The application skills and translation of puns in English advertisements

Li Xiang

Abstract: Puns are a common rhetorical device in English advertisements. The translation of puns is a difficulty in itself, but the translation of puns in advertising is even more complicated. This article elaborates on the application skills of puns from the aspects of phonetic puns, semantic puns, grammatical puns, idioms, and colloquial puns. On the basis of considering the double meaning of puns and the style of advertising language, a preliminary translation of English advertising puns was made from the aspects of consistent translation, separation of meanings, set translation, emphasis translation and compensation translation. discussion.

Keywords: advertising language; pun; translation

Punning and the Translation of Puns in English Advertisements

MENG Lin amp; ZHAN Jing-hui

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(Foreign Languages ??Dept., Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150090, China)

Abstract： Punning is one of the most common rhetorical devices used in advertisement. This paper is about the techniques of punning and the translation of puns in English advertisements. There are various ways to form puns in advertisements. The translation of puns is difficult because of the double meanings, and the translation of puns in advertisements is even more difficult because one must keep both the double meanings of a pun and the style of the advertisement in mind.

Key words： advertising language； pun； translation

Introduction

Whether it is product advertising or The creation of public service announcements and advertisements is a comprehensive art. It integrates sociology, aesthetics, psychology, marketing, acoustics and electronics, literature, and linguistics. Copywriting is an art that requires more skill than any other form of writing. It must use the principles of salesmanship to write elegant, lively and interesting text. It must have special appeal and can attract readers' attention in an instant, stimulate their desire to buy, and ultimately promote purchasing behavior. Therefore, the proper use of literary language in advertising copy will make the connotation and influence of advertising language far beyond the advertising itself. The rhetorical device of pun is a commonly used technique in advertising creation. Pun, as the name suggests, is to use a language and text form to express a double meaning of one light and one dark in a specific language environment, which is both eye-catching and arousing associations. Puns have concise, concise, humorous, novel and unique rhetorical effects, and can highlight the characteristics of advertising, so they are widely used in advertising.

1. The use of puns in advertising

As a rhetorical device, puns are commonly used in advertising, and they exist at various levels of language such as pronunciation, vocabulary, and syntax.

In advertisements, in order to increase the attractiveness of advertisements, advertisement producers are diligently pursuing new ideas, making the use of puns in advertisements more complicated. Clever puns can make language implicit, humorous, vivid, and leave room for aftertaste and imagination. The more common ones include the following aspects.

1.1. Homophone puns

“Homophone puns are composed of words with similar spellings and identical or similar pronunciations” 1 . Advertising producers are very happy to use homophonic puns because such puns have a fun, humorous, playful and comical language style, which can enhance the persuasiveness and appeal of advertisements, thus leaving a deep impression on consumers.

(1) More sun and air for your son and heir. 2

Translation: There is plenty of sunshine and fresh air, all for your descendants.

In this advertisement for a bathing beach, the producer cleverly used the two homophonic words sun-son and air-heir, making the advertising language not only harmonious and pleasant to the ears, but also catchy to read. Quite funny, humorous and charisma.

(2)Trust us. Over 5000 ears of experience. 3

Translation: Trust us. It has been tested on more than 5,000 ears and has more than 5,000 years of experience.

This is an advertisement for hearing aids. Literally, it shows that the product has been tested by many consumers, but a pair of homophonic words "ears-years" is cleverly embedded between the lines, fully implying the product's long history and time-tested superior quality.

Many advertisements focus on the name of the product brand. The pun in the brand name can not only increase the interest and humor of the advertisement, but more importantly, make the brand name more attractive to people, easier to remember, and increase the intensity of the publicity attack, so as to achieve the purpose of promoting the product. Puns in brand names mostly use homophonic methods.

(3) WEAR-EVER introduces a new concept in glass oven ware: CLEANABILITY. 4

Translation: "Eternal" glass oven ware brings you a new concept: cleanliness.

