彭明媚全文定稿(6月22号).docVIP

CONTENTS Abstract 3 摘要 5 I. Introduction 6 A. Definition and function of compliment 6 B. Previous studies on compliment 6 C. Objectives of this study 8 II. Comparison of compliment in lexical and syntactic level 9 A. Lexical level 9 1. Adjectives 9 2. Verbs 11 3. Adverbs 12 4. Personal pronouns 12 B. Syntactic level 13 1. Three main structures in English ……………………………………………13 2. Three main structures in Chinese .14 Ⅲ. Comparison of compliment in terms of content 16 A. Appearance 16 B. Property 20 C. Family members 20 D. Competence 22 IV. Reasons for difference in compliment 23 A. Different views on individualism and collectivism 23 B. Different views on aesthetic psychology 25 C. Different views on modesty 26 D. Different views on face 27 V. Conclusion 29 Acknowledgements 31 Bibliography 32 A Comparative Study of Compliment in English and Chinese Abstract Compliment is an expression of praise and admiration to someone other than the speaker, which is always with some positive evaluation words used to build or consolidate social relationship. This article, based on the previous studies on the speech act of compliment both at home and abroad, makes comparison between English and Chinese compliment in lexical and syntactic formulation. Then differences in complimentary content have been discussed from four aspects: appearance, property, family members and competence. It can be said that both English and Chinese compliments are highly formulaic. But they differ greatly on lexical and syntactic level. Although adjectives are the most frequently used both in English and Chinese, English people show more interest. As for verbs, adverbs and personal pronouns, English and Chinese people have different emphasis. There are different complimentary sentence patterns in English and Chinese. What’s more, English and Chinese people put different emphasis on appearance, property, family members and competence. Chinese people favor natural appearance and competence of people outside t