A DISCOURSE ANALYSIS OF ENGLISH AND VIETNAMESE ADVERTISEMENTS FOR FURNITURE PRODUCTS

Abstract

This study aimed at conducting a discourse analysis of English and Vietnamse advertisements for furniture products. Therefore, it analyzed, compared and contrasted the differences and similarities in furniture products advertisements in English and Vietnamese in terms of layout, grammatical features, lexical features, cohesive and stylistic devices. The data for analysis in this thesis were 200 samples of advertisement for furniture products advertisements in the Unites State, the UK and in Vietnam. The findings showed that both English advertisements for furniture products and Vietnamese advertisements for furniture products (VFPAs) displayed a general layout with three parts: Headline, Body Copy and Additional Mentions. Lexical features showed expressions denoting qualities and benefits of products, characteristics of products and relationship between manufacturers and customers by using adjectives, adverbs, pronouns and that nouns were prominent lexical features which were thoroughly analyzed and compared. Besides, reference, conjuction in both English and Vietnamese furniture advertisements (VFPAs) were also exploited as cohesive devices. Finally, stylistic analysis reveals simile, metaphor, personification, rhetorical questions and hyperbole in EFPAs and simile, personification and hyperbole in VFPAs were the prominent devices used in both EFPAs and VFPAs. Based on the findings, the thesis gave out some implications and suggestions for teaching and learning in both languages. It is hoped that the result of the thesis is a useful reference to those who are interested in furniture advertisements, especially advertisements for furniture products or manufacturers in promoting their trade name as well as their products.