A Comparative Study Of Multimodal Metaphor In Chinese And English Public Service Advertisements

This thesis takes Conceptual Blending Theory as its theoretical foundation and main research methods are quantitative and qualitative researches.Research materials are three themes of public service advertisements: environmental protection,traditional culture and social morality.Chinese advertisements mainly come from CCTV and English advertisements mainly from You Tube.This thesis analyzes characteristics and functions of multimodal metaphors in Chinese and English public service advertisements for further analyzing their similarities and differences.This thesis is to answer the following three questions: 1)What are the characteristics of multimodal metaphors in Chinese and English public service advertisements;2)What are the functions of multimodal metaphors in public service advertisement;3)What are the similarities and differences of Chinese and English public service advertisements from the perspective of Conceptual Blending Theory.Research results show:(1)Main modes employed in Chinese and English public service advertisements are sound,color,image and language;(2)The utilization of multimodal metaphors makes public service advertisements more vivid and easy to understand;(3)Similarities are that they both involve sound mode,color mode and verbal mode,and are influenced by their cultural traditions respectively.Differences are that themes of Chinese advertisements pay attention to ethics,collectivism and cultural tradition while English advertisements are humanity and individualism.This thesis analyzes cognitive construction process,similarities and differences of multimodal metaphors in Chinese and English public service advertisements by conducting a comparative research,providing more materials for studies related to Conceptual Blending Theory and Multimodal Metaphor Theory and has certain referential significance for improvement of public service advertisement.