合同-货物进出口合同的语言特征分析

1、本科毕业设计（论文）题目货物进出口合同的语言特征分析学院外国语学院年级专业英语经贸班级学号学生姓名 指导教师职称论文提交日期ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSI would like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude to all the people who have ever helped me in this paper.Firstly, my sincere and hearty thanks and appreciations go firstly to my supervisor, Ms Zhu, whose encou

2、ragement and suggestions have given me so remarkable insights into literary studies. I am extremely grateful for her valuable academic instructions during my study. The work would not have been possible without her patient guidance, continuous encouragementand generous support. It has been a great p

3、rivilege and joy to study under her guidance and supervision. Furthermore, it is my honor to benefit a lot from her personalities and diligence, which I will treasure in my whole life.Secondly, I would like to thank all the other teachersfor their enlightenment, knowledge, encouragement and help thr

4、oughout my study at CIT.Finally, my gratitude is given to my dear friends and fellow students, who have accompanied me throughout the four years at the university.摘要随着改革开放的深入发展、市场经济的不断完善以及成功加入世贸组织，我国在世界经济活动中显示出了巨大的活力，与世界上许多国家建立了贸易合作关系，对外经贸往来日益频繁，对世界经济的发展起着举足轻重的作用。贸易的双方通过谈判或者函电协商达成协议后，大都需要签订正式的书面合同，以

5、作为此项法律行为成立的依据。货物进出口合同作为促进世界经济发展的桥梁，它的地位日益突出，作用越来越大。货物进出口合同作为一种法律性文件，规定了合同各方的权利与义务，对当事双方具有同等约束力，它涉及国家、企业、团体间的经济活动。它的签署具有法律地位，应该体现法律语言的严谨性。本文主要借助大量出现在货物进出口合同中的典型例子，对合同的语言特征进行了具体和详细的阐述。首先介绍了进出口合同的概念，其次从正式词语、专业术语、古体词、外来词、缩略词等方面阐述了合同的用词特征，然后从陈述句、复杂句、定语从句、状语从句、被动语态等方面阐述了合同的句式特点。关键词：货物进出口合同；语言特征；用词特征；句式特征A

6、BSTRACTAn Analysis on Language Features of Import and Export ContractShi FengjuanWith the further development of China's reform and opening up, the constant improvement of China's market-oriented economy, and its successful accessionto the WTO , China shows enormous enthusiasm in the world&#

7、39;s economic activities. Our country has established trade relationship with a number of countries around the world, and foreign trade activities become more and more frequent, which plays a leading role on the stage of world economy. Official contract should be made after bilateral negotiation or

8、business correspondence, which is acted as a basis of setting up this legal transaction. As a bridge to boost the development of world's economy, it plays a more and more outstandingly important role. As one type of law file, the import and export contract stipulates the rights and obligations o

9、f the two parties, and it is an equal legally binding contract. It involves economic activities carried out by countries, enterprises, and organizations. After signing business contract, it enjoys a legal status. Therefore, to show the strictness of legal language, a rigorous and accurate way of exp

10、ress will be required.In this piece of thesis, a huge number of classic examples appearing in import and export contract will be applied to make a specific and detailed statement about its language features. First, it gives a definition to import and export contract. Second, the thesis states the le

11、xical features of import and export contract from the use of formal words, technical terms, archaic words, loan words, abbreviations etc. Last, from the aspects of declarative sentence,complex sentence, attributive clause, adverbial clause, passive voice, it states the features of its sentence struc

12、ture.Key words: import and export contract; language features; lexical features; features of sentence structureTABLE OF CONTENTSACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii摘要 iiiABSTRACTivTABLE OF CONTENTS vChapter One In troduct ion 1Chapter Two The Defin iti on of Import an dExport Con tract 3Chapter Three The LexicalFeat

13、ures ofImporta nd Export Con tract 43.1 Formal words 43.2 Technical terms 53.2.1 Bus in ess words 53.2.2 Legal terms 63.3 Archaic Words 63.3.1 here+ preposition 73.3.2 there+ preposition 83.3.3 where+ preposition 83.4 Loan Words 83.5 Abbreviations 93.5.1 Direct Abbreviati on 93.5.2 Use Comma 93.5.3

