从英语委婉语看西方文化的禁忌英语专业毕业论文

2013届毕业论文从英语委婉语看西方文化的禁忌AStudyofTaboosintheWesternCulturesfromthePerspectiveofEnglishEuphemisms院部外国语学院专业英语专业班级09408012姓名金巧云学号0940801206指导教师方小勇完成时间：2013年6月AStudyofTaboosintheWesternCulturesfromthePerspectiveofEnglishEuphemismsbyJinQiaoyunUndertheSupervisionofAssociateProfessorFangXiaoyongSchoolofForeignLanguagesJiangsuUniversityofScienceandTechnologyJune,2013AcknowledgementsFirstofall,Iwouldliketoexpressmysinceregratitudetomysupervisor,FangXiaoyong,whohasofferedmeplentyofinformationandadviceinmywritingthispaper.Iamdeeplygratefultohimforhisintellectualguidance,selflesshelpandpatienceinthecompletionofthisthesis.Secondly,IwouldliketoexpressmysinceregratitudetomydearclassmatesfortheirprovidingmewithinformationIneedandfortheirpatienceandcareduringthelastmonthwhenIwasawayfromschool.Ithinkitistimeformetosay"thankyou"tomydearfriendssincewearegoingtograduateintwomonths.Inthepastfouryears,wehaveexperiencedhappinessandsorrowtogether,andwehaveovercomemanydifficulties,whichmakesusclosetoeachother.Lastbutnotleast,mythankswouldgotomybelovedfamily.Iwouldneverhavethisopportunitytoextendmythankstomyteachersormyclassmateswithoutmyfamily'ssupport,patienceandlove.ContentsAbstractinEnglish IAbstractinChinese III.Introduction 11.1.Thedefinitionofeuphemisms 11.2.TheoriginofEnglisheuphemisms 1II.TaboosofEnglisheuphemismsandtheirconnotation 32.1.TheclassificationofEnglisheuphemisms 32.2.ThefunctionofEnglisheuphemisms 32.2.1.Functionoftaboos 32.2.2.Functionofpoliteness 42.2.3.Functionofbeautification 42.2.4.Functionofconcealment 52.3.AnanalysisoftaboosofWesternculturethroughunderstandingtheincentivesofEnglisheuphemisms 52.3.1.TheuseofEnglisheuphemismsasaresultofworryandfear 52.3.2.Theuseofreligiouseuphemismsasaresultofworship 62.3.3.Theuseofshynesseuphemismsasaresultofshypsychology 6III.ApplicationofEnglisheuphemismsanditsrevelationoncross-culturalcommunication 83.1.CharacteristicsofEnglisheuphemismsincross-culturalcommunication 83.1.1.TimedifferencesofEnglisheuphemisms 83.1.2.RegionaldifferencesofEnglisheuphemisms 83.1.3.RegisterdifferencesofEnglisheuphemisms 83.1.4.NationalityofEnglisheuphemisms 93.1.5.GenderdifferencesofEnglisheuphemisms 93.2.MoreexamplesforEnglisheuphemismsandtheirspecificapplications 103.3.RevelationofEnglisheuphemismsoncross-culturalcommunication 10IV.Conclusion 13Bibliography 14AStudyofTaboosintheWesternCulturefromthePerspectiveofEnglishEuphemismsAbstractAeuphemismisakindoflinguisticphenomenonusedintheprocessofhumancommunication,whichis,inasense,aroundaboutwayofspeechwhentheuserdoesnotwanttooffendtherecipientofthemessage.Inhumancommunication,euphemismscanhelppeopleexpresstheirmeaninginanabstractwaywithoutlosingtheiroriginalintentions.Sincemanysubjectsinhumanlifeareinappropriatetobeexpresseddirectly,euphemismswouldbeidealforpeopletoexchangethoughtswithoutfeelingguiltyorembarrassed.Euphemisms,aculturalphenomenonoriginatedintaboos,areaphenomenonthatwhenpeopletalkaboutsomeparticularsubjects,theywillsubstitutethemformoreindirectandeuphemisticlanguagetoavoidingembarrassment.Theapplicationofeuphemismsisanimprovementofbothlanguageuseandthelevelofculture.Inthisthesis,Englisheuphemismswillbeclassified,functionallyanalyzedanddiscussedsothatwecanhaveaclearunderstandingofculturaltaboosinWesterncountries.Keywords:Englisheuphemisms;taboo;culture从英语委婉语看西方文化的禁忌摘要英语委婉语是人类语言使用过程中不可缺少的一种语言现象。