TheInfluenceofLanguageandCultureonEuphemism1

The Influence of Language and Culture on Euphemism Abstract:Euphemism is a common phenomenon in English-Chinese Language. It is an epitome of their society and culture to a certain degree. This dissertation is a simple discussion on Chinese-English euphemism, which have an great impact on their respective culture and tradition, as well as their culture difference in western and eastern country. This would do a good job in removing the barrier of trans-culture communication and improving culture communication. Key words: euphemism and language and culture; function; comparison 摘 要：委婉语是中英语言中共同的一个语言现象,委婉语在一定程度上是中西方社会和文化的一个缩影。本文就中英委婉语对各自文化中的传统,发挥的作用等进行了简单的探讨,以及了解东西方委婉语的文化异同,这将有益于清除跨文化交际中的障碍,促进文化交流。 关键词： 委婉语与语言；文化； 功能； 比较 Contents bstractI. Introduction (1)II.Language,Culture and Euphemism (2) 2.1 Language and Euphemism (2) 2.2 Culture and Euphemism(3)III.Functions of euphemism in language and culture (3) 3.1 Functions of Euphemism (3) 3.1.1 Avoiding Taboo (3) 3.1.2 Showing Politeness(4) 3.1.3 Concealing Trut (4) 3.1.4 Beautification (5) IV.The comparison between Chinese and English in the field of language and culture and from Euphemisms(5) 4.1 In Terms of Language (5) 4.1.1 Lexical Device (5) 4.1.2 Phonetic Device (6) 4.1.3 Rhetorical Device (7) 4.2 In Terms of Culture (7) 4.2.1 Different Religions(7) 4.2.2 Different Practices (8) 4.2.3 Different Connotations of Old (9)V. Conclusion (9)Bibliography (10)I. Introduction Now we have joined WTO and we will organize the Olympic Games in Beijing in 2008. We also have more chances to hold world-wide meetings, activities, etc. Therefore, we want exchange with foreigner easily that we should knew their culture and language more and more. Euphemism is exist in Chinese and English. There is no denying the fact that euphemism is a Language and culture appearance, it can help us understand easily for others. So I will study the culture and language from Euphemism. In every society and culture there are certain things that are not supposed to be separable or mentioned directly. A fair number of words are labeled as frivolous, vulgar, or at least inconsiderate. But in communication, for better maintaining social relationship and exchanging opinions, people have to resort to a kind of language, which can make distasteful ideas seem acceptable or even desirable. Pstein (1985:5) This type of language is defined as euphemism in linguistics and it comes in a variety of forms and is used for a variety of reasons. Unlike other figurative language devices, for example, the metaphor of poetry or prose, euphemism aims to surprise and entertain (Lee, 1966), strives to avoid offence by means of circumlocution. As a communicative skill-telling it like it isnt, (Time, 1978), euphemism abounds in our life. I am very interested in euphemism, because it is not merely a kind of language phenomenon, but also the carrier of English and China culture. As second language learners, even though you have a reasonable command of English, you may feel lost when come across some euphemism. Much research has been done on euphemism because of its prominence in language and culture. A lot of great works came into being during the study of euphemism, which lay a foundation for further research. In 1936, in his book The American Language, American linguist, Mencken, fully discussed why hundreds of euphemisms had been born and become popular on the basis of American history and social cultural background. His book is a valuable legacy for euphemism study. In 1981, British linguist Hugh Rawson compiled A Dictionary of Euphemisms and Other Double talks, which embodies the achievements of research on euphemisms over the decades by many British and American linguists. More important, in its ten-page-long preface, Hugh Rawson not only traced the history of euphemism, but also widely accounted for characteristics of euphemism as well as its definition, classification, and scope of use. The year 1983 saw the publication of Kind Words-A Thesaurus of Euphemisms, compiled by Neaman and Silver. It is of great value to euphemism study. In 1985, Enright D.J. published a collection of essays on euphemism, The Uses of Euphemism, in which some specific topics like euphemisms and the media, euphemisms and children, and sex and euphemism, etc. were put forward in relation to the different euphemistic uses in the social field. Last but not least, Allan and Burridge published the book Euphemism and Dysphemism: Language used as shield and weapon, in which an interesting perspective on the human psyche is to be gained from the study of euphemism used as a protective shield against the anger or disapproval of natural or supernatural