1、 HYPERLINK xxxx/ Use of Rhetoric in English Advertisement【Abstract】Advertisement is a popular cultural phenomenon in peoples daily life. It not only provides the information about products and stimulates the purchasing power, but also enriches peoples ideological life.Rhetoric is one kind of importa

2、nt expressive device in language. It refers to interpreting abstract and complex ideas or processes through simple and concrete methods. Since rhetoric is full of imagination, it can promote the transmission and communication of emotions and ideas.Rhetoric exists in writings with various styles, esp

3、ecially, in advertisements. Rhetoric plays a very important role in English advertisement, acting as a key element for the success of an advertisement. The thesis, based on the respective studies of the definition of advertisement and rhetoric, makes a careful analysis of the use of main rhetorical

4、devices in English advertisement, including simile, metaphor, pun, personification, parallelism and rhyme, targeting at promoting the further development of advertisement.【Key Words】English advertisements; rhetoric; function【摘要】廣告是人們日常生活中最常見的一種文化現象，不僅提供產品信息，刺激購買力，而且豐富人們的精神生活。修辭是一種重要的語言表達手段，是用簡單具體且充滿

5、想象的方法將抽象復雜的思想或進程闡釋出來，能夠促進情感的傳遞和思想的表達。修辭存在于各種文體之中，尤其在英語廣告中起著極為重要的作用，是影響英語廣告成敗的關鍵。論文從分析廣告及修辭的定義和功能出發，認真研究了主要修辭手段在英語廣告中的作用，包括明喻、暗喻、雙關、擬人、平行和押韻等修辭手段，旨在推進廣告的進一步發展和提高。【關鍵詞】英語廣告; 修辭; 功能IntroductionNowadays, concerning with advertisement, different people have different opinions. For most of the people, the

6、 distinct feature of advertisement is that advertisement is a combination of content and style. That is to say, a good advertisement not only has attraction in content, but also has charm in style. Obviously, the determinative factor of a good or a bad advertisement is whether the use of rhetoric is

7、 appropriate or not. It can be found that the use of rhetoric plays a very important role in advertisement. Without the use of rhetoric, absolutely, there is no good advertisement. Therefore, it is necessary to make an analysis and study on this subject.The whole thesis is concerned about the use of

8、 rhetoric in English advertisement, and the thesis is divided into three parts. The first part talks about the definition and function of advertisement. The second part illustrates the definition and function of rhetoric. The third part makes a carefully study on the use of main rhetorical devices i

9、n English advertisement, such as, simile, metaphor, pun, personification, parallelism and rhyme.I. AdvertisementAs for advertisement and products, some people believe the successful selling of products cannot be separated from advertisement. Advertisement keeps people informative about the price and

10、 function of products; whats more, advertisement can help to improve products brand awareness and its reputation.A. The Definition of Advertisement“Advertisement is the nonpersonal communication of information usually paid for and usually persuasive in nature about products, services or ideas by ide

11、ntified sponsors through the various media.” Advertisement has taken many different kinds of forms from ancient times. At the beginning, advertisement evolved to take a variety of forms and to permeate nearly every aspect of the society. Advertisement devices include many kinds, such as, banners at

12、sporting events, billboards, and Internet Web sites, logos on clothing, magazines, newspapers, radio spots, and television commercials. The people are overwhelmed by a lot of advertisements. It is said that the individuals can expect to be exposed to more than 1,200 different advertisement messages

13、each day. Therefore, advertisements are popular in peoples daily life.B. The Function of AdvertisementEnglish advertisements can encourage competition, guide consumption, promote sales, and transmit information. For instance, advertisement tells a consumer the information about a specific product, b

14、rand or service and helps him or her to understand and evaluate the information. Moreover, by making people aware of products, services and ideas, advertisement promotes sales and profits. Advertisement is one of the major forces that can help improve the standard of living. The people, no matter in

15、 urban or rural areas, are overwhelmed by a lot of advertisements. Advertisement makes peoples environments more colorful and vigorous. Meanwhile, it can also enrich peoples cultural life and transmit information which contributes to social and cultural prosperity.II. RhetoricRhetoric can be found i

16、n any forms of writingpoetry, prose, drama, fictional and non-fictional writing, advertisement. The understanding about the definition and function of rhetoric is helpful for the use of rhetorical devices.A. The Definition of Rhetoric Aristotle was one of the most famous thinkers and orators in Gree

17、k. In his famous book, Rhetoric, rhetoric was defined as “the art of persuasion”. (Tang Yin, P1, 2004) Whereas, John Locke, the noted English philosopher of the latter part of the 17th century, said that “rhetoric was the science of oratory, the art of speaking with elegance, and force”. (Tang Yin,

18、P1, 2004)In present day, the meaning of rhetoric has been extended. Rhetoric assumes the following characteristics, that is, the elaborated and exaggerated language, the art of using language effectively and persuasively, the skills of using language effectively, the structure of verbal communicatio

19、n.B. The Function of RhetoricRhetorical devices are variations of literal or ordinary forms of expressions. Their function is to make the thought more striking and effective. A fresh and suitable rhetorical device appeals to the imagination, creates mental pictures and makes the speech or writing vi

20、vid, impressive and interesting. Rhetorical devices can make language more vivid by using the simple words to express complex meanings. By the use of rhetoric, even abstract ideas can become concrete. Rhetoric can make the modified subjects more prominent, distinctive, and specific. By the use of rh

