to the other forms of the pun.
Eg.2 Deliciously simple. Simply delicious.
Although there are only two simple adverbs and adjectives repeated in this advertisement, it is imprinted deeply in the reader’s mind of the characteristics of the food. It is delicious and convenient.
Eg.3 I’m more satisfied.
The well-known American More cigarettes have been making best use of a pun in its advertisement. The word “more” has two interpretations: one is “additional number or amount” and the other is “the cigarette brand More”. This advertisement reflects the intelligence and humor of the adman.
3.3 Involving the brand names of the product or service
Based on the data analysis, a pun is a most popular used figure of speech in advertising. It is often used in headlines or slogans because they need to say something unique about the product or service. They should command attention, be more memorable, and be brief. These are examples of memorable headlines. Headlines frequently use a play on words. Headlines should draw attention;80% to 90% of readers never read beyond them if the headlines are boring.
Eg.1 Make Time For Time.
The Time magazine made this advertisement for its own promotion. Homonym is adopted. As is easily seen, the word “time” is used twice and two meanings areexpressed----the first“time”is“时间”in Chinese and the second is the name of themagazine. This advertisement which calls upon the people to find time to read the magazine is most impressive due to its use of the pun that not only saves space, but also makes it easy to remember.
Eg.2 Spoil yourself and not your figure.
This advertisement for the Weight-Watcher ice cream, which is made for people on a diet, successfully employs a pun to advertise the product in a decent way. The pun lies in the word “spoil”. “Spoil oneself” means “enjoy oneself to heart’s content”, while “spoil not one’s figure” implies that one will not put on weight by having the ice cream.Naturally the pun makes people accept the ice cream without mentioning the phrase “put on weight” or“become fat”, a taboo for all beauty lovers.
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Eg.3 An Apple for everybody keeps worries away. Version A:电脑选苹果，烦恼远离. Version B:天天有苹果，烦恼远离我.
In this advertisement of a computer, the word “apple” has two meanings: one refers to the fruit “apple” and the other “the computer brand”. At first sight, the reader knows that the advertisement comes from the saying “An apple a day keeps a doctor away”, which is often rendered as“一日一苹果，医生远离我”
Eg.4 Coca Cola Version:可口可乐
Pun also appears in brands，for instance,“Coca Cola”,a brand of soft drink. According to American Heritage Dictionary, “cola” originally refers to “African evergreen plants having reddish，fragrant, nutlike seeds yielding all extract that contains caffeine and theobromine”，but nowadays，it usually refers to“a carbonated soft drink containing an extract of the cola nut and other flavorings”. When it was introduced into China, the translator borrowed the name and hence a name for this new type of soft drink came into being.“可乐”in Chinese also means“something that deserves to be happy about”; therefore“可口可乐”has more than one interpretation: on the one hand, it is the name of the brand, a usage of alliteration which sounds very pleasant; on the other hand, it means “both tasty and deserves to be happy about”, referring to its superb taste and its quality of being able to bring happiness or even good luck, and this really caters to Chinese reader’s interests. What is important is that, obviously, the translator has given full consideration to both the advertiser’s intentions and the reader’s expectations, making them meet each other perfectly. So not only the original pun is successfully preserved but also new values are added. Thus, it’s an ideal translation, both its quality and function are included in the translation.
Eg.5 Coke refreshes you like no other can. Version A:没有什么能像可乐那样令您神清气爽. Version B:清新可口，别无所求.
In this advertisement for soft drink Coke, the word “can” has two meanings, one refers to “the metal container for liquids”, and the other “the modal verb”. So the
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advertisement can have two interpretations: “Coke refreshes you like no other can(tin, drink)can refresh you”. The pun can’t be preserved, as the translator is unlikely to find a Chinese word or phrase that can cover the two meanings of the original. So under the circumstance, the translator can choose other strategy like compensation, explication or omission to render the advertisement. Version A is a case of explication, in which the main idea of the original is conveyed. However, we can see that this translation seems to be a little clumsy, so the reader deserves a better translation. As we know the purpose of an advertisement is to attract the reader’s attention, interest, to appeal to the reader, so in a sense, at first sight it has to be readable and memorable. However, Version A seems to be incapable of achieving this purpose. To make it “sweet and short”, the translator can use the well-established four-character phrases in the Chinese version, as shown in Version B. The original pun is omitted in this translation for the sake of stylistic effect, otherwise the version will be longer and hence less forceful. Compared with Vsion A, this one being concise and impressive, though imperfect, it is more likely to be accepted by the reader. On the other hand, in the aspect of meaning, the phrase“别无所求”conveys a wealth of implicatures, for instance, “it suits you best” ,“it is the best”, “it brings you the greatest happiness”, etc. So Version B can produce adequate contextual effects in the reader’s cognitive environment without causing his/her unnecessary processing effort, and optimal.
Conclusion
This dissertation proves that Relevance Theory is really a powerful explanatory tool for analyzing the advertising puns. After reviewing the related literature, the construction of theoretical framework and the case studies, the following part is the conclusion.
The present study is intended to use relevance theory to analyze the advertising puns. After the review of the related literature, the construction of theoretical framework and the case studies, it is time to conclude the study. The author will give a brief summary of the discoveries obtained from the research first, then discuss the implications that the discoveries may have, and the last, the author is going to try specifying the limitations of the research and the future.
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The study employs Sperber and Wilson’s Relevance Theory to examine pun application in English advertisements. According to Relevance Theory, the principle of relevance governs the whole ostensive-inferential communication process. In the advertisements, advertisers take pun as one of the attention-catching verbal devices to persuade consumers to take purchase action. Puns have effects of surprise and entertainments involving pun are easier to attract the target audience because of its wit and humor. The consumers will be amused and impressed during the short time span. According to Sperber and Wilson’s Relevance Theory, humans tend to pay attention to those phenomena that are most relevant to them.
Notes
[1]Peter New mark, A Textbook of Translation (Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press,
2001), 39-42.
[2]Michael Newman, The 22 Irrefutable laws of Advertising (Singapore: John Wiley and Sonset, 2004), 86.
[3]Walter Red fern, Pun(Oxford: Basil Blackwell Ltd, 1984), 130.
[4]黄映秋. 广告英语中的双关运用及其可译性探讨[J].外国语，2005（8）：46. [5]孟琳,詹晶辉.英语广告中双关语的运用技巧和翻译[J].中国翻译,2001(5):50.
[6]文军.英语修辞格词典[M].重庆：重庆大学出版社，1992.
[7]Greig.J.Y.T, The Psychology of Laughter and Comedy (London: Allen&Unwin, 1923), 211. [8]Lyons.J.Semantics, Cambridge (Cambridge University Press, 1977), 22.
[9]Cuddon. J. A, .A Dictionary of Literary Terms (Middlesex: Penguin Books, 1986), 541. [10]Nash..W, The Language of Humor (London & New York: Longman, 1985), 146.
[11]leechG.N, Principles of Pragmatics (London: Longman, 1983), 67-92.
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