第十章 PERSONIFICATION，ZOOSEMY，ONOMATOPOEIA.3
“... A shot from our front trench struck me in the head .... Had it penetrated to the brain I might never have sat on another Royal Commission. Fortunately we have strong heads, we Highcastles. Nothing has ever penetrated to our brains.”
萧伯纳的讽刺喜剧Augustus Does His Bit中的主人公是皇族的代言人。他吹嘘自己家族的脑袋“硬”，子弹也难以穿透。这正如汉语中的“花岗岩脑袋”，是夸张，又是反语，把封建统治者愚蠢而顽固的本质揭露得淋漓尽致。又如：
The Keebler Elves have baked up the lightest, crispest snacks ever to be called crackers, These extra thin bite-size crackers are rippled with zesty seasonings and crunch just like your favorite chips, but they're baked, not fried. They're the perfect snack for munching by the handful.
这是美国一种薄脆饼干Munch'ems的包装盒说明，其中一再使用形容词最高级结构和extra thin, the perfect等表示极端含义的词语，极尽夸张之能事，顾客见了于是都想买盒尝尝。夸张是广告类语言的一个显著特色。
2） 夸张法具有长时期的使用历史，至今仍然得到广泛使用。注意使用时应掌握分寸，不要夸张过分，否则效果会适得其反。例如：
Football is the most magnificent sport ever developed by the mind of man. It tests physical skill, stamina, courage, and intelligence more thoroughly than any other human activity.
One shudders to think what the world would have been like had Shakespeare never written The Tempest.
Only here can you have such jeans of the best quality and the lowest price at downtown!
像上面这样的夸张只会让人发笑，因为即使足球爱好者也不会像这样夸赞足球，而The Tempest虽然是部伟大的剧作，但也不可言过其实。现在有些广告过分夸张，人们一看就腻，以致宣传效果大打折扣，至于那些产品本身不够好，却一味瞎吹，就根本是糟蹋了夸张法。
12.2 Understatement
12.2A Understatement的含义与形式
Understatement，汉语称之为“低调陈述”，也叫“含蓄陈述”，是与夸张法对应的一种辞格。其表现形式主要有两种：
1） 以反说代替正说，即通常以否定形式表示肯定的内容。这种形式也叫“曲言法”（Litotes）。例如：
That's no laughing matter.
试比较：That's a serious matter.
She was not without ambition.
试比较：She was quite ambitious.
This boy was undoubtedly a difficult pupil, for he had a strong independent mind, and was impatient of accepted rules and conventions.
试比较：... mind, and hated / disliked ...
2） 以弱说代替强说，即用形容词或副词比较级或用程度副词（如：almost, hardly, kind of, rather, scarcely, something of, sort of, 等）减弱语气。这种形式也叫“弱陈法”（Meiosis）。以下两例分别摘自电视台记者同一位观众的对话和一篇体育述评：
（a） TV Reporter: Do you think all the programs are good?
One of the audience: Well, some are interesting, some could be better, and some are almost sort of rubbish.
（b） During last year's Central Park Bicycle Race, five of the racers were attacked and had their bikes stolen while the race was in progress. This is something of a handicap in bicycle race.
（Caskie Stinnett）
12.2B Understatement的使用
1） 低调陈述不像夸张法那样夸大其词，而是正话反说，重话轻说，含蓄内敛，形式上迂回，其目的同样在于增强语言力度，提高表达效果。例如：
It's great being with my sister and my friend, Ann. I'm a real tourist now, and things here are the finest of the world: Food I've never tasted, scenery one could hardly tear themselves away, and music even Beethoven would admire ... It's by no means not a pity, however, that you're not with us!
（Laura's letter）
信中使用一连串夸张词语之后，突然笔锋一转，来个低调陈述，其强调效果更为突出了。
2） 由于低调陈述的语气婉转，人们在表示态度、提出看法时显得灵活和留有余地。例如：
Sorry, this is in fact more than I can promise.
若直说“I can't promise.”，虽然干脆利落，但会给对方造成不必要的刺激。又如：
This piece of work is nothing to be proud of.
若直说“It is disgraceful.”，就会显得粗了些，不易被别人接受。又如：
If this regime is out of power, no tear is to be shed.