beings. This book is of great significance to the study of English Euphemisms from the pragmatic perspective. II.Language, Culture, and Euphemism2.1 Language and Euphemism Euphemisms are embedded so deeply in our language that few of us, even those who pride themselves on being plain-spoken, ever get through a day without using them. The relation between language and euphemism is so intrinsically close that it is impossible to study one without an analysis of the other. First of all, language is the vehicle of euphemism.To some extent, we can say that where there is language, there is euphemism. In our daily life, usually certain things are not said for some reasons. We have the employment of euphemisms consciously and unconsciously so as to avoid mentioning certain matters directly, which can make unpleasant things sound better and acceptable. Secondly, euphemism is one form of language; we can derive euphemism from family talks, official meetings, literary words, scribbles on walls, telephone talks, television programs, letters, cards, advertisements, E-mails, oral express and so on. Thirdly, as far as the change of euphemism is concerned, euphemism has experienced the process of growth, development and decline. Therefore, euphemism not only expands and enriches English vocabulary but also contributes to the appropriate and effective use of the English language.2.2 Culture and Euphemism Euphemism, as an indispensable part of every language, is a mirror of morality, customs, politics, life style, social psychology, etc. Euphemism itself cannot exist without social culture with the evidence that expressions used in sensitive areas tend to pick up negative connotations and be replaced by euphemisms.We are sensitive about bodily functions, so there are many euphemisms for bathroom (itself a euphemism, replacing the earlier euphemism toilet, from the French toilette, originally a cloth used in shaving or hairdressing). Learning euphemism well means more than merely mastering the pronunciation, words and grammar. It means learning to see the world as native speakers of that language see it, learning the ways in which their language reflects the ideas, customs, and behavior of their society, and learning to understand their language of the mind. The relationship between euphemism and culture is obvious: euphemism, as a cultural-linguistic product, displays its multiple mapping relations with culture; it changes along with the development of society, and the use of euphemism varies with the variation of the context. It is a reflection of culture and carries vestigial patterns once dominant in a society. III.Functions of euphemism in language and culture Functions of euphemism are express clearly in Language and culture. Language and culture communication is the most important means by which people maintain their social relationship. During their communication, people will inevitably encounter unpleasant situations. Using direct and definite language to talk about unpleasantness will undoubtedly displease both sides and possibly affect their relationship. Euphemism has been shouldering the duty of lubricating language and social communication since its production. Seen through this angle, euphemism is more than a rhetorical device. Its a communicative means. So when it comes to the function of euphemism, we refer to the communicative function. 3.1 Functions of Euphemism3.1.1 Avoiding Taboo Neaman et al points (1990:130) out the two chief social psychological bases for the production of euphemism, one is taboo, and the other is politeness. To violate the taboo will automatically cause harm to the violator or his/her fellows. In many cultures, the names of gods and devils are taboos as well and people manage to avoid mentioning them directly; otherwise, they would commit the error of blasphemy. Accordingly, western people euphemize the name of Satan as god of this world, His Sable Majesty, old gentleman in black and Old Harry. In ancient China, there also existed taboo. People at that time had a belief that the powerful and mysterious forces, such as wind, rain, thunder, etc. will decide their fate, so they had a fear as well as a desire to placate them in communication by using euphemisms. In the Chinese classic A Dream of Red Mansions “起了火” is expressed as “走了水”. In order not to mention or talk about the taboo matters, euphemisms are employed as substitutes for taboo words that often result in anxiety, embarrassment and public shame. With the development of society and science, taboo has been broken continuously and what is now put under taboo is not mysterious or frightening as before.3.1.2 Showing Politeness Politeness plays a very important role in social interaction and