A study on the Chinese and Western Cultural Differences from the Comparison between Chinese and English Euphemism

【Abstract】Euphemism is an indirect language expression way to avoid embarrassment and unpleasant feeling in the process of communication. In different nations， it has different features because of the various historical and cultural backgrounds. Euphemism can reflect the unique cultural values and moral ethics. There are different euphemisms in English and Chinese and this paper is aimed to explore the differences of the two different euphemisms from the perspective of traditional morality and social values in order to remove the obstacles of the cross-cultural communication

【Key words】Euphemisms; Comparison; Chinese and Western

【作者簡(jiǎn)介】朱小茜（1993-），女，漢族，安徽安慶人，海南大學(xué)，碩士，研究方向：英語(yǔ)語(yǔ)言文學(xué)。

Euphemism is an indirect and polite means of expression for communicating some unpleasant things. It can make some undesirable things， in the process of communication， to be accepted easier by listeners. Euphemism is a kind of linguistic phenomenon widely used in Chinese and Western civilization and plays an important role in interpersonal communication. This paper explores the cultural differences reflected in cultural phenomenon through the analysis and comparison of two different euphemism systems to provide some implication about cross-cultural communication.

1. Comparison between Chinese Euphemism and English Euphemism Similarities of Euphemism in English and Chinese

1.1 The Expression of Death

Nearly every nation regards the death as a mysterious event， so in English and Chinese， there are lots of euphemisms about “death”. For example， in English， we describe “death” as “pass away”， “pass out”， “close ones eyes”. However， in Chinese， we use the following euphemisms to replace ‘death， such as ‘老了， ‘沒了， ‘逝世， ‘不在了 and so on.”

1.2 The Expression of Illness

There are lots of English euphemisms of the disease， for example， “cancer” is called “the big C” or “l(fā)ong illness” and “mad” is replaced by “mental problem”. In addition， we dont use “heart attack” but “heart condition” and use “irregularity” instead of “constipation”. Chinese also has a large amount of euphemisms related with disease， such as “poor performance”（欠安）， “incurable disease”（不治之癥）

2. Differences of Euphemism in English and Chinese

2.1 The Difference in Traditional Moral Value

Chinese people paid more attention to humility and modesty from ancient times to the present， so when we talk something or some behaviors related to ourselves， we always try to describe it in a self-deprecating way and put ourselves in a humble place but put others in a noble place. The euphemisms reflect the characteristics of modesty and respect. In English， there are also some words showing the respect to others but without modesty and restraint. In Chinese， we often use the following sentence to reply the gratitude of others， such as “區(qū)區(qū)小事，何足掛齒”， but in English， people use “thanks”， “my pleasure” to reply appreciation. Differences of the two answers in two kinds of language reflect the connotation of Chinese and straightforwardness of English.

2.2 The Difference in Religious Belief

In English， many euphemisms of death come from the “Bible” or “Christian”， such as “be safe in the arms of Jesus”and “be taken to paradise”. But in Chinese， the euphemisms mainly come from Buddhism and Taoism， such as in Taoism， there are different name of death such as “仙逝”， “駕鶴西去”and the euphemism about death in Buddhism are “羽化”， “坐化”， “入寂”. The different religious beliefs contribute to the different euphemisms. In western countries， people believe in Christianity and they hold that God is the most powerful spirit in the word While Taoism in China focus on the eternity and immorality of the human body.

In a word， the similarities and differences between English and Chinese cultures are reflected in the following aspects， such as the individual values and religious backgrounds. Nowadays， the world has already become an increasingly interconnected global village， it is very important to understand the definition and application of euphemism in Western and Chinese cultural background to avoid the misunderstanding and foster the awareness of cross-cultural communication.

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