Research On Chinese Addressing Terms From The Perspective Of Rhetoric Ethics

The use of addressing terms is closely related to human daily life. As anindispensable part of the communication, the addressing terms have gained popularityamong the scholars of various fields. Chinese addressing terms are rooted in the longhistorical culture tradition. Owing to being greatly influenced by the inherent ethicalnorms, Chinese addressing terms have a prominent characteristic of our nationality. Inour daily communication, Chinese addressing terms can distinctly and directly showthe ethical relationships with Chinese characteristics, and deliver a certain moralevaluation, which can indicate the rhetor’s emotional tendency to the signified.Rhetoric ethics, as a newly emerging linguistic theory, combines rhetorics andethics together. It aims to analyze the potential moral phenomenon among the socialverbal behaviors and construct the harmonic interpersonal relationships with the helpof languages. Luo Fei proposed the principle and guideline of rhetoric ethics whichmean the principle of fidelity and five ethical guidelines of benevolence,righteousness, propriety, wisdom and creditability. Her research findings provides uswith the possibility that we could make further research on rhetoric ethics andbroaden its application.With the help of Luo Fei’s thoughts and theory about rhetoric ethics, thisresearch analyzes the relations between rhetoric ethics and Chinese addressing terms.The major findings are as follows: first, the principle and guideline of rhetoric ethicsguide the choice of Chinese addressing terms, and the rhetor tries to make the bestchoice according to the context and the communicator; second, different addressingterms have different effects on the ethical relationships and companionships, whichinfluences whether the expected communicative goals can be smoothly achieved ornot; third, the addressing terms imply the moral evaluation on the signified, whichaffects the achievement of the expected communicative goals.This research has something referential value for the application of rhetoricethics and the choice of Chinese addressing terms. As a new linguistic theory, rhetoricethics plays an important role in the choice of addressing terms and a positive role inachieving different communicative goals. In the choice of Chinese addressing terms,understanding the rhetoric skills and the ethical evaluation which go with them canhelp the rhetor to achieve the expected communicative purposes, which promotes thedevelopment of the culture.