摘要:Language-expressed humor and language-created humor, and when cultural factor is considered, humor can be classified into cultural humor and non-cultural humor. The comparative study on English and Chinese humor expressions finds out that rough correspondence exists between them in terms of some linguistic devices and a special language form namely body language which create humor.
s from the description. And the word “marvelous” helps to make the comment more sarcastic.
(2)譬如说你住在2楼或3楼吧。楼下,是人来人往的街道或汽车如流的马路,那么早、午、晚你就会被迫“享受”众声汇合而成的噪音流了。
Undoubtedly a noisy environment is no comfortable thing for one to enjoy. But the word“享受”enables readers to imagine the speaker’s wry smile as well as easiness in face of the annoying situation.
In fact, the English figures of speech and their Chinese counterparts used for humor production are far more than the four pairs. However, they could not be all covered here due to spatial concerns.
2.1.2 Humor Created by Lexical Device
2.1.2.1 Word Formation
Comic effects can also be produced by some nonce words, which suit in the current context. Quite a few examples can be found in both English and Chinese.
(1)We left the town refreshed and rehatted.
(2)外国客人见到这练功的场面,如获至宝,立刻就“豌豆腐”(奇妙)“耐斯”(美好)地赞叹起来。
The “rehatted” in (1) as well as“豌豆腐”and“耐斯”in (2) are all laughter-provoking nonce words.
2.1.2.2 Collocation
The unconventional collocation of two words, whether intentionally or unintentionally, is another humor-creating method, in English and Chinese alike. For example:
(1) Only two Alka-Seltzers ago,
You were feeling downhearted and low,
Who would ever know you were under the weather only two Alka-Seltzers ago?
This was an advertisement for the Alka-Seltzer, a common medicine in USA. The phrase “Only two Alka-Seltzers ago” means “Before you had two Alka-Seltzers”. This unusual allocation makes the advertisement more interesting and impressive.
(2)地主刘石甫在太原混了几天,学了一套“官”腔:“我们中央军‘进行’到我们的‘原籍’来了……,我们的国民党又都‘秩序’了……大家要严重的听!”
In this example, the repeated stupid mistakes in collocation make the illiterate landlord a laughing stock.
2.1.2.3 Word Structure vs. Character Structure
Each English word comprises of certain letters. A word, so long as one of its letters is altered, will turn into a new one. The change can serve good material for making humor. For example:
(1)Prof. Thomson once wrote on the blackboard, “Prof. Thomson will be unable to meet his classes today.” A naughty student went up and brushed away the letter “C” of the word “classes” . Thus the sentence read, “Prof. Thomson will be unable to meet his lasses today.” It set the classroom in a roar. The professor turned back and found the mischief. Then he wiped off the letter“l”of the word “lasses”. Thus the sentence read as: “Prof. Thomson will be unable to meet his asses today.”
Similarly, the Chinese character itself is often played on to produce interesting language. Such a play was very popular with ancient Chinese scholars, many of whom were adept in playing on the forming structures of Chinese characters. For example, as pictograph, many Chinese characters are composed of two or more parts that are meaningful themselves. Good humor arises when the characters are taken apart.
(2)人曾为僧,人弗可以成佛。
女卑为裨,女又何妨成奴。
This is a very interesting Chinese antithetical couplet. Its ingenuity lies in perfect exploitation of the forms of four characters:“僧”,“佛”,“碑”,and“奴”,whose forming parts are meaningful characters too. More importantly, when put in proper order, these characters compose two meaningful sentences.
2.1.3 Humor Created by Ambiguity
“Ambiguity is double meaning, either deliberate or causal by inexa
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