14、Use T 103.6 Using of Shall 10Chapter Four sentence structure features of import and export con tract 111. Declarative sentence 112. Long Complex Sentence 113. Attributive clause 124. passive voice 13Chapter Five Con clusi on 14REFERENCES 15Chapter One IntroductionOur country has been continuing to e

15、xpand and deepenthe reform in the field of foreign trade since China9s accession into World Trade Organization. The development of foreign trade plays a leading role in China9s economics. With the acceleration of global economic integration, international commercial activities become more and more c

16、ommon. In doing businesseswith foreign countries, import and export contracts have the important status. Contracts as a legal instrument regulate the responsibilities and obligations of both parties involved in the commercial activities. The party will be responsible for making compensation if he fa

17、ils to fulfill the contractual obligation. On the other hand, protecting all parties 9 legal rights and interests is the main function of foreign trade contract in commercial activities with foreign corporations. As Yu Sumei said a contract is an agreement which sets binding obligations of the parti

18、es concemed.(l) In fact, the execution of contract is central sector in commercial and economic activities. Being aware of the importance of import and export contract and the necessities of them, more and more Chinese scholars have engaged in studying the use of import and export contract, and, at

19、the same time, series of articles or books have appeared. A large number of these books focus on characteristic of linguistic and English-Chinese translation in import and export contract. Song Dewen who studies Business English Contract wrote a book named "A study of English contract; style an

20、d translation". From the title to the arrangement of this book, the author analyzes the stylistic characteristics, linguistic features of Business English Contract and the strategies of English-Chinese translation.(2) "'Business writing" wrote by Yu Sumei discussesthe linguistic f

21、eatures of Business English Contract.(3) Mo Zaishu has his ideas about the stylistic features of Business English Contract, the choice of words, sentence structures and English-Chinese translations.(4) After I have studying carefully about these books, I find that there seems to be a lack of discuss

22、ing the language features of import and export contract in details. In view of this, this paper is intent to discuss the language features of import and export contract generally and state clearly the definition, lexical features, and the features of sentence structure with the purpose of providing

23、some enlightening ideas and helping give a further understanding about international rules in foreign trade to those who needs.In this thesis, the author statesthe definition of import and export contract in the second chapter, which can give a general idea about this type of contract. In the third

24、part, lexical features of the import and export contract are analyzed in detail to show the kinds of words needed and the use of these words. And in the forth chapter, the features of sentence structure of the import and export contract are analyzed, declarative sentence,long complex sentence,and at

25、tributive sentence are mainly used in the contract. In the last part, a brief conclusion is made.Chapter Two The Definition of Import and ExportContractWith the further development of reform and opening-up and its accession to the World Trade Organization, China is playing an increasingly active rol

26、e in the world economic activities and enlarging its cooperation with an increasing number of countries. Under these circumstances, contracts play a important role between nations in the commercial activities. Therefore understanding the definition of import and export contract is quite necessaryin

27、dealing with foreign trade. According to Article 2 of The Contract Law of The people's republic of China,(5) contract refers to the agreement between equal person, legal person and other organization for the purpose of establishing, altering and terminating mutual civil rights and obligations. T

28、hat is to say, a contract firstly has legal character and is a kind of legal activity. "In the broadest sense, a contract is simply an agreement that defines a relationship between one or more parties''(6) said by Shipper. K. C. He further had pointed out that a commercial contract, in

29、simplest terms, is merely an agreement made by two or more parties for the purpose of transacting business.(7)As an legal document, a contract plays an important role in international economic trade activities when all the parties carry on business and in protecting the legal rights and interests of

30、 theirs. Therefore, import and export contract is a written agreement signed by legal person, or other economic organization with foreign natural person or other organizations of each party(l)(2). No matter what kinds of contracts or wherever they are signed, they are regarded as legal documents. Th

31、ey have legal position. So, an import and export contract does not only have obvious characteristics, but also it is related to legal English features. The respective rights and obligations in import and export contract should be list and the content should be listed in details, as well as all the t

32、erms and conditions agreed upon by the parties. As Song Lei said "a contract serves as a significant legal document basis for the contracting parties at home and abroad to conduct translation and defend their respective right and interest。 )”Chapter Three The Lexical Features of Import andExpor