The manufacturer here takes advantage of the polysemy of its trademark WEAR-EVER to vigorously promote its products: on the one hand, WEAR-EVER is its brand name, but on the other hand, the word has another meaning: both Wear forever (reflecting that the product is strong and durable), and wherever (reflecting that it is popular everywhere). This advertisement promotes its products from multiple angles, can arouse customers' desire to buy, and has a certain persuasive effect.

1.2. Semantic puns

“Semantic puns are puns formed under specific circumstances by using the ambiguity of words or sentences” 5 . This type of pun is also widely used in advertising, and it has the same purpose as homophonic puns.

(4) The label of achievements.

Black Label commands more respects. 6

Translation: Wine is a symbol of success. Black logo makes you more distinguished.

Semantic puns are also common in brand names. This is an advertisement for whiskey. Label has two meanings, one is the "logo" and the other is the brand of the wine - Black Label. Through the use of puns, this advertisement reminds people that they drink the wine when they become successful. At the same time, the use of the brand name to form puns makes it easier for consumers to remember the brand and become interested in the product.

(5) Spoil yourself and not your figure. 7

Translation: Eat as much as you want without gaining weight.

This is the title of an advertisement for Weight-Watcher ice cream, which is produced specifically for dieters. Puns not only exist in product brand names, but the word spoil in the title is also a pun. Spoil oneself means "to enjoy"; and spoil one's figure means "to destroy the body shape". This advertisement uses a pun to make dieters naturally accept the advertisement in a relaxed and humorous tone, and can make them want to buy.

(6) A deal with us means a good deal to you. 8

Translation: Doing business with us means you have made a good deal.

The beauty of this sentence is that it makes good use of the three meanings of deal in the sentence, "to do business", "a good deal" and "many". A good deal makes a great pun.

1.3. Grammar puns

Grammar puns refer to puns caused by grammatical problems, such as omitting structures, a word or phrase having more than two grammatical functions, etc.

(7) Which lager can claim to be truly German?

This can. (There is a can of beer painted next to it) 9

Translation: What kind of large can Can beer be called an authentic German product? This jar.

This is an advertisement for Lager brand light beer. The word "can" in the sentence can be used as both a modal verb and a noun (drink can). Due to the pun of "can", the pun of Lager's brand name, and the wonderful use of illustrations on the side, the advertisement has a certain humorous effect and leaves a deep impression on readers.

Coincidentally, Coca-Cola Company is also making a fuss about the word "can".

(8)Coke refreshes you like no other can. 10

Translation: Nothing refreshes you like Coke.

The word can in the sentence can be understood as both the noun "can, listen" and the modal verb "can". The whole sentence can be understood as Coke refreshes you like no other (can: tin, drink) can (refresh you). 11 This advertisement is witty and full of textual interest, which can make the product and the advertisement slogan remain in the reader's memory for a long time.

1.4. Idioms or colloquial puns

Advertising language is particularly good at quoting some familiar idioms or colloquial sayings. These advertisements are based on people's original social and cultural knowledge and use distinctive and unique language forms to form puns, which not only enhances the attractiveness of the advertisements, but also reflects the artistry of the advertising language and makes the advertisements have evocative overtones.

(9) You’ll go nuts for the nuts you get in Nux. 12

Translation: Nux nuts will make you fall in love with them.

From the literal meaning of the advertisement, to go nuts means "to buy nuts", but it is also an idiom meaning "crazy, crazy". The use of puns demonstrates the irresistible appeal of Knuckles nuts to people.

(10) A Mars a day keeps you work, rest and play. 13

Translation: A piece of Mars chocolate a day makes you work like work and play like entertainment.

This ad reminds people of two very familiar idioms: An apple a day keeps the doctors away and All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.

This advertisement not only borrows the idiom model in language form, but also quotes the content of two idioms, allowing people to draw a new judgment from the long-known idioms: Mars brand chocolate can not only make people healthy, but also make people happy. People are energetic when working and relaxed when resting.

