政治委婉語修辭應(yīng)用

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AbstractEuphemismisderivedfromtaboo,whichisusedtodescribesomethinginappropriatetotalkaboutdirectlyincommunication.Itisaculturalphenomenonaswellasarhetoricaldevice.Itisalsoaproperlanguagepatternpeoplecreatedinsocialcommunicationinordertomakethecommunicationeffective.Itplaysanimportantroleinourdailylife.Themostimportantsocialfunctionsofeuphemismareevasivefunction,politefunctionandcosmeticfunction.Politicaleuphemismisatypeofeuphemism,soithasthefeatureofeuphemism.Politicaleuphemismisusedwidelybypoliticians,throughwhichtheycandelivertheirrealinformationinamildwaywithoutanyharshness.Thisarticlewillmakeanintroductionoftheorigin,socialfunctionsandtheapplicationofeuphemisms,andthendiscussrespectivelythepoliticaleuphemismsusedininternalandinternationalaspectandtherhetoricalapplicationofpoliticaleuphemisms.

KeyWordssocialfunction;politicaleuphemism;rhetoricalapplication

委婉語起源于民俗禁忌，人們?cè)诮浑H中用來描述不宜直言的人或事物，既是一種修辭手法，又是一種文化現(xiàn)象。委婉語又是人們?cè)谏鐣?huì)交際中為謀求理想的交際效果而創(chuàng)造的一種適當(dāng)?shù)恼Z言形式。它在生活中發(fā)揮著十分重要的交際功能。最主要的有避諱功能，禮貌功能，掩飾、美化功能。政治委婉語是委婉語的一個(gè)范疇，沿襲了普通委婉語的特征，廣為政治家們所用。它使政治家們得以一種暖和、不帶任何刺激性的表達(dá)方式傳遞其真正的信息。本文將從委婉語的起源、社會(huì)功能、修辭入手，分別闡述政治委婉語的國際國內(nèi)使用情況和政治委婉語修辭應(yīng)用。

社會(huì)功能;政治委婉語;修辭應(yīng)用

1.Introduction

1.1Thedefinitionofeuphemism

TheEnglishword“euphemism”derivedfromtheGreekword“euphemismos”，whichmeans“fairspeech”.Theprefix“eu-”means“good，soundingwell”，and“pheme”means“saying”or“speech”.Sotheliteralmeaningof“euphemism”is“tospeakwithgoodwordsorinapleasantmanner.”InthebookofModernLinguistics,itisdefinedas“amild,indirectorlessoffensivewordorexpressionsubstitutedwhenthespeakerorwriterfearsmoredirectwordingmightbeharsh,unpleasantlydirectoroffensive.”1

1.2Theoriginofeuphemism

Totracethebeginningofeuphemisms,wecan’tneglect“taboo”.Inprimitivesociety,peoplecouldn’texplainsuchthingsasdeath,ailmentsandsomesupernaturalphenomena.Theyalsohadconfusionbetweenthenamesofthingsandthethingsthemselves:Thenameisviewedasanextensionofthethings.Justastheidiomsays“Speakofthedevilandheappears.”Naturallythewordsorthephrasesrelatedtotheseunexplainablethingsbecametaboos.

Forordinarypeople,thesafestwaytoavoidmentioningthesethingsthattheyhavetomentioninmanycircumstancesistouseanothername---euphemismstoreplacethetruenameofsuchathing.Inmanycultures，thenamesofgodsanddevilsaretaboos.Inordertoavoidmentioningthemdirectly,peopleuse“goshorgolly”insteadofGodand“dickenoroldNick”insteadofthedevil.Therefore，wecansafelystatethat“theexistenceoftaboowordsortabooideasstimulatesthecreationofeuphemisms”.

Inourmodernsociety,however,thereligiousandsuperstitiousrelicsstillexist.Buttoalargerextent，euphemismismostlymotivatedbypeople’sfearofdeath.Thusitisnowonderthatsuchalargenumberofeuphemismsabout“death”exist:depart,decease，passaway，etc.

Inshort，euphemismoriginatesfromtaboo.Becauseofthepsychologyoffear，peopledarenotorwouldrathernotcallsomethingbynamedirectly.Ifsuchunpleasantthingshavetobementioned，peopleworkoutindirecttermstoreplacethem.Thuseuphemismscomeintobeing.Usingeuphemismsgivespeopleafeelingthattheyaresomewhatdistantfromwhattheyfear，andresortingtoeuphemismsseemstobeaguaranteeoftheirsafety，happiness，healthandgoodluck.

