英汉语言对比研究

北京化工大学北方学院毕业设计（论文）诚信申明本人申明：我所呈交的本科毕业设计（论文）是本人在导师指导下对四年专业知识而进行的研究工作及全面的总结。尽我所知，除了文中特别加以标注和致谢中所罗列的内容以外，论文中创新处不包含其他人已经发表或撰写过的研究成果，也不包含为获得北京化工大学北方学院或其它教育机构的学位或证书而已经使用过的材料。与我一同完成毕业设计（论文）的同学对本课题所做的任何贡献均已在文中做了明确的说明并表示了谢意。若有不实之处，本人承担一切相关责任。本人签名： 年 月 日英汉礼貌用语对比分析某某英语专业 英语-班学号指导教师摘 要礼貌用语是我们生活中一个极其普遍而又不可或缺的社会现象，一个人的生存离不开与其他社会成员的交流，这也就揭示了交流的重要性。但是在沟通或交流中发生冲突，甚至交流失败也是难以避免的。因此，在交流中使用恰当的礼貌用语就显得非常重要了。礼貌用语是一种重要的交流策略和方法。礼貌用语与人们的生活紧密的联系着，同时也约束着人们的习惯。礼貌用语能够维持、增进人们之间的感情，它是一种常见的社会现象。在不同的社会中，它的意义和标准也自然会存在着差异。简而言之就是在这个社会团体中认为礼貌的事情或许在另一个社会团体中就会被认为是荒唐或粗鲁的行为。这样看来，文化的差异也必然会给交流带来阻碍。因此，研究中西方礼貌用语的差异具有重要的现实意义。本文将分析中西方礼貌用语差异，并通过礼貌用语的差异来揭示其不同的文化背景。从而提高人们跨文化交流的意识，减少跨文化交流中的尴尬。关键词：礼貌用语 礼貌原则 文化 交际A Contrastive Study of English and Chinese Courtesy LanguageAbstractCourtesy Language is a universal society phenomenon in our daily life, and it is very important for our life. We can not live without communication with each other, so communication is very important .On the other hand ,we also cant avoid the failure of communication .It goes without saying that the success of communication depends on the proper courtesy Language .Scholars pay an attention to the subject of courtesy Language for a long time. The courtesy language is related to our daily life closely, it also constrains our habits. Courtesy language can keep and improve peoples relationship .but the courtesy language have the different meaning in different society, because the courtesy language is related to the culture closely. In different society the courtesy language was offered different meaning and standards. Its to say that a thing that was believed polite in one society may become a rude thing in the other society.The cultural difference may become the obstacle of the cross-cultural communication, so we should learn the cultural difference between English and Chinese. This article aims to find out some differences between English and Chinese courtesy language to reduce the communicational obstacle.Key words: courtesy language politeness principle culture communicationContentsIntroduction1Chapter 1 Research Background and the Value of Thesis31.1 Significance of This Research31.2 Different theoretical Researches41.3 Overview of the Thesis71.4 Purpose of the Thesis71.5 Methods of the Thesis8Chapter 2 English and Chinese Courtesy Language92.1 Definitions of politeness in English and Chinese92.2 Features of Courtesy Language92.3 Courtesy and Social Determinants10Chapter 3 Contrastive Study of Chinese and English Courtesy Language113.1 Terms of Address113.2 Greetings133.3 Compliments153.4 Thanks and Apologies18Chapter 4 Cultural Root for the Differences204.1 Modesty vs. Self-denigration204.2 Privacy vs. Attitudinal Warmth214.3 Individualism vs. Collectivism21Conclusion23Bibliography26Acknowledgment2727IntroductionDue to different cultural backgrounds and purposes of research, people study language from different angles. There are already many researches about it both at home and abroad. Contrastive study is regard as an effective method of linguistic study. Contrastive Analysis (CA), as an inter-linguistic approach to the study of languages and a branch of linguistics, aroused great attention in the 1960s. As is known that all the people need to communicate with others and the courtesy language can help people get the success of communication. Courtesy language is a universal phenomenon, courtesy language is one of the important strategies and ways people adopt in interaction. This article aims to find out some differences between English and Chinese polite language to reduce the communicational obstacle. This paper intends to introduce the English and Chinese polite language. This paper will use different courtesy language examples to show the differences between English and Chinese courtesy language. This paper analyzes the differences from four aspects: terms of address, greetings, compliments, thanks and apologizes. Then this thesis goes on to explore the reasons why these differences exist. There are several reasons for the differences: the historical backgrounds, different cultural values, for example, modesty and self-denigration, privacy and attitudinal warmth, individualism and collectivism. It is hoped that this paper will bring better understanding of the differences between Chinese and Western politeness to reduce misunderstanding of international understanding. Courtesy Language is a universal society phenomenon in our daily life, but it is very important in our life. We can not live without communication with each other, so communication is very important .On the other hand ,we also can avoid the failure of communication .It goes without saying that the success of communication depends on the proper courtesy Language .Scholars pay an attention to the subject of courtesy Language for a long time. It is generally believed that people will