TheArtofRhetoricinTradeMarks商标中的修辞艺术

TheArtofRhetoricinTradeMarks商标中的修辞艺术

陈丹丹

中南财经政法大学外国语学院（湖北武汉）陈丹丹430060

【摘要】：Rhetoricisoneoftheartofusingasameanstopersuade.Alongwithgrammarandlogicordialectic,rhetoricisoneolanguagefthethreeancientartsofdiscourse.FromancientGreecetothelate19thCentury,itwasacentralpartofWesterneducation,fillingtheneedtotrainpublicspeakersandwriterstomoveaudiencestoactionwitharguments.Contemporarystudiesofrhetoricaddressamoreperserangeofdomainsthanwasthecaseinancienttimes.Whileclassicalrhetorictrainedspeakerstobeeffectivepersuadersinpublicforumsandinstitutionslikecourtroomsandassemblies,contemporaryrhetoricinvestigateshumandiscourse.Atrademarkortrademarkisadistinctivesignorindicatorusedbyaninpidual,businessorganization,orotherlegalentitytoidentifythattheproductsorservicestoconsumerswithwhichthetrademarkappearsoriginatefromauniquesource,andtodistinguishitsproductsorservicesfromthoseofotherentities.Asweallknow,atrademarkisveryimportantforthemarketofacompany.Inordertoattractconsumers,itshouldbebothpersuasiveandinformative.Sorhetoricisthebestchoicethatcanmakethetrademarksattractivetoconsumers.Thusthethesiswillfocusontheartofrhetoricintrademarks.Throughtheresearch,theauthorattemptstofindoutthepracticalmeaningofrhetorictowardtrademarks,andtriestomakesomecontributiontothepropositionoftrademarks.

【关键词】：rhetoric,trademarks,quotation,idiom,metonymy,puns,geminate.

Chaper1Introduction

Atrademarkistheoffspringofhighlydevelopmentofmarketeconomics,whichplaysacrucialroleinmodernsociety.It'sanartformcomposedofwordsandpatternsdesignedbyproducersandsellerstodistinguishtheircommoditiesandservicefromothers.Trademarksactasawindowforconsumerstounderstand,distinguish,andjudgecommodities,thusdetermineourimpressionsofcommodities.Thesignificanceoftrademarksiswidelyrecognizedandatthesametime,thedesignbecomesratherimportant.Thusagoodtrademarkshouldbeinformative,persuasiveandalsoextraordinary.Thatmeansitshoulduseatechnique---rhetoric.

TheearliestmentionoforatoricalskilloccursinHomer'sIliad,whereheroeslikeAchilles,Hektor,andOdysseuswerehonoredfortheirabilitytoadviseandexhorttheirpeersandfollowers(theLaosorarmy)inwiseandappropriateaction.Withtheriseofthedemocraticpolis,speakingskillwasadaptedtotheneedsofthepublicandpoliticallifeofcitiesinAncientGreece,muchofwhichrevolvedaroundtheuseoforatoryasthemediumthroughwhichpoliticalandjudicialdecisionsweremade,andthroughwhichphilosophicalideasweredevelopedanddisseminated.Formodernstudentstoday,itcanbedifficulttorememberthatthewideuseandavailabilityofwrittentextsisaphenomenonthatwasjustcomingintovogueinClassicalGreece.

Rhetoricthusevolvedasanimportantart,onethatprovidedtheoratorwiththeforms,means,andstrategiesforpersuadinganaudienceofthecorrectnessoftheorator'sarguments.Todaythetermrhetoriccanbeusedattimestoreferonlytotheformofargumentation,oftenwiththepejorativeconnotationthatrhetoricisameansofobscuringthetruth.

Attheturnofthetwentiethcentury,therewasarevivalofrhetoricalstudymanifestedintheestablishmentofdepartmentsofrhetoricandspeechatacademicinstitutions,aswellastheformationofnationalandinternationalprofessionalorganizations.Theriseofadvertisingandofmassmediasuchasphotography,telegraphy,radio,andfilmbroughtrhetoricmoreprominentlyintopeople'slives.Andtrademarks,asaformofadvertising,alsomakegreatcontributiontothepopularityofrhetoric.