2. Translation of advertising puns

Advertising language is a refined, implicit, expressive and encouraging language, and puns are expressions of double meanings. In language There are insurmountable barriers to translatability in structure and expression. Therefore, the translation of English advertising puns should use appropriate Chinese expressions based on the content and characteristics of the advertisement. It should not only fully take into account the style of the original text, but also try to convey the original message as much as possible. It is still possible to translate English advertising puns by adopting dialectical translation methods, minimizing the loss of information in puns during translation, and enhancing the stylistic features of advertising.

2.1 Compliant translation

It is generally believed that puns constitute obstacles to translatability through pronunciation, form, meaning and other means, and are untranslatable. But "some puns are not absolutely untranslatable. Bilingual coupling is possible" 14. The consistent translation method is based on bilingual coupling and takes into account both the form and content of advertising puns. It is the highest state of advertising pun translation.

(11) Easier dusting by a stre-e-etch! 15

In addition to being "stretched" as the brand name of dust removal cloth, the word "stretch" is also spelled in an ingenious way. Elongate, conveying the original meaning of the word, "to extend." It is easy to feel that the dust removal cloth can extend the function of a person's arm, truly and vividly exaggerating the effect of "stretching and stretching, strong dust removal power". The repetition of the word "pull" in the translation reproduces the elongation effect of the word "stretch" in the original text, forming a sensory extension. The use of four-character phrases and rhymes are consistent with the stylistic characteristics of Chinese advertising.

2.2 Separate meaning method

If you want to fully express the double meaning of the pun in the translation, in addition to using the consistent translation method in the case of bilingual coincidence, " You can also use a workaround to peel off the pun semantics and express it in two layers." 16

(12) The Unique Spirit of Canada. 17

In this Canadian wine advertisement, the word spirit is an expressive work, and it can also be used as an explanation for "strong liquor". , can also be interpreted as "spiritual". In order to retain the double meaning, the double semantics can be separated and translated as "Canadian wine with unique flavor, unique Canadian spirit". 18

(13) I'm More satisfied. 19

(14) Ask for More. 20

This is what Moore Cigarettes established in the advertising slogan Two examples of puns. They cleverly use the double meaning of the word more: more is an adverb meaning "more, more"; when capitalized, it becomes a brand name. These two advertisements make it easy for people to remember the brand of the product, and at the same time leave an impression that the product is superior to similar products and can satisfy consumers more. The translations are: "I am more satisfied with Moore cigarettes"; "If I have another cigarette, I will still smoke Moore". The pun semantics are split into two levels and expressed separately in the translation, and the four-character structure makes it catchy to read.

It is worth pointing out that although this translation method retains the double meaning of the pun, the condensed, humorous charm and the fun of the two meanings of the original text are lost.

2.3 Set translation method

The generation of some advertising puns is based on a certain cultural background. The spread of English language and culture in Chinese has formed a bridge between bilingual translations. The set translation method is to apply the inherent patterns of English that have been deposited in Chinese to translate English advertisements.

(15) All is well that ends well. 21

This advertisement is actually an English idiom, which means "everything ends well."

But when ad makers use it in cigarette ads, ends has a double meaning: the verb "end" and the noun "cigarette butt." This cigarette advertising slogan can be translated into "the cigarette butt is good, the cigarette is good" by applying the translation model of the original idiom.

(16) Better late than the late. 22

This wonderful sentence comes from the idiom "Better late than never" (Better late than never). The wonderful thing about it is that it not only quotes the structure of the idiom, but also uses the pun meaning of late, where the late refers to the dead. The use of puns makes this traffic public service advertisement powerful and shocking. Its translation can be translated as "better late than dead". 23

(17) We take no pride in prejudice. 24

This is a witticism used by The Times to advertise for itself. It originated from one of Austen's novels The famous book "Pride and Prejudice" was quoted by newspapers in advertisements to show off that they were impartial and impartial. The ad could be translated as: "We are not arrogant about your prejudices." For those who know the work "Pride and Prejudice", the pun connotation of this translation is self-evident.