1.3Thesocialfunctionsofeuphemism

Fromtheoriginofeuphemism,wecanseethattheoriginalfunctionofeuphemismistobeusedintalkingabouttaboos.Inourdailylife,therearesometabooedthingsthatarebelievedtobedangeroustocertainindividuals,ortothesocietyasawhole,ortobedisgustingandunpleasantandcausefear.Suchtaboothingsincludedisease,disabilities,death,sex,bodyexcretionandbodyeliminationprocess,etc.Peoplecanuseeuphemismstotalkaboutwhatcannotbetalkedabout.

Withthedevelopmentofoursociety,somenewfunctionscameintobeingduringthecommunicationinthecivilizedsociety.Inourdailycommunication,besides,tabootopics,thereareothersensitiveandunpleasanttopicswhichwedonotfeelliketalkingaboutdirectly,such

asoccupation,appearance,formofaddress,socialstatus,poverty,murder,andsoon.Ifwetalkaboutsuchthingsdirectly,wemayfeelormakeothersfeelembarrassedorunhappy.Suchpsychologyincommunicationresultsinanotherfunctionofeuphemism,thatistoshowpolitenessandconcealfeelings.Forinstance,unemploymentandpovertyareverydreadfulthingsnowadays.Inthemodernwayofthinking,tomentionsomebody’sunemploymentandpovertyistospeakpejorativelyofhiscondition.Sothereplacementsforthemkeepappearing.Themiserablefactofunemploymentissaidtobe“involuntarilyleisured”,“betweenjobs”,etc.Thepoorbecomes“theunderprivileged”,and“thedisadvantaged”.InChinese,wereferto失業(yè)as下崗，炒魷魚；被裁掉as給優(yōu)化掉，etc.Andthepooraredescriedas拮據(jù)，手頭緊，手頭不便，囊中羞澀，etc.

Fromtheaboveexampleswecanseethateuphemismscanhelptokeepusmoredistantfromtheunpleasantreality,orinotherwords,theharshtruthhasbeenconcealedtoacertainextent,thatistosay,inreality，euphemismsarealsooftenusedtocoverthetruth.Theeuphemismsrelatedtopoliticsgivenexcellentexplanationforthis.Forexample,theWatergateScandalmadepeoplemoresensitivetopoliticallanguage.Itbecamenecessarytouseeuphemismstomakethesensitivepoliticalconceptssoftenedandvague.Hence，the“Caperincident”substituted“phonestaps”，“gothehangoutroad”for“tellthetruth”，and“stonewall”for“flatlyrefusetocooperate”.2GeorgeOrwellonceillustratedthebitterironyofsuchlinguisticphenomenon，“politicallanguage…isdesignedtomakeliessoundtruthfulandmurderrespectable，andtogiveanappearanceofsoliditytopurewind.”

Basedontheabovedescriptionsaboutthesocialfunctionsofeuphemisms，wecanmakethegeneralizationsasfollows:

(1)Euphemismsnotonlyhelpthespeakeravoidtalkingaboutthedreadfulorembarrassedthingsdirectly,butalsohelpthespeakerorthelistenerfeelrelaxedtalkingaboutthethingsthatmightprobablymakehim/herappeardisgracedorembarrassedifspokendirectly.

(2)Euphemismsareusedtocoverupthetruenatureofevents,deceivingthepublicwithnice-soundingandpseudo-technicalwork,andinthemeanwhileitalsocanhelpsomepeopleavoidtalkingaboutsensitivethingsdirectlysothattheycanescapetheirdueresponsibility,evenpunishment.

1.4.Rhetoricalapplicationofeuphemism

1.4.1.Thedefinitionofrhetoric

Beforewestudytherhetoricalapplicationofeuphemism，itisnecessarytomakeclearwhatisrhetoric.Rhetoricis“theartofusinglanguageimpressivelyandpersuasively,esp.inpublicspeaking.”(OxfordAdvancedLearner’sEnglish-ChineseDictionary,4thedition.)WhetherSpeakingorwriting，onehastogetoneselfacrosseffectively，i.e.，tobeeloquent，accurate，impressive，persuasiveandexpressive.Thestudyofhowtoexpressoneselfeffectively，generallyspeaking，isthemainconcernofrhetoric.