Thethesiswilldosomeresearchontheapplicationofrhetoricintrademarksinfourchapters.Thefirstchapteristheintroductionabouttherelationshipbetweentrademarksandrhetoric.Thesecondchaptermainlyfocusesonliteraturereviewonsomerhetorictheoriestointroducetheart.Thethirdchapterconcentratesontheintroductionabouttrademarks.Thefourthchapterwillstudytheapplicationofrhetoricdevicesintrademarkswithsomeexamples.Thelastchapteristheconclusion.

Chapter2CharacteristicsaboutTrademarks

2.1TheDefinitionoftrademarks

Therearevariouskindsofdefinitionsoftrademarks.Accordingtoencyclopedia,"Atrademark,trademark?or?isadistinctivesignofsomekindwhichisusedbyabusinesstouniquelyidentifyitselfanditsproductandservicestoconsumers,andtodistinguishthebusinessanditproductsorservicesfromthoseofotherbusinesses.Atrademarkistypeofindustrialpropertywhichisdistinctfromotherformsointellectualproperty."

Thepopulardefinitionoftrademarksinwestis:"Atrademarkcanbeaword,name,symbol,deviceoranycombinationthereofwhichisusedtoidentifyanddistinguishthegoodsorservicesofonecompanyfromgoodsorservicesofanother."Fromthedefinitions,welearnthattheessentialmeaningisthesame,thatis,atrademarkisthemarkofaproductorservice.

Notallthewords,signsandpicturesaretrademarks,usuallyatrademarkisawordoragraphoracombinationofwordandgraph.Conventionally,atrademarkcomprisesaname,word,phrase,logo,symbol,design,image,oracombinationoftheseelements.Thereisalsoarangeofnon-conventionaltrademarkscomprisingmarkswhichdonotfallintothesestandardcategories.

2.2FunctionsofTradeMarks

2.2.1Promotion

Asalogoforaproduct,atrademarkisalwaysbeautiful,impressiveanddistinctive.Ittriesitsbesttopleaseconsumersandtakepositiveeffectonpurchase.AccordingtoamarketingsurveyconductedinAmerica,thetrademarksofcosmeticswithromanticflavorarepopularinmarket,likeAprésRasage,CoverGirl,ClairdeJour,Nuited'Ardente,withthenamesstimulatingthepassionofbuying.

2.2.2Differentiation

Goodtrademarksreflectutility,qualityandfunctionofproducts,thusserveasguidancetomakeefficientchoices.TheresultofasurveyconductedinEnglandshowedthatnearly50%ofproductsarerecognizedandpurchasedbytheirtrademarksandnolessthan25%arerecognizedbycolor,withonly6%arerecognizedbydesigns.Thebrandtakestheroleofidentifyingtheproduct.Withthehelpofabrand,thecustomerscannotonlyseeyouandtalkaboutyou,theycanalsorememberyou.Thebrandisthemeansbywhichyoucandifferentiateyourofferingfromthatofeveryoneelse,itisthewaytosignalthatthisistheproductthathasalltheadvantagesthecustomerislookingfor.

2.2.3Honorembodiment

Inconsumers'eyes,atrademarkisaguaranteeofvalueandquality.Sometimes,webuyproductsnotonlyforthequality,butalsoforgoodcreditandpublicimage.Abrandisanembodimentofhonor,whichcompaniesvaluethemost.Sointhisway,producershavetokeepimprovingqualityandservicefortheintangiblebrandvalue.

2.2.4Lawprotection

Abrandnameisavaluabletreasureforproducers,butsomeplayerswilltakeadvantageoftheoccupation,fakethetrademarkanddeceiveconsumers.

Therefore,trademarkregistrationisamust-bewaytoprotectbrandsandcurbillegalpractice.Inoneword,atrademarkmustberegistered.

2.2.5Advertising

Besidesprovidingfineproductsandfairprice,acompanyhastospendmoneyonadvertising.Anexcellentadvertisementwillhighlighttheproduct,andbrandthetrademarkinconsumers'minds.Thetrutheachadvertisershouldbearinmindisthatthecoreofadvertisementisthetrademark.

2.3Thecharacteristicsoftherhetoricintrademarks

Astrademarkshavesomanyuniquecharacteristics,weneedrhetoricintrademarksandtherhetorichereshouldalsohaveitsowncharacteristicsinordertopersuadetheconsumers.