conversation. In other words, face saving must be taken into account to keep communication going. Everyone needs to keep face in communication. To the criminal, the judge can claim “You have been sentenced to five years in prison.” While if a person has to mention the similar thing in front of the criminals parents or relatives, he/she will probably say He has been sent to the big house. or He is now living under the governments expense. The person use euphemisms to try to avoid being impolite in speech and not hurting the feelings of the criminals parents and relatives. Seen through the instances here, euphemism does express politeness to others, thus avoiding the unpleasant situation and lubricating peoples social communication as well as their relations.3.1.3 Concealing Truth Euphemism in daily life is for politeness or avoidance of taboo, while euphemism in political life is for disguise. Because of fuzziness in semantic sense, euphemisms can be tactfully or deliberately deceptive. Political life is the fertile soil for euphemism. Whenever political situations change, a large number of euphemisms will be produced. The media and politicians take advantage of the fuzziness to conceal truth in order to avoid offending the public and help maintain the steadiness of political, economic and military situations. In order to divert public attention so as not to intensify social contradictions, industrial action substitutes for strike, substandard housing for slum. During the period of the Reagan Administration, tax increase was replaced by contribution. To conduct international affairs better, poor nations cant be found in English, backward nations, underdeveloped nations and emerging nations are in its place. After the Watergate affair, the American government created lots of euphemisms to hide such a scandal: The scheme was called scenario, burglars became plumbers, and the government-sponsored crime became a White House horror. In China, we often see such diplomatic remarks in the newspapers .For example, the euphemisms “对此表示遗憾”are used when we dont agree with another country on the international issues. Politicians and the media really give much thought to such a matter. They use euphemisms to deliberately cloud an issue or to distract peoples attention, and euphemism really does play an important role in concealment and disguise.3.1.4 Beautification Euphemism is always pleasant to hear and acceptable, making people feel easy and unembarrassed. This is the reason why it is applied to beautify some professions. For example, hairdresser is called beautician; garbage collector is called sanitary engineer; prostitute is called street girl or shady girl.IV.The comparison between Chinese and English in the fielof language and culture and from Euphemisms4.1 In Terms of Language4.1.1 Lexical Device It is permissible for speakers and writers of English to express almost any thought they wish, as long as the more risqu parts of the discussion are rendered in another language, usually French or Latin and so on. Employment of loan words to avoid mentioning a tabooed term is an effective way of euphemizing. It is permissible for one to express whatever thought they wish as long as the more risqu parts of the discussion are rendered in another language. For English euphemism, the so-called another language is usually French or Latin. And for Chinese euphemism, the another language is generally English. The versatility of French is evident in such diverse aspects as love (affair, amour, liaison), war (personnel, sortie, triage), and womens underwear (brassier, chemise, lingerie). Latin is almost equally popular as a source of English euphemisms, especially for the bodys sexual and other functions. Now, lets examine the use of the loan words from English or Japanese in Chinese euphemism. It is not uncommon for us to hear Chinese people mentioning 去W.C.” (to go to W.C), “罗曼史”(romance), “小蜜”(mistress), ect. Substitution is to replace the impolite or unspeakable words with certain literally mild and pleasant words or expressions. Another euphemism for be sent to prison is be sent up the river, because Sing state prison-the best known prison in the U.S.A, is located at the upper reach of the Hudson River, which flows through the New York City. Thus, agent, speculator and thrifty have better connotations than spy, gambler, and tight despite the similar denotations between each pair of words. This is the most commonly employed strategy in encoding euphemism as well as the most frequently tool resorted to in decoding euphemism. It is evident that the ways of expunging offensive expressions from language have remained much the same. In China, instead of directly mentioning “上厕所”, ancient Chinese people turned it into “更衣” and modern Chinese people occasionally refer to this as “办公”. Vague words and expressions can blur the undesirable yet explicit associations that taboo words arouse and are therefore euphemistic. So in both English and Chinese, people use abstract, general and vague words and expressions to euphemize the oral taboos. To avoid using the word fat, such words as round, full-bodied, king-sized and so on are employed in English. Similarly, we Chinese use “发福” , “富态” to replace “胖”. 