精品文檔-下載后可編輯英漢言語幽默語的相似之處AComparativeStudyonChineseandEnglishVerbalHumorsfromthePragmatic

Perspective

CaoAihong

Contents

Abstract（English）………2

Abstract（Chinese）………3

1.VerbalHumors…………4

1.1Thedefinitionofhumor………………5

2.TheSimilaritiesBetweenEnglishandChineseHumor………………5

2.1Humorcreatedthroughrhetoricdevices………………5

2.1.1Pun………………5

2.1.2Hyperbole…………6

2.1.3Parody……………7

2.1.4Irony………………8

3.Conclusion……………9

References………………10

Abstract

Asaparticularfeatureofpeople'stalkindailylife，thehumorwidelyexistsinauniqueartforminourcommunicationsystem.Fromthepointoftheconnotationofhumor，itisnotonlyaconceptsystemthatcarrieslanguage，butalsohasthecharacteristicsofculture.Itbecomesanindependentschoolinthemorphologyofthelanguage，containingrichmeaningofconnotativeinterpretation.

ThisthesiscollectedalargequantityofmaterialsfromthejokebooksandtheInternet，andintendedtomakeamulti-angledcomparativeresearchonhumorintheframeofthepragmatics.Compareandcontrastmethodswereemployedinthisresearch.Atthebeginning，thetheoriesofpresupposition，deixisandCooperativePrinciplewereusedtoexplainthemechanismofhumorproduction.ThentheauthoranalyzedthesimilaritiesbetweenEnglishandChinesehumorfromtheanglesofwrittenformandrhetoricaldevices.Thedifferencesofthesetwokindsofhumorwerestudiedfromtheperspectivesofculturalandstyledifferences.Intheconclusionpart，theauthorsummarizedthesetwokindsofhumorandfoundtheirsignificantfunctionsinapplication：releasingthedepressedemotions，enhancinggoodrelationships，resolvingtheembarrassments，criticizingandeducatingothers.

Keywords：ChineseandEnglishcontrastresearch；verbalHumor；pragmatics

1.VerbalHumors

1.1DefinitionofHumor

BeforeresearchingonthehumorandcomparingChineseandEnglishhumor，itisnecessarytounderstandthedefinitionofhumor.

Manyscholarshavealreadytriedtodefinetheprecisemeaningoftheword“humor"fromvariousaspectssinceitwascreated.Forexample，Kerbtat-Orechionodefineshumorfromtheinfluencefactor，“atextwhoseper-locutionaryeffectislaughter.’’（Attardo13）Althoughthisdefinitionisdirectiveandbrief，itsflawisevident.Ithighlightstheeffectivenessoflaughtertohumor，butignoresotherinfluenceaspects.Inotherrespects，laughterisnottheonlysymbolofhumor.Sometimeswereplacelaughterwithsmileorseriousness.Besides，“text’’alsoconsistsoneofthehumoraspects，notthewhole.AndasApte，whoseoccupationisonescholarcomingfromtheUSA，considersthelaughterasthe“externalmanifestation’’whichrelateswith“socioculturalreality”.LinYutanglaysthestressontheimportanceofmind，viewpoint，andawayofseeingworldhorizon.ChenXiaoyingwhoseidentityisresearcheronChinesecontemporarycomedyinsiststhat“mufti-level’’isoneaspectofthehumor’sconcept.

Thusthereisaroughclueaboutthedevelopmentofthedefinitionofhumor.Fromsomeforeignauthoritativedictionaries，wecanalsoknowsomeinformationabouttheconceptofhumor.Forinstance，inWebster’sThirdInternationalDictionary，“humor’’isdefinedas“thatqualityinahappening，anaction，asituationoranexpressionofideaswhichappealstoasenseoftheludicrousorabsurdlyincongruous：comicoramusingquality.”And“thementalfacultyofdiscovering，expressing，orappreciatingludicrousorabsurdlyincongruouselementsinideas，situations，happenings，oracts：drollimaginationoritsexpression.”InLongmanModernEnglishDictionary，“Humorissomethingwhicharousesamusement，laughter，etc.，orthecapacityforrecognizing，reactingtoorexpressingsomethingwhichisamusing，funny，etc.”InTheAmericanHeritageDictionaryoftheEnglishLanguage，“HumoristhequalityofbeinglaughableorcomicalandtheabilitytoPerceiveorexpresswhatiscomical，witty，etc.”

