A Cognitive Study On The Generating And Understanding Of English Euphemisms

Euphemisms are indirect ways of expression, they are the use of pleasant, mild orroundabout expressions in place of those blunt, harsh or direct ones. Rather than merely afigure of speech, euphemisms are also a strategy of harmonizing interpersonal relationship.Researches on English euphemisms have become hot issue among scholars at home andabroad from many different perspectives. Actually euphemizing is a reflection of the mode ofcognition and is concerned with the psychological activities of human beings. A cognitiveapproach to investigating the internal cognitive mechanisms governing the generating ofeuphemistic effects provides a new way to explore the nature of English euphemisms. Inaddition to that, English euphemisms are an effective way of communicating in daily life.Therefore, the understanding of them constitutes an indispensable part in interpretingeuphemisms. As a cognitive psychological principle, the Relevance Theory put forward bySperber and Wilson is regarded as a forceful theory in the interpretation of the understandingof English euphemisms in the process of communication.This thesis is composed of five chapters. The first chapter is an introduction. Thedefinitions and classifications of English euphemisms are introduced in this chapter. Theargument, data and organization of this dissertation are clarified. Chapter two is the literaturereview on the studies of English euphemisms. Precious studies at home and abroad aresurveyed .The third chapter is one of the two central parts, which is concerned with acognitive approach on the generating of euphemistic effects. Based on the psychological andcognitive principles, euphemistic features are generated and governed by two internalcognitive mechanisms — prominence-transferred mechanism and prominence-diffusedmechanism. After that comes the other main part of this thesis—chapter four. Since Englisheuphemism is a reflection of the mode of cognition, the successful understanding ofeuphemisms in the process of communication cannot be separated from the cognitiveinference ability and cognitive process of human beings. An introduction of Relevance Theoryis given here and the understanding of euphemisms within the framework of RelevanceTheory is unveiled. The last chapter, chapter five, is a conclusion, which sums up thedissertation, provides some suggestions and puts forward some limitations of this study.