A Study on Metaphor in Cosmetics Advertising from the Perspective of Sociolinguistics_英语论文

摘要

如今，为了表达化妆品广告中隐含的信息，隐喻被广泛地应用在广告中，以此鼓动潜在消费者产生美的共鸣，实现推销产品的目的。这篇论文主要探索了英语与中文化妆品广告之间的社会文化，以便于更好的了解不同语言里的隐喻。在结构隐喻、本体隐喻和方位隐喻理论的基础上，这篇论文尝试用定性分析，描述和解释的方法去分析化妆品广告语。通过分析发现中英文化妆品广告之间存在着社会文化上的异同点，即中西方化妆品广告在概念隐喻的作用机制和人类思维的普遍性方面有着共同之处。然而，中英文化妆品广告中有不同的思维方式，社会制度上的差异。这篇论文一方面希望可以帮助消费者对化妆品广告有一个更加全面的理解；另一方面希望它能够帮助广告商注重在广告中的中西方文化差异。

关键词: 隐喻  社会文化  化妆品广告  

Abstract

Currently, metaphor is widely used in advertising in order to express the implied information in cosmetic advertisements, which encourage potential consumers to have a resonance for beauty as to achieve the purpose of merchants to sell goods. This thesis mainly explores the social culture between English and Chinese cosmetics advertisement to better understand metaphors in different language. Based on the theories of structural metaphor, ontological metaphor and orientational metaphor, this thesis tries to analyze cosmetics advertisement by using description, explanation and qualitative methods. Through the analysis, it is found that there are similarities and differences in social culture between English and Chinese cosmetics advertisement that both Chinese and western cosmetics advertisement have common ground of conceptual metaphor working mechanism and the universality of the human mind. However, they have different ways of thinking differences in social systems. On the one hand, this thesis is hoped to help consumers to have a more comprehensive understanding of cosmetics advertisement; on the other hand, it is hoped that it can help advertisers to pay attention to the difference between Chinese and western culture in adverting.

Key words: Metaphor  Social Culture  Cosmetics Advertising    

Contents

Chapter One  Introduction .1

1.1  Background of the Research 1

1.2  Significance and Purpose of the Research 2

1.3  Structure of the Thesis 3

Chapter Two  Literature Review 4

2.1  Origin and Development of Sociolinguistics 4

2.2  Previous Studies of Metaphor 5

2.3  Previous Studies of Cosmetics Advertising 5

Chapter Three  Theoretical Framework 7

3.1  Definitions of Metaphor 7

3.2  Characteristics of Metaphor 7

3.3  The Classification of Metaphor 8

3.3.1 Structural Metaphors 8

3.3.2 Orientational Metaphors 9

3.3.3 Ontological Metaphors 10

3.4  Metaphor and Social culture 10

Chapter Four  An Analysis of Metaphor in Cosmetics Advertising 12

4.1  Corpus Collection and Collation 12

4.2 An Analysis of Metaphor in Cosmetics Advertising Based on Sociolinguistics 12

4.2.1 Structual Metaphors in Cosmetics Advertising 13

4.2.2 Orientational Metaphors in Cosmetics Advertising 15

4.2.3Ontological Metaphors in Cosmetics Advertising 16

4.3  Metaphor and Social Culture 18

Chapter Five  Conclusion 21

5.1  Findings of the Research 21

5.2  Limitations and Suggestions for Future Study 21

Bibliography

Acknowledgments