Abstract: Humor plays an important role in our daily life. It can bring people pleasure and help them to reduce stress. In business, advertisers also prefer to make use of humor to draw viewers’ attention. However, owing to the cultural differences, sometimes people from different cultures can not understand advertisements properly in other counties. This study intends to investigate the effects humor brings to advertisements by the extensive collection of advertisements in China and America. Then, analyzes the differences and similarities of humor between Chinese and American advertisements from a cross-culture perspective and summarizes their own features. At last this paper suggests that Chinese advertisements learn from American advertisements, and use more humor or humor strategies in advertising.

Key words: humor; advertisement; cross-culture

CONTENTS

Abstract

摘要

1. Introduction1

2. Theories of Advertisement and Humor .2

  2.1 Advertising

2.1.1Origin of Advertisement

2.1.2 Theories of Advertisement

  2.2 Humor

2.2.1 Classification of Humor

2.2.2 Characteristics of Humor

3. Advertisement Humor in China and America5

  3.1 Cases of Chinese Commercial Samples

 3.1.1 Nanjiren Thermal Underwear

 3.1.2 Libai Detergent

 3.1.3 Shineway Ham

  3.2 Cases of American Commercial Samples

 3.2.1 Best Buy

 3.3.2 Audi S6

 3.3.3 OREO Biscuit

4. Comparative Analyses of Advertisement humor in Chinese and American advertisements8  

  4.1 Similarities between Chinese and American Advertisements Humor

  4.2 Differences between Chinese and American Advertisements Humor

  4.3. Suggestions on Chinese Advertisements

5. Conclusion

Bibliography.

Acknowledgements