A Study Of English Euphemism From A Pragmatic Perspective

As an indispensable and natural part of English language, English euphemism has been arousing great interest. Many linguists and scholars have studied this linguistic phenomenon from semantic, rhetoric or psychological angles. Based on their achievements, we will have an exploration of English euphemism from a pragmatic perspective.Euphemisms are rich and diversified, which can reflect the characteristics and laws of a language. The existence of English euphemisms should abide by certain principles of language, whereas their use largely depends on the context and has a great effect on daily communication. The thesis focuses on analyzing pragmatic features of English euphemism, showing the relationship between euphemism and pragmatics: Though violating the Cooperative Principles, it is closely related to the Politeness Principle, Indirect Speech Act theory and Face theory.Human communication is conducted in a particular context. Euphemism, as a common language phenomenon, is closely connected with context. Euphemism has been so far defined semantically and rhetorically. Considering the fact that an utterance in one context may be euphemistic and may not be in another and that euphemisms change with the lapse of time, we redefine euphemism from the pragmatic perspective. As a result, whether an expression is euphemism depends on the pragmatic context. Context can influence the choice and interpretation of euphemism. If participants have a thorough understanding of the context and use euphemisms appropriately, communication can be understandable and can be carried out smoothly.In communication euphemism functions as a way of avoiding taboo and showing politeness. In this sense, euphemism is a kind of polite language, which is characteristic of pleasantness, indirectness and implicitness. In most conversational exchanges, participants should abide by certain principles in order to achieve a successful communication. The Cooperative Principle, the Politeness Principle andFace theory are three basic guiding principles in communication. In some cases, people flout certain maxim(s) of the Cooperative Principle in order to be polite and save face. Euphemism is just the case. Euphemism is often caused by violating the Cooperative Principle, while observing the Politeness Principle and Face theory. Politeness and face are powerful force behind euphemisms, which must be taken into consideration in one's exploring into the writer's/speaker's motivation for employing euphemism.The nature of euphemism lies in its indirectness, which is referred to as indirect speech act by many researchers. This thesis will demonstrate that euphemism and indirect speech act are not exactly the same. In fact, they overlap each other.Euphemism has constituted an indispensable part of speakers' or writers' "polite" vocabulary in their social communication. However, an excessive use of euphemism may have negative effects. For language is used for communication and over use of euphemisms means vagueness, which may, in turn, lead to misunderstanding or miscommunication or even pragmatic failure. Therefore, to be well understood and to achieve successful communication, we should use euphemism appropriately in a given context.Society is in a constant state of development and change. So is language. As a common language phenomenon, euphemism is also changing constantly. Euphemisms change constantly and their meanings are dominantly influenced by social and pragmatic factors. Therefore, for English learners, how to use English euphemisms effectively is of great importance in communication. Using English euphemism according to the pragmatic context and abiding by certain pragmatic principles might be the basis for successful communication.