33、t Con tractAs a very practical type of writ ing, the import and export con tract does not seek the artistic beauty of Ian guage, but the accuracy and precise ness of the stateme nt and clarity and orga ni zati on of thought. Formal words, technical terms, archaic words, loan words, abbreviations, an

34、d synonyms are widely used in import and export con tract, which fully reflects the lexical features on the level of vocabulary in the import and export con tract.3.5.1 Formal wordsCon tract En glish is a very formal and professi onal writte n Ian guage, becauseit n eeds to explicitly stipulate the

35、rights, responsibilities and obligations of the parties, therefore, vocabularies or words used in import and export con tract must embody sole mn and formal styles so that it can accurately and objectively express both parties5 intention. Some concentrated reflections of this feature are verbs'

36、or nouns' use, and inclined to use a little complex prepositi onal phrase to replace some simple prepositi ons or conjun cti ons.Example 1, At the request of Party A, Party B agrees to send the goods to assist Party A to grasp the selli ng seas on.译：应A方的要求,B方同意发货协助A方抓住销售旺季。In this sen ten ce,ass

37、ist is more formal tha n help.Example 2, Shipment will commence within 45 days after receiving the L/C.译：卖方收到信用证后45后内完成装运并起运。In this senten ce,comme ncehas the same meaning with beg in and start, but comme nceis more formal and sole mn.Example 3, (1) In accorda nce with the Joint Ven ture Law and ot

38、her releva nt Chin ese laws and regulations, both parties of the joint venture agree to set up ABC joint venture limited liability compa ny.(2) Party B shall guara ntee that the mach ines to be provided are in accorda nce with Party As requirements and specifications.译?. 0按照中国的合资企业法和其他有关法律和法规，合同双方同意

39、建立 ABC合资有限 责任公 司。乙方保证所供应的机器符合甲方的要求和规格。In these two sen ten ces,i n accorda nce with replaces accord ing to, and it is obviously much more formal.3.5.2 Tech ni cal termsTechnical terms are some special words in some specific fields, and all these technical terms have their specific meaningsand are wi

40、dely used in their own fields. Intern ati onal bus in ess activities cover a wide range and in clude two main professi onal fields, that is, bus in ess and law. In order to make con tract more clear and accurate, avoid ambiguous problems, and protect con tract parties5 in terests, tech ni cal terms

41、are ofte n used, which has outsta nding stylistic characteristics. The meaning of it is accurate, unique, and with no personal emotion, which is an importa nt role in import and export con tract.Bus in ess wordsImport and export con tract mai nly refers to intern ati onal trade and intern ati onal i

42、n vestme nt, therefore many technical words about international trade, international payments, and intern ati onal inv estme nt are usually used in import and export con tract.For example： Bill of lading （提单）、 packing list （装箱单）、confinned L/C （保兑信用 证）、general average （共同海损）、claim （索赔）、force 不可抗力）、 l

43、etter of credit（信用证）、endorsement （背书）、right of recourse （追索权）、inflation （通货膨胀）、custom duty （关 税）、all risks （一切险）、foreig n excha nge （夕卜汇）、con sig nor （托运人）、con sig nee （收 货 etCoThese technical terms have been formed with the development of trade in the long term, and are usually very formal and comm

44、o nly used intern ati on ally. Through those, all the courses ofdeali ng can be simplified and work efficie ncy can be improved.Legal termsAs con tract itself bel ongs to a kind of docume nt of law, differe nt kinds of legal terms commo nly occur throughout the whole con tract. Once the con tract is

45、 sig ned by each party, it has legal validity and is bin di ng on all parties. So the tech ni cal terms about law in the con tract are to prescribe rights and obligati ons of parties.Example 1, If buyer fails to comply with the conditions of this article, Seller may, in addition to any other remedie

46、s, suspe nd all performa nee un til buyer has so complied.译:若买方未能遵循该条款,卖方除采取其他补救措施以外，可中止履行该合同直至买方继续履行该条款。Example 2, Title of supplied equipme nt shall be free and clear of all third-party lin es, charges, security in terests, and other en cumbra nces.译:合同设备所有权应免受任何第三方留置权、起诉、担保物权急其他妨碍。Example 3, the

