagepracticescenes,andopenupabroadworldforthemtolearnEnglish[15].Inaddition,musicisverypopularamongstudents.LearningtosingEnglishsongsisalsoagoodwaytoeliminateobstaclesincross-culturalcommunication.

ConclusionEuphemismisapolitelanguagethatregulatespeople'sbehaviorfromtheperspectiveofpoliteness.Euphemismisapowerfullanguagetool.Itplaysanirreplaceableroleininterpersonalcommunication.Inaddition,whenweexpresswishes,praise,expectations,criticism,concern,congratulationsandotherscenesinourdailycommunication,euphemismisalsoanimportantwayofexpression,whichcanhelp