comparative-analysis-of-humorous-discourses-英語畢業(yè)論文

ComparativeAnalysisofHumorousDiscoursesAbstractHumorisauniqueproductofhumancivilization,whichisshownthroughthelanguagedialogue.Inthisway,throughthecomparativestudyofChineseandEnglish,itcannotonlyhelplanguagelearnerstounderstandthephenomenonofhumor,butalsoaddadifferentcolorindailyconversation,writingandotheraspectsalso.Lifehasawidevarietyofhumor,andbothChineseandEnglishhasnolackofhumor.Itwillexistinthewrittenwords,providesomeentertainmentandamusementforusreaders,andalsoexistindailyconversation,whichprovidessomethoughtsbeyondentertainment.AsaChineseEnglishlearner,wemustlearntoappreciatethelanguage,especiallyinbeautyofhumorousdiscourses,soweshouldlearnandunderstandhumorousdiscoursestoimprovereadinginterest,readingappreciationability,andenhancetheabilityofinterculturalcommunication.Thispaperdescribesthedefinitionofhumor,functionsandnature,andareviewoftheresearchprogressinpsychologyandlinguisticsaspectsofhumorousdiscourse.ThroughthecomparativestudyofChineseandEnglishhumorhistory,thisthesisisthedevelopmentprocessofChineseandEnglishhumorousdiscourses,aswellasthecontrastiveanalysisoflinguisticaspects,concerningtheircausesanddifferences.Theresearchresultsofthisthesiscanbeabitinstructiveintheappreciationofhumorousdiscourses.摘要幽默是人類文明獨有的產(chǎn)物，是通過語言對話來展現(xiàn)的。這樣，通過對中西方言語幽默的對比研究不僅能幫助語言學(xué)習(xí)者更好的理解幽默現(xiàn)象，而且在會話，寫作等方面也會增添別樣的色彩。生活中有各種各樣的幽默，漢語英語都不缺乏，它會存在于語言文字幽默，給我們讀者提供一些消遣和娛樂，也會存在于日常會話當(dāng)中，提供娛樂之外的一些思考。作為漢語英語的學(xué)習(xí)者，我們必須學(xué)會欣賞語言，尤其是語言中的幽默美，所以我們應(yīng)該去學(xué)習(xí)、理解幽默話語從而提高閱讀興趣、閱讀鑒賞能力，進而增強跨文化交際的能力。本文首先討論了幽默的定義，功能和本質(zhì)，并回顧了幽默話語在心理學(xué)以及語言學(xué)方面的一些研究進展。通過中英幽默話語歷史起源的對比研究，本文從中英幽默話語的發(fā)展歷程角度進行了語言學(xué)方面的對比分析，涉及中英文幽默話語的不同點以及導(dǎo)致的原因。本文的研究結(jié)論對欣賞幽默話語具有一定的啟發(fā)作用。關(guān)鍵詞：幽默話語，起源與發(fā)展，語言學(xué)分析ContentsAcknowledgements 1Abstract 2摘要 3Contents 41. Introduction 51.1Cognitionofhumor 51.2Generalideaandstructure 62.LiteratureReview 72.1Definitionsofhumor 72.2Humorousdiscourse 82.2.1Psychologicalapproaches 82.2.2Linguisticapproaches 93. HistoricalComparisonofhumorousdiscourse 103.1 OriginofhumorinChinese 103.2 OriginofhumorinEnglish 114.DevelopmentofChineseandEnglishhumor 124.1Chinesehumor 134.2Englishhumor 135.Theircausesanddifferences 155.1Differenceinnationalcharacters 155.2Differenceinaimsandideologies 155.3Differenceinwayofthinking 165.4Englishhumor 176. Conclusion 18References…………….…………….…………….……………...…….19Introduction1.1CognitionofhumorHumorousdiscourseisaregularlinguisticphenomenonwhichbringsusacolorful,fascinatinglife.Inadditiontotheenjoyment,thepragmaticfunctionofhumordiscoursecan’tbeneglected.Humorousdiscoursepromotesabetterinterpersonalrelationship,encouragingpeopletofacedifficultiesactively.Nowadaysusinghumorousdiscoursecorrectlywillpromotethecommunicationdevelopingsuccessfully.ByresearchingthehumordiscourseofthoseEnglishspeakingcountries,Englishlearnerscangainmoreinformationabouttheirculture.Wecanunderstandtheirwayofhumorandwillnotcausecommunicationbarriersbecauseofdifferentculture.Learningtheessenceofothercountries’humorculturetoenrichourswillmakeourChinesehumorculturemuchcolorfulinacertainextent.What’smore,undertheeconomicglobalization,culturalcommunicationbecomemorefrequent