A Cognitive Approach To English Euphemism

Euphemisms are roundabout expressions used to refer to something people feel embarrassed or unwilling to talk about. As an omnipresent phenomenon in our daily communication, euphemism has attracted the attention of many scholars. However, previous studies on euphemism are usually conducted from the perspective of pragmatics and sociolinguistics, and cognitive studies are quite few. As a mater of fact, euphemism is not only a sociolinguistic and cultural phenomenon, but a mental one. Therefore, exploring English euphemism within the scope of cognitive linguistics is necessary and beneficial for a better understanding of the nature of euphemism.It is undeniable that euphemisms are closely related with taboos. However, this does not mean that the euphemized subjects are only taboos. This thesis maintains that euphemisms can be used to euphemize anything that people feel embarrassed or unwilling to say. Three research questions are raised in this thesis. How can English euphemism be classified? What is the relationship between euphemisms and the euphemized? How can English euphemism be explained from the perspective of cognitive linguistics?This cognitive study on English euphemism follows three steps: definition, classification and explanation. Different from other studies, this study reclassifies English euphemism into two groups according to the relationship between euphemisms and the euphemized subjects. An explanation based on classification not only solves the problem of monotonous examples, but also makes the study more reliable and systematic. This study is conducted within the theoretical framework of prototype theory and conceptual metonymy theory, with the examples from Liu Chunbao's euphemism dictionary and the British National Corpus (BNC).Two main conclusions are drawn. Firstly, euphemisms and the euphemized subjects belong to a prototypical category. With the most attributes that people do not want to express, the euphemized subjects are the prototypical members, while euphemisms, which only share a few attributes with the euphemized subjects, are the comparatively peripheral members. Euphemisms, though share several attributes with the euphemized, can hide some negative attributes by drawing away people's attention and thus the euphemistic effect is realized. Secondly, the formation mechanism for English euphemism is metonymy rather than metaphor. Euphemisms are related with the euphemized subjects either in form or in meaning for the success of mutual understanding in communication. This relatedness is the basis for metonymy and euphemisms are used to stand for the euphemized subjects. The metonymic mechanism for English euphemism is either the part for the whole, or the whole for the part, or one part for another part. No matter in which way, people need more cognitive effort to figure out what they refer to and the unpleasant feelings are reduced.This thesis aims to provide a better understanding of English euphemism and hopefully it is of significance to someone with the same concern.