商务英语毕业论文-论英语广告中的隐喻.docx

南 昌 工 程 学 院
毕 业 设 计 (论 文)

外国语学院 系（院） 国际商务英语 专业

毕业设计（论文）题目 论英语广告中的隐喻

学生姓名 李 皓

班 级 10级英语3班 （国际商务）

学 号 2010103131

指导教师 胡 园

完成日期 2014 年 5 月 30 日

Nanchang Institute of Technology
Graduation Thesis

Title On Metaphors in English Advertisements

Name Li Hao

Major English(Business)

Student No 2010103131

Advisor Hu Yuan

Date May. 30th. 2014

School of Foreign Languages

Abstract
Metaphor is not only a kind of language phenomenon, but also a kind of thinking mode. Nowadays, in the modern advertising industry, metaphor is frequently applied amid designing the ads. It enables the advertisements more concise and more vivid. In addition, the use of metaphor can help to realize the marketing purpose of ads better.
This thesis discusses metaphor phenomena existing in English advertisements. It presents some fundamental knowledge about metaphor and ads. Then, the thesis studies why admen use metaphors in English advertisements and what kind of effects metaphors bring to English advertisements. What’s more, the basic progresses of understanding metaphors in English advertisements and the factors affecting the understanding of metaphors in English advertisements will also be discussed. Then, the aim of the paper is to arouse people to pay attention to metaphor. By providing useful information to let people comprehend the meaning of the metaphors used in English advertisements better and help them make sense of English advertisements.
Key Words: Metaphor; English advertisement; Use of metaphor; Understanding of Metaphor

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摘要
隐喻不但是一种言语现象，而且是一种思维形式。在当今的广告产业中，隐喻被频繁地使用于广告语的设计中，它使广告更加简洁生动，与众不同。此外，隐喻的使用还能更好地帮助广告实现其销售目的。
本文将对英语广告中存在的隐喻现象进行探讨。文章介绍隐喻和广告的基本知识。其次，文章研究广告设计者为什么会在英语广告中使用隐喻，隐喻会给英语广告带来什么效果。再次，隐喻理解的基本方式和影响隐喻理解的因素也会被讨论。文章的目的在于引起人们对英语广告中隐喻现象的注意，通过提供有用的信息来帮助人们更好地理解英语广告中隐喻的意思。
关键词: 隐喻; 英语广告; 隐喻的使用; 隐喻的理解

Content
Abstract I
摘要 II
Introduction 1
Chapter One An Overview of English Advertisement 3
1.1 The Definition of English Advertisement 3
1.2 The Purpose of English Advertisement 4
1.3 The Linguistic Features of English Advertisement Language 5
Chapter Two An Overview of Metaphor 7
2.1 The Definition of Metaphor 7
2.2 The Origin of Metaphor 8
2.3 The Development of Metaphor 9
Chapter Three The Analysis of Metaphors in English Advertisements 10
31 The Application of Metaphors in English Advertisements 10
3.1.1 The Application Actuality of Metaphors in English Advertisements 10
3.1.2 The Application Prospect of Metaphors in English Advertisements 12
3.2 Functions of Metaphors in English Advertisements 12
3.2.1 Rhetorical Function 13
3.2.2 Linguistic Function 14
3.2.3 Sociological Function 15
Chapter Four The Understanding of Metaphors in English Advertisements 16
4.1 Factors that Affect the Understanding of Metaphors in English Advertisements 16
4.2.1 The Similarities between Noumenon and Metaphorical Objectives 16
4.2.2 The Cross-culture Differences 17
4.2.3 The Language Context 17
4.2 Progress of Understanding Metaphors in English Advertisements 18
Conclusion 20
Bibliography 21

Nanchang Institute of Technology Graduation Thesis
Introduction
Advertisement is a kind of information communication facing the public. It is published by a certain people to affect public and reach the purpose of persuasion. Advertisement, as a tool to introduce commodities or conceptions, exists everywhere in this globalized society. Recent years, as the high speed development of economic globalization, more and more foreign products have entered into the Chinese market. At the same time, all kinds of English advertisements come along with these foreign goods. These ads transmit the information about multitudinous foreign goods, and undertake the missions to market the imported products. Hence, the effects of these ads are very important. An effective advertisement must transmit information fleetly. With the purpose of making the ads efficient, admen always use some certain principles or strategies to design the ads. Metaphorical language is contained in these principles and strategies.
In the past, metaphors, as a kind of rhetorical method, were often used in poetries or literary works. But now, this kind of language phenomenon is not only treated as a rhetorical method, but also treated as a cognitive phenomenon and a pattern of thinking. Research shows that people often use metaphorical thinking pattern to express their views. Aristotle used to say that “metaphors exist in all the conversations from people”. Nowadays, the studies about metaphor have already deepened into all kinds of fields, such as theoretical discussion about metaphor, the study of specific metaphorical language issues, and so on Metaphors are widely used in various designs—product design and advertising design, for example. With the application of metaphors, ads become more attractive.
This thesis discusses the application of metaphors in English ads by some examples. Firstly , the general knowledge about metaphor and advertisement will be introduced in the first and second part. Secondly, the thesis will discuss the actuality, prospect and function of metaphors in English advertisements. In the last place, progresses of understanding metaphors and factors which will affect the comprehension of metaphors will be introduced to help to understand metaphors in English advertisements better.