这是外交辞令，若直说“We expect this regime to be out of power.”，就有失风度了。
3） 低调陈述具有很强的讽刺和幽默功能。有时客观事实骇人听闻，其恐怖程度难以用文字表达，于是作家使用低调陈述法，尽量以简明、直叙的笔法向读者展现那触目惊心的事件，或以“黑色幽默”形式进行揭露和控诉。这里的“低调陈述”和前面11.1B所讲的“反语使用”是相通的。例如：
（a） They shot the cabinet ministers at half-past-six in the morning against the wall of the hospital. There were pools of water in the courtyard. There were wet dead leaves on the paving of the courtyard. It rained hard. All the shutters of the hospital were nailed shut. One of the ministers was sick with typhoid. Two soldiers carried him downstairs and out into the rain. They tried to hold him up against the wall but he sat down in a puddle of water. The other five stood very quietly against the wall. Finally the officer told the soldiers it was no good trying to make him stand up. When they fired the first volley he was sitting down in the water with his head on his knees.
（Ernest Hemingway）
（b） Last week I saw a woman flayed, and you will hardly believe how it altered her appearance for the worse.
（Jonathan Swift）
值得一提的是，据说曾有人认为上述作者“残酷”和“缺乏同情心”，实际上是由于粗浅的读者只停留在文字表面，没有读进去，因而产生了误会。然而，这也告诉我们，在使用低调陈述时，应把文章的内容和对象考虑进去，力求使这种修辞技巧发挥预期的作用。
12.3 Euphemism
12.3A Euphemism的含义与形式
1） Euphemism一词源于希腊语，eu是前缀，意思是“好”，phemism的意思是“说法”，合起来就是说“好听的话”、“吉利话”，汉语称之为“委婉语”，即使用语气较温和、含义较雅致或含糊的表达方式代替粗俗、生硬、直露的说法。例如不直接说某人“死了”（died），而讲“去世了”（passed away），不直接讲“上厕所”（go to the lavatory），而说“去洗手间”（go to the bathroom），等。
2） 委婉语的形式多种多样，可从不同角度去分析归纳。这里仅从读音、构词、语法和变通表达几个方面简要地加以说明。
从读音方面看，laboratory的重音后移被认为是一个典型的例子：原来重读在第一个音节，同lavatory的读音相近，为了避免不愉快的误会或联想，就把重读后移一个音节。又如根据读音规则，特殊疑问句（如Where are you going?）句末不用升调，而应用降调，但人们为了客气，如不改变句型时就往往改用低升调，对方听了感到较亲切和有礼貌。
构词方面，缩略是常见形式，如ladies（代ladies' Room），W. C.（代water closet），out （out of work）, lav （lavatory）, G-man （garbageman）, BM （bowel movement）。
语法方面，过去时（或过去进行时）、否定式、情态词would / should等都可构成委婉形式。例如：
I wondered / I was wondering if you could spare a few minutes to go over my abstract.
I don't think that it is his idea. （Don't say: I think that it is not his idea.）
I would like / I'd like to hear your views.
There's something I'd advise you to consider in the program.
“变通表达”（Tactful expression）是委婉语的一种最常见的形式，实际上只要适应场合需要，有时美化，有时淡化，都是使用某种委婉形式。例如：
为了满足乘客的尊严感，一些航空公司改变机舱等级的称谓：一等舱（First Class）改称豪华舱（Deluxe Class或 Premium Class），二等舱（Second Class）改称头等舱、商务舱（Business Class），三等舱改称经济舱（Economic Class）或旅游舱（Tourist Class），这样一来，似乎所有乘客（尤其坐三等舱者）的地位和待遇都上升一级，皆大欢喜。
同样，为了照顾人们的尊严，对一些反面的人和事不直接说出，而使用较为含糊的词语加以淡化。例如，学校教师不直接讲某学生“愚钝”（stupid, obtuse），而讲他“反应较慢”（He a bit slow for his age）；某人犯法让警察抓进去了，也不直接说，而讲得含糊其辞：
Paul did something, and the police ... well, now he's staying at the correctional center.