2.3.1PronunciationandVocabulary

Allthewordshavetheirrhymesandrhymes.Weshouldavoidpartialtonesandsomeambiguouswords.Forexample,thetrademark"Hewlett-Packard",inthemainlandofChinaitwastranslatedas"休利特·帕卡德",butafterthatHongkongtranslateditas"惠普",afterthatthiskindofcomputerhasbecomemoreandmorepopularjustbecausethesetwocharactersaremucheasiertopronounceandwithbetterwishesthantheoriginalnonsensesixcharacters.Rhetoriconthislevelcanmakepeoplehavegoodassociations.Forexample,"孔府家酒"makespeopleassociateChineselonghistoryandConfucianculture.

2.3.2PsychologyLevel

Trademarksmustbemadeaccordingtopeople'scommonpsychologyandidentity.Theywillachieveconsumers'identification.Andthetrademarksshouldhavegoodconnotationanddenotation.

2.3.3AestheticLevel

Thatmeansthatthetrademarksshouldsatisfytheneedoflinguisticlevel,andshouldalsosuitconsumers'psychologicalneedaswellasaestheticenjoyment.Thisisthehigheststateofapplicationofrhetoricintrademarks.Forexample,"Luhuanong"(露华浓)whichisakindofcosmetics,itcomesfromthepoetofafamousChineseancientpoetLibai"云想衣裳花想容，春风拂槛露华浓。"whichisusedtodescribethebeautylikepearlsorjades.Ithassatisfiedboththeneedstobefeminizedandtheneedstobeelegantandaesthetic.

Chapter3TheApplicationofRhetoricinTradeMarks

Sincewehavelearnedalotaboutbothrhetoricandtrademarks,wecaneasilyanalyzetheapplicationofrhetoricintrademarks.Specificallyspeaking,weusefollowingrhetoricdevicesintrademarks.

3.1Quotation

Thelanguageusedintrademarkshaveliterarinessandartisticquality.Thecreatorsoftrademarksusuallytakenutritionofourfamiliaridioms,proverbs,andfamouspoems.

3.1.1QuotationfromIdioms

IdiomisthecrystalofChineseculture,theancienttraditionofChineseculture,andthelinguisticformthatpeoplearewillingtoaccept.Thewordsinidiomsareclassical,elegant,coherentandwithuniquestyleandprivilegedforce,allofwhicharethemustcharacteristicsofatrademark.Idiomsarebriefandconciseandwithplentyofmeanings.Usingidiomsintrademarkscanmakethemfamiliartoconsumers.Forexample,"Yuli"（玉立）,akindofventilator.Obviously,itisquotatedfromtheidiom"Tingtingyuli"(亭亭玉立)whichmakespeopleassociatewomen'sgentleandsoftcharacteristicandmakepeopleassociateitsuniqueimage.Andanotherexample,"Fenghua"(丰华)whichisakindofpen.Itisquotatedfrompartof"Fenghuazhengmao"(丰华正茂),makingpeopleassociateChairmanMao'sbeautifulpoet"恰同学少年，风华正茂，书生意气，挥斥方遒。指点江山，激扬文字，粪土当年万户侯"。Thesekindoftrademarksarebothactiveanddeep,freshandfamiliar,fullofmodernbreathandalsoclassical,sotheycanattracttheconsumers'attention.Themeaningofidiomshasglobalityandcoagulability.Whentheyhaveanychange,peoplewillpayspecialattentiontoit.Partialquotationofidiomscanuselimitedspacetoconveyplentifulinformation.Thiskindofquotationgoesalongwithpeople'sacknowledgepsychology.Thusthepartialquotationsfromidiomsareverycommon.