1.4.2.Rhetoricalapplicationofeuphemism

Whenweuseeuphemisms,wealsohavetothinkabouthowtoexpressourideaseffectively.Soweshouldmakeuseoftherhetoricaldevice.3Therhetoricaldevicesfrequentlyusedareasfollowing:

(i)Metaphor

Withthisfigureofspeech，theeuphemismalwaysseemstoberomanticsothatthestyleofthelanguagemaychangealot.Therearenumerouseuphemisticwordsfor“die”inEnglish.Actuallysomeofthemarevividandinformalmetaphor.Forinstance，“gotohislonghome”,“gotosleepforever”and“ceasetothink”，etc.

(ii)Metonymy

Metonymyisafigureofspeechinwhichthenameofonethingisusedtostandforanotherthing.Thetwothingsinvolvedinametonymyarenotofthesamekindbutarecloselyrelated.Euphemismmakesagooduseofit.Forinstance,somepartofhumanbodyareofteneuphemizedwithawholepartforaveryspecialone,whichisnotsuitabletomentiondirectly,suchas“l(fā)owerparts”,or“partbelow”for“secretparts”,“upperparts”for“breasts”,etc.

(iii)Synecdoche

Someeuphemismsareinventedbysynecdoche,atropewhichis“afigurebywhichamorecomprehensivetermisusedforlesscomprehensiveorviceversa;aswholeforpartorpartforwhole,agenusforspeciesorspeciesforgenus,etc.”(OxfordDictionary)Forinstance,“Hehasasmoothtongue,”infact,means,“Heistalkative.”

(iv)Personification

Someunpleasantthingsaregivenhumancharacteristicsorhumannamestoachieveavivideffect.Examples:

(1)Personifiedeuphemismsfordrugs:

BigHarryforheroin，MissEmmaformorphine，

MaryJaneformarijuana，etc.

(2)Personifiedeuphemismsforbathroom:

John(Am.E.)，jakes，SirJohn;

Mrs.Tones，Aunt(e.g.togotoone’sAunt)(usedbyfemaleonly)，etc

(v)Periphrasis

Periphrasis,ascircumlocution,referstoathingnamedinaroundaboutway.Rawsonsuggests“thelongertheeuphemisms,thebetter.”Theyhavemoresyllables,andfrequently,twoormorewordswillbedeployedinplaceofasingleone.Forinstance,“trousers”doesnotsoundwell，so“nethergarments”replacesit.“Fart”istoounpleasanttotheear，sopeoplesayitas“windfrombehind”.

(vi)Understatement

Understatementisafigureofspeechinwhichanideaisdeliberatelyexpressedtooweakly.Itisusedtoplaydownortominimizetheimportanceofsomething.Itisusuallyemployedinthreeways:litotes,meiosisandovertones.Litotesisunderstatementbydenyingthecontraryofthethingbeingaffirmed.Itistheuseofnegativeformforpositiveideaswhenthespeakerwishestoweakenhistoneofcommentonsomething.Forexample,weoftenuse“unwise”insteadof“stupid”;“impolite”insteadof“rude”.

(vii)Irony

Ironyisafigureofspeechinwhichtheintendedmeaningofthewordsusedisthedirectoppositeoftheirusualsense.Forexample,whensomeonehatestheweather,whichspoilshistripandsays,“Whatafineday!”heisironical.

Someintimatefeelingsorbadthingsareexpressedresortingtoirony，afigureofspeechinwhichthemeaningliterallyexpressedistheoppositeofthemeaningindicatedandaimsathumororsarcasmandavoidhurtingothersbydirectexpressions.Incertaincontext，itcanholdthereader’sattentionanddeepenitsimpression，therefore，aPleasanteffectcouldbeachieved.Examples:MinistryofDefenseisinfactreferredto“MinistryofWar”,therealmeaningof“l(fā)ifeinsurance”is“insurancewhenyouaredead”,and“freedomfighter”issubstitutedfor“terrorists”.

2.Politicaleuphemism

2.1.Introduction

Politicsisafertileareaforthegrowthofeuphemisms，whicharecosmeticinexpressionbutdeceptiveinnature.Euphemismsofthiskindarealwaysusedconsciouslyanddeliberately.Euphemismsusedinpoliticalissuesaremainlyseenintheinternalandinternationalaspects.

2.1.1Internalaspect

Ininternalaspect,politicaleuphemismsareusedforsomesocialproblemssuchaspoverty，unemployment,crimeandracism,andtheactivitiesofthepoliticalorganizationandsoon,whicharecosmetic.