InsomeChineseauthoritativedictionaries，therearealsosomedefinitionsabouthumor.Forexample，CiHaiillustratesthehumor’scomicfactorsandaestheticfeatures，andinhumorousatmosphere，peoplecanrelaxthemselves，haveagoodtime，andevenimprovetheleveloftalkingandexpression.Foranother，inTheContemporaryChineseDictionary，itpaysattentiontoboth“funny”and“thinking”twofactorsin“humor”.

BasedonbothEnglishandChineseliterature，thecharacteristicscanbedrawnincommon：fun，amusementorhappiness，whicharethecoreofthehumor.Therearevariouswaysofcreatinghumor.Hence，itisaninevitabletruththatthedefinitionofhumorisextensive，richandmulti-angled，andeachdefinitionisnotonlycorrect，butalsonarrowed.Whileweresearchonthehumorfromdifferentperspectives，wecanmakevariousdefinitionsaboutit.

fictioncomics.TheBehavior-humorismainlyaboutthewayofhuman’sbehaviorsandactionswhicharefullofhumorsuchasthehumordanceandthehumormime.

2.TheSimilaritiesbetweenEnglishandChineseHumor

HumoristhespicesoflifeanditisacommonartformwithdistinctculturalcharacteristicsinbothEnglishandChineselanguage.Itexpressesaviewandawayofthinkingaboutlife.Peoplecangetinspirationandenlightenmentfromit.What’smore，itreflectsthewisdomofhumanbeingsthroughlanguage.Therefore，humoristhecommonfeaturesamonghuman’slanguages.Eventhoughpeopleallovertheworldhavedifferentethicsandlanguages，wecanstillfindthesimilaritiesinthehumor.Specifically，inEnglishandChinese，weareabletofindtheirresemblancethroughtherhetoricdevices.

2.1HumorTreatedthroughRhetoricDevices

Analyzingmanyexamplesofhumor，wecanfindthatrhetoricdevicesareofaverycommonmethodcreatinghumorouseffect.Pun，hyperbole，parody，ironyandmetaphorwillbeexplainedindetailsinthefollowingparts.

2.1.1Pun

Pun，alsocalledparonomasia，istheplayonwordswhichsuggeststwoormoremeanings，byexploitingmultiplemeaningsofwords，orofsimilar-soundingwords，foranintendedhumorousorrhetoricaleffect.AccordingtotheWebster’sNewWorldDictionary，punisthehumoroususeofawordorofwordswhichareformedorsoundedalikebuthavedifferentmeanings，insuchawayastoplayontwoormoreofthepossibleapplications.

Twocategoriesofpunsareoftendiscussedbytheorists：homophonicpunsandhomographicpuns.

Thefirstkindreferstotwowordsorphasesthathavesimilarsounddespitedifferentmeaningsandspellings.Inotherwords，thewordpairssoundalikebutarenotsynonymous.Let’sstudyonseveralexamples.

Thefirstexample：

Boyfriend：Whatisyourfavoritemusicband？

Girlfriend：IloveU2

Boyfriend：Iloveyoutoo，butwhatisyourfavoritemusicband？

Obviously，thegirlhadansweredtheboy’squestionattheverybeginning，buttheboymisunderstoodheranswer“U2”into“Youtoo”，whichcausedthefunnyeffect.

InChinese，agreatmanyidiomsarethevividexamplesofhomophonicpuns.Nowlet'sstudyonseveralChinesepunswithhomophonicfeatures：

外甥打燈籠一―照舊（舅）

小蔥拌豆腐一―一清（青）二白

東邊日出西邊雨，道是無晴卻有晴。

Thefirsttwoexamplesare“歇后語”inChinese，whichisatwo-partallegoricalsaying.Thefirstpartwhichisstatedisdescriptivewhilethesecondunstatedpartcarriesthemessage.Andthetwopartsarehomophonic.Inthethirdexample，“晴”isthehomophoneof“情”.Thefirstonemeanssunnydayandthesecondonemeansemotionsorfeelings.

Andthesecondtypereferstothesamewordorphasesthathavemulti-meaningsorsoundsunderdifferentcircumstances.Toputitinanotherway，thewordsspellthesamebutpossessdifferentmeaningsandsounds.

