A Pragmatic Study Of Euphemism In Cross-cultural Communication

Language and culture are closely related to each other, the learning of language inevitably involves different cultural background that language mirrors. Owing to cultural differences, it's unavoidable for people to encounter some barriers and misunderstandings in communication that is the basis of all human contact. Cross-cultural communication involves cultural differences in terms of beliefs, values, ideas and feelings. As a linguistic and cultural phenomenon in both English and Chinese, euphemism serves as a lubricant in communication and has aroused a comparatively wide interest among scholars both at home and abroad.For a long time, the researches on euphemism have been done in terms of semantics, rhetoric and pragmatics. The thesis will mainly discuss the pragmatic study of euphemism in cross-cultural communication. Based on the previous studies, the thesis focuses on the definition, formation, classification, pragmatic functions of euphemism as well as some conceptions related to euphemism. By means of analyzing the pragmatic theories such as Cooperative Principle, Politeness Principle and Face Theory, this thesis explores how the use of euphemism flouts certain maxims of Cooperative Principle and abides by some maxims of Politeness Principle. Because of cultural differences, pragmatic failures may arise, although the language used in communication may be faultless. Out of avoiding taboos and being polite, English and Chinese euphemisms share some similarities, but there also exist some differences because euphemism is a heavily culture loaded phenomenon. The application of euphemism depends a lot on the context, so it is of great significance for us to use euphemism appropriately. By making a pragmatic study of euphemism, we can have a better understanding of the features of euphemism in both English and Chinese, and interpret and use euphemism appropriately in cross-cultural communication.Eventually, the thesis deals with the application of euphemism in EFL teaching, which is the highlight of the thesis. As is known to all, the purpose of language learning is not only equipping learners with language skills but also developing learner's cultural awareness, so that they are capable of communicating with the outside world successfully. The research into communicative competence is helpful for students to avoid pragmatic failure, which is essential for a successful communication.