21、etoric, the language can give people more space to imagine. Whereas, without the use of rhetoric, the language is boring and there is no vigor in the language.III. An Analysis of Rhetoric in English AdvertisementSeveral kinds of rhetorical devices are frequently used in advertisement, and it is nece

22、ssary to study them one by one by giving definitions and making illustrations. All of the examples studied below are constrained within English advertisements.A. Simile“Simile is a way of comparing one thing with another of explaining what one thing is like by showing how it is similar to another th

23、ing and it signals itself in a text, with the words as or like.” A simile is made up of four parts: “the tenor”, “the vehicle”, “the comparing word” and “the ground”. “The tenor” is the subject of simile. “The vehicle” is the thing compared to or the part transported. “The comparing word” is the sim

24、ile marker such as, “like, as, than, as if, similar to.” “The ground” is the common properties owned by “the tenor” and “the vehicle”.For example:Breakfast without orange juice is like a day without sunshine. This is an advertisement for “orange juice”. It can be found that, in this advertisement, “

25、orange juice” is “the tenor” and “sunshine” is “the vehicle”. The word “like” signals that the advertisement makes use of the rhetoric devicesimile. Thus by using simile, the advertisement makes the products characteristic more vivid and lively. If the “orange juice” really has such an effect, the c

26、ustomers are eager to drink this kind of juice at breakfast. Precisely, this advertisement is a good example in simile craftsmanship. It can not be imagined what the world will be look like without sunshine. The importance of “orange juice” is no less than “sunshine”. Since the significance of this

27、kind of “orange juice” is so great, nobody would refuse to drink it. Thus this advertisement touches the customers heart and greatly promotes the sale of this kind of “orange juice”.B. Metaphor “A metaphor, like a simile, also has a comparison between two unlike elements, but unlike a simile, this c

28、omparison is implied rather than stated.” In metaphor, one thing is directly compared to another thing, withoutlikeor as. Thus the relationship between them is implied in other words is unstated. Therefore, the use of metaphor makes the language more vivid and also makes the product it advertising m

29、ore attractive. Metaphor is a kind of rhetoric devices which is favored by most advertisement composers. The following is a good example: Youd better off under umbrella. This is an advertisement for a travel insurance agency. In this advertisement, “umbrella” refers to the travel insurance agency. I

30、n the advertisement, “the vehicle” is not stated. In fact, “the vehicle” is the staff of the “Umbrella” agency. No matter it is raining or shining, if the customers carry an umbrella with them, the umbrella will be very useful to them, for it protects them from being influenced by the bad weather. I

31、n most peoples minds, the word “umbrella” is always linked with safety and protection. While the customers are traveling, there are some unpredictable factors existing during their journey. Just imagine that no matter what happens, there are always someone waiting for customers, listening to custome

32、rs and comforting customers. They are not anyone else and they are the staff of “Umbrella”. By using metaphor, the companys image is more vivid. The advertisement would leave a deep impression on the customers.C. PersonificationPersonification is one of the most frequently used rhetoric devices in E

33、nglish advertisement, for it can greatly shorten the distance between the advertisement composer and customers, creating a kind of harmonious atmosphere between them. Undoubtedly, advertisement composers will employ the rhetoric device in the English advertisement. For example:She has her own spirit

34、 and it graces everyone she comes near. This is a piece of advertisement for “perfume”. It can be found that this kind of perfume is personified in the advertisement. In the advertisement, “she” not only refers to those who favor this kind of perfume but also refers to the perfume itself. By giving

35、life to the product, it can effectively shorten the distance between the advertisement composer and the customers, making the customers feel more cordial. Absolutely, the advertisement will make the customers willing to buy the perfume. The use of personification endows the advertisement with such m

36、agic power. D. Parallelism “In parallel construction it is necessary to balance word for word (noun with noun, verb with verb, adjective with adjective, etc) phrase with phrase, clause with clause, sentence with sentence.” Parallelism will not be neglected by advertisement composers. It is reported

37、that parallelism is one of the most frequently used of all English rhetorical device.For example:For dreamers its paradise. For romantics its true bliss. For $199 a night its absolutely irresistible. To learn more about the principality of Monaco call 800-its-9696. This is an advertisement for a tra

38、vel agencyMonaco; the three sentences talk about three different kinds of fields. In the advertisement, the advertisement composer revealed his advertisement by three parallel sentences, each of which contains a simple sentence with the similar structure. Monacos charm is greatly enhanced by the uni

39、ty and balance of these parallel structures. By using parallelism, the advertisement composer can add clarity and coherence to the advertisement. Parallelism helps the advertisement composer better communicate with the customers.E. Rhyme “Rhyme is identity of sounds between words or verse lines exte

40、nding back from the end to the last fully accented vowel not further”. People often associate rhyme with poetry. Actually, rhyme also occurs in advertisements.For example:Hi-Fi, Hi-Fun, Hi-Fashion, only from Sony.This is an advertisement for Sonys products. In this advertisement, the repeated sounds of “Hi” not only give the customers a deep impression and make it memorable, but also emphasize the quality of the product at the same time. In this advertisement, alliteration is used effectively. By using rhyme, Sonys products win customers hearts in a short time. English advertisement has the