Forexample：

-AtwhattimeofdaywasAdamborn？

-JustbeforeEve.

-What'stheworstweatherformice？

-Whenitrainscatsanddogs.

Inthetwoexamples，thepunsare“Eve”and“itrainscatsanddogs”.“Eve”canmeanthedaybeforeorthenamefromBible.And“itrainscatsanddogs”literallymeanscatsanddogsfallfromtheskyjustliketherealrainbutasmatterofafact，itmeansheavyrain.Ofcourse，there'soriginofthisEnglishidiom，whichwe'llnotdiscusshere.

HerecomesaChineseexampleofhomographicpuns：

如果有輛車正在路上行駛，張三坐在主駕駛，李四坐在副駕駛，王五坐在后排，請問這車是誰的？

是如果的。

“如果”inChinesemeans“if”.Thus，thelistenercanunderstandthesentenceinthisway：ifthereisacar.However，thehumorouseffectwasmadebyusingthehomograph，whichtakesthephrase“如果”asanameofaperson.Fewpeoplewillcomeupthisanswerbecauseitisnotinaccordwithcommonsense.Nevertheless，itisverywittyandfunny.

2.1.2Hyperbole

HyperboleisawordwithGreekorigins，whichmeans“athrowingbeyondorexcess”.Wecanalsocallitexaggerationoroverstatement.Itisanexaggeratedorextravagantstatementusedasafigureofspeech（AmericanHeritageDictionary）.AsacommondeviceappliedinbothEnglishandChinesehumor，hyperbolehasthesameeffectinbothlanguages--toemphasizesomethingandachievehumorouseffect.Therearetwotypesofhyperbole：Hyperboleinadvanceandhyperboleingeneral（ChenWangdao19）.Hyperboleinadvancereferstotheactionoreventthathappenslater，orthathasneverhappened.Apartfromthefirstclassification，therestareallhyperboleingeneral.

Forexample：

InthespringIhavecountedonehundredandthirty-sixdifferentkindsofweatherinsideoffourandtwentyhours.（MarkTwain）

Everyloverseesathousandgracesinthebelovedobject.（Proverb）

Hesmokedlikeachimney.

Theexamplesabovecontainthetypicaluseofhyperbole.“Onehundredandthirty-sixdifferentkindsofweather”isnottheexactnumberMarkTwaincounted.Heonlyusedthisexaggerationtoexpressthechangeableweather.Usingsuchatechniquemakesaudienceimpressive，andstresstheeffect.“Athousandgraces”isnottheprecisenumberofthegrace，either.Ithasthesamemeaningas“beautyisintheeyeofthebeholder.”Inthelastexample，“chimney”isaveryinterestingandvividobjecttodescribethewayofhissmoking.Usingsuchadefinitelyoverstatedsimile，itindeedincreasedtheeffectofhumor.

OtherexamplesfromChinese：

蜀道難，難于上青天。（李白《蜀道難》）

一個渾身黑色的人，站在老栓面前，眼光正像兩把刀，刺得老栓縮小了一半。（魯迅《吶喊》）

Inthefirstexample，itissayingthatitisevenmoredifficulttoclimbtheShudaothantoreachthesky.Obviously，LiBaiexaggeratedonthedifficultyinclimbingtheShudao，butaudienceisabletounderstandthedangerousroadandimpressedbythenaturalbarrier.Theapplicationofhyperboleinthesecondexampleismanifestedinthelastsentence“刺得老栓縮小了一半”.Itisimpossiblethatone’seyescanstabapersonandreducehimintoahalf.Therefore，hyperboleisutilizedhere.ThefunctionofusinghyperboleistomakepeoplefeelthatthevisionoftheblackmanissosharpandevilthatitcanevenstabintoLaoShuan，whowasaweakandoldmanandcouldnotstandforthis.

2.1.3Parody

Theword“parody”isderivedfromGreekword“paradia”，whichmeans“beside，subsidiaryandmock”.AristotlefirstappliedthiswordinPoetics.AccordingtoWebster’sNewWorldDictionary，parodyreferstoliteraryormusicalcompositionimitatingthecharacteristicstyleofsomeotherworkorofawriterorcomposer，buttreatingaserioussubjectinanonsensicalmanner，asinridicule.Aboveall，imitationofother’swordsortoneswhicharouseridiculousandhumorouseffectisthekeypointinparody.

