A Presuppositional Analysis Of Humor In Zhao Benshan's Short Comedies

Zhao Benshan's humor enjoys great popularity in China but has not been accounted for by any established linguistic theories. It is therefore attempted in this thesis to give an insightful research into the working mechanism of Zhao's Humor in view of presupposition, which is the first attempt to systematically research Zhao's Humor enlisting linguistic theories so far and it is hoped that the linguistic skills of popular arts and Zhao's mastery of Chinese language will be revealed. The previous researches on humor are reviewed first. They are introduced and followed by their limitations to account for Zhao's Humor. Then the research by presupposition is introduced, based on the analysis of Zhao's Humor. To justify the research, data collection and research methods are given prior to the detailed analysis from the perspective of presuppositions. Also the presuppositional functions are surveyed and implications for better comprehension are drawn in the end. Zhao's short comedies are a must in China Central Television celebration party every year and his humor is expected by a large number of audiences over the country. Researching on the mechanism of Zhao's Humor reveals the quintessence of language arts and the glamour of Chinese language will be greatly valued and cherished.