47、parties mayterm in ate a con tract if:1. force majeure frustrated the purpose of the con tract;2. before the time of performa nee, the party expressly stated or in dicated by its con duct that it will not perform its main obligati ons;译:有下列情形之一的，当事人可以解除合同:因不可抗力致使不能实现合同目的；（二）在履行期限届满之前，当事人一方明确表示或者以自己的

48、行为表明不履行主要债务；3.5.3 Archaic WordsThe Middle En glish period had lasted from about 1100 to 1500, while Old En glish refers to En glish used before 1100. Many of them are kept in laws till no wadays, con tract text is no excepti on. This kind of makin g-the-past-serve-the-prese nt usage makes the con tr

49、act sole mn and qua int, and it also in dicates the bus in ess and legal professi on als in ten ti on to show their industries5 particularity and status in society. Even though archaisms are seldom used in modemEnglish, there are so many archaisms likehere of ter （在下文中）,whereas （鉴于）,hereby （特 此）,the

50、reby （因 此），and whereof （关 于）in legal documents. Those words embody thoroughly the formality and dig nity of con tract. The most widely used archaic words in the con tract are some compo und adverbs, they are here, there and where added after, at, by, from, in, of, un der, upon, with etc. The mea nin

51、gs of them may be illustrated asfollov/s: He re after mea ns later in this con tract; herein means in accorda nce with con tract; wherein means in terms and con diti ons; where on means on/to the point referred and so on.4.1 here+ prepositi onHere can be comb ined with by, in, of, after, to, upon, w

52、ith and other prepositi ons. From the structure and mea ning of this word, “ here"mea ns "this". It refers to this con tract （law, docume nt, rules etc） in an En glish con tract. Here are some examples.7, The party availi ng itself of term in ati on of a con tract in accorda nce with

53、Paragraph 2 of Article93 and Article 94 hereof shall notify the other party. （Article 94 合同法）译:当事人一方依照本合同第九十三条第二款、第九十四条的规定主张解除合同的，应当通知对 方。Hereof means of this （con tract） , and which is associated to some contents additi on al.2, The seller guara ntees that the equipme nt or its parts supplied by th

54、e seller here un der does not infringe any pate nt an d/or in tellectual property rights exist ing as of the date of delivery of the equipme nt.译:卖方保证,卖方根据本合同供货的设备或设备部件没有侵犯在设备交货日之前已存在的任何专利和/或知识产权。Here un der meansun der this con tract. By the means of using compo und words can make the Ianguage clea

55、r and accurate, and avoid repeat, which gives an impression of authoritative and sole mn style of con tract Ian guage.4.2 there+ prepositi on 1, Either party may terminate this agreement immediately and without incurring thereby any liable to other, by merely serv ing a no tice of term in ati on on

56、the other in any of the followi ng eve nts.译:在任何情况下,任何一方可以通知对方立即终止协议并无需对另一方承担责任。Here thereby in Chin ese means 因此".2, However, the buyer is not deprived of any right he may have to claim damages for delay in performa nee.译:但是,买方并不因此丧失他对延迟履行义务可能享有的要求损害赔偿的任何权利。3, A request for repair must be made

57、 either in conjunction with notice given under Article 39 or withi n a reas on able time thereafter.译:修理的要求必须与依照第三十九条发出的通知同时提出，或者在该项通知发出后一段 合理时间内提出。In this senten ce, "or" conn ects the two paralleli ng. The use of thereafter is to show a reas on able period after the time has stated, whic

58、h avoids repeat and makes the sentence clear and accurate.4.3 where+ prepositi on1 Whereas the buyer agrees to buy and the seller agrees to sell the un der men ti onedcommodity subject to the term and con diti ons译:买卖双方同意按下述条款购买出售下列商品并签订合同。Whereas means con sideri ng/concerning. Thisword is always u

59、sed in the preface of con tract; it mani fests the backgro und and content of the subject.In general, the appropriate use of archaic words can make the writing have the solemn atmosphere.3.5.4 Loa n WordsMany bus in ess words in import and export con tract come from Lati n, Fren ch, Germa n, and Spani sh. Some are derived or comb in ed. Many words have the same prefix or s