,thusthediversityofhumorousdiscoursewillbroadenourmind.Maybewedon’trealizebutwecan’tdenythathumorisimportantandnecessary.Humorcanchangeourcultureandlives,mindsandexperiences.Wedoneedhumorwhateverindailylife,academyorpolitics.Theexistenceanduseofhumorisacommonsociolinguisticsphenomenon.Humorplaysaveryimportantroleinexpressingpeople’sidealsandcommunication.Thecharmofhumorousdiscoursebasesonspeakers’uniquelanguageskillsandlanguage’sculturebackground.HumorisadistinctfeatureofEnglishlanguage.Tomakesurethatcross-culturalcommunicationiscarryingonsmoothly,howeverunderstandinghumorousdiscourseofEnglishspeakingcountryisquiteimportant.Insocialcommunication,peoplemayhavesomeawkwardness.Inordertoavoidtheawkwardness,thisarticlecomingwiththedefinition,production,constitution,waysofusingroundlycompareandanalyzethehumorousdiscoursebetweenChineseandEnglish.1.2GeneralideaandstructureHumorhasbeenthesubjectofmanyscholarsandhasplayedanimportantroleintheworkofmanygreatwriters.Butwhatismeantby“humor”?Andwhatisthenatureof“humor”?Manyscholarstrytoanswerthesequestionsfromthevariousfields.Nowadays,humorhasmuchmoreconnectionswithlinguistics,becauselanguageandhumorhaveinseparablerelation.First,languagehasbecomethethemeofhumorousdiscourse.Second,thecomprehension,appreciation,anddevelopmentofhumoraredeterminedtoalargedegree,bytheculturalattitudesandvaluesassociatedwithitandbytheuseandfunctionoflanguageinsociety.ThispaperwilldiscusstheoriginanddevelopmentofhumorousdiscoursesinChineseandEnglishconcerningtheircausesanddifferences.Regardinghumorousdiscourseasavaluableresourcesinsteadoflifelessrules.Inordertohelppeoplehaveabetterunderstandingorappreciationofhumorousdiscourses,thisthesistakeintoaccountmanyscholar’sviewofhumortheoriesandthecomparisonandanalysisofhumorinbothlanguages.Literaturereview2.1DefinitionsofhumorThereareplentyofresourcesaboutwhatishumorwhilethedefinitionshavealargediversity.Humorcanbeakindoffluidinbody,adispositionofcharacteristicsorhabits.Humormaybeaquality,mindorakindofhobby.Someonemakeshumorapositiveattitudeandalifestyle.Othersmakeitanabilitytoexpress,discoverandappreciatethefunnypartandtheabsolutelyincongruous.Humorisalsocreatedtobelaughableandentertaining.“Humor”isoriginatedfromtheword“(h)ūmōr-(h)ūmor”for“l(fā)iquid”or“fluid”inLatin(XuLixin2003:1),andhasagreatrelationwiththe“theoryofhumors”inMedievalmedicine(Attardo1994:9).Duringtheearlywesternperiod,Hippocrates(460BC-377?BC)createdthephysiologicaltheory,andhumorisregardedasoneofthefourfluidsinhumanbody:First,blood(representingheatemanatingfromthehuman’sheart,),phlegm(representingcoldcomingfromthehuman’sbrain,),choler(representingdryness,secretedbytheliver,yellowbile),andmelancholy(representingwater,originatinginthespleenandstomach,blackbile).Thealternatemixingthese“humors”indifferentpeoplewereconsideredtomodifytheirqualitiesbothphysicallyandmentally,aswellasthedispositionsofthem.Animbalanceofthesefourfluidsresultedindisease(Humphrey1982:36;Chen1988:14;McHenry1993:123).Bythe16thcentury,“humor”actuallybecameastupidactionorshortcoming.Then,severalcenturieslater,thetermofhumorhadbecometouseinone’sstateofmindormoodgenerally.Jonson(1527-1637)consideredthedefinitionofhumorthatitisaverystrongqualityofapersonwhichallhisfeelings,desiresandtalentobeyandunderwhichtheyallchaseinthesamedirection,sharessomesameideaswiththeconceptofhumorinthemiddleages.Whileinmodernusage,humorisdefinedtobeakindofqualityormood,anddifferentfromitsoriginalusage.Inphysiologicalpart,humorisconsideredtobeameansofcommunicationwhichwillbringamusementilluminatesorleadtoafacialreaction:thereactionoflaughing.Inthisway,itisthemostscientificdefinitionofhumorandtheleastcontroversial.Spontaneouslylaughingisproducedbythefifteenfacialmuscles’coordinatedcontractioninastereotypedpatternandaccompaniedbyalteredbreathing(Koestler1993:626).Ingeneral,thedefinitionsofhumorisdividedintofourcategories:acapacityorqualityofaspeaker,asituationofthediscourseorfeature,theobjectiveexpression(intheformoftheevent,situationitself,literaryworks,orotherdiscourses)andaskillofexpression.Humorousdiscourse2.2.1PsychologicalApproachesPsychologicalanalysesoflinguistichumorhavebeenbasedonthenotionofincongruityandresolution(Pepicello1983:73).Whatisincongruity?Incongruitymeansthatthesituationornatureofthingscontradictingitself.Beattiethoughthumoristhecombineoftwowronglymatchedidea.KantandSchopenhauerconsideredthatincongruityisanimportantelementofproducinghumor.Oneofthenecessaryconditionsofhumoristhedifferencebetweenexpectationandrealitywhichisincongruity.InSuls’view,incongruityisamajorrequisiteinjudgingdiscoursesarehumorousornot.Theabilityofproducing,understandingandappreciatinghumorousdiscoursesmakeagreatinfluenceonculturalintercommunicationandinteraction.Detailedandcomprehensiveresearchonhumorwillenhancetheinteractivedevelopmentofothersubjectssuchasscience,psychology,sociology,cross-culturecommunicationandsoon.AlthoughtheexplorationofhumororiginatedfromancientGreek,allthetimethisresearchfieldpresentingthesituationofahundredschoolsofthoughtcontending.Sofarthereisnotheorywhichcanprovideasystematicstatementofallaspectsinhumor.Maybeitisbecausethehumorphenomenonissocomplex.Differentscholarscanonlydosub-studythroughdifferentways.Aftereverybranchhasaquietgreatprogress,amaturemacroscopictheorywillbeestablished.2.2.2LinguisticapproachesAmongallthelinguisticstudiesinhumorousdiscourse,itseemsthatsemanticapproachesaretherage,whichfocusonthelinguisticformofthehumorousline.Sofartheresearchesonlyfallonthesocialfactorsandpragmatic-orientedstudiesofhumor.Theseresearcheshavetheinadequacyofthelackoflinguisticanalysishumorfromtheperspectiveofoursociety.ThelinguisticanalysesofriddlesandespeciallytypesoflinguistichumorweresummarizesbyPepicello.Heputsemphasisondevelopmentsandchangesofchildren'slinguistichumorandalsoviewsthattheresearchonlinguisticandpsychologicalofhumorshouldbecombinedandcomplimentary.3.HistorycomparisonofhumorousdiscoursebetweenChineseandEnglish3.1OriginofhumorousdiscourseinChineseAccordingtohistoryrecords,ChinesehumororiginatedfromthePeriodofpre-Qindays.Inaroundthe8thcenturyB.C.(lateXiZhouDynasty),therewasacareercalled“you”(優(yōu))inking’spalace.