4.1.2 Phonetic Device Euphemisms may be created by phonetic device-lightreading and phonetic distortion. Light reading is a popular way of euphemism which means that when you mean something that you have to mention, but you are shy to mention it, usually you say it in a low voice. Phonetic distortion refers to the changing of a sound in word for the purpose of euphemizing, which is more acceptable in English because its writing is alphabetic. Usually crude or inauspicious words become acceptable by using these devices. Phonetic distortion includes abbreviation, reduplication, distortion of pronunciation, etc. There are abbreviations like WC for Water Closet, SOB for son-of-a-bitch, BS for bullshit, and so on. There is no direct link between Chinese character and its pronunciation. Thus, compared with English, the Chinese language does not have the convenience of phonetic distortion. We can find fewer phonetic distortions in Chinese and the most common phonetic device is assonance, which mostly employs the homophone for there are so many homophones in Chinese. For example, instead of speaking “隐君子” stands for “瘾君子”(the person who is addicted to drugs).4.1.3 Rhetorical Device Periphrasis is the kind of wording that beats about the bush. Topics and terms that are too touchy to be dealt with openly may be alluded to by this means. Trousers doesnt sound well, so nether garments replace it. Fart is too unpleasant to the ear, so people say it as wind from behind, without thinking it is too long-winded. Rear end takes the place of buttocks. Solid human waste is actually feces. Give the sack is the euphemism for fire, because sack originally was the workbasket with which the workers went outside to work. If the employer wants to fire some employees, he will give sack to them. Furthermore, metaphor is an implied comparison between two objects . For example, using cherry for hymen in English. Metaphor as a figure of speech as well as a common human way of thinking exists in both English and Chinese euphemisms. For example, many English euphemisms for death are created by metaphor, going to his last home, to sleep the long/eternal, never-ending sleep, to rest in peace/to be at rest, has gone to Heaven/Paradise, to have joined ones ancestors/to be gathered to ones fathers, to have joined the immortals. Chinese euphemisms for death can also be created in the same way. For instance “回老家”, “长眠”, “安息, “上天国/升天堂”, etc.4.2 In Terms of Culture 4.2.1 Different Religions Christianity is the dominant world view in the English-speaking countries. The study of it offers an insight not only into the spiritual and psychological needs of the people, but also into the social aspects of a culture. Christianity reinforces group norms, provides moral standards for individual conducts, and furnishes the basis of common purposes and values upon which the community depends. The monism in religion exerts great influence on English euphemism. As discussed earlier, death is one of the most abstained domains. English euphemisms for death largely come from the Bible or other legends and literary quotations involving the Bible, most of which manifest Christian philosophy. The Christian tradition begins with the assumption that the world is real and meaningful because God created it. Human beings are significant because God created them in his image. God made them with earth-to return to dust/earth. Men were born guilty and should atone, so to die is to pay the debt of nature. China is a multi-deity-worship country. Taoism, Buddhism and Islamism coexist in China, and each has its own followers. These religions generate some Chinese euphemisms for death, which is considered as the miserable of the miserable, but each has different explanations for this natural phenomenon. Taoism denies the differences among things. “Death” has no great differences from “living”. “Death” simply means that the flesh and blood turns into immortal spirit, which can be called “仙逝”; or “death” is like a cicada to be shelled, called “蜕化”. With the introduction of Buddhism into China, Sanskrit “nirvana”(death) was translated into Chinese “涅磐” or “圆寂”. Chinese euphemisms for “death” with a religious hue are far fewer th