Pragmatic Function and Translation of Pun in English Advertisement

Pragmatic Function and Translation of Pun in

English Advertisement

By Yuan Zhen

In partial fulfillment of the requirement

For the B. A. degree

Department of English

School of Languages and Cultures

Nanjing University of Information Science amp; Technology

May, 2016

Acknowledgment

First and foremost, I appreciate my college which gives me a comfortable learning atmosphere.

Second, I would like to show my deepest gratitude to Professor Chen Zhijie who has walked me through all the stages of the writing of this thesis. Without his illuminating instruction and patience, this thesis could not have reached its present form. I am also greatly indebted to all my teachers who have helped me to develop the fundamental and essential academic competence. My sincere appreciation also goes to all my classmates, who are my proud of my life.

Last but not least, I want to thank all my friends, especially my three lovely roommates, for their encouragement and support.

Contents

1. Introduction

1 Definition and classification of pun in advertisement..............................................1

1. 1 Definition of pun...........................................................................................1

1. 2 Types of pun in advertisement......................................................................2

1. 2. 1 Puns on Polysemy................................................................................2

1. 2. 2 Puns on Homonym..............................................................................3

1. 2. 3 Puns on Parody....................................................................................4

1. 2. 4 Puns on Grammar................................................................................4

1. 2. 5 Puns on Illustration and Words...........................................................5

2 The pragmatic function of pun in advertisement......................................................5

2. 1 Wit and humor...............................................................................................5

2. 2 Creativeness and originality..........................................................................6

2. 3 Satisfaction of people’s desire for beauty.....................................................6

2. 4 Satisfaction of society’s requirement for Economy ….................................7

2. 5 Implication of warns.....................................................................................8

3 The strategies of translation of puns in English advertisement................................9

3. 1 Preservation .................................................................................................9

3. 2 Compensation ..............................................................................................10

3. 3 Explication....................................................................................................11

3. 4 Omission.......................................................................................................12

Conclusions.................................................................................................................13

References...................................................................................................................13

Pragmatic Function and Translation of Pun in

English Advertisement

Yuan Zhen

Department of English

School of Language and Culture

Nanjing University of Information Science amp; Technology

Abstract: Advertising English is characterized by its originality, flexibility of language usage and the diversity of the forms. Apart from the distinguishing features at lexical and syntactic levels, rhetorical vehicles, as decorative devices of language, are frequently employed in advertising English. Punning, a concise way to express humor and wit is particularly favored by advertisers to enhance the appeal of language. Drawing on existing studies in the field, the author offers some strategies in the translation of puns in advertisement; such as preservation, compensation, explication and omission. The author argues that each of these strategies is not always applied on its own, and sometimes two or more strategies are jointly employed in advertisement translation in accordance with the principle of optimal relevance, which depend on the context.

Key words: Advertisement; Pun; Pragmatic Function; Translation

剩余内容已隐藏，请支付后下载全文，论文总字数：32822字