3.1.2QuotationfromProverbs

Proverbsarealsoakindofcommonphenomenonwhichispopularamongpeople.Peopleareveryfamiliarwiththemthustheyareveryeasytospreadandeasytoremember.Forexample,"Tiantang"(天堂)whichisakindofumbrellainHangzhou.ItmakepeopleassociatethefamousChineseproverb"上有天堂，下有苏杭"whichmeansthatitcangivepeopleagreatenjoymentlikelivingintheparadiseandmakepeopleavoid'thehotsunshineandtheheavyrain.Andatthesametime,ithassuggestedtheoriginalhome---Hangzhou.Thusthistrademarkhassatisfiedthetworequestsofit---persuasiveandinformative.Anotherexample,"Jiatianxia"(甲天下)whichisakindofcigarette.Itmakespeopleassociatethefamousproverb"桂林山水甲天下"whichreflectsthiscigarettecanbethebestamongtheseallcigarettes.Anditcanalsosuggesttheoriginalhome---Giuangxi,andatthesametimeithasalsoarousedpeople'smemoryaboutthemountainsandbeautifulsceneryinGuilin.

3.1.3QuotationfromPoets

Thelanguageinpoetryisbriefandfullofnewmeanings,andwithgoodrhymes.Forexample,"Hongdou"(红豆)whichisakindofclothes.ItmakespeopletoassociateWangwei'spoem"相思""红豆生南国，春来发几枝？劝君多采撷，此物最相思。"thuswhenitispromotedintothemarket,ithasgotagoodfame.Anotherexample,"Xinghuacun"(杏花村)whichisakindwine.ItmakespeopleassociatethefamouspoetDumu'slines"清明时节雨纷纷，路上行人欲断魂；借问酒家何处有？牧童遥指杏花村。"Whenlookingatthiskindoftrademarks,wecanthinkthatthecommodityhasgotplentyofculturalconnotation.

3.2Puns

Punsarecalledas"linguistictalent".Punsmakeuseoftheambiguouslanguagetoconveytwokindsofmeanings---connotationanddenotation.Andwehavephoneticpunsandsemanticpuns.phoneticpunsmeanthatpunsareconstructedbythesameornearsound.Forexample,"Tingmei"(婷美)whichisakindofbra.ItmakespeoplewillingtoassociatethegoodshapeofwomeninChinajustbecauseithasalmostthesamesoundlike"Tingmei"(挺美)。Thusthecreatorhasachievedacharacteristic---aestheticresult.Anotherexample,"Shuxin"(舒欣)whichisakindofskincareproduct.Ithasthesamesoundas舒心whichmeanshappyandwithoutworry.Thethirdexample,"中意"whichisakindrefrigerator.Itmeansthatthecommoditywillsatisfyyourneeds,andatthesametime,itsuggeststhecommodityisthecrystalofChineseandItaliantechnology.

3.3Metonymy

Intrademarks,metonymyisalsocommonlyused.Wecanalwaysseepeopleusetheplacesofinterestsastrademarks.Forexample,西湖（washingagent）、南泥湾（cigarrette）、黄果树（cigarrette）、红塔山（cigarrette）、五指山（cigarrette）、长城（lubricant）.InChina,therearemanyplacesofinterests.Thatcanbringpeopleaetheticspsychology

3.4Geminate(orrepeatedsound)

Thatmeansthatyoucanusetherepeatedsoundtogivepeopleaethecsticappreciation,andcanattractpeople'sattention.Forexample,"娃哈哈"（food）旺旺（food）、"鸭鸭"（downcoat）、"维维"（soyancientyogurt

Chapter4Conclusion

Rhetoricistheancientartofargumentationanddiscourse.Whenwewriteorspeaktoconvinceothersofwhatwebelieve,weare"rhetors."Whenweanalyzethewayrhetoricworks,weare"rhetoricians."TheearliestknownstudiesofrhetoriccomefromtheGoldenAge,whenphilosophersofancientGreecediscussedlogos,ethos,andpathos.WritersintheRomanEmpireadaptedandmodifiedtheGreekideas.Acrossthecenturies,medievalcivilizationsalsoadaptedandmodifiedthetheoriesofrhetoric.Eventoday,manyconsiderthestudyofrhetoricacentralpartofaliberalartseducation.

Trademarksareakindofadvertisement.Itsmainfunctionistobeinformativeandpersuasive.Agoodtrademarkisactuallyaartwork.Andhasplentifulmeaning.Itshouldintroducepeoplewhataretheyandtheiringredients,andshouldalsocanbevividandgivepeopleasenseofbeautyandarousepeople'sassociation.Andthenitattractspeople'sattentiontoitscommodityandhavedesirestobuythem.

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