Forexample：

Wherethereisaway，thereisaToyota.

Notallcarsarecreatedequal.

Toarmornottoarm，thatisaquestion.

Itisnecessarytofurtherdiscussthethreeexamplesabovesincebackgroundinformationisessentialtoparody.Itisawellknownsayingthatwherethereisawill，thereisaway.TheJapanesecarcompanyingeniouslyusedtheparodyoftheoldsayingbyreplacingthe“will”and“way”with“way”and“Toyota”.Thenewsentencealsocontainsthefigureofspeech-puninwhich“way”intheoriginalproverbmeansmethodormeanswhileinthenewaditmeansroad.

AnotherChineseexample：

“闊人已成乘文化去，此地空余文化城；文化一去不復返，古城千載冷清清。專車隊隊前門站，晦氣重重大學生；日暮榆關(guān)何處抗，煙花場上沒人驚?！保斞浮秱巫杂蓵?？崇實》）

ThisChineseparodyactuallyimitatesapoemofTangDynastynamedHuangHeTower.LuXunskillfullyimitatedthefamouspoemandsatirethesurrenderatthattime.

2.1.4Irony

IronyisalsoderivedfromaGreekword“antiphrasis”.AccordingtoOxfordEnglishDictionary，ironyisafigureofspeechinwhichtheintendedmeaningistheoppositeofthatexpressedbythewordsused，usuallytakingtheformofsarcasmorridiculeinwhichlaudatoryexpressionsareusedtoimplycondemnationorcontempt.Fromthisdefinitionwecanconcludethatanironicalutteranceistraditionallyanalyzedfromtwoaspects：thedirectliteralmeaningandtheindirectfigurativemeaning.Mostoftime，thesetwomeaningsareoppositefromeachother.

Forexample：

Wearelucky.ItistheothersideonthethirteenthofDecember.Thatmakesusfeelrealgood.

Thehard-workingboyseldomreadsmorethananhourperweek.

Youareeloquentasanoyster.

Theseexamplesallillustratetheoppositemeanings，andtherealmeaningsareconcealedorcontradicted.Inthefirstexample，wecaneasilyrecognize“l(fā)uck”and“realgood”astheopposite“unlucky”and“verybad”withtheknowledgeofnumberthirteenbeingthesignofbadluckinwesterncultures.Andthe“hard-working”contradictedthefollowing“seldomreadsmorethananhourperweek”，thuswecanseetheword“hard-working”isanirony.Itemphasizedtheboywasnotdiligentatallwithahumoroustone.Thelastexampleused“eloquent”tostressonthesilenceoftheperson.

Chineseironyalsoexpressesthehumorouseffect.Forinstance：

A：“我們出去走走如何？’’

B：“現(xiàn)在？你有沒有搞錯，外面正下著雨呢！真是個好時候！”

Here“好時候”doesn'tmeanagoodtimebecauseoftherainycontext.WecanfindBisactuallysayingthatAisunwisetochoosesuchbadweathertogooutforawalk.Besides，inChineseamotheralwayscallsherchild“小冤家”andanoldwomanalsocallherhusband“老不死的”.Literally，thesetwoappellationsareoftenrelatedtosomeoneundesirable.However，incertaincontext，theyarefullofaffections.Inaword，ironyasafigureofspeechhasthesimilarfunctionslikeotherdevices，whichputstressontheeffectivenessofhumor.

3.Conclusion

ThroughthecomparativestudyontheEnglishandChinesehumor，itisshowedthattherearesomecommonfunctionsofhumorinpeople’scommunications.Theknowledgeofthefunctionbenefitspeopleonkeepingagoodmentalstatusandagoodinterpersonalrelationship.What’smore，itcanbeusedtodefendoneselfandimproveteachers’teaching.

AccordingtoAmericanpsychologistFlewGail，themotivationsofhumorcanbesummedupinfouraspects：expressingsuperiority，expressingoffensive，defendingoneselfandexpressingsexuality.

Althoughtheoristsfromhomeandbroadhavedoneagreatmanyresearchesonhumor，theytrytointerpretitfromtheanglesofaesthetics，psychology，