observe the certain principles when they communicate with each other. Grice put forward the Cooperative Principle and leechs politeness Principle complement the Cooperative Principle .And then the Brown and Levinsons “Face” theory gives a quite new explanation. They believed that politeness means various rational behaviors that the Model Persons take to maintain the “face” wants. All the Model Person not only need the positive “face”but the negative “face”, and the Model Persons also have the rationality, so they can choose the proper ways to satisfy the “face” wants.It is important for language learners and users to express courtesy language in the target language in order to improve the competence of cross-cultural communication. The cultural difference may become the obstacle of the cross-cultural communication, so we should learn the cultural difference between English and Chinese. This article aims to find out some differences between English and Chinese courtesy language to reduce the communicational obstacle. Although courtesy language is not necessarily expressed by language, courtesy language is very important for our communication. This article will make a contrastive analysis on courtesy language between English and Chinese.Chapter 1 Research Background and the Value of Thesis1.1 Significance of This ResearchEnglish and Chinese are very different language systems and they are very important, we should get a deeper understanding of them. Through this we can learn more courtesy languages; it will be good to our life and study.With the society developing rapidly, international connection is becoming more and more closer. As is known that polite languages play an important role in our cross-cultural communication. Language is the principal means whereby we conduct our social life. When it is used in context of communication, it is bound up with culture in multiple and complex ways. English and Chinese are bound up with different culture, so there are some misunderstandings between their communications. Study on it has a very important realistic meaning since the worlds connection is becoming more and more closer.In the modern society, English is so popular, we should learn more its cultural background, and the polite languages are one of the most important parts for our daily communication. Whats more, with the society developing rapidly, there are more and more contact between our country and foreign countries. But sometimes the different culture will cause the misunderstanding of communication. At beginning with the discussion of modern theories of polite speeches both at home and abroad, the paper deals in details with the achievements and differences in every theory concerning courtesy language. Through contrastive analysis of courtesy language between English and Chinese, there are many different aspects, such as terms of addresses; greetings; compliments; thanks and apologies. It shows that we cant just use our polite standard to communicate with the foreign people, so people should try their best to learn counterparts culture. And then we can improve our competence of cross-cultural communication. So the significance of contrastive study of courtesy language between English and Chinese is practical.1.2 Different theoretical Researches1.2.1 Leechs politeness principleLeechs politeness principle complements Grices CP. He thinks that people sometimes disobey Grices Cooperative Principle in order to express themselves politely in interaction. Therefore he puts forward the Politeness Principle and believes that it should be obeyed in communication. People often follow the PP in the daily conversation. Leech also explained why people like to follow the CP and PP in their conversation. The Leech believed that people express their ideas indirectly to satisfy others “face” wants. Leechs politeness principle includes six categories of maxims as follows:1. Tact Maxima. Minimize cost to otherb. Maximize benefit to other2. Generosity Maxima. Minimize benefit to selfb. Maximize cost to self.3. Approbation Maxima. Minimize dispraise of otherb. Maximize praise of other4. Modesty Maxima. Minimize praise of selfb. Maximize dispraise of self5. Agreement Maxima. Minimize disagreement between self and otherb. Maximize agreement between self and other6. Sympathy Maxima. Minimize antipathy between self and otherb. Maximize sympathy between self and otherPeople often follow the six principles in our daily communication, and from these we can learn that people often satisfy others benefit to deal with the relationship. 1.2.2 Brown and Levinsons TheoryBrown and Levinson gave us another new explanation of politeness by using a set of fresh theory:-Face: which they seemed borrow its meaning from Chinese term “Mian zi”, refers to “public self-image that every member wants to claim for himself, and something that is emotionally invested, and that can be lost, maintained or enhanced must be constantly attended to in interaction”(1987.p.61).-Positive Face: the positive and consistent image people have themselves, and it desire for approval (p.61).A person desires his/her virtue to be noticed and admitted by the public. And a person wants his/her interest, desire and thought to be considered.-Negative Face: the basic claim of territories, personal preserves, and rights to non-distraction (p.61).A person wants to have his freedom of action unhindered and his attention unimpeded (1987:p.106). When people makes a request or gives an order , one intrudes into another peoples private territory. One should then make redress for such face-threatening act.-Positive Politeness: The redress for an FTA led to the addressees positive face, his perennial desire that his wants(or the actions/acquisitions/values resulting from them) should be thought of as desirable(1987,p.101).The redress involves communicating the idea that the speaker wants similar to those of the addressee, bringing the two people metaphorically closer together.-Negative Politeness: redress led to the addressees negative face: his want to have his freedom of action unhindered and his attention unimpeded (1987, p.129).1.2.3 Gus Politeness ModelChinese scholars began their studies of Pragmatics in the 1980s and the touch of the western theories of Politeness made them focus on the study of Chinese Politeness. Among all the scholars with achievements we have Mr. Gu Yueguo and he pioneered their way into Chinese Politeness and put forwards their own principles in answering the problems of Chinese politeness. In the following paragraphs we will discuss their theories.Mr. Gu proposes 4 fundamental notions and 2 principle about the Chinese concept of Politeness:Four Notions:1. Respectfulness: refers to selfs positive appreciation or admiration of other 2. Modesty: is a way of self-denigration,3. Attitudinal warmth: involves selfs demonstration of kindness, consideration and hospitality to others.4. Refinement: refers to selfs behavior to other which meets certain standards.Mr. Gu also suggests that there are two other basic principles when people utter polite words, which are sincerity and balance. Following Leechs account of politeness, Gu puts forwards politeness maxims that are more applicable to Chinese culture:1. Self-denigration Maxim (a. denigrate self; b. elevate other)2. Address Maxim3. Tact Maxim4. Generosity MaximChinese politeness is characterized by a tendency to denigrate oneself and respect the other. In the first maxim, the breaking of sub-maxim (a), i.e. to denigrate other, is regarded as impolite and rude, while the breaking of sub-maxim (b), to elevate self, is perceived as arrogant, boasting or self-conceited (Gu, 1990:246)1.3 Overview of the ThesisDue to different cultural backgrounds and purposes of research, people study language from different perspectives such as grammatical, social, cultural and so on. Contrastive study is regarded as an effective method of linguistic study. It aims to find out the similarities and differences between two different languages. The author tries to make a contrastive study of courtesy language between Chinese and English from cultural perspective.Courtesy language, as part of language, is a reflection of culture. Studies of politeness and courtesy language play an important role in linguistic study. A very important part of sociolinguistic study is to discuss the influence of social ethics and culture upon language. Politeness is a social phenomenon. Through the studies of politeness and courtesy language, people will understand the relationship between language and society clearer.1.4 Purpose of the ThesisThis article aims to find out some differences between English and Chinese polite language to reduce the communicational obstacle. This paper intends to introduce the English and Chinese polite language. This paper will use different politeness examples to show the differences between English and Chinese courtesy language. This paper analyzes the differences from four aspects: terms of address, greetings, compliments, thanks and apologizes. Then this thesis goes on to explore the reasons why these differences exist. There are several reasons for the differences: the historical backgrounds, different cultural values, for example, modesty and self-denigration, privacy and attitudinal warmth, individualism and collectivism. At last, it is hoped that this paper will bring better understanding of the difference between Chinese and Western politeness to reduce misunderstanding of international understanding.1.5 Methods of the ThesisAs for the methodology, the author is trying to make a full use of Contrastive Analysis (CA) to show the differences between our mother tongue and