(全英文)discussion of tropes本科学位论文

Discussion of tropesA trope is any departure from ordinary language in a text. The te rm implies a turning away from common uses of words. That means “t rope”is the use of a word or expression in a different sense fro m that which properly belongs to it, the use of a word or expressi on as changed from the original signification to author, for the sak e of giving life or emphasis to an idea, a figure of speech, etc.Tropes are chiefly of four kinds: smile, metaphor, metonymy and synec doche.SmileSmile is a comparison between two different things that resemble each other in at least one way. In formal prose the simile is a devic e both of art and explanation, comparing an unfamiliar thing to some familiar thing (an object, event, process, etc.) known to the reade r.A variety of ways exists for invoking the simile. Here are a few o f the possibilities:x is like yx is not like yx is the same as yx is more than yx is less than yx does y; so does zx is similar to yx resembles yx is as y as zx is y like zx is more y than zx is less y than zFor example:l And money is like muck, not good except it be spread. --Francis Baconl My mistress#39; eyes are nothing like the sun. . . . –Shakespe areMetaphorMetaphor compares two different things by speaking of one in term s of the other. Unlike a simile or analogy, metaphor asserts that o ne thing is another thing, not just that one is like another. Very frequently a metaphor is invoked by the to be verb. E.g.l Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life." –Jo hnThe comparison assumes different forms:l This first beam of hope that had ever darted into hi s mind rekindled youth in his cheeks and doubled the luster of his eyes. --Samuel JohnsonMetonymyMetonymy is another form of trope, very similar to synecdoche (and, in fact, some rhetoricians do not distinguish between the two), in which the thing chosen for the metaphorical image is closely associ ated with (but not an actual part of) the subject with which it is to be compared.The orders came directly from the White HouseIn this example we know that the writer means the President issued the orders, because "White House" is quite closely associated with "P resident," even though it is not physically a part of him.SynecdocheSynecdoche is a type of trope in which the part stands for the w hole, the whole for a part, the genus for the species, the species for the genus, the material for the thing made, or in short, any portion, section, or main quality for the whole or the thing itsel f (or vice versa).Farmer Jones has two hundred head of cattle and three hired hands.Here we recognize that Jones also owns the bodies of the cattle, an d that the hired hands have bodies attached. This is a simple part-for-whole synecdoche.All the four kinds of tropes have significant effects on advertising. Let’s discuss them in real advertisements!Smile in English AdvertisingAs mentioned above, smile is the simplest trope we usually see i n English advertising. When you compare a noun to a noun, the simil e is usually introduced by like; when a verb or phrase is compared to a verb or phrase, as is used. Often the simile--the object or circumstances of imaginative identity (called the vehicle, since it carries or conveys a meaning about the word or thing which is liken ed to it)-precedes the thing likened to it (the tenor). The vehicle and the tenor are objects that belong to different categories while they have some similarities that are their abstract common grounds! In advertisements, simile not only provides clear and vivid image, it also brings the products closer to customers! Therefore, simile is often used to create attraction in advertising! Examples are too many to count. Let us just analyze a few:l Light as a breeze, soft as a cloud. (Ads for clo thes) (1)l Cool as a mountain stream…cool fresh Consulate. (C onsulate cigarette) (2)l Ride like a feather in your pocket. (Ads for cars ) (3)l Breakfast without orange juice is like a day without sunshine. (Ads for orange juice) (4)l Like your baby, kittens need more nutrition than adu lt cats. (Ads for kitten’s food) (5)The advertisements above all use simile! Some of them use “like ”,others use “as”!In example (1) there are two smiles in the single sentence, since it is an advertisement for clothes, the most obvious two features of clothes are lightness and softness, which are also the features of breeze and cloud. The similes used here are appropriate for they stress the quality of the product! The same is true of examples (1) and (2) also takes the common ground of moun tain stream and Consulate cigarette: giving people the cool feeling! We all know that stream always gives impression of carefree and happ y feeling, the simile skillfully links it with cigarettes, change our common images! In example (3) we see that riding a car is so rel axing that you will have the feeling of taking a feature in your p ocket! The advertisement uses simile to describe gently what high qua lity the car has and the pleasure it can offer you! Example (4) is very vivid! Maybe you have omitted orange juice in breakfast before , but after reading this advertisement, you will involuntarily associa te an awful day without sunshine in your mind! Then why not spent one or two minutes on a glass of orange juice in the morning to h ave a whole day’s good mood? The function of smile lies in the re aders’images and feelings and has incredible effects on customers! Look at example (5), your kitten is linked to your baby, aren’t th ey all your sweethearts? The people who raise kittens as pets are m ost females! So the advertisement cleverly seizes the sentimental hear ts! One might sometimes forget to prepare food for her kitten, but no wonder he will never forget such things related to her baby! So when a female sees the advertisement and she happens to have a ki tten, she might buy this product when she is wandering in the super market with the sweet feeling of being her small cat’s considerate mother!Now we can see clearly that the appropriate and suitable use of smi le can describe the product’s or service’s typical features or thei r unique functions and create the specific imagination and mood forthe readers besides making the advertising language vivid and colorful .Metaphor in English AdvertisingA metaphor is a comparison between