使人们谈论那些令人不快或者尴尬的事情时，所使用的较为礼貌的说法，是人们在交际中，用来表达不宜直说的人或事物的言语。其重要的特征就在于运用比较抽象、模棱两可的概念或比喻的、褒义化的手法，使谈话的双方能够采取一种比较间接的方式来谈论不宜直接说的事，而且不必为谈论此事而感到内疚、感到窘迫。英语委婉语作为一种文化现象，源自禁忌，是指人们在交往中对于一些特定话题进行不约而同地以委婉性的语言来代替，这不仅是语言上的进步，更是文化层面的进步。本文通过对英语委婉语进行归类、功能分析，以及其在生活中个各个方面发挥的委婉性作用来探讨西方国家的文化禁忌。关键词：英语委婉语；禁忌；文化AStudyofTaboosintheWesternCulturesfromthePerspectiveofEnglishEuphemismsI.Introduction1.1.ThedefinitionofeuphemismsAeuphemismisakindofuniversalsocialphenomenon.Specifically,thewordoriginallycomesfromGreek,withtheprefix"eu"meaning"good"andtheroot"phemism"meaning"speech".Sotheliteralmeaningofaeuphemismreferstotheuseofamild,vagueorroundaboutexpressiontosubstituteharsh,bluntordirectone.Anyway,sofar,thedefinitionsoftheeuphemismsarequitenumerous,andtherearetwodefinitionsoftheeuphemismfromthereferencebooks:(1)"usingastatementofvague,andmakingpeoplefeelhappyorambitious,insteadoftheexpressionofanunhappymeaningorwithnotrespect."(Dictionaryoflanguageandlinguistics,StocktonandHartmannetal.)(2)"anindirectwordorphrasethatpeopleoftenusetorefertosomethingembarrassingorunpleasant,sometimestomakeitseemmoreacceptablethanitreallyis."(OxfordAdvancedLearner'sEnglishChineseDictionary,thecommercialpress&OxfordUniversitypress)1.2.TheoriginofEnglisheuphemismsEnglisheuphemismscanbetracedbacktothetimewhentheUnitedKingdomwasoccupiedbytheNormansin1066.Theeuphemismwasusedatthattimeprimarilybecausethelanguageusedbytheconquerorswasderogatedandconsideredasvulgar,offensiveandscandalous.Inordertoavoidsocalledvulgarization,thelocalupperclassbegantolearntheconquerors'languageandtriedtobegentlebyusinggentlewordswhichcamefromtheLatin.Inlaterdays,thesewordsweregraduallyaddedintoEnglishvocabulary.TodayinWesterncountries,althoughmanyofthosearenotinuseanymore,somearestillwidelyused.Accordingtothechangesoflanguageandculture,someneweuphemismshavebeengenerated.Theeuphemismisacommonphenomenonduringtheuseofhumanlanguageandexistsinmanylanguages.Therefore,theuseofeuphemismisverycommonandessentialinvarioustypes.II.TaboosofEnglisheuphemismsandtheirconnotation2.1.TheclassificationofEnglisheuphemismsEnglisheuphemismsaregenerallyclassifiedintotwomaintypes,oneistraditionalEnglisheuphemismsandtheotherstyleEnglisheuphemisms.Asfortraditionaleuphemisms,theyusuallyrefertothosewhicharenotelegantwordsorbehaviorsthatmakepeoplefeelashamedtotalkaboutinpublic,sotheysubstitutethosewordsformoreacceptableexpressions.Becausedirectexpressionsmaymakeusfeeluncomfortable,annoyedorfrightened.Forexample,whenapersonwearefamiliarwithdies,weneversaythatheisdead,instead,wemaytellitinothermorecomfortableways:Hehaspassedaway;hehasleftusforever;tobeasleepintheArmsofGod;tobreatheone'slast;tobetakentotheparadise;thefinaldeparture;finalsleepbehomeandfree;gotomeetone'smaker;restinpeace;beatrest;leavethisworldandsoon.ThenthetypeEnglisheuphemismsrefertoovercomplements.Incommunications,theEnglishandAmericans(especiallymodernAmericans)tendtogivegoodnamestothoseunpleasantthingssoastoreachthegoalsinsocialcommunicationanddiplomacy.Forexample,theword‘defecation’isusuallyreplacedbythecallofnature,togosomewhere,tofixone'sface,towashone'shandsandsoon.2.2.ThefunctionofEnglisheuphemisms2.2.1.FunctionoftaboosInancienttimes,peoplebelievedthatGodexistedinnature,andtheGodwasinchargeofeverythingintheworld.Toescapefromdisasters,peopleheldfeteactivitiesandgavegoodnamestoGods.Theexampleoflosingapersonthatwearefamiliarwithhasbeenlistedabove.Besides,euphemismsaboutillnessarecommon.Peoplereplacevenerealdiseasewithsocialdisease;pizzafaceiscalledskinproblem.Euphemismsaboutagingarealsoasensitivetopicinwesterncountriesbecauseofthefactthatthesecountriesareundergoingaseriousproblemofsocialaging.Manyoldpersonsarelivinglonelysotheyareveryafraidofhearingsuchwordslikeold.Sotheelderly,thematureareoftenusedtoreplacethesensitivewords.Weshouldkeepitinmindthatwhenyoutalkaboutoldpeopleinfrontofthem,neversayevenawordaboutold,instead,weshouldusewordslikeseniorcitizens,goldenyears,elderpeopleandsoon.Andanotherexampleisthatsocialstatusdifferencesareveryobviousandthosepeoplewithlowincomearegenerallyreferredtowithsuchwordsasapavementprincessforaprostitute,andafuneraldirectorforanundertaker.2.2.2.FunctionofpolitenessThisfunctionisveryimportantinEnglisheuphemisms.Fromtheperspectiveofdignity,peopleusuallyjudgeapersonwithimpliedwords.Indailycommunication,appropriateapplicationofeuphemismscancreatepoliteassociationfortwosidestocommunicatesmoothly.Suchafunctionalsohelpstotakecareofthedignityofothers.Suchwordsasslender,slimcanbeusedforthewordskinny,whenwetrytorefertoaskinnywoman.2.2.3.FunctionofbeautificationInmanyWesterncountries,theapplicationofeuphemismscanbeusedtobeautifyjobsoflowsocialclass.Ifyouseeadustman,remembertocallhimasanitaryengineer.Besides,inordernottohurtthosewhohavepersonalitydefectsorphysiologicaldefects,aeuphemismisusedincommunication,too.2.2.4.FunctionofconcealmentThefunctionisgenerallyusedtocoverupserioussocialproblemslikepovertyandcrimeorhidetheessenceofwar,scandalsofpolicyanddiplomacy.Sinceaeuphemismisareplacementofanothermeaning,itwouldbeeasyforpeople,especiallypoliticians,tolie.Theycansayactionratherthanviolence,plumbersratherthanapersonwhosejobistogatherintelligence.Infact,wecanseethisfunctioninWesternpolicywhentheylaunchedtheIraqiWartenyearsago.2.3.AnanalysisoftaboosofWesternculturethroughunderstandingtheincentivesofEnglisheuphemisms2.3.1.TheuseofEnglisheuphemismsasaresultofworryandfearThebasicprinciplesofsocialpsychologytellusthatanabsolutedangerinfrontofapersoncaninvokethefeelingoffearandandwhenthedangerisnotsoclear,thenafeelingofworryarises.Ineuphemisms,mostsituationsarethatpeoplewillhaveafeelingoffearandworryaboutsomethingdangerous.Duetopeople'signoranceinancienttimesandblindfaithinthosedays,theyalwaysconnectedawordoraphrasewithaspecificthingandthishappenedmostlyinbadthings.So,aeuphemismisusedtohelppeoplecoverupthiskindoffearfulfeelings.Peoplealwaysbelievethatiftheyuseanelegantwordtoreplaceabadone,somethingdangerouswouldnothappentothem.Forexample,whenapersonissick,hisrelativesorfamilymemberswillnottellothersdirectlythatheissickorseriouslyill.Ifyouaskafterhim,theywilljusttellyouthattheguyisundertheweather,hasamedicalcondition,uncomfortable,outofshape,oroffcolor.Andheisreallytoosicktocomeover,youwilljustbetoldthatheisinabadwayorhehasaterminalillness.Forthetimebeing,acancerisstilldifficulttocureof.Well,ifyouaskabouthiscondition,youwillbetoldthathehasabigC.Remember,inWesterncountries,peopleareverysensitivetothehealthofabelovedonebutatthesametime,theywouldnevergettooclosetoanothereventheirparentsorchildren.Thereasonisthatthisis,astheymayclaim,theirhumanrightsandtheirboundarytheyclaimedseveralhundredyearsago.2.3.2.TheuseofreligiouseuphemismsasaresultofworshipInancienttimes,becauseofthelowsocialproductivitylevel,peoplekeptlivinginaweofnature,soeuphemismswerefirstcreatedinreligiouslanguage.PeopleworshipGodbecausetheydon'thavethepowertoconquernature,norcantheyexplainmanyphenomenonofnature.Soanyphenomenoncanbeimaginedassupernaturalpowerwhichcanarousepeople'sfeelingsoffear.InmanyChristiancountries,thenamesofGodscannotbesaidcasuallyotherwiseonewillbethoughtasimpious.Andwhenapersonswears,hemaysay"IsweartoGod".TheybelieveinGodandinfearofGod,soeuphemismsarecreated.ToextendtheirrespectforGods,theynevercallGods'namesdirectly,neither.TakeJesusChristforasimpleexample,forChristianandCatholics,itisdefinitelyimpolitetosayhisnameinpublicbecauseHeistheirGod.Instead,theycallhimasGeeWhiz,J.C,Jerusalem,Slim,MistAlacrity,MyGoshandsoon.ForthosedevilGods,whenpeoplealsosaytheirnames,theywillreplacethemwithothersbecausetheyareafraidofhishappeningwhenspeakingofthedevil.Thefollowingaresomeexamples:peopledon'tsaySatan'name,instead,theycallhimGoodman,theDickens,PrinceofDarknessbecausehewouldnotunderstandthissothathewouldnotappearwhilepeoplearetalkingabouthim.2.3.3.TheuseofshynesseuphemismsasaresultofshypsychologyPeoplefeelshymostlybecausetheythinksexisnotacomfortabletopictotalkaboutwitheachother.Ontheonehand,theyregardsexasnastysothattheyaretoblametotalkaboutit;andontheotherhand,peoplearenotsatisfiedwiththeirsexuallife.NowadaysthetopicofsexistotallyopeninWesternculturesandpeoplecantalkaboutthistopiclikethemostnormalthinginlife.Nowevenaneight-year-oldgirlknowsthatshecametothisworldbecauseherparentsmadeloveeightyearsago,whileinEasterncountries,manychildrenarestilltoldtheywerepickedinarubbishcan.However,inancienttimes,itwasneverappropriatetotalkaboutitinpublic,otherwiseonewouldberegardedasaslut.Aboutthenamesofdirtyordisgustingthings,peopleprefertoreplacethemwithmoreacceptablewords.Forexample,therearehundredsofdescriptionsofmakingsexlikeconnubialrites,artoflove,amorouscongress,conjugalrights,conversationandsoon.Fromthe1960stothe1907s,theGayLiberationgreatlyliberatedpeople'sthoughts.Peoplecannolongercallthempansyorfruittoday.Bytheway,thesamegendermarriageislegalinsomeWesterncountries,andwedohavereasonstobelievethattheGayLiberationisatypicalmovementinWesterncountries.Anyway,withthedevelopmentofsocialcivilization,theapplicationisalsoaliftfromGodstohumanrelationships;peopleareusedtoavoidingthoseembarrassingtopicswhichmaymakethemfeelashamedorembarrassed,especiallythosethatarerelatedtothepartsofbody,bodilyfunctionsandsex,soeuphemismscanhelpthemreducethefeelingofawkwardness.III.ApplicationofEnglisheuphemismsanditsrevelationoncross-culturalcommunication3.1.CharacteristicsofEnglisheuphemismsincross-culturalcommunication3.1.1.TimedifferencesofEnglisheuphemismsThesamethingmayhavequitedifferentmeaningsindifferenttimes.Accordingtoscientificstatistics,theword"pregnant"hasthefollowingmeaningsindifferentperiodsoftime.Sheisinaninterestingcondition(1880).Sheisinadelicatecondition(1895).Sheisinafamilyway(1920).Sheisexpecting(1935).Sheispregnant(1956).Wecanseeclearlythatthefivesentencesallmeanbeingpregnantwithdifferentexpressionswithtimechanges.3.1.2.RegionaldifferencesofEnglisheuphemismsDifferentregionshavedifferenthistoriesandculturalbackgroundsaswellastraditionaltaboos.Thisdifferenceistypicaloflanguages’regionaldifferences.Forexample,anAmericanmayunderstandthefollowingsentence"Heisinthebathroom"asheisinthetoiletwhileanEnglishmanmayunderstanditasheistakingabath.InBritishEnglishtheword"bathroom"meanstakingabathwhileinAmericanEnglishitisthesameasatoilet.3.1.3.RegisterdifferencesofEnglisheuphemismsIndifferentsituationsanddifferentcontexts,peoplecanhardlyhavetheexactlysameexpressionofthesamemeaningbecauseoftheirdifferenteducationalbackgrounds,agesandsocialstatus.Takehavingameetingforexample,ifsomeoneistowashhishands,theexpression‘Sorry!Ihavetogotothetoilet’willberegardedasquiteimpolite.Instead,ifhequietlysays"Sorry,Ihavetodomyduty"or"Sorry,Ihavetofixmyface"or"Sorry,Ihavetogivemyselfease".Similarly,whenAmericanpeopletalkedabouttheirex-presidentBillClintonandhisscandal,theygenerallysaid"ZipGateevent"ratherthan"Clinton'ssexualscandal".3.1.4.NationalityofEnglisheuphemismsSomeofEnglisheuphemismsarecommonlyusedwhilesomeothersofthemareusedwithastrongnationalfeature.Forexample,theEnglishword"old"andChineseword"老"havethesameliteralmeaningbutstilldifferfromeachother.InChinese,"老"isacomparativelygoodexpression.Intheircommunication,toextendone'srespecttoothers,heusuallyaddsthewordtohisgreeting.ButthisdoesnotworkinWesterncultures.Ifyourgreetinghasan‘old’infrontofone'sname,youareprobablyregardedasanarrogantperson.Instead,ifyoucallanoldpersona"seniorcitizen"or"elderlypeople",heknowsyouarerespectableforhim.3.1.5.GenderdifferencesofEnglisheuphemismsThetwogenderscanusedifferentexpressionsforthesamething.Forexample,awomanmayuse"topowderhernose"or"tofreshherselfup"toreplace"gototoilet"whileamanmaysay"torelievehimselfbecausenaturecalls"or"natureisurgent".Fromabovecharacteristics,wecanseethatitisnotenoughtofollowtheCooperationPrinciple.Toachievetheoriginalgoals,peopleusuallyfollowPolitenessPrincipletosaveothers'face,whichisexactlywhatwecallcommunicativefunction.3.2.MoreexamplesforEnglisheuphemismsandtheirspecificapplicationsInWesterncountries,manyjobsaregivendecentnamessothatthewholesocietywillrespectpeopledoingthesejobs.Engineerisatfirstawordusedtodescribeaparticulartechniquewhichwinspeople'srespect.Nowadays,anykindofjobcanbeaddedwiththeword"engineer".Forexample,footwearmaintenanceengineermeansapersonwhosejobistopolishshoes;sanitationengineermeansapersonwhatweusuallycalladustman;visionengineer;sleepengineermeansapersonwhosejobistohelppeopleundergreatpressuretohaveagoodsleep.Salesengineeriswhatwecanseealmosteveryday.Dwellingengineer,humanengineerandmanyotherjobsallsounddecent.Thewordprofessorisnolongerthesinglemeaningofateacher.Thesuffix"-or"comesfromLatinmeaningactor.Inthepast,itisoftenaddedtosomenoblewords,butthesedays,itbecomesavailableforordinaryjobs,too.Followingareexamples:adviser,welder,educator,wildanimaltrainerandsoon.Therearealsomanyexpressionsaboutlovelike‘beinginlove’,whichmeansthatamanandawomanfallinlove;whenaboysetshissightsonagirl,itmeanshelikesthegirl;totakeafancyon,tocuthisorhereyeat,tolooksweeton,tomakeeyesat,tobegoneonandtobetakenwithareallexpressionsoflovebetweenaboyandagirlwholoveeachother.Gettingmarriedisacommonexpressionofacouplebecomingafamily,buttherearesomeotherrelatedexpressionsaboutmarriagelike‘tohavegottenhitched,tohavegottenyoked,totietheknotandtomerge’.3.3.RevelationofEnglisheuphemismsoncross-culturalcommunicationNowadaysthecross-culturalcommunicationisbecomingmoreandmorefrequentwiththedeepeningofinternationalcooperation.AlargenumberofChinesepeoplegoabroadtoWesterncountriesforfurtherchancesandopportunities.Toliveinacountryisaneasythingwhileitisdefinitelynoteasytoincorporateintolocalpeople'slife.Thenatthistime,itmightbeveryimportanttolearnthecultureofthatcountrybecauseyoushouldatleastunderstandwhathesayswhenasalesmaninasupermarkettellsyousomething.KeepinginmindsomeparticularEnglishtabooscanreallyhelpavoidmanyunnecessaryawkwardsituations.AnEnglisheuphemismisabeautifulartforEnglishlearnerstotakeinsinceitweighsalotinthecommunicationwithforeigners.Forexample,anexchangestudentshouldknowEnglisheuphemismsinordertogetfamiliarwiththelocalstudentsandavoidmakingsomeunnecessaryerrorswhichmayleadtomisunderstanding.Evensometimesyoudon'tmeantohurtone'sfeelingbutyoudobecauseyouexpressyourthoughtsinawaywhichisinappropriateforthem.Forabusinessman,gettingagoodunderstandingofEnglisheuphemismsismoreimportant.Cross-nationaltradesareveryimportantforalocalcompany.Ifyourbossdispatchesyoutogoabroadtonegotiatewithinternationalcounterpartsaboutaveryimportanttrade,youhadbetterlearnabouttheeuphemismsofyourcooperationpartner'scountry,otherwiseyoumightjustlosethispreciouschancewithoutevenknowingwhereyouhavemadeamistake.Fordiplomats,itisarequiredcoursetogetabetterunderstandingofthehostcountry'seuphemisms.Anyway,everydetailmovementoftwocountries'diplomaticactivitieswillbemagnifiedbythemassmedia.Andeverymoveofrepresentativesofthetwocountriesiscloselymonitored.Onceyoudon'tbehaveappropriately,youaretoblame.Recently,BillGates'greetingstoKoreanpresidentParkGeun-hyehavearousedKoreanpeople'sstrongunpleasantfeelings.ThestoryisthatBilldidnotextendbothhishandstoshakehandswithParkbutkeptshakinghandswithParkwhiletheotherhandwasinhispocket.AsweallknowthatKoreaisaquitetraditionalcountryandKoreanpeopletaketraditionalritualsseriouslythananyothercountries.InfactitisnotthefirsttimeforBilltobehaveoffensively.Itisreasonabletosaythatitishishabittokeeponehandinhispocketwhileshakinghandswithotherpeople.NotuntilmanyotherpicturesofBillshakinghandswithotherswithonehandinhispocketareshowninInternetdidKoreanpeoplestopblaminghim.Iamsure