HO CHI MINH CITY UNIVERSITY OF EDUCATION
DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH

Contrastive Analysis: Euphemisms in English and
Vietnamese with DEATH as examples
Instructor: Nguyen Ngoc Vu
Student
: Le Thi Mai Anh
HCMC, 30/12/2010
INTRODUCTION
“Death” is an unpleasant thing people are afraid of talking about or dealing with in their
lives. Many poets and writers describe it with profound feelings in different words. For
instance:
Ngàn thước lên cao ngàn thước xuống
Nhà ai Pha Luông mưa xa khơi
Anh bạn dãi dầu không bước nữa
Gục lên súng mũ bỏ quên đời ! (Tây Tiến)
Tôi còn nhớ
Đêm hôm qua
Có người nằm cạnh
Sáng nay lay mãi không thưa. (Hồi ức chiến tranh)
Ngày các chị các anh nằm xuống
vừa tuổi hai mươi
thôi cũng đành coi như một chuyến đi
về một thế giới khác (Những người chết không trẻ mãi)
Đất nước gian lao chưa bao giờ bình yên
Bão thổi chưa ngừng trong những vành tang trắng
Anh đứng gác. Trời khuya. Đảo vắng
Biển một bên và em một bên. (Thơ tình người lính biển)
Mười cô gái tên vô cùng bình dị
Như quê hương: Cúc, Nhỏ, Hợi, Tần…
Mang Hồng Lĩnh, Lam Giang đi đánh Mỹ
Nên hy sinh không giây phút ngại ngần . ( Ngã ba không có ngã ba)
“Bỏ quên đời” “lay mãi không thưa” or “nằm xuống” are those words that express the
death of people in the war. As we should know, people always talk about our heroes,
and martyrs with high respect and gratitude. We hardly can see the word “die” in these
poems though the writers in fact describe the death of people. So what is the purpose of
this choice and its usage? The discussion below will focus on the contrast between
Vietnamese and English euphemism with DEATH as examples.
I) A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF CONTRASTIVE ANALYSIS
According to Đặng Đình Thiện’s research, Contrastive Analysis is the method of
analyzing the structure of any two languages to make the distinction between the
aspects of the language systems, the irrespective or their generic affinity of
development. Moreover, Contrastive analysis of two languages seems to be more
effective when it describes similarities and differences among two or more languages at
such levels as phonology, grammar, and semantics.
The study started in Central Europe before the Second World War and
developed afterwards in North America. In Linguistics Across Cultures , Lado( 1957)
formulated the theoretical foundations of the Contrastive Analysis Hypothesis .In this
book, he claimed that "those elements which are similar to [the learner's] native
language will be simple for him, and those elements that are different will be difficult".
He was the first to provide a comprehensive theoretical treatment and to suggest a
systematic set of technical procedures for the contrastive study of languages. He
considered CA as a means of identifying areas of difficulty for language learners which
includes describing the languages, comparing them and predicting learning difficulties.
In the book Contrastive analysis by Carl James (1980), Contrastive analysis
(CA) is not concerned with classification, as the term contrastive implies, and, although
it is not concerned with language families, or other factors of language history, nor the
study of “static” linguistic phenomena to merit the label synchronic, it focuses on the
difference between languages than in their likenesses. CA therefore is defined as a
linguistic enterprise aimed at producing inverted two-valued typologies (a CA is always
concerned with a pair of languages), and founded on the assumption that languages
can be compared.
Besides, CA is defined as an applied linguistics. In the same book, according to
Corder (1973) “ The application of linguistic knowledge to some object- or applied
linguistics, as its name implies- is an activity. It is not a theoretical study. It makes use of
theoretical studies. The applied linguist is a consumer, or user, not a producer, of
theories”. Also "Contrastive analysis was developed and practiced in the 1950s and
1960s as application of structural linguistics to language teaching" (Richards, Platt &
Platt, 1992).
The Contrastive Analysis Hypothesis claimed that all the errors made in learning
the L2 could be attributed to 'interference' by the L1. Moreover, many errors predicted
by CA were not discovered in learners' language. Therefore, it’s obvious to see that CA
could not predict learning difficulties, and just give explanation of errors, which
weakened the appeal of Contrastive Analysis. (Wiki)
II) EUPHEMISM
Language is a useful means of communication. It allows people to convey,
exchange ideas and elaborate their perspectives. However, there are many forms and
styles of language. Different countries and religions have different styles of
speaking. Instead of using words as a normal way to express ideas, people have
various ways to do that. For example, if you don’t like a bracelet your friend gives you
on your birthday, it’s impolite to say “I don’t like it!. It should be “I already have one like
this, anyway, thanks!, which may please your friend much more .Therefore, people can
express what they think in appropriate ways to make the communication smoothly and
comfortable. Among these, euphemism is one of effective ways of communication.