Inordertocovertheproblemsofpovertyandunemployment,etc,thegovernmentcontinuouslycreatedeuphemismsservingforhispoliticalpurpose.Forexample,inAmerica,“thepoor”iscalledas“thedeprived,manofmodestmeans,thelesswelloff”,andthepoorareaas“theinnercity”,etc.And“l(fā)osejobs”become“betweenjobs”,“fireemployees”become“downsizing”or“RIF(reductioninforce),”lackofjobsecurity”isreferredtoas“jobflexibility”.InBritain,theunemployedcanenjoythehalf-pricefilmticketortheatreticket,onlybecausetheyare“thelessfortunate”.

Whenthewesterncountrieswereinthebeginningof20thcentury,therelationbetweenthelaborersandthecapitalistwasverytense,andstrikebecomeaserioussocialproblem.Inordertocoverthecontradiction,“strike”wasreferredtoas“industrialdispute”,“boycottclasses”as“studentunrest”,“anddrop”as“adjustmentdownward”.4Americaisacountrypoundofitsperfectlawsystem,however,itisalsoacountryfilledwithallkindsofsocialcrime.Inordertoavoidthosedisgracedsayings,euphemismsarefrequentlyused.Forinstance,“steal”iscalledas“tohook,topalm,toworkthehole,towalkawaywith”;“torobbery”isreferredtoas“toclip,toputthearmon,tobreakajug”;“tomurder”isreferredtoas“tocrossout,todisappear,todieinanecktie,togocool”;“punishment”becomes“todropintothebucket,dotime,towalkthelastmile”.5P47Theword“nigger”whichisfullofracialdiscriminationandhasabadconnotationisreplacedby“Negro”andthen“colored”,“black”andnow“Afro-American”.

Somepoliticalorganizationsalsoprefertouseeuphemisms.InAmerica,theactivityoftheFBIorganizationoftenbecriticizedandsatirized.Peopleespeciallydisagreedwiththeirsearchingactivities,whichinvadehumanrights.Inordertocovertheirillegalactivity,theinvestigatorsoftheorganizercreatedandchangedthespeechtheyused,usingaseriesofeuphemisms,suchas“technicaltrespasses,surreptitious,uncontestedphysicalsearches,andwarrantlessinvestigations”,etc,allofwhich,infact,aretheeuphemismof“breakin”.AftertheAmericanpresidentReaganwintheelection,hesetabouttodealwiththecountry’sfinancialproblem.Heappealed“revenueenhancements”.Infact,itis“taxincrease”,whichruncounterto“cuttaxes”hepromisedduringtheelection.Theeuphemismusedherevaguehistrueintentionabstractlyandfuzzily.6

Therearealsosomeotherpoliticaleuphemismsusedtocoverthepoliticalscandals.Forexample,“l(fā)ie”isreferredtoas“l(fā)essthantruthful,prevaricate,inoperative”;“illegal”isreferredtoas“inappropriate”Therearealotofeuphemismsproducedduringthe“Watergatescandal”aboutpresidentNixoninAmericaof20thcentury1970s.Forinstance,“plumber”isreferredtoas“intelligence-stealer”,“eavesdrop”as“intelligence-gathering”,“theschemeofeavesdrop”as“scenario”,andeven“thescandal”became“event”.

Inmodernsociety，socialproblemsarenumerous，soitiswithChina.Toreassureandpacifythepublic，thegovernmentjustmakessuchremarksas“我們絕大多數(shù)黨員干部是廉潔自律的，這樣的人在我們的干部隊(duì)伍中只是極少數(shù)，問題是有的，但成績是主要的，主流是好的”etc.Fordiplomatictalks，wehavesuchremarksas“雙方進(jìn)行了建設(shè)性的會(huì)談，雙方就共同關(guān)心的問題坦率地交換了意見，總之，雙方的會(huì)談是有益的和富有建設(shè)性的”etc.Alltheseindicatethatbothsidesarequitefarfromreachingagreementconcerningcertainissues.Thesevagueremarksjustconcealthefactoftruthandservecertainpoliticalpurpose.