Chapter One An Overview of English Advertisement
In our daily life, advertisements exist everywhere. When people walk on the street, turn on TV or search the internet, people can catch sight of various advertisements. People have all kinds of views about advertisement. Some of them like advertisements because they think ads can bring lots of information about goods to them. But some of them hate advertisements because ads are meaningless and troublesome in their eyes. So, what kind of language phenomenon can be called ‘advertisement’, and why do advertisements exist in our life?
1.1 The Definition of English Advertisement
In English, the word ‘advertisement’ is a foreign word. The Latin word —‘advertere’ is the etymology of advertisement. It means induction, transmission and attention. Advertisement, actually, is used to draw the masses’ attention, spread information, and entice public to accept some kind of goods. And, transmission is advertisement’s intrinsic characteristic.
Before 1890, the western world widely believed that “advertisements are news about product or service”.
In the online dictionary, advertisement is defined as this: “A paid announcement, as of goods for sale, in newspapers or magazines, on radio or television, etc.”
Today, one of the widely quoted definitions from Rossiter and Percy (1997:20) is that: “Advertising is often regarded as a process of relatively indirect persuasion, based on information about benefits of products or services, which is designed to create favorable mental impression that turns the mind toward purchase.”
From all the above definitions, we can get such conclusions: First, advertisements are made for some specific needs, to inform, persuade, or remind. Second, advertisements need to be public widely. Finally, advertisement needs to be spread through various media approaches, such as newspapers, magazines, radios, TV, internet, and so on.
1.2 The Purpose of English Advertisement
As a type of propagating means, ads are widely used. Generally speaking, the aim of ads is to diffuse information about commodities, services or ideas to the public to persuade or influence them to make choice. By elaborative analysis, it can find four purpose of English advertisement.
First, advertisement possesses strong applicability. The top priority of advertisement is to convey information accurately. In the modern commercial community, most information of goods and services are delivered by advertisements. As our earth is big, and more than 6 billion people are living on our earth. It is impossible for businessmen to publicize their goods and services from mouth to mouth. Advertisements just help businessmen solve this problem. Through those print ads and two-dimensional ads, various commodities are known by people all over the world.
Second, advertisement can help companies establish corporate image. The status of the enterprise and products in the consumers' mind is determined by the corporate image of a company. This kind of position is greatly molded and maintained by advertisement strategies. Due to the wide audience and large circulation of advertisement, advertisement is provided with strong abilities to mold and maintain corporate image. A brilliant and credible advertisement can greatly improve the corporate image of enterprise and products greatly.
The third thing advertisement tries to do is to guide consumers. Print advertisement possesses detailed information and can be delivered to consumers’ hands directly, such as shopping guide, real estate advertisement, and commodity information. It is easy for print ads to guide consumers to buy the products. Meanwhile the two-dimensional ads can guide consumption through colorful dynamic effects.
The last purpose of advertisement is to make the consumers satisfied. A radiant and vivid advertisement can strengthen the attraction of an advertisement by its extraordinary aesthetic feeling. This makes the consumers immerse into the beautiful image of goods and services, then they will receive the guidance of the ads consciously.
1.3 The Linguistic Features of English Advertisement Language
As a means to public and communicate information, the function of ads is crucial. With the widespread use of ads, advertising English, an important branch of modern English, grows up gradually. It brings influence to people’s buying behavior and thought patterns directly, and has its unique characteristics on culture difference and the application of vocabulary, grammar and rhetoric. These linguistic means and characteristics show up the charms of advertising English tactfully and effectively, at the same time, they endow the ads with strong persuasion and make the ads be received easily. Here are some linguistic features of advertising English.
Firstly, it is the lexical feature. As a method to public information, advertising English must be full of influence and charisma. Therefore, the wording of advertising English has to be different with the normal language. General speaking, to make the English advertisement language concise, vivid, visual and infectious, the neologism and common words are often used in the advertising English.
Secondly, it is the grammatical feature. In the English advertisement language, the most obvious features of its syntax is the diversity of wording and phrasing. This type of diversity is mainly displayed in the skillful use of simple sentences, interrogative sentences and imperative sentence. On the one hand, as the ability of consumers to recognize the words is limited, the information in the ads needs be transmitted within the least time and space. The use of simple sentence can realize the request that convey the most information within the most refined language. On the other hand, the purpose of using ads is to market products through persuasion. If the ads language only narrates information about products straight, consumers may have the feeling that they are receiving information passively. But the use of interrogative sentences and imperative sentence, especially the use of them at the beginning of the ads, can make the consumers feel that the sellers are looking forward their responses and blend them into the ads subconsciously. This is beneficial to the sale of the goods.
Thirdly, it is the use of rhetorical device. In order to make the ads full of attraction and aesthetic feeling, advertisers take great pains to choose the words used in the ads. The rhetorical method used in the English advertisement language is a kind of expression skill which is on the basis of the function of words and sentences. One of the outstanding features of ads is the use of rhetorical device, which aims to persuade the consumers to buy the products, and always to decide the originality and result of the ads. The language of ads becomes vivid, visualized and precise within the use of all kinds of rhetorical device. But the application of rhetorical device must be moderate. Too much use of it is as bad as too little.
Lastly, the language differences between Chinese and Western culture. Different from all kinds of Chinese ads we contact in our daily life, English ads reflect the characteristics of western culture. This kind of difference is actually the difference between Chinese and Western culture. English ads possess the language features of exaggeration and humor, at the same time, the English ads display the characteristics of individuality, freedom and success, which the western consumers pursued.
As an extraordinary branch of English, advertising English has its own characteristics which are different from others. This is mainly showed on four aspects: vocabulary, grammar, rhetorical device and cultural differences. All these language means and characteristics let the ads full with persuasion, receive by consumers widely and show off the charm of the ads tactfully.

Chapter Two An Overview of Metaphor
2.1 The Definition of Metaphor
Metaphor is a word which comes from Greek. Its Greek etymologies are “μετά (meta)” and “φέρω (phero) ” ,which means “across” and “change”. About metaphor, there are lots of definitions defined from different angles.
I. A. Richards (1986:44-63) holds a view point that “Metaphor is the use of one reference to a group of things that are related in a particular way in order to discover a similar relation in another group.”
Grammar dictionary defines it “Metaphor is the comparison of one thing to another without the use of like or as.”(Shu Ding fang, 2011:43)
“Metaphor is the most important figure of speech, which points out resemblance but with no acknowledged word.”(Li Xinhua, 2000:46)
In the online dictionary, metaphor is defined as this: “A figure of speech in which a term or phrase is applied to something that is not literally applicable, in order to suggest a resemblance, as in ‘A might fortress is our God.’”.
The Wikipedia says that: “A metaphor is a figure of speech that describes a subject by asserting that it is, on some point of comparison, the same as another otherwise unrelated object”.
From all the viewpoints above, it is easy