A Comparative Study Of The Event Structure Metaphor In Chinese And American Diplomatic Discourses

Diplomatic discourses are vague and euphemistic, which are always expressed by metaphors. Scholars of international relations, whether intentionally or not, have used a large number of metaphors as instruments for theorizing world affairs. Many aspects of international relations such as the current situation, change, cause, means, difficulty, plan and trend in the future can be analyzed by Event Structure Metaphor.Taking Chinese and American official statements of China-U.S. Strategic and Economic Dialogue as the research material, this thesis makes a corpus-based and comparative study of the differences and similarities between Chinese and American ESMs on the basis of the theory of Event Structure Metaphor. What’s more, the underlying reasons for these similarities and differences as well as the current situation and tendency of China-U.S. relations are also explored.The study finds that three ESMs--Game ESM, Building ESM and Journey ESM are pervasive prominently in both Chinese and American diplomatic discourses. Some aspects of their events such as changes/actions, purposes and means share similarities. In terms of changes/actions, both China and America “advance” their relations in an orderly way for the sake of cooperation. In terms of purposes, both sides are willing to establish “a new pattern of cooperative and win-win China-U.S. relations”. In terms of means, both sides seek “cooperation” and devote themselves to establishing new-pattern relations between two countries “in a constructive manner”. These similarities result from their common experience, perception and mode of thinking. Furthermore, the present theme of the world—“peace and development”, their common economic and political interests determine the cooperative trend of China-U.S. relations. However, there also exist differences between Chinese and American ESMs. In terms of states, America thinks that cooperation and competition, balance and imbalance coexist in present China-U.S. relations, while China considers that the current situation of China-U.S. relations are not balanced and cooperation is needed. In terms of changes/actions, America just wants China to make changes in economic policy instead of itself, while China thinks that both sides need make structural adjustment. In terms of causes, the expressions of China are much more than those of U.S.. China uses verbs “push”, “pull”, “instill positive energy” in high frequency, which indicates that China is more willing to give real strength in advancing relations between two countries. In terms of difficulties, compared with China, America points out the difficulties in their relations many times. In terms of external events, America pays more attention to international affairs of North Korea and Iranian nuclear weapons than China. These differences arise from their different strategic interests.From above discussion, we can get a conclusion: China and America are building a new type of future-oriented partnership featuring equality, cooperation, inclusiveness and mutual benefit. This kind of U.S-led relations will last for an extended period. But with the improvement of China’s comprehensive national strength, China will hold the initiative in China-U.S. relations and the status of two countries will become more equal. Although there will be some incessant frictions between China and America, the greater conflict is less likely. These frictions will not affect the broader picture of friendship and cooperation between two countries. Therefore, this study has certain value of reference for the judgment of current China-U.S. Relations and their future development.