[Abstract] As an indispensable and natural part of English l(5)
2013-08-17 01:11
导读：In the above sentence, Gray hairs is employed to replace old people, for gray hair is one of the typical characteristics of old people. Since old is a taboo in English-speaking countries people expres
In the above sentence, “Gray hairs” is employed to replace “old people”, for gray hair is one of the typical characteristics of old people. Since “old” is a taboo in English-speaking countries people express it with euphemistic words.
(ⅱ) Substituting the whole for the part
For example,
(28) She has a good chest .
In sentence (28), “chest” means “breast”. People consider “breast” as an ungraceful word, so they use roundabout way to mention it.
(ⅲ) Substituting the tools for the action or the thing
For example,
(29) During the World War Ⅱ Hitler attended to carry fire and sword into Every part of the world.
In sentence (29), “fire and sword” has the same meaning with “war”. In westerners’ eyes, fire is the symbol of hope and sword is the symbol of justice. As war makes people think of misery, they usually don’t mention it directly. Here, “fire and sword” is used to create a sense of satire.
(30) Selling cards is forbidden.
“cards” in sentence (30) means “drugs”. “drug” is a sensitive word as it has something to do with crime and decadence, so it is often euphemized. People use “card” to refer to “drug” for the reason that drug dealers put disposable drugs into folding postcards and send them to drug addicts.
(ⅳ) Substituting the name of a place for the person
For example,
(31) Tom is successful in his career but he was a brostal.
“Brostal” in the above sentence means “young criminal”. “Brostal” is the name of a locality in Britain. Because the famous young criminals center is located there, people use the name of it to replace “young criminal”.
4. Calcification of English euphemisms
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English euphemisms involves in almost every field of life. This paper tries to classify them according to the content.
4.1In the field of daily life
4.1.1 About old age
It is natural for people to experience adult, middle age, old age and death. But to westerners, old age means worthless and the old will be looked down upon or even deserted. So no one admits that he is old. People dread about old age so much that they see the word “old” as a taboo. Thus, they try their best to borrow other words to express it, e.g.: “the advanced in age”, “the mature”, “the longer living”, “seasoned man”, “senior citizens”, etc. In short, western nations have “senior citizens” or “the longer lived” but no “old age”.
4.1.2 About unemployment and poverty
Unemployment is still a big social problem in western countries. It is so dreaded that it almost makes people become shivering when they think of it, particularly during periods of economic crisis. And once you are out of work, poverty is the inevitable result. Who likes to live a poor life? Thus, unemployment has become a hot topic in political competition. Nearly every candidate looks on the low unemployment rate as one of his or her trumps to win. More and more people get used to be considerate when they want to mention unemployment and poverty. As a result, many vague expressions or words are created to replace them. For example, when the boss wanted to dismiss John, he was “laid off”, “eased out” or “given the walking ticket” and he became a “lay-off worker”. At first he was “out of pocket” and “lived in reduced circumstances (penniless)”, then he “lived in difficulties (in debt)”, later he had no choice but to “move into a sub-standard housing (slums)”. Besides, “The poor” is “the have-nots”, “the underprivileged” or “the disadvantaged”. And there are no poor countries in the world for they are replaced by “developing nations” or “emerging nations”. When these euphemisms are heard from the people, they are used to soften harsh reality, but when governments use them, they are changed into deceiving words.
（科教范文网 lw.AsEac.com编辑整理） 4.1.3 About menial jobs and professions
There are many people who undertake humble jobs that are looked down upon by the public. For the sake of politeness, people use upgrading euphemisms to “uplift” these jobs by name, not by status. Examples:
(32) Mary always turns to her uncle when there is something wrong with her shoes for he is a shoe rebuilder.
(33) Supervisors are strict and mean to workers.
(34) The main work of tree surgeons is to make good of trees.
(35) We need a pipe engineer because the pipe in our kitchen is dripping.
In the above sentences, “cobbler”, “foremen”, “tree trimmers” and “plumber” are replaced respectively by “shoe rebuilder”, “supervisors”, “tree surgeons” and “pipe engineer”. And “hair dresser” is substituted by “beautician or hairstylist”; “floor-sweeper” is replaced by “custodian engineer”; “hire girl” is spoken as “domestic engineer”; “rat-catcher” is substituted by “pest control operator”; “washwoman” is replaced by “clothes refresher”, and so on. All these words are used for the same purpose: to avoid offending people with humble jobs. The usage of occupational euphemisms reflects a sense of inferiority as well as a striving for “better things”.