It is defined in Longman dictionary of contemporary English (2003), a euphemism
is the use of a pleasanter, less direct name for something thought to be unpleasant
The
English
word euphemism originally
comes
from
the Greek word
ευφημία
(euphemia), meaning "the use of words of good omen" which in turn is derived from the
Greek root-words eu (ευ), "good/well" + pheme (φήμι) "speech/speaking" (Wiki). A
euphemism is a proper language pattern which people create in social communication
so as to make the communication effective and to take place the unpleasant
expression.
There are two kinds of euphemism : traditional euphemisms and stylistic
euphemisms. Traditional euphemisms are related to taboo like illness, sex, dead and
other expressions which are rude, harsh and impolite if they are showed directly.
Stylistic euphemisms show speaker’s praise or complement. In daily conversation,
people often use inflated language to show politeness and to save from trouble.
(http://www.docstoc.com/docs/17727220/On-Features-of-English-Euphemisms)
III) CONTRASTIVE ANALYSIS: EUPHEMISMS IN ENGLISH AND
VIETNAMESE WITH DEATH AS EXAMPLES
Death is not what people expect in their lives but they have to take it for
granted. Death brings us sorrows, sadness, and big loss of our beloved ones. That’s the
reason why people don’t want talk about it directly because Death is an unpleasant
thing that may depict deep sorrows. The English and Vietnamese language contains
numerous euphemisms related to dying, death, burial, and the people and places which
deal with death, a painful fact. In the war, people always talk about the death of soldiers
with high respect, so they try not to use the word “die”. People have many different
ways of euphemism to talk about that in order to avoid hurting and showing disrespect
to the dead people.
Nowadays, euphemisms for death are quite popular. People use this to make
the pain released when they want to talk about death of their relatives, their
acquaintances. However, sometimes that negative euphemism is used depends on the
attitudes and the feelings of the speaker to the dead person. Despite whatever
languages, the way people deal with the word “death” share the target purposes and
usages. Thus, both Vietnamese and English have a vast practice of using euphemism
for death.
The First euphemisms for death aim to show sympathy and respect to relatives
and friends and play as a milder way to regard feeling and reduce sadness. Instead of
using the word “chết”, Vietnamese people want to make the death less painful by some
words such as: nhắm mắt xuôi tay, không còn ở bên chúng ta nữa,hy sinh, từ giã cõi
đời, nằm xuống, qua đời, từ trần,lâm chung, ra đi, tạ thế, trút hơi thở cuối cùng, lên
đường, nhắm mắt, yên nghỉ, , "về chín suối", "lên thiên đàng", "xuống địa ngục" , khuất
núi, đi xa, ngừng thở, tắt thở, qui tiên, ,rời bỏ chúng ta, mất,về cõi vĩnh hằng, về nơi
suối vàng" , an nghỉ, không còn nữa, hai năm mươi, đứt bóng…However, these words
are not equally used in any situation. For example, we may say “Bác đã về cõi vĩnh
hằng”,“Bác đã đi xa”, not “Bác đã hy sinh” or “Bác đã hai năm mươi” because we should
consider the age, the position of him in society, the situation in which he dies and also
our feelings about his death ( Is it respectable or not?). In addition, Vietnamese tend to
recall and worship their ancestors and consider that dead means về với tổ tiên, về với
ông bà, thăm các cụ, , "về với các cụ" …
In English, the practice of using euphemisms for death is likely to have come
from the magical belief. People are afraid of speaking out the word "death" because
they think that it’s a way to invite death- a bad fortune. It’s a common sense that death
is a taboo subject in most English-speaking cultures for this reason. We also have:
passed away, deceased or departed, have gone to a better place, No longer with us; be
no more; cease to breathe; cease to live; close one’s eyes; left us; lost; breathe one’s
last … .English people define that a person never die, but fading quickly because the
end is near. (Wiki)
Secondly, people tend to use some euphemisms for death that are related to
religion. Religion is a set of beliefs that affect our lives in many different ways, so has a
strong influence on culture and language. Different countries have different popular
religions with which their language and culture are influenced. For example, in
Vietnamese, Christianity and Buddhism are two most popular religions. Christian often
talk about death with their own language such as gặp Đấng sáng tạo, về với Chúa,…
While Buddha assumes that death is when people fly into another life to enjoy
happiness. When a person dies, he or she leaves the pains and sorrows behind, so
people tend to view death as an escape for their life. Many phrases related to death are
very colorful and hopeful about a new life such as đi về thế giới khác, siêu thoát, hết
đau đớn, thoát khổ bể khổ, giấc ngàn thu, đi Tây phương, được giải thoát, xuống suối
vàng…. That’s why religious people believe that what they do when they’re alive may
affect their lives after death. A person just deserves a wonderful life in Heaven only
when he or she is conscientious, or else, he or she may jump into the Hell.