Politicaleuphemismalsohaspositivefunction.Ininternalaspect,theuseofpoliticaleuphemismisembodiedinthetalkbetweendifferentparties.Theproperpoliticaleuphemismscanenhancethefriendlyrelationshipandkeepafriendlyatmosphere.Taiwanproblemisatypicalexampleofthiskind.InOctober,1995,whenchairmanJiangZeminwasinterviewedbytheAmericanjournalists,hesaidthat,“我們一貫主張和平統(tǒng)一,‘一國兩制’,但是假如臺(tái)灣島內(nèi)分裂主義勢(shì)力搞‘’我們不排除采取非和平手段的可能性.”The“Anti-secessionLaw”passedin2005,alsoemphasizesthat“必要時(shí)將通過’非和平手段’來確保國家的領(lǐng)土完整.”Here,“非和平手段”(non-peacefulmeans)infactisreferredto“war”.Theuseofthesetwopoliticaleuphemismsof“不排除采取非和平手段的可能性”and“必要時(shí)將通過’非和平手段’”reflectthatthegovernmentofChinatriedtheirbesttoconsolidatethewholecountrythroughpeacefulway.

2.1.2Internationalaspect

Inthecaseofinternationalaspect,thecosmeticeuphemismsalsocanbeeasilyfoundinpoliticalandmilitaryactivities.Forinstance,“l(fā)ie”isreferredtoas“terminologicalinexactitude”;“aggression”as“pre-emptiveaction”or“policeaction”;“retreatandtout”as“phasedwithdrawal”;“admitdefeat”as“concedethevictoryto”;“concentrationcamps”as“strategicvillages”or“hamlets”;“bombingandblastingofwholevillages”as“pacificationoftheenemyinfrastructure”or“softeningupofenemyresistance”or“givemassiveairsupport”.Theeuphemismshereareinthetruesenseoftheword“false.”Theyareusedtocoverupthetruenatureofevents,deceivingthepublicwithnice-soundingandpseudo-technicalwords.

Politicaleuphemismsusedinmilitaryactivitycomeintobeingwiththewar.Politiciansinthewesterncountriescalltheinvasivewarusedtotransfertheinternalcontradictionas“preventivewar”or“internationalarmedconflict”;“defeat”as“strategicwithdrawal”;“therefugeetide”duringthewaras“transferofpopulation”.

ThemilitaryactivityofthealliedforcesoftheUSAandBritaininIraqalsoproducedmanypoliticaleuphemisms.Themomentofstartingthewarwascalledas“momentoftruth”;thesloganofthisactionwas“IraqiFreedom”;theillegalandinhumanaggressionbecome“l(fā)iberation”;“bombing”wascalledas“atargetofopportunity,”thatis,atargetoftheIraqileadership,whichreallymeans“randombombing”.

GovernmentdiscussionoftheVietnamWarwassaturatedwitheuphemisms.Villagerswereburnedandtheinhabitantsimprisoned-thatwere‘pacifications’;saturationbombingwithB-525was‘ordnancedelivery’，destroyingcropswas‘defoliation’;thewaritselfwasnotawarbuta‘conflict’.Theseeuphemismsformaframeworktodeceive，tohidethedirtybusinessofwar.Andexamplesareeverywhere:in1983，aftertheU.S.sentitsarmedforcesintoGrenada，Reaganshowedhisirritationwithreportersattheir‘frequentuseofthewordinvasion.‘This’,hesaid，‘wasarescuemission.’Actually，itwasReaganhimselfwhohadfirstcalleditaninvasion.In1999，theU.S.governmentbombedChineseembassyinYugoslaviaonpurpose，buttoconcealtheirguilt，theycalledthebombing‘friendlyfires’andsoon.

Sometimes,theinvaderevenusesthecosmeticfunctionofeuphemismstoshirkone’sresponsibilityandkeepthemselvesfrombeingcensuredbytheinternationalpublicopinion.Forexample,theJapanesegovernmentwasunwillingtoadmititsheinouscrimeinfrontofitsciviliansafteritssurrenderintheWorldWarTwo.Itevendistortsthehistory.Initshistorytextbooks,“invadeChina”ismisrepresentedas“enterthemainland”,“massivekillinginNanjingcity”whichshockedthewholeworldwascalledas“occupyNanjingcity”.Intheendof20thcentury,NATO,inordertospeeduptheprocessof“theplanofeastward”,takingtheKosovoCrisisasanexcuse,bombedYugoslaviaheavily,whichlastovertwomonths.TheunscrupulousbombingbroughttheYugoslaviansthematerialandmentalloss.WhencountriesallovertheworldblamedtheNATO’s“robberyaction”,inordertoescapefromit,NATOcalledthewaras“humanitarianintervention”.TheAmericanDefenseMinisterWillianCohendeniedthewaragainstYugoslaviaontheNewsReleaseMeeting,andsaideuphemisticallythat,“Wearecertainlyengagedin‘hostilities’;weareengagedin‘combat’.“AmericanSecretaryofstateMadeleineAlbrightevencalledthe“continuousbombing”ofNATOagainstYugoslaviaas“NATO’soperation”,sothattheycouldtaketheeasierwaytotalkaboutthesituationofYugoslaviaconcernedbypeopleallovertheworld.7