English. The reason is quiet simple, the difference between these two languages will not be clearly revealed until they are under the clear contrastive analysis. E.g. from the contrastive analysis we find that the native English speakers say: “After you” while Chinese people say: “您先请 (you first please)”. From the contrastive study of the politeness strategies, their cultures and other factors influencing their ways of showing politeness, we can have a profound understanding of both languages and use them freely. On the other hand, this thesis introduces some cases indicating the interactions between these two languages in order to pioneer our way to work out what will happen when two languages coexist in the same community, and how they fight their way against each other to survive.Chapter 2 English and Chinese Courtesy Language2.1 Definitions of politeness in English and ChinesePoliteness is a very important subject of research in pragmatics and sociolinguistics. Many people have defined politeness from different perspectives.Apart from the complexity of politeness, this concept also has a long history of evolution. As far as back 1702, Theophrastus defined politeness as “a social behavior; a skill to be used to achieve specific aims; principal aim is enhancement of egos self-esteem and his/her public status in the eyes of others with supplementary aim of enhancing others self-esteem” (Watts, 1992). Actually, in the Victorian age, politeness was a sign of good breeding, and its function was to enhance ones social standing and manifest the membership of a particular social class.During the past fifty years, many western researchers tried to give a definition to politeness. Leech (1983) interprets politeness as forms of behavior aimed at the establishment and maintenance of comity, i.e., the ability of participants in a socio-communicative interaction to engage in interaction in an atmosphere of relative harmony.Brown and Levinson (1978) view politeness as “a complex system for softening face-threatening acts”. 2.2 Features of Courtesy Language In spite of the various descriptions of the concept, some scholars have figured out characteristics of politeness. According to Gino Eelen, the features of politeness involve (1) Evaluative, where he argues that politeness and impoliteness are connected to social values and always evaluative in nature, (2) argumentativity, meaning it is always associated with situations where there is something to lose or gain, (3) polite-ness, where he thinks that each individual considers himself and his cultural group as polite and others as impolite, (4) normativity, referring to the fact that politeness is the result of social norms, (5) modality and reflexivity, which refers to the optionality of polite interactional strategies for the actor (Hamza, 2001). In China, to address an elderly citizen as “grandpa” or “grandma” is a way of showing respect, while in the United States this would certainly be unacceptable and strange. That is exactly what points (1) and (3) mean. As for “argumentativity”, it describes the fact that speakers and hearers may gain or lose face when politeness is used. It is interesting to notice that when we offer compliments, congratulations or acknowledgements, the recipients always gain something. Reversely, the reason why some people do not like to make an apology is that they are afraid of losing face. Members of a society can choose to be courteous or not, but generally they try to be polite just to live up to the expectations and conventions of the society. They do things in line with the constraints imposed by social conventions.2.3 Courtesy and Social DeterminantsWhen we speak, we must constantly make choices from different sets of politeness formula. Between close friends, questions like could you mind lending me the pen? It may sound rather unfriendly. If you speak to a person you do not know very well, this would seem more appropriate. Therefore, politeness strategies are variable from one occasion to another and the choices depend on a number of factors including the status, age and gender of the hearer, the relationship between the speaker and the hearer, the settings of the speech and the content of the message. Chapter 3 Contrastive Study of Chinese and English Courtesy Language3.1 Terms of Address3.1.1 Kinship Address TermsIn Chinese, the juniors should not address the elders by their names directly but use the relative address, such as “爷爷(grandpa)，奶奶(grandma)，爸爸(dad)，妈妈(mum)”, and so infant names. Husband and wife often call the other by name directly (especially for those old couples). They may call the other “老公(husband)，老婆(wife)，老伴儿(husband or wife)”; in the countryside, couples like to use “孩子他爸(husband)，孩子他妈(wife) ”. Among the peers, the younger shouldnt call the elder by their full name directly. They should