The Communicative Functions of English Euphemism

1、 英语委婉语的交际功能 the communicative functions of english euphemismabstracteuphemism is the common phenomenon in the process of using language. it is not only a social linguistic phenomenon, but also a cultural phenomenon. whether in daily life or foreign communication, we have to deal with euphemism. due

2、to different habits, customs, and social taboos in different cultural backgrounds, euphemism has different cultural meanings and functions. in order to avoid embarrassment or unpleasantness in intercultural communication, we should understand the different cultural meanings and functions. therefore,

3、 the current research attempts to explore communicative functions of euphemism with concrete examples of language in a particular context. in the beginning of the paper definitions and origin of english euphemism are to be introduced. then functions of euphemism are to be introduced and explained wi

4、th concrete examples in its own context and background. in the paper six functions of euphemism are explained: taboo function, courtesy function, cover function, positive function, self-protection function, humor and satire function. only do we recognize the functions and meanings of euphemism in di

5、fferent backgrounds and different environments, will we be able to be polite and avoid misunderstanding and miscommunication. therefore, the knowledge and researches on euphemism is to contribute to effective english learning and cross cultural communication.key words: euphemism; function; taboo; cr

6、oss-cultural communication摘 要委婉语是人类使用语言过程中的一种普遍现象。它不仅是一种社会语言现象,更是一种文化现象。不管是在日常生活还是在涉外交际中，我们都会遇到委婉语。由于某些生活习惯或习俗差异，以及不同文化背景，不同的的社会具忌讳，委婉语在不同的文化里有不同的含义和功能，这时我们就必须学会使用委婉语以避免尴尬或不愉快。所以本文试图通过具体的例子来探究在特定的语言环境下英语委婉语的交际功能。本文首先介绍委婉语的定义和起源，然后介绍并解释委婉语的六大功能：避讳功能，礼貌功能，掩饰功能，积极功能，自我保护功能,幽默和讽刺功能，并用大量的实例结合语境和文化背景解释说明。

7、只有了解委婉语的不同文化含义和功能，才能避免误解和冲突，才能有礼貌，达到成功的交际目的。委婉语的学习和研究对于我们学好英语，进行有效的跨文化交际有很大的帮助。关键词：委婉语；功能；忌讳；跨文化交际contentsabstract.i摘要. ii introduction. .1 the definition and origin of english euphemism.2 the functions of english euphemism.3 3.1 taboo function.3 3.2 courtesy function .4 3.3 cover function.5 3.4 pos

8、itive function.6 3.5 self-protection function.7 3.6 humor and satire function.8 conclusion.9bibliography.10the communicative functions of english euphemism introductioneuphemism, as one of the important figures in english language learning, plays a significant role in the communication. language com

9、munication is the foundation for maintaining social relations and interpersonal relations, so people would like to take a circuitous way to express ideas and exchange information rather than use offensive language. therefore, the date when euphemism generated, it is on the shoulder of “lubrication”

10、(the important task of communication).language just like a mirror that reflects our mind, and euphemism, as part of language has the same function. euphemism has existed throughout recorded history and with the development of society, it permeates every field. euphemism is “mild, pleasant or inoffen

11、sive expressions substituted for harsh, blunt, coarse or unpleasant ones”. the reasons why people use them are complicated. sometimes they are used for avoiding taboos, and sometimes they are used for being polite or considering the feelings of other people. without euphemism, the world comes to a h

12、alt because of the frication and resentments that would arise among people. how to use and understand euphemism becomes more and more important nowadays. so this paper bases on the concrete examples to discuss the social functions: taboo function, courtesy function, cover function, positive function

13、, self-protection function，humor and satire function. the definition and origin of english euphemismlanguage reflects peoples thoughts and feelings, and arouses peoples each kind of imagination simultaneously. engels argued that language generated for the need to adapt to communication, once produce

14、d, it has become mankinds most important means of communication. when people use certain words that are referring to image of object, which will be vividly apparent in peoples eyes, meanwhile it will cause corresponding psychological reactions. so different expressions can reflect different results,

15、 even if it is a common one. if the expression is inappropriate, it can make others hurt, on the contrary, it leads to others to be moved or convincing. for this reason, in order to avoid using of those unpleasant words directly or the words which cause people unrest, fear, sadness, or disgust and o

16、ther emotions in words, there has been a euphemism.the word “euphemism” comes from a greek word, “eu-” meaning “good” and “-pheme” meaning “speech” or “saying”, and thus its literary meaning is “a good speech or good saying”. later on, euphemism is defined differently and more precisely. in new edit

17、ion of the oxford concise dictionary（1976）, it is described as “substitution of mild or vague or roundabout expression for harsh or direct one”. it is taken as “the substitution of supposedly milder or more decent language for what is felt to be harsh or unseemly” by english linguistic thomas pyles