Ininternationalaspect,therearealsosomeexamples,whichreflectthepositivefunctionofthepoliticaleuphemisms.Forinstance,“thedevelopingcountry”isreferredto“thepoorcountry”toavoidtheproblemofun-developmentandshowthepoliteness,whichisgoodforthecooperationbetweenthecountriesallovertheworld.Anotherexample,whendifferentpoliticalsystemsarereferred,peopleoftenuse“theeasterncountries“torefertothesocialistcountries,suchasChina,and“thewesterncountries”tothecapitalistcountries,suchasAmerica,soastosoftenandavoidtheconflict,andkeepaharmoniousatmospherebetweenthecountries.

Wecanalsoseetheuseofpoliticaleuphemismsusedforpolitenessfromthereportsabout“NuclearWeaponProbleminKoreanPeninsula”.ThespeakerofAmericanWhiteHouseSteveMcClarenonceemphasizedonaNewsReleaseMeetingthat,“theAmerica’sattitudewouldneverbechanged,thatis,wewillcontinuetolookfordiplomaticresolutioncooperatingwiththeneighborcountriesofKorean,butatthesametime,westillkeepalltheotheroptionalplans.”RichardPerle,thehigh-gradeconsultantofAmericanDefenseDepartment,whowasvisitingMoscowatthattime,whenhewasinterviewedbythelocalTVprogramaboutNuclearWeaponProbleminKoreanPeninsula,hesaid,“Idon’tthink(America)wouldsolvetheproblemthroughuseofforce,butnoonecanensurethatitisimpossibletouseforce.Wearemakingourendeavortosolvetheproblem,andaretryingtomakeKoreanstopitsnuclearplanwithoutconsideringusingforce.”InfaceofAmerica’sbeatingaroundthebush,Koreanreliedthat,“IfAmericaattackKorean,KoreanpeoplearmycertainlywillgivetheAmericanarmy‘theruthlesspunishment’.”Inthediplomaticspeech,althoughthetwosideopposedeachotherwithequalharshness,expressedeachother’sfirmattitude,theystilltriedtoavoidtalkingabout“war”directly,sothattheycanremaintheroomforpeacesolutionthroughpoliticalanddiplomaticdevices,soasnottobefallenintothepassivesituation.8

Fromalltheexamplesabove,wecanconcludethattherearetwomainfeaturesofthecommunicationofpoliticaleuphemisms.

(1)Todisguise:Theuseofsuchpoliticaleuphemismshelpsgovernmentbeautifythefact，andpreventspeoplefromtakinganyanti-governmentaction.Theseeuphemismsformaframeworktodeceive，tohidethedirtybusinessofwar.

(2)Tobepolite:Itwasusedtomaintainthefriendlyrelations,whicharerequiredforsmoothandeffectivecommunication.Thepurposeofsocialinteractionistopromotethefriendshipbetweenthespeakersandtherefore，everytimewhenonespeaks，hehastoconsiderwhetherwhathesaysislikelytomaintain，improve，ordamagethefriendship.

3.Rhetoricalapplicationofpoliticaleuphemism

Politicaleuphemism,asanimportanttypeofeuphemism,alsousestherhetoricaldevicestomakethecommunicationeffectively.9Peopleoftenusethefollowingrhetoricaldevices:

3.1Theuseofunderstatement

Thefeatureofunderstatementisthatthespeechofittouchestheessenceofthematterinaverylittledegree,sothatpeoplewhodon’tknowthetruthortheimplicationcan’tfeeltheseriousnessofthematter.Politicaleuphemismsoftenusetherhetoricdeviceofunderstatement.Therearemanyexamplesofthiskind.Forexample,“poor”isadreadfulwordbothinEnglishandChinese,itmeansthelifeisinadifficultposition,andindicatesthelowsocialposition.Italsoindicatesthegovernmentalinabilitytosolvesocialandeconomicproblems.Inordertocoverupitandmakethepovertyproblemseemtobenotsoserious,government

call“poor”as“needyordisadvantaged”,callthe“slum”as“substandardhousing”,“slumchildren”as“theculturallydifferentchildren”,and“ghetto”isreferredtoas“innercity”.InEnglish,therearenotpoornationsorpoorcountries,butonlybackwardnations,underdevelopednations,developingnationsandemergingnations.TheUNcallsthosepoorcountriesas“l(fā)ess-developednationsorcountries.”