“You”neededtoentertainthearistocratsandtheking.Inhistory,thesepeoplewerecalled“FeiYou”(徘優(yōu));“Fei”istheoldnameoffunnydrama.InancientChina,apersonwhoisaplayeroranactorcanbecalled“You”.Mostofthetime“You”willcometoperformfunnydramasforthekingandaristocratswhichcanhelpthemtocorrecttheirmistakesorproblemshowevernotpointoutthefaultsofthemdirectly.Duringthatperiod,evenif“You”saidsomethingnotappropriatewillnotbeseenasoffendingthesuperiorandwillnotbepunishedbecauseofanunwrittenrule.What’smoretherewasanotherformof“You”called“RanYou”whichtrytopleasingthekingbyusingsomehumorouswayssuchassatire,wittyremarks,metaphors,funnyplaysandsoon.InQuyuan’sworkJiuZhangHuaisha(《九章懷沙》),theword“humor”(youmo)wasfoundfirsttime.“Xuxiyaoyao,kongjingyoumo”(煦兮杳杳,孔靜幽默)butitmeanssoundlessandsilence.DuringtheHanDynasty,“RecordsoftheHistorian”writtenbySimaQianhasonechapterwhichentitled“HuajiLiezhuan”(滑稽列傳),recordingtheearliesthumoristsofancientChinasuchasChunyuXu(淳于雋)andYoumeng(優(yōu)孟).ConnectingsatirewithfunnydramasandplaysintraditionimpactedonthedevelopmentofChinesecomediesandhumorousdiscourse.Whenitcametotheperiodoffeudalism,“Feiyou”begantomakefunofofficialsnotonlytheking.Theseweresomechangesonit’sfunction.Inthehistoryrecordsofpre-Qindays,therewereplentyoffolkjokesandfableswhichcontainedlotsofironiesandsatiresindailylife.TheyshowedChinesetraditionalhumorswhicharebriefinmeaning.IntheBookofSongs(《詩經(jīng)》),thefirstChinesecollectionofpoemsandsongs,manyfolksandpoemsorsongswithhumorousdiscoursewererecorded.Chinesehumorousdiscourseischaracterizedbyallegoryandsymbolizationandwhosepurposeistogiveeducationtosociety.3.2OriginofhumorousdiscourseinEnglishTheoriginofhumorinEnglishcamefromtheLatinword:“humorr”.InancientGreek,Hypecratswhowasadoctorthoughtthathumorhadfourtypes:theblood,phlegm,yellowbileorcholer,andblackbileormelancholy,whichhadagreatinfluenceonhumanbeings’temperamentandhealth.Thosefourfluidcontrolthebalanceofhumanbeing.Theearliestliterallyrecordedhumorappearedinthe8thcenturyB.C.inancientGreece.Theironicattitudestotheclansocietyanditsthoughtinitiatethebeginningofhumor.IntheperiodofSlavesocietyinGreece,thepreludeofGreekhumorisconsideredtobeapoemwithsatirewhichshowedafunnyimageoflifeidealinclansociety.ThereisnobetterexampleofhumororiginthanAesop'sfables.Thoseclassicmasterpiecesbringlatergenerationenlightenmentofhumorousdiscourses.Themodernmeaningofhumorwasdefinedin1682inBritain(JeanBlamer1907)anditwasSchvitzBriliusingtheword“humor”ofitsmodernmeaningin1709inhisbook“TheRelationsamongSensitivity:OnFreedominJokesandHumor”ThewidespreaduseofthewordhumorshouldbeattributedtotheBritishhumanistwriterTomJones.Hecreatedtwoworks.Onewas“DifferentHabits”andtheotherwas“DifferentPersonality”.Bothofthetwoworkswerefamousfortheirhumorousdiscourse.Inhiscomicrepresentative“Volpernie”,allthecharacterswerecreatedbythetemperament,suchasthenameof“fox”,“fly”,“eagle”and“crow”andsoon.MeanwhilethetheoriesofJones’humorspreadout.Asforthetheoryofhumor,Platofirstlyacceptedsomeparadoxicaltheories;inAristotle’sviewtheauthorrecognizesthewellknownsuperioritytheory.4DevelopmentofChineseandEnglishhumor4.1DevelopmentofChinesehumorIntheperiodofWeiandJinDynastyinChinesehistory,thedevelopmentofhumorinChinaexperienceditsanotherstrikingstage.HandanChun(邯鄲淳),awriteroftheThreeKingdoms(《三國》),wrotethreevolumesofXiaoLinForestsofJokes(《笑林》),whichwasthefirstbookabouthumorousdiscourse.However,thesehumorousdiscourseswerealsoironicaboutthepoliticsofthattime.Theearliestuseoftheword“humor”foritscurrentmeaningwasintroducedbyLinYutang.In1923,LinYutangusedthetransliteratedyoumoforEnglishhumor.SomesinologistsarguethatChinesehasanelegantwordhuajicreatedintheSpring-AutumnPeriod(722-403B.C.);theythinkthereisunnecessarytoborroworcreatethewordyoumo.ModernChinesehumorologistsgenerallyusethewordyoumo,nothuajiforhighclassverbalhumor.AsforCrossTalks,thisformofhumorbecamepopularinmid-18thcentury.Attheoriginstage,crosstalkswereplayedinstreetsorgatewaystotheaters.Gradually,therewereintroducedtoteahouses,wherepeopleusuallywentforentertainment.Buttheywereonlytheassistancetoamainplaywhichwasnormallytheopera.Howevercrosstalksatitbeginningwerefullofdirtywords.Thereisanotherreasontheycouldnotbeplayedintheatersandnotsuitableforthefemale.ThenHuoBaolin(1917-1993)introducedcrosstalksintotheaters.Headdedtraditionalelementsintocrosstalksandmadeitmorecivilized.Peoplebecameenjoyingcrosstalks.Withthedevelopmentofmedium,crosstalkshadsomelimitation,bycontrast,anotherformofcomedy,sketchbecameacceptedbymorepeopleinChina.Intheearlyof1950s,Chinesehumoronceboomedforaperiodoftime.Theformsofhumorwerealsoabundant.Fictions,drama,crosstalks,filmssprangoutandsomehumorfiguresbecamepopularandacceptedbylotsofpeople.Buttillthelate1950s,becauseofthepoliticalreason,theartofhumordeclined.Atthebeginningof1960s,withtheriseofprosewritinginliterature,manywritersusesatiretoscoldtheuglinessandupholdjustice.Humorousdiscoursewasusedasweaponstofightinsociety.DuringtheCulturalRevolution,Chinesehumorexperiencedmanystagessuchas“IronyStage”,“RethinkingStage”“ReformingStage”and“StudyingStage”.Chinesehumorousalmostexperiencedalllevelsofthedevelopmentalhistoryofworldhumor.Intheearlyof1980s,undertheinfluenceofRethinkingliterature,thecharacteristicofhumorwaslikethatofcomedy,andjokesandwittyremarkssubstitutefortheironyremarks.After1980s,Chinesehumorartandresearchdevelopedatthespeedthatanyotherperiodcouldnotmatch.Theresearchonhumorbecamecomprehensiveandvaried.Atthesametime,Chinesepeopleborrowedtheoriesfromabroadorevendirectlystudiedforeignhumor.Researchmethodswerealldimensionedandcomplex.Chinesehumorstudyhasshownitnationalfeaturesandcontributedgreatlytotheinternationalhumorresearch.4.2DevelopmentofEnglishhumorThedevelopmentofhumoritselfisalsoaquestionweareconcerned.Thesamejokethatwefeelverylaughableisstillfunnyforourancestors?PeterBerkfoundthatinthelate16thcentury,thetraditionalhumorbecame“collapse”.Thesizeofcomediesandperformancesreduced.Inaddition,aristocratsandclergiesevendisappearedincomicsespeciallyinpublicactivities.InTudordynasty,someplaceswereprotectedfromjokesorsatires.Theseplacesweremainlythechurchesandgovernment.Peopleshouldbehavethemselvesintheseplaces.Butmeanwhilethehumorculturebecamepopularinruralandsuburbanareas.Thatmeantthecivilizedhumorandfolkhumordiscoursehadseparated.ShakespeareisapersonwecanneverforgetwhenwetalkaboutEnglishhumorousdiscourse.Shakespeareisfamousforhisfamescomediesandtragedies.Butactuallyhisworksarefilledwithjokesandhumorousdiscourses,manypeopleareengagedinthehumorofShakespeare.Tillthefirsthalfof19thcentury,theGreatRevolutioninEurope,commonpeoplewereliberatedfromthebindingofchurchandmonarch.Theyhadchancestoexpresstheirhappinessandsadness.Thefolkhumorousdiscoursesorjokescameintolivingrooms.Infact,duringthattime,humorhadbecomeoneofthemostimportantpartsinEuropeans.Americanhumorhadashorthistoryanditbeganon19th.IntheformationofAmericanhumor,blackpeopleplayedaverycrucialpart;soinAmerican,thereisaspecialonecalledblackhumor.MarkTwainisafamousfigureinthehistoryofAmericanhumor.SinceBernardDeVoto’MarkTwain’sAmerica,peoplehaverealizedthatlaterhumoristshavelearnedalotfromearlierones,andNorrisYateshadamainthesisofhisbookTheAmericanHumorist:ConscienceoftheTwentiethCentury(1964)thatthegreatinfluenceof19thcenturyhumoralsoworkedinthepresentcentury.JoelChandlerHarriswroteoncethatAmericanshaveahabitandagiftforhumor.IncontrasttoEuropeans,theycanaccepttheworstpossibleturnsoffortunewithablinkofeyesandfacethefutureinpositiveattitudes.Harristhenraisedthequestionofinternationalrelationsandcomparisons.Intoday’sUnitedStates,studiesandspeculationsofhumorseemveryhotandpopular.ComparisonbetweendevelopmentsofhumorinChineseandEnglishChineseHumorEnglishHumorTimeFormTimeFormOrigin8thB.C.Political8th~6thB.C.ComicDevelopmentTillnowIndailyuseTillnowIndailyuseFromthechartabove,wemayseethatChinesehumorandEnglishhumorstartedalmostatthesametime.TheformofChinesehumorofthattimewasforpoliticalpersuasion.AndEnglishhumorofthattimewascomicsandwasplayedinthecourtandstreet.Withdevelopmentsofbothlanguages,humorousdiscoursecameintocommonpeople’sdailylives.5.CausesanddifferencesbetweenChineseandEnglishhumor5.1DifferenceinnationalcharactersChinesehumorfallsfarbehindEnglishhumorbothintheoryandpracticebecauseofthedifferencesituationineconomic,cultural,andpoliticalreasons.Inhistory,asmentionedabove,Chinesearecharacterizedbybeingserious,polite,smiling,introvertedandprudent.Meanwhile,westernersareinfluencedbyobjectivity,humorousconversation,andinformality.Besides,humorevaluationofbothlanguagesisdifferent.HumorinEnglishspeakingcountriesismorepopularthaninChina.Inthewest,peopleviewthathumornotonlybringsusamusementbutalsooccupiesacrucialpositioninsocialintercourse.Itisconsideredifonelacksasenseofhumor,maybethereisadeficiencyinhispersonality.InChina,however,ifonepersonbehaveshumorouslyorindulgesinlaughter,oneisthoughttobevulgar.Thus,humorisdistainedbygentlemeninChinamostoftime.Afterthegangoffourwasdefeated,theresearchofhumorrestarted,sohumorisnotwidelyspreadinartisticpracticeanddailylife.Recently,exceptthecontributionbyLuXunandLinYutang,therearefewpeoplecontributingalottothehumorresearch.5.2DifferenceinaimsandideologiesAnideologyisasetofideasthatconstitutesone’sactions,goals,andexpectations.Itcanbeconsideredasawayofviewingthings,asacomprehensivevision,orsomeideasproposedbythedominantclassofasocietytoallmembersofthesociety.Chinesehistoryislongwhilewesterncountriesarecomparablyshort.Forexample,theUnitedStates’historyisonlymorethan230yearssinceitwasfounded.Thus,thereisn’tmuchtimefortheirawarenesstodevelop.TheyarenotaspassionateaboutpoliticalmattersasChinesepeople.Chinahasaculturaltraditionwithmorethan5000yearshistory.TheChinesepeoplehavebeeninfluencedbystrongpoliticalideasandsystematicforalongtime.Beinginfluencedbythoseideasandtraditionalsystem,theChinesepeopleexpressastrongpoliticaltendencywhenfacingwithlifetrivialmatters.SothecharacteristicsandcontentofChinesehumorisinfluencedstronglybythepoliticsystem.What’smore,educationiscloselyrelatedtoliteratureworks.Sohumorisgenerallyusedtosatirizepeoplewhohasbadmannerandteachthemtobegood.Althoughsatireisoneofthehumor’spurposes,themostimportantpurposeistocultivatepeople’ssenseofhumor.Humorisregardedasanimportantqualityinwestern.Peopletendtorespectthoseleaders,scholarswhohaveasenseofhumor.Thereasonisthathumorshowstheirwisdomandaddscolortotheirpersonality.5.3DifferenceinwayofthinkingItisknowntoallthatpeoplecomefromdifferentplacehavedifferentwaysofthinking.Soitisveryimportantforustolearnthedifferentthinkingpatternssoastounderstanddifferentkindsofhumor.Twokindsofthinkingpatterns,oneisspiralthinkingandanotheroneislinearthinking.Chinesepreferspiralthinkingandwesternerpreferlinearthinking.Mostofwesternersputhighpremiumonindividualismandthedividednessbetweenhumanbeingandnature.Baseonlinearthinking,westernpeoplearemorerationalandcreative.Englishhumorisabstractanditneedsrationalthinkingtoappreciatetheconnotation.Chineseworldoutlookemphasizeonknowingandperceivingeventsandthingsinasyntheticway.Underthisway,Chinesepreferspecificimagestoabstractthingsbecausespiralthinkingpatternemphasizesexperienceknowledgeandimages.WiththebigculturebackgroundofChina,theintuitivethinkingmodeappears.Inthatcase,Chinesehumorwillmakeveryintuitivelysillyconversationinordertoshowhowfoolthepersonis.Whenfinishreadingthesehumorousdiscourses,peoplecandirectlygetthepointandlaughalot.5.4DifferenceincultureCultureisahugesystemwhichcontainsclimates,religion,geographicalenvironmentandsoon.TheChinesecivilizationcamefromtheYellowRiverandtheYangtzeRiver.Chinesepeoplearecultivatedbythiscultureandbecomehumble,modest,inhibited,tolerant.Forthosequalities,Chinesearenotfondofmakingfunwithothers.Newcreaturewillalsobeunacceptableandpeopleliketofollowtheoldtraditionwhendealingaffairs.Becauseofthat,Chinesehumorisdirectandtraditional,andpeopletendtobeseriousnotsocasual.What’smoreChinesehumorbarelyinvolvesthetopicofsexandreligion,sothestyleofChinesehumorisblank.Ontheonehand,thewesterncultureisthemarineculture.Theyareoutgoingandpositive,andliketoexploretheworld.Searchingfornewcreationsandcriticalthinkingarenotsoeasytoberealized.Itisveryclearthatthewesternsarebornwiththesenseofhumorandoptimism.Asaresult,humorsintheEnglishlanguagearefullofvariousstylesandtheircontentisofrichnessandcreativity.Ontheotherhand,itiseasytofindreligioustopicsinthewesternhumors.Christianityisthemostimportantreligioninthewesterncountries.Yet,thecommonwesternpeoplearenotasrigidasapriestwhiletalkingaboutreligiousaffairs.6.ConclusionInthepreviouschapters,comparisonandanalysiswasmadebetweenChineseandEnglishhumor.Thenthiseasyexploresthereasonsandhistoryofthesedifferenceswhichalsogivessomesuggestions.Humorisamirrorofculture.Becauseofthedifferentthinkingmodes,expressionhabitsandculture,ChinesehumordiffersfromEnglishhumor.Thedisparitiesofculturedon’tsuggestsomecultureissuperiortoothersinhumordevelopment.Itisimportanttodrawoneachother’strengthsandcomplementeachother.Theculturalconflictisthemomentumforculturedevelopmentandthecoexistenceistheguaranteeofcultureintegration.Culturalconflictisbecomingmulti-culturalsystemundertheinfluenceofglobalization.Humoristhesymbolofcivilizationandwisdom.Itassertsthenationalcharacteranddisplaysthestyleandstatusofthetimes.Sowes