18、in his word and expressions of american english.now let us take a glance over the origin of english euphemism. we can trace back the history of english euphemism in the anglo-saxon times, some euphemism has been found in the text of its national epic, beowulf. after norman conquest in 1066, euphemis

19、m began to thrive. then in the victorian period, euphemism reached its peak. as we know, the victorian society was one of the most taboo-minded and taboo-ridden societies. from the above mentioned, we can draw the conclusion that english euphemism has been surviving and thriving ever since very star

20、t of ancient time. the functions of english euphemism3.1 taboo functionthe generation of euphemism is closely related to language taboo of early human civilization. language taboos originated from the erroneous understanding of the relationship between the language and objective things. therefore, f

21、or the purpose of better communication, language can not use words that can cause fear, which only use euphemism instead.the word “taboo” is from tongan of polynesia, the pacific island, in which strictly prohibits contacting or talking about the sacred or menial things according to the local custom

22、s. the birth of euphemism can be related to the taboo words in religion. a large number of people in american believe in christianity, and christian culture penetrates into the western language, and its great influence on euphemism is unlimited. christians believe that the god creates and controls t

23、he world and their souls will be saved in the heaven when they die, so plenty of euphemism is related to the bible or legends and allusions of christianity, many of which reflect the christian outlook on life and their interpretation to death. thus euphemistic title related to god has a large number

24、 in english, some use of voice tools: “gad”, “gosh”, “golly”, and more by means of semantic composition of euphemism: “king of kings”，“the creator/maker”，“our father”, “the light of the world”，“the eternal” and “holy one”. later, the taboo gradually extended to other areas, people are reluctant to u

25、tter a single word about death, so they always use euphemism when they have to refer to it. using words instead of the other is to eliminate or weaken the original intent. for example, the topic of death is not mentioned, because “death” often make people fear, pain psychology. however, on different

26、 occasions, different situations for different peoples death, we need a lot of different euphemism according to the speakers different attitudes, just like“驾崩”,“薨”,“逝世”,“去世”,“心脏停止跳动”,“与世长辞”,“谢世”,“捐躯”,“牺牲”,“就义”,“阵亡”,“圆寂”,“遇难”,“长眠”,“安息”, “寿终”,“亡故”,“千古”,“升天了”,“去见马克思了”,“翘辫子了” in chinese. similarly, so d

27、oes in english. for example, “go/be gone”, “go west”, “pass away”, “be at rest”, “be in/ go to heaven”, “ go to sleep forever”, “leave this world”, “ to fall asleep”, “ breathe ones last”, “be in abrahams bosom”, “have the curse”, “go to a better place”, “depart”, “be at peace”, “return to dust” and

28、 so on.examples:(1) his father passed away when he was only five.(2) he worked until he breathed his last. “diseases” is a nasty matter, people often use euphemism to avoid hurting others. we often use “under the weather” instead of “sick”; “have a heart condition” instead of “heart disease”; “menta

29、l health center” instead of “madhouse” or “mental hospital”.3.2 courtesy functionpoliteness is a symbol of human civilization. politeness is an important principle of human social activities. people always pay attention to politeness and try to avoid conflicts in the process of communication. the “m

30、oderate” feature of euphemism makes courtesy function.in the study of linguistic politeness, the most relevant concept is face. your face, in pragmatics, is your public self-image. this is the emotional and social sense of self that every person has and expects to be recognized. politeness is showin

31、g awareness of another persons face. in social occasions, people always treat people with courtesy and avoid rude words and deeds. people use euphemism to show his politeness, and also think more about taking care of each others sensibilities, which can get others favorable impression. for example,

32、we cant call the old people “old people”, because there is a corresponding relation between old and weak, so it is always used “past one spring”, “getting on years”, “senior citizens”, “the longer lived”, “seasoned men” instead of “old people”. next, occupation is a sensitive topic in our life. on o

33、ne hand, according to peoples idea of equal status regardless of profession, we often say, everybody has his own speciality. however, people still do not like to be called directly. anglo-saxon countries have the same idea. for example, “waiter and waitress” are called “dining-room attendants”, “gar

34、bage collector” to “sanitary engineer”. on the other hand, the distinction of the level of employment in the west is clear, a number of disadvantaged people in their own humble career are also very responsive, and therefore, there are many euphemism for occupational names. now in the service industr

35、y we always use “industry” instead of “trade”. just like “the hotel industry”, “the tourist industry”, “the clothing industry”, “the garbage industry” and “the motor vehicle industry”.what is more, poverty and unemployment are also a sensitive topic in daily life. because everyone wants to get other