two unlike objects that does not use "like" or "as." It can also be considered an assertion of identity. Like simile, metaphor is a profoundly important and useful device in English Advertising. Aristotle says in his Rhetoric, "It is metaphor above all else that gives clearness, charm, and distinction to the style”And the fact that two very unlike things can be e quated or referred to in terms of one another comments upon them bo th. No metaphor is "just a metaphor." All have significant implicatio ns, and they must be chosen carefully, especially in regard to the connotations the vehicle (image) will transfer to the tenor.As discussed above, very frequently a metaphor is invoked by the to be verb, in advertisements, metaphor is more used than smile! Examp les as follow:l The inside story is leaking out. (Ads for nappy)(6)l A woman expresses herself in many languages, Vimal is one of them. (Ads for clothes) (7)l Your lungs are an incredible piece of Machinery. (Ad s for a health organization) (8)l What is your choice when inflation is slowly but sure ly eroding the value of your nest eggs? (Ads for an investment company) (9)l You are the traveler. Your investments are the terrain . We are the maps. (Ads for an investment company) (10)l Over 200years of careful breeding produced this champio n. (Ads for XO) (11)l Our flights get the green light six times a week fro m JFK to Johannesburg. (Ads for a flight company) (12)All the seven examples listed above contain metaphor. While they have some differences, some of the advertisements use the word “is ”to complete the metaphor, and others use the vehicles directly! L et’s begin our discussion with example (7), (8) and (10). In thes e three advertisements, metaphor is in a “X is Y”form. Let us f irst focus on Example (8): since it is a advertisement for a health organization, it must focus on the advantages of joining this organ ization. What is the most dangerous and common disease in today’s w orld? It is cancer, and lung cancer is the most threatening one! So the creator of this advertisement uses “an incredible piece of M achinery”---something permanent--- as the vehicle; the lungs of its members as the tenor, tell the reader the benefits they can get i f they join this health organization! It has some hyperbole parts he re, but we can clearly see the hyperbole is reflected through metaph or! In example (10), another very typical metaphor, the relationship of the investors and their money and the investment company is trans ferred to the relationship of the travelers and terrain and the maps .As we all know, investment company is aim to guide the investors, just as the map for a traveler! The common ground of the two rel ationships is cleverly expressed by using metaphor! The readers will have some image that the company can be a good choice for them to manage their money, especially the readers who are not good at dea ling with money affairs! Then example (7), it is an advertisement ai ming at women market. The plot of this sentence is very wonderful s ince it is believed by almost all the women that clothes is the im portant means to express themselves. Then the abstract object: body l anguage is taken here to suggest the clothes of Vimal! The advertise ment gives some beautiful images to its readers! While in example (6 ), (9), (11), (12) the word “is”is not used as a bridge connect ing the tenor and the vehicle! Instead, the vehicles appear directly in the sentences. For instance, XO wine is transferred to the conc ept “champion”in example (11), neither the brand XO nor the wor d “wine”appeare in this single sentence, but the readers will not misunderstand about the meaning! Because the word “breeding”sugg ests the similarity between the wine and the champion, both of themneed careful attention and long period waiting! Look at example (12 ). Maybe the readers will be a little confused about the meaning of “green light”.Does this mean the traffic lights? Think it over and you will discover that here the “green light”means “permissio n”.That is to say, the flight company has six flights in a week from JFK to Johannesburg. I think the advantage of using metaphor here is that the reader may get some deeper impression of the compa ny after thinking over the advertisement for a minute or two. Exampl e (9) is also an advertisement for an investment company, unlike exa mple (10), there is no “is”in the whole sentence, but the skillf ul use of the image “nest egg”will affect the readers too. Man y people like raising their hard-earned money day by day to assure themselves that if they meet certain emergencies, they can be out of trouble with their savings. The advertisement accurately shows the t houghts of such people, while it also warns that with the high infl ation rate, the savings will devalue day by day. What can you do w ith it? The answer is very clear: choose the investment company and make your money raise money! The sentence is in a question form. By answering the question, you make the advertisement work! Example ( 6) is the one I like best for it is the most interesting and unfo rgettable one. “The inside story”means the urine of a baby. The whole sentence describes a specific situation: a baby’s urine is ooz ing out from his pants, probably he is crying loudly. What should h is mother do? Certainly, give him the nappy! The nappy appears to b e something very important and essential. The metaphor adds some humo rous effect to this advertisement and makes its readers remember it! You can see from the examples that you can use abstract concepts to mean some real objects, or vice versa.In fact, there are many ways to express metaphor, besides the two w ays discussed above; we can use some other ways! Let us study the examples below:l The Boeing 777---A new expression of time-honored Asian Traditions. (Ads for plane) (13)l Louis Vuitton. The sprite of travel! (Ads for trav eling bags) (14)In example (13) and (14), the punctuation marks play the role of th e bridges across the tenors and the vehicles! When you read these a dvertisements, you will not feel confused, instead, you will tend to image the relationships between the tenors and the vehicles. In add ition, the sentences are sound harmonious and easy to remember!Whenever a smile or a metaphor turns up, it helps to build your ap propriate image of the product.。