The advantage of the set translation method is that it can convey the cultural connotation of the original advertising text while basically ensuring the concise and condensed language characteristics of the original text. However, the connotation of the pun is often not fully displayed, so the translation is The fun, wit, and humor of the original text have been lost.

2.4 Focus on translation

The ingenious pun expression techniques in advertisements are sometimes "difficult to express in the translation, and as a result, the formal meaning, homophonic meaning and implicit modality have to be sacrificed", 25 especially Some advertisements contain multiple sets of puns and multiple references to one word, so we have to adopt a focused translation method to preserve the conceptual meaning.

(18) The driver is safer when the road is dry;

The road is safer when the driver is dry. 26

This article promotes traffic safety The advertisement uses the double meaning of the word dry (dry; not drunk) to form a pun, which is very warning to drivers. When translated, the two meanings of dry can only be taken in one meaning in the upper and lower sentences: the road is dry and the driver is safe; the driver is awake and the road is safe.

(19) When the wind has a bite…and you feel like a bite…then bite on a whole Nut. 27

The word bite has multiple meanings here: thorn pain; food; bite. Its multi-layered meaning makes the full-nutritional nuts bring to people who are hungry and cold. The translation of this advertising slogan can express the multiple meanings of the word bite: "When the cold wind is biting and you want to eat something, please chew the nutritious nuts."

(20) Butlin's – the right choice.

Don't labor the point, or be conservative in your choice, or liberal with your money. Come to Butlin's for the real party .

Great Party Ahead. 29

This is an advertisement by travel companies that takes advantage of the competition between political parties.

In the advertisement, labor, conservative, and liberal are the names of three political parties. At the same time, labor the point means "to explain in detail", be conservative in your choice means "to be conservative when making choices", and be liberal with money means "to spend money lavishly." ". Party is also a pun, referring to both "party" and "party". The use of several sets of puns in the advertisement leaves people with the impression that the travel company is trustworthy. It can be said that the advertisement has done a wonderful job. Unfortunately, it is difficult to get the best out of multiple puns like this, so we have to adopt a translation method that retains the conceptual meaning and sacrifices puns:

"Butlin Travel Company - your right choice.

Don't bother talking endlessly,

Don't be conservative, and don't hesitate,

Don't spend money freely.

To the cloth. Trin Travel Company, come to the real party.

The grand party is waiting for you! ”

Focus on the double or even multiple meanings of advertising puns. A helpless choice. After this trade-off, only one layer of double meaning of pun is left in the translation, so there is no more pun at all. Most advertising puns are suitable for this translation method. In fact, this emphasis on translation is an example of the translatability barrier of puns.

2.5 Compensatory translation

Most advertising puns can be translated through focused translation. However, sometimes after one meaning of the pun is translated, another meaning is also very important, but cannot be translated at the same time. In this case, some compensation methods can be used to make up for it. For advertising, these compensation methods mainly refer to the media that carry advertising, such as television images, radio sounds, and newspaper layout design.

(21) OIC

This is an advertisement for glasses. Three simple capital letters are shaped like glasses and are pronounced "oh, I see". The ad uses both visual language to grab people's attention and auditory language to convey the joy the glasses bring to customers with low vision. However, it is difficult to translate the advertisement taking into account both the visual and auditory aspects. It can only be translated auditorily as: "Wow! I see it." The visual shape of glasses formed by three letters can be compensated by the media carrying advertising and the use of graphics as a visual language element. For advertising that relies on media for its existence, this is an important means of compensation.

3. Conclusion

In short, pun is a very commonly used rhetorical technique in advertising style. It can not only make the advertising language concise, rich and humorous, but also make the advertising more interesting. Attractive and easy to remember. However, the translation issue of advertising puns deserves further study. Above we have only discussed several modes of advertising pun translation. In actual translation, in order to achieve maximum equivalence between the translated text and the original text, we cannot only use one or two methods at any time, but must adopt specific methods. Based on the situation, dialectically choose the most appropriate means to convey the meaning of the original text.