句中correctional center是prison的代名词，to do something是个抽象词语，类似的还有it, the thing, the problem，等。除抽象词语外，一些外来语以及Synecdoche, Understatement等辞格都可用来构成委婉表达。
12.3B Euphemism的使用
英语中的委婉语是经过长期使用的传统辞格，同时又是一个不断发展变化的开放性辞格，为此，注意把握传统性与开放性的关系是恰当使用这个辞格的关键。
1） 所谓传统性，首先表现在委婉语的使用范围，它主要是避免使用那些忌讳语（Taboo words），如对人的生、老、病、死等不直讲，而采用较为含糊、婉转的表达方式，如用to be expecting代替pregnant，用to be stout（指男）或plump（指女）代替fat，用heart condition代替heart attack，用social disease代替venereal disease，用to be elderly或senior代替old，用pass away / be no more / depart代替die，用cemetery / memorial park / memory garden代替graveyard；用make love with / go to bed with代替have sex with，等。
委婉语的开放性则表现在其使用范围大大突破了传统的忌讳语，如前面讲到的“变通表达”出现在社会生活的各个方面，出现了各行各业的礼貌语言。
2） 委婉语的传统性表现在其使用目的上，就是前面讲到的避讳和礼貌两个方面，而其开放性则表现在使用目的上的多样化，并引出了种种利用委婉语应付情面和满足自尊心理以及谋取不正当利益的消极倾向。在社会职业称呼上，把maid / housekeeper称为domestic help / day help / live in help诚然人性化一些，把prostitute称之为sex worker也似无不可，但若过分拔高，一般服务员也升级service manager，甚至butcher也称为meat technologist, garbage collector也成了sanitation engineer或solid waste ecologist，就未免太过头了。商人利用委婉语招徕生意，pawnshop换上了loan office的招牌，过去的secondhand store变成了resale store, “super”, “giant”, “special”字样满天飞，大多是新瓶旧酒，只名目悦耳罢了。政客们走得最远，他们不仅自己摇身一变，由politician成了legislator，而且肆意利用委婉语达到不可告人的目的，如为了掩饰社会矛盾，否认poor的存在，只讲disadvantaged / underprivileged，贫民窟也由slum变成了substandard housing / depressed areas / special areas；美国的海外驻军U. S. overseas military deployment名声不好，就用American presence代之，还用pacification代替war，用liberate代替capture，明明是入侵（invasion），却说成是“先发制人的行动”（pre-emptive action），等等，这就不仅远离了委婉语的本来宗旨，而是借此形式进行欺骗宣传和强词夺理了。
3） 委婉语有约定俗成、相对固定的表达方式。例如大小便不好直讲，就出现了一系列说法： I have to pay a call / I'd like to be excused / I have to retire for a moment / Where's the restroom? / May I wash hands？等等。据说有次一个随团旅游的女士别出心裁地生造了一个说法：“May I go somewhere？”导游未能领会其意，便信口答道：“Sorry, you can't now. We've got to stay together here for a break.”弄得女士十分尴尬。
虽然随意生造委婉语违反了传统要求，但另一个方面，委婉语的特点又正是推陈出新，不断有新的说法出现，或有几种不同的说法可以选择。对于这种情况，需要从两个方面加以注意：
从横向看，首先要注意不同国家可能有不同的委婉表达方式。例如同美国朋友谈到1993年是鸡年这个话题，就要用rooster一词。美国发行的1993年鸡年邮票上的图案是公鸡，文字是“The lunar calender in 1993 is symbolised by the rooster.”为什么不用cock?因为cock，还有ass, bull等都是美国人的忌讳词，而要分别用rooster, donkey, ox取代。此外，还要注意到同一词语具有多义时，要提防贬义有可能造成的不好联想。例如：to be intimate with somebody通常表示“跟某人亲近”、“关系密切”等一般含义，但intimacy也可能指不正当的男女关系，特别是美国电视上公布了“Jack is intimate with one of his twin daughters”事件之后，这个词语的贬义突出了，表示其他含义的功能受到削弱，甚至会被排斥掉，为此人们在谈及男女之间的正常交往时会尽量避免用它。
从纵向看，不同的委婉语往往带有不同时代的烙印。据说在英国维多利亚女王时代，人体胸部以下的名称都在忌讳之列，breast和leg都不能讲，于是就有以white（或light） meat和black （或dark） meat分别表示餐桌上的chicken breast和chicken leg这类当时使用的委婉语。17世纪英语中曾用occupy作为have sex的委婉语，但早已不再用，相反，两性关系的禁忌逐渐解除，西方的电视辩论中直接讲have sex with，连十几岁的小女孩也当众承认“I've slept with him and got pregnant”，而用不着expecting或in the family way了。由于反对性别歧视运动的影响，近几十年来带有男性标记的词语渐有被中性词语取代的趋势：一种情况是出现了一些新词，如wo/man代替woman and man（男人和女人），chairperson代替chairman（主席），supervisor代替foreman（领班），Member of Congress代替Congressman（国会议员），homemaker代替housewife（主妇），flight attendant代替airline hostess（航班服务员）；另一种情况是使用中性的代词或冠词指代或照应通性名词，如用（s）he取代he和she，用the代替his来确指像the teacher，the listener等可男可女的名词等等。
上世纪初叶，由于劳资关系紧张，又出现了industrial relation（劳资关系）和industrial dispute（劳资争端）这样的委婉语，分别取代relations between labour and capital, labour-capital relations, employee-employer relations, labour-management relations和dispute between labour and management等。美国在“越战”时期曾用pacification代替bombing，burning和imprisonment；海湾战争以来又出现了air operation, ground operation这类表示空中打击和地面战争的代用语，甚至把civilian casualties（平民伤亡）也说成是collateral damage（附带损伤），等等。显然这类委婉语都具有欺骗性，值得我们注意。
