语言文化论文-刍议英语委婉语的起源及其社会交际功能.doc

语言文化论文-刍议英语委婉语的起源及其社会交际功能AbstractEuphemism,asacommonlinguisticphenomenoninworldculture,iswidelyusedineverysocialclassandfield.Englisheuphemism,asoneofmanyeuphemismsexistingintheworld,hasitsowndeeporigin,whichincludeboththereligiousoriginandthehistorical,literaryorigin.ThisthesiswilltrytodiscusstheoriginofEnglisheuphemismfromeveryaspectofreligion,race,politics,literary,andhistory.Languagereflectslife,andisalwayscloselyrelatedtothesociety.Duringthecommunication,duetosomecertainrestrictionofbehaviorandmorality,peopletendtouseeuphemismusedasakindoflubrication,makingtheharsh,indelicatewordssoundtactfulandpleasant.Englisheuphemismplaysaveryimportantroleinpeoplessocialcommunication.ThispaperwillalsoexpoundthesocialcommunicativefunctionofEnglisheuphemismfromthethreeaspects:evasivefunction,politefunction,andcosmeticfunction.HavingagoodunderstandingoftheoriginandsocialfunctionofEnglisheuphemismandtheEnglishlanguageculturecanavoidmanyconflictsintheprocessofsocialcommunication.KeyWordsorigin；communicativefunction；evasion；cosmeticfunction；politeness【摘要】委婉语是世界文化中普遍存在的语言现象，它广泛应用于社会各阶层和领域。英语委婉语作为众多委婉语中的一种，具有其产生的深厚渊源，其中包宗教与政治的，也包括文学与历史的。本文试图从宗教、种族、政治、文学、历史等方面入手来探讨英语委婉语的产生渊源。语言反映生活，并且总是和社会紧密联系在一起，在语言交谈中，由于一定的行为规范和道德准则的制约，人们通常使用委婉语-这一“润滑剂”，使刺耳，不文雅的话变得委婉愉悦。它在人们的社会交际过程中发挥着重要作用。本文从其避讳功能、礼貌功能以及掩饰功能三方面阐释了英语委婉语的社会交际功能。通过充分理解英语委婉语的起源及其社会交际功能，进一步理解英语语言文化，以避免社会交际中的各种冲突。【关键词】起源；交际功能；避讳；礼貌；掩饰1.IntroductionEuphemismisaculturalphenomenonaswellasalinguisticconcept.Everylanguagehasitsowneuphemism,sodoesEnglish.Itisdeeplyrootedinsociallifeandhasagreatinfluenceonsocialcommunication.AsanindispensableandnaturalpartofEnglishlanguage,Englisheuphemismhasattractedpeoplesattentionforalongtime.SinceEuphemismwascoined,ithasplayedaveryimportantroleinpeoplescommunication.Thecommunicationwithouteuphemismisunimaginable.Euphemismisusedlikelubrication,whichmakesthecommunicationgoonsmoothly.ThisthesiswillhaveanoverviewoftheoriginofEnglisheuphemism,andstateitssocialcommunicativefunction.Englisheuphemismasalinguisticconcept,ithascloserelationshipswiththewesternculture,andittrulyreflectsthelifeandvaluesofEnglishpeopleandtheirhistory.Euphemismisaparticularlygoodmediumforaccesstotheforceoflanguagethathasprovidedaneffectiveapproachtounderstandingthehumanmind.ThestudyofEnglisheuphemismcanhelpusunderstandthewesterncultureandpromotetheinternationaldevelopmentbecauseeuphemismiswidelyusedininternationalnegotiations.SothereisagreatneedforustostudyEnglisheuphemism,including:itsorigin,itssocialfunction,etc.2.ThedefinitionsofEnglisheuphemismEuphemismisauniversallinguisticphenomenon.Nearlyineverylanguage,therearesomedisgustingwords,whichmakepeoplefeelembarrassed.Intheprocessofcommunication,theunsuitableortoodirectwordswillmakepeoplefeeluncomfortable,evenangry.Thenthereisagreatneedforustouseatactfulwaytoexpressemotion,exchangeideas.Thatistosay,touseapleasant,mildorindirectwordsorphrasestaketheplaceoftabooedwords.Itisknownthateuphemismisaformoflanguageintentionallycreatedinsocialrelationtoachieveidealcommunication.Withoutthemanylanguagewouldseemtobevulgarandrude,voidofpolitenessandvividnesstosomeextent.Asacommoncommunicationintheprocessofpeopleusinglanguage,euphemismisanimportantwayforpeopletocoordinatethesocialrelationships.Likeakindoflubrication,euphemismenablespeopletoexpresswhatcannotbeuttereddirectlyandensurescommunicationtobecarriedsmoothly.Itisalanguagestrategyincivilizedsocietyforavoidingtaboo.Itisunimaginableifthecommunicationiswithouteuphemism.Theword“euphemism”wasderivedfromtheGreekword“euphemismos”,whichmeans“fairspeech”.Theprefix“eu”means“good,soundwell”and“pheme”means“saying”or“speech”.Andthustheliteralmeaningof“euphemism”is“tospeakwithgoodwordsorinapleasantmanner”.Thatistosay,euphemismisusedasanalternativetounpleasantexpression,inordertoavoidpossibleloseofface,eitheronesownfaceorthroughgoingoffense,thatoftheaudience,orsomeofthirdofparty.Thisunpleasantexpressionmaybetabooed,fearsome,orforsomeotherreasonsthatspeakerscantorintendnottousesomecertainexpressiondirectlyonsomeoccasion.“InWebstersEncyclopedicUnabridgedDictionaryoftheEnglishLanguageisthesubstitutionofamild,indirect,orvagueexpressionforonethoughtsubstituted.RawsonBlunt,aBritishwriter,definedeuphemismasagoodfavorableinterpretationofabadword.”1“EncyclopediaBritannica(1994)alsodefineseuphemismasafigureofspeechinwhichsomethingofanunpleasant,distressingorindelicatenatureisdescribedinlessoffensiveterms”2Fromtheabovementioned,wecouldclearlyseethateuphemismischaracterizedbyavoidancelanguageandevasiveexpression.Thespeakersusewordsorexpressionsasaprotectiveshieldagainsttheangerordisapprovalofnaturalorsupernaturalthings.Itisoneformoflanguageandalinguisticphenomenon3.TheoriginsofEnglisheuphemism3.1ThereligiousoriginofEnglisheuphemismTheearliestEnglisheuphemismscomefrom“taboo”.Theword“taboo”comesfromTogan,akindofPolynesian.Itindicatesevasivelanguageoraction.3TheemergenceofEnglisheuphemismistomeettheneedofavoidingtaboos.Inprimitivesociety,peoplecantexplainsuchthingsasailmentandsomesupernaturalphenomena.“Peoplehaveconfusionbetweenthenameofthethingsandthingsthemselves.Thenameisviewedasanextensionofthings.JustastheidiomsaysSpeakofdevilandheappears.Naturallythewordsorphrasesrelatedtosuchthingsbecometaboos.”4Intheancienttimes,peoplehadblindfaithinghostsandGodstheyrespected.Theywhisperedandevenfearedthemsotheydidnotdaretoaddresstheirnamesdirectly.TheythinkitprofanetonameGod.Thereforethenamesofgodsbecometheearliesttaboos.Tospeaknameofgodswastoevokethedivinitywhosepowerthenhadtobeconfronted.Suchdangerouspracticeswerereservedforpriestsskilledinnegotiatingwiththesupernatural.Sotheusualwaytoavoidistoemployeuphemisms.Therefore,forthereligiousneed,alotofeuphemismsaboutreligionemerged.Forexample,inordernottodesecrateGod,peopleinEnglish-speakingcountryalwaysusesomeothernameforGodinsteadofcallingdirectly,suchas“Adonai,theAlmighty,CaesarsCruth,theCreater,Dod,Gad,Land,Lawks,Lawd.”5Theoppositesideofgodisdevil,whichismoreterribleforpeople.Whenpeoplerefertothem,theytendtousesucheuphemismstoreplace:D,theBigD,theEvilone,theBlackone,theGoodman,Jesse,Oldboy,Ourfather,Lordoflords,Kingofkings,theLightoftheworld,etc.6Fromtheabovementioned,wecanfindthatreligionbringsmanyeuphemistictermsinthereligiousmatter,especiallythenamingandaddressingofGodtothelanguage.3.2TheracialandnationaloriginsofEnglisheuphemismItisknowntoall,thephenomenonofracialdiscriminationisdeeplyrootedinAmericainwhich“equalopportunity”isflatteredbyAmericanwhitepeopleasanequalrightenjoyedbyeveryone.Duetothepressureofsocialpublicopinion,althoughsomewhitesdiscriminatetheblackfromtheirheart,theywillnotexposethiskindofprejudiceinpublic.Meanwhile,fewpeopledaretohumiliateandpersecuteblackspubliclyfornoreasonatall.Inotherwords,thewayofdiscriminationbecomestactful.Therearemanyeuphemismsemergingforthisreason.Inthe1930s,niggerisstillaneutralnouninEngland,andhasnomeaningofhumiliatingblacks.Butsincethiswordhastheobviousmeaningofdiscriminatingtheblacks,mostofpeopleinEnglandandAmericansusesomeothereuphemisticwords,suchas“coloredblack”instead.Whentalkingaboutsomeotherraces,itdoesnotoftenusethedirectwordsthatarerelatedtocolor.Peopleoftenusesomeeuphemisticexpression,suchasthegeographicname.3.3Historical,literaryandpoliticaloriginsofEnglisheuphemismFromthetimetheNormansconqueredEnglandin1066,Englishhasemergedmanyeuphemisms.Atthattime,themainreasontouseeuphemismisthatthelanguageusedbytheconqueredisoftendisparaged,andisthoughtasgrosslanguage.Theupperclasssurelydoesntwanttolowertheirstatustousesuchwords.Inordertoavoidusingsuchgrosswords,theytendtouse“theelegantwords”,whichoriginatedfromLatin.AndthesewordsweremixedintoEnglishgradually.Therearealsomanyeuphemismsinliteraryworks.Forexample,inHamlet,Shakespeareusetheexpression“Theundiscoveredcountryfromwhosebournnotravelerreturns”(从来不曾有一个旅人回来过的神秘之国)toexpresshisgreatsympathyforHamlet.7ThefamousAmericanwriterMarkTwainuse“release”toexpress“die”inhisworkTheAdventureofTomSawyer.Besides,politicsisafertileareafortheappearanceandgrowthofEnglisheuphemism,whichiscosmeticinexpressionbutdeceptiveinnature.Euphemismsofthiskindarealwaysconsciouslyanddeliberately.ThecosmeticeuphemismcanbeeasilyfoundinAmericanEnglish.GovernmentsdiscussionoftheVietnamWarwassaturatedwitheuphemisms.VillagesburnedandinhabitantsimprisonedwerePacifications”；thewaritselfwasnotawarbuta“conflict”,the“bombing”becomes“logisticalstrike”or“closeairsupport”,and“killing”becomes“wastingtheenemy”.Theseeuphemismsareusedtodeceiveandtohidethedirtybusinessofwar.8Theuseofsuchpoliticaleuphemismshelpsgovernmenttobeautifytheactionandpreventpeoplefromtakinganyanti-governmentaction.Soinordertosatisfythepoliticalneeds,manyeuphemismscometoexist.4.ThesocialcommunicativefunctionofEnglisheuphemismFromtheperspectiveoflanguagecommunication,euphemismfunctionstoavoidtaboos,toshowpolitenessandconcealfeelings.Thankstoeuphemism,itiseasyforpeopletoacceptthethingsthatarelikelytomakeothersfeelembarrassedorunhappy.Itispeoplesgeneralcharactertoexpresstheirideasasmildlyandtactfullyaspossible.Euphemismhelpspeopletoreachthisgoal.Fromthemomenteuphemismcameintoexistence,ithasplayedaveryimportantroleinourdailycommunication,andhelpestablishagoodrelationshipbetweenhumanbeingsandevenstrengthenthesocialstability.Euphemismaremotivatedbythedesirenottobeoffensive.Peopleusethemtoshowtheirpoliteness,toavoidbeingoffensiveandtomeetthepsychologicalandbeneficialneedsofbothspeakersandhearersincommunication.Butsometimestheyareusedtoconcealorcoversomething.Accordingly,euphemismservesthreebasiccommunicativefunctions:evasivefunction,politefunctionandcosmeticfunction.4.1TheevasivefunctionofEnglisheuphemismTheevasivefunctionofeuphemismistoevadeusingtaboos,enablingthespeakertotalkabouttabooedthingsfreely.Thesetabooedthingsarebelievedtobedangeroustocertainindividuals,ortothesocietyasawhole,ortobedisgustingandunpleasant,andcausefear.Suchtabooedthingsinclude:disease,disabilities,death,sex,bodyexcretionandbodyeliminationprocess,etc.Peoplecanuseeuphemismstotalkaboutwhatcannotbetalkeddirectly.4.1.1IntermsofdiseaseanddisabilitiesPeopleyearnforhealth,andfearforspecificdiseaseandeverysortofdisability.Sopeoplealwaysusetactfulwaytoexpressthem.Forexample,sexualorvenerealdiseasesuchassyphilis,gonorrhoea,ADIS,etc.arecalled“socialdisease”,communicativedisease”,etc.inEnglish.Besides,disabilitiesareverysensitiveareaineveryculture.InEnglish,“thedisabled,thehandicapped,theinconvenienced,theinvalid,auditoryimpaired,hardofhearing,talkwithonesfingers”,etc.areputintoservice.9Soeuphemismplaysaveryimportantfunctioninoursocialcommunication.Withoutit,wesometimescannotcontinueourtalk.4.1.2IntermsofdeathDeathisaninevitablestageattheendoflifesjourney.Itiscommonexperienceofhumanbeings.Yetithasbeenthesourceoffearfearofthelossoflovedones；fearoftheendofoneslife；fearoftheactualprocessofdying.Therefore,allthesefears,worries,andunpleasantfeelingscombinedleadtoverbaltabooofdeath.Euphemismsconcerningdeathareextremelyrich.InEnglish,therearemorethanseventyeuphemismsfor“death”,including“tobegone,tobegonetoabetterworld,tobewithGod,tobreathoneslast,tocloseonesday,todepartfromtheworldforever,todeparttoGod,tofallasleep,jointhegreatmajority,passaway,etc.10Nomatterwhythiswordisusedinacertainlanguage,peoplealwaystendtouselessharshwords4.1.3Intermsofsex,bodyexcretionandbodyeliminationprocessWordsrelatingtosex,procreationandexcretionarehighlyrestrictedtomentionbecausetheymayevokedisgustingresponsesofpeople.Verbaltabooonthemisprobablymotivatedbytheintuitivedisaster,shame.Peopleallhavecertainfeelingsofwhichtheyaresoashamedthattheydontliketoadmiteventothemselves.Inpeoplesdailylifeorinsomeformaloccasion,ifthetalkordiscussionreferstosomethingaboutdrainage,peoplewilltrytoavoidusingvulgarlanguage.Theytendtousesomeimpliedorneutralwordstomakeconversationcomfortable.Forordinarypeople,thesafestwaytoavoidmentioningthesethingsthattheyhavetomentioninmanycircumstancesistouseanotherexpressioneuphemismtoreplacethetruenameofsuchathing.Forexample,inEnglishtherearemanyelegantexpressionsfor“goingtoWC”,suchas:towashoneshand,tospendapenny,togoandseeonesaunt,toanswerthecallofnature,becausenaturecalls,etc.11“Thetopicconcerningbeingpregnantistouchybecauseittendstoarousetheassociationwithsexualbehaviors.Tobeatroundbushesisverynecessary,suchas“withchild”,“anticipating”,“excepting”for“pregnant”,etc.12Talkingaboutsexualintercourseistaboo.Expressionsrelatingtosexhaveheavilybeenveiledforthepurposeofavoidingawkwardnessandoffense.Sopeopleuseeuphemisticwordstotalkaboutit.Forexample,peopleevadesaying“hip”directlywhichisreplacedwith“buttock”,“bottom”,“onesthing”,and“secretparts”donatessexorgansofbothmalesandfemales.134.1.4IntermsofoldageEnglishandChinesehavedifferentfeelingsabout“oldage”.AChineseisproudofbeingold,whereasawesternerwillfeelirritatedandeveninsultedatmentioninghisoldness.InEnglishculture,peopledonotdescribeothersasortobedescribedas“old”becausetheold,whonolongerwork,areignoredbysociety.Therefore,peoplecreate“thesecondchildhoodgoldenyears,seniorcitizen,grayhair,maturegoldenage”whentheyreferto“oldage”inwhichitattemptstoconcealthefactofbecomingoldandavoidarousingoldpeoplessadfeelingofaging.144.2ThepolitefunctionofEnglisheuphemism.Politenessisanotherimportantfunctionthateuphemismsserveinthesociallife.Politenessisthesymbolofhumanscivilizationandoneoftheimportantprinciplesguidingpeoplesactivities.Asakindofsignificantsocialactivity,languageactivitymustobservethisprinciple,too.Whenwehavetotalksomethingunpleasant,weshouldchooseeuphemisticwaytoexpressinordernottohurtothers.Beingpoliteisareasonableactionthatanyonewhoiskeenonface-savingwilltake.Thepolitefunctionofeuphemismistriedtoavoidbeingharshorimpoliteinthecommunication.Inotherwords,euphemismsaretominimizeimpoliteexpressionsandmaximizepoliteexpressions.Forinstance,whenateachercommentsonastudentsmoralconductsandschoolworkinfrontofthestudentorhisorherparent,heorsheshouldreportthefactononehand,andontheotherhandshouldtakeintoconsiderationthestudentspsychologicalenduranceand