Christianity is the most popular religion in English. A person has gone to a
better place is one way to reduce the pain of death, but this is used primarily among the
religious with a concept of Heaven. They assume that the meaning of “die” just simply:
was taken to Jesus, asleep with Jesus/ Christ; fall asleep in the arms of Jesus; fallen
asleep in the Lord, gone to his heavenly Father; in the arms of Father; come to Jesus;
departed to God; met his/her Maker; go home; called home; answer the last call; go to
one’s last home. Some Christians often use phrases such as gone to be with the
Lord or called to higher or "graduated" to express their belief that physical death is not
the end, but the beginning of the fuller realization of redemption. (Wiki)
Thirdly, both Vietnamese and English have different ways to describe death
according to their attitudes and emotions. In Vietnamese, there is a plenty of way to
describe death such as toi, nghoẻo, tiêu đời, đứt, mất mạng, "tèo rồi" , " tiêu rồi" , " đứt
rồi”, “ngủm củ tỏi” “chầu diêm vương” “đi buôn chuối” ect. These words express
negative point of view of the speaker.
Like Vietnamese, English also use some euphemisms which are not really
polite, even negative, as well as dysphemisms such as worm food, or dead meat,
or brown bread.
IV) IMPLICATION ON TEACHING
According to Lado (1957), it is absolutely necessary for teacher to know both
languages and to have compared them because he believes that “the student who
comes in contact with a foreign language will find some features of it quite easy and
others extremely difficult”
It is obvious that learning process causes much trouble for
learners, especially with language use in daily life. Thus, helping students to
differentiate between L1 and L2 is the most effective way to help them realize the
would-be mistakes, remember and apply the language appropriately in reality.
In addition, in “The significance of contrastive analysis in foreign language
teaching” (Kanarakis), J.C. Catford (1959) confirms that it is fairly widely recognized that
the comparison of L1 and L2 provides important background material in second
language teaching. This means that the contrast between 2 languages brings us an
overview of the target language we’ll learn and predicts some problems that may
appear during the learning process.
Overall, in this research, it’s said that a comparison of student’s native language
and the language to be learned furnishes a basis for a better description of the
language, the preparation of teaching materials, the evaluation of the language of the
textbook, and the ability to supplement inadequate materials. Therefore, teacher plays a
very important part in guiding students and help them get through the similarities and
differences between his mother tongue and the target language in order to improve his
knowledge and not to mistake two languages due to interference from their native
language, which is more emphasized in contrastive analysis.
Finally, euphemisms contribute to teaching foreign language. This kind of
speech art appears across cultures. Learning this can help student improve their
knowledge of the world. For example, a Vietnamese know how many words and
phrases can be used to express the meaning of “death” in both their native language
and target language. Understand the situation in which each term is used and apply it in
suitable condition may enrich students’ language use. Although people have the same
purpose when using this speech art, also no one can deny its benefits, it has some
drawbacks. The negative impact of euphemism may be the avoidance of losing face
that leads to cheating or deceiving other people, or sometimes people use euphemism
to give a negative attitude. For example, they use the word “ngủm củ tỏi” to talk about
someone who they hate has died. Thus, we should apply its usage in suitable situation
in order not to fail in communication.
In conclusion, euphemism makes the conversation more smoothly and
successfully because it helps us to show our respect to the listeners and to express our
feelings in the right way. As a teacher to be, we should consider what to teach and how
to teach our students in order to help them improve their knowledge and apply it in the
proper direction.
V) REFERENCES
1) Lado, R. (1957). Linguistics across cultures: Applied linguistics for language
teachers. University of Michigan Press: Ann Arbor
2) James C. (1980). Contrastive analysis. Longman Group Ltd.
3) Kanarakis G. The significance of contrastive analysis in foreign language teaching.
University of Athens.
4) “Contrastive Analysis”. en.wikipedia.org 28Nov.2010
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contrastive_analysis
5) “Euphemism”. en.wikipedia.org 28Nov.2010
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euphemism