36、s respect, so we should take care when talking about poverty or something associated with it. if we call others poor directly, it is obviously to angry the other and cause the others unhappiness and embarrassment, therefore there has a lot of euphemism for the poor. for example, “out of pocket” inst

37、ead of “penniless”; “needy” to “poor”; “underprivileged people” or “to be down on one s luck” to “poor people”; “welfare workers” to “unemployed workers”; “lay off” to “dismiss”. in communication, it is considered that dirty and unpleasant words should be replaced by that subtle, pleasant, elegant e

38、uphemism and say what he thought indirectly, so as to avoid arousing unpleasantness and achieve the best communicative effects. if we want to fire somebody, we dont use the word “fire” but use “discontinue”. “professor” means “a person who teaches in college”, but now we also call the bass or the ma

39、gician “professor” to show respect. can often be seen notices in public places in the west, just like “thank you for notsmoking here.” it is better than “smoking is strictly prohibited, and offenders fined x yuan.” this is full of a liberal tone of the advice and makes it willing to accept requireme

40、nt. we try our best to use some tactful words to avoid the hurt to others and show our respect, politeness, and consideration. in a civilized society, everyone needs to attach importance to politeness. in a way, the polite function of euphemism may be more important and useful in our daily life. 3.3

41、 cover functionone reason for the use of euphemism is embellishment. for avoiding irritation and injury to the litigants and maintaining his self-esteem, it is necessary to avoid being considered uncivilized or unsympathetic to the person who has some physical defects and other shortcomings. the pur

42、pose of doing that is to ensure communication smoothly. the following example often occurs in our daily life. the two people are talking about their figures, the one who is little fat than others, is going on a diet, asks the other “am i thinner than before?” the other do not think she is thinner th

43、an before, but she can not say that, because it will hurt her confidence, so she says “if you hold on ,it will be better and you will succeed”. another reason for using it is that euphemism itself sometimes can be rather spurious and deceptive. then this kind of character becomes a tool for some pol

44、iticians and profiteers to cheat the society. such euphemism is aiming at avoiding the importance and dwelling on the trivial, and covers up the truth. in the united states, the official tried to cover up the “watergate” scandal, created a lot of euphemism. this plot is called “scenario plan”, “the

45、ones to steal information” are called “plumbers” (pipeline workers), and then this crime committed by the us government is called “white houshorror” (the white houses panic). the following examples are those produced by government officials who continue to serve its political purposes of euphemism:

46、“a house of correction”, “inappropriate”, “strategic withdraw”, “intelligence gathering”, “substandard housing”, “capital punishment”, and “international armed conflict”. the use of such euphemism intended to mislead and deceive the people, and caused strong resentment among the people. in internati

47、onal political affairs, especially in the military sphere, the use of a large number of euphemism is to cover up the truth of the matter. the u.s. government has chosen “operation sunshine” to cover the hydrogen bomb experiments in the pacific despicable acts. americans used “bombing” is called “clo

48、se air support” in the vietnam war, the killing of civilians in vietnam is called “wasting the enemy”. what is obviously “civilian casualties”, can casually be called “collateral damage”; “aggression” is said to be an “invasion” or “involvement”, “air strike” is said to be “air option” and “attack”

49、to “pacify the area” (so that it can maintain the peace in this region). the use of such euphemism is not only to conceal the nature of their own, but also to conceal the brutality of war and change the peoples feeling towards the war. there are also euphemism in the economic field, for example, we

50、often use “economic crisis” instead of “depression” or “recession”. some people do not even recognize the economic recession, only recognizing the economic downturn. it is said that scarcity of goods can be regarded as having the low availability factor; it is the same as the price of product cut. m

51、anufacturers promote their products, using euphemism in order to deceive consumers. example: the celebrated company-ford motor has such a passage in their promotional materials: continued driving with a failed bearing could result in disengagement of the shaft and adversely affect vehicle control.th

52、e essence of this passage gives us the impression that it does not matter whether his car has such serious problems, but when this problem occurred, and if you continued driving，all the consequences only by you personal responsible. this is pure sophistry of company.3.4 positive functiona lexical wo

53、rd can be divided into two terms: commendatory term and derogatory term, and if the semantic meaning of word caused people upset, it would be replaced by euphemism. although euphemism is similar to the original word semantically, the use of euphemism is to turn negative factors into positive ones. t

54、herefore, the use of euphemism has a positive function. the following two aspects of the positive function are particularly prominent.(1) school educationit is important for school education to express appropriately, especially for primary education. the attitudes and evaluation of teachers will have a subtle psychological impact on students. moderate attitude, respectable language and encouraging evaluation will produce a positive psychological suggestion, and thus create a good educational environment. sometimes people are often motivated out of a good use of some e