练习十二 （Exercise Twelve）
I. Preview Questions:
1. What synonym can you use for “Hyperbole”?
2. What constructions can you usually use for Hyperbole?
3. Is it true that Hyperbole is always describing something much bigger / greater than it actually is?
4. Which figure of speech can be regarded as one in opposition to Hyperbole?
5. Does Understatement include two chief forms called “Litotes” and “Meiosis”?
6. Can you give an example to indicate how tactful it is to express one's attitude by Understatement?
7. What is the basic meaning of “euphemism”?
8. What grammatical structures can you use as forms of Euphemism?
9. Can you give examples of “tactful expressions”?
10. What kind of Euphemism should we keep close watch on so as not to be deceived?
II. Rewrite the following sentences by turning ordinary expressions into emphatic forms or vice versa:
1. We produce good shoes for all marathon runners.
2. The two brothers are quite different.
3. I haven't seen you for a long time.
4. The cost mounted to very great figures.
5. The professor has a good knowledge of the ancient Greek culture.
6. Such a thing will be the last I can do.
7. I didn't like to see him at all.
8. In short, as I accepted the rising of the sun, I accepted that up above me was all that was fine and noble and gracious, all that gave decency and dignity to life, all that made life worth living and that enumerated one for his travail and misery.
III. Rewrite the following by using Understatement or Euphemism:
1. I think she will not come because she has been pregnant for about five months.
2. They were greatly surprised at the outcome.
3. It's rather difficult to restore peace in that area.
4. He has three good friends: One is a mailman, another fireman and the third policeman.
5. Sorry, I simply can't promise.
6. His father died last week and is going to be buried next Sunday.
7. Do you know which bus I should take to the natural museum?
8. The lunar calendar in 1995 is symbolized by the pig.
IV. Read the following and then determine whether each of the statements is true （T） or false （F）.
Euphemism — words with overly favorable connotations — are often used to conceal what might be offensive or disturbing. The word prison is being replaced by penal institution and correctional facility, suggesting places less harsh and dehumanizing than those in which we actually incarcerate violators of the law. Another social problem is being made less poignant because the words indigent, inner-city, and low-income are commonly substituted for poor, a term with more explicit connotations. And we no longer have poor children; they are disadvantaged, underprivileged, or culturally deprived.
Euphemism, or “language pollution,” or “doublespeak,” as some call it, is often intended to obscure or hide the real situation. Bureaucrats are especially skillful in selecting terms with inoffensive connotations, as was evident in the Watergate affair: the Watergate defendants' perjury and destruction of evidence were referred to as stonewalling; their unethical procedures as game plans. Government officials are not the only ones at fault. Big business no longer lays off workers, it furloughs them. And labor engages in work stoppages, not strikes.
Occasionally, but only occasionally, language pollution is reversed, the offensive terms replacing the more polite ones. More newspapers now report that women are raped instead of criminally assaulted, a word substitution that may contribute to greater public concern about this offense. Similarly, syphilis and gonorrhea, formerly taboo words, are replacing the polite term venereal disease in an effort to arouse public concern.
Sometimes euphemisms are harmless. Like white lies, they may be kinder than the literal truth. One of our ugliest words for people is crippled; a pleasanter one is handicapped. To many people, being considered old is a terrifying experience, so they sometimes prefer to be called senior citizens instead of old people. And to give individuals a greater sense of prestige and importance in their work, we often refer to hair stylists instead of barbers, beauticians instead of hairdressers, custodians instead of janitors, realtors instead of real estate salesmen, and morticians instead of undertakers. These substitutions and others like them do little harm and make life more tolerable for the people involved. But you should be so alert to the use of words that you recognize euphemisms and generally avoid them in your writing.
（Michael E. Adelstein & Jean G. Pival）
Statements based on the previous text:
1. When referring to children who are not bright, people tend to use terms such as “disadvantaged”, “underprivileged”, or “culturally deprived”, or “a bit slow” instead of “poor”, “silly”, “stupid”, for the latter are harsh and offensive that will hurt their parents or other relatives. （ ）
2. One should watch out for the use of euphemisms, and generally try to make use of them in your writing. （ ）
3. The two terms of “language pollution” and “doublespeak” both are used to refer to the same phenomenon in the English language — Euphemism. （ ）
4. The one successful use of Euphemism is to replace the offensive terms by the more polite ones; however, some newspapers tend to use some of the formerly taboo terms that may contribute to greater public concern. （ ）
5. The general purpose of using Euphemism is to conceal what might be offensive or disturbing, e.g. the word “prison” is being replaced by “penal institution” and “correctional faculty”, suggesting places less harsh and dehumanizing than those where violators of the law are usually incarcerated. （ ）