Intheinternationalpoliticalaffairs,especiallyinthemilitaryfield,therearemoreexamplesofthiskind,whichareusedtocovertheessenceofsomedirtymatters.Forexample,MinistryofDefense,infact,isMinistryofWar.Americangovernmentonceuses“OperationSunshine”tocoveritsheinouscrimethattheytooktheexperimentofhydrogenbulletinthePacificOcean.DuringthewarofGulfwar,Americanuse“airoperation”and“groundoperation”insteadof“airstrike”and“groundwar”,asaresult,peoplecouldn’tfeelabouttheterriblenessandcruelnessofthewarfromthewordsdirectly.

3.2.Theuseofperiphrasis

Periphrasisusuallyuseslongphrasesorsentencestomakethelistener’sattentionfarfromthetopic.Politiciansoftenusesomelongerwordstoexpresstheirideas.Becausewhenpeoplewanttodisguisesomefacts,theyoftentakearoundaboutwayoftalk.Thentheymustusemorewords.Expressionsinpoliticalissuesareusuallymadebylongerandmorewordsorphrases.Thetypicalexampleofthiskindisthedifferentexpressionsofthe“WarSyndrome”inthreedifferentperiods.InWorldWarOne,itwas“shellshock”;inWorldWarTwo,itbecame“combatfatigue”;whilein20thcentury1960sthephrasebecamePost-traumaticStressDisorder,usedtodescribethepanicoftheordersoldiersofVietnamWar.Wecan’tseeanythingrelatedtowaratallfromthephrases.Therearesomeotherexamples:inofficialEnglish,governmentuse“intheearlystateoffinalization”insteadof“notyetfinished”;“beeconomicalwithtruth”insteadof“withholdthetruth”;“HigherEducationContributionScheme”insteadof“EducationalLevy”.And“fire”issaidas“givethesack”,“imprisonment”canbecalledas“l(fā)iveatthegovernment’sexpense”,“poor”is“economicallydisadvantagedindividuals”,“weaponequipmentdevelopment”iscalledas“reconnaissanceforcessweeping”,“drop”as“adjustmentdownward”.

3.3.Theuseofirony

Ironyisafigureofspeechinwhichthemeaningliterallyexpressedistheoppositeofthemeaningindicatedandaimsathumororsarcasmandavoidshurtingothersbydirectexpressions.Thatistosayironyiswhatwesaidistheoppositeofwhatwemeant.Throughirony,lettingthelistenerguessandgraduallyunderstandwhatthespeakerreallyintendtodo,wecanavoidtomakethelistenerembarrassed.Throughit,wecannotonlycoverwhatisnotconvenienttosaydirectly,butalsoincreasesthehumor.Forexample:

Nixon’sproposalshavebeenhailedaswoundifnotoriginal.Butthisappraisalofhisownstewardshipsometimesseemsmoregenerousthancandid.

Theword“generous”isoriginallyusedasacommendatorywordtopraisesomebody.Itsusingherehastheeffectofirony,whichintendstocriticizethatthepresidentexaggeratedsomethingandwasnotmodest.10

4.Conclusion

Thepresentpaperhasfocusedonthepoliticaleuphemismusedininternalandinternationalaspectsanditsrhetoricalapplication.Itwouldbeabeneficialguideforthelanguagelearnerstounderstandthecultureandthepsychologies.Inaddition，onlywhenlearningwhattopicsorsubjectsarerequiredtobeeuphemisticallydescribed，canweavoidbeingmisunderstoodindealingwithdiplomaticaffairs.Nowadays,moreandmorepeoplepayattentiontotheresearchonpoliticaleuphemism.Bystudyingpoliticaleuphemism,wecannotonlyenlargeourknowledge,butalsograspthesocialpsychologyoftheuserusingpoliticaleuphemisms,andthenunderstandanduseitproperly.

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