| Abstract | 第1-12页 |
| Chapter 1 Introduction | 第12-18页 |
| 1．1 Overview | 第12-14页 |
| 1．2 Rationale of the present study | 第14-16页 |
| 1．3 Data collection and research method | 第16页 |
| 1．4 The specific research questions | 第16-17页 |
| 1．5 Outline of the thesis | 第17-18页 |
| Chapter 2 Literature Review | 第18-30页 |
| 2．1 Clarification of some terms | 第18-21页 |
| 2．2 Four perspectives on vague language | 第21-29页 |
| 2．2．1 Philosophical perspective | 第21-23页 |
| 2．2．2 Semantic perspective | 第23-25页 |
| 2．2．3 Psychological perspective | 第25-26页 |
| 2．2．4 Pragmatic perspective | 第26-29页 |
| 2．3 Summary | 第29-30页 |
| Chapter 3 Theoretical Framework of the Study | 第30-43页 |
| 3．1 The working definition of vague language | 第30-31页 |
| 3．2 Linguistic realization of vagueness | 第31-33页 |
| 3．3 A general picture of Adaptation Theory 22 @6 =>-994724672(D3D7E4BE,CFC8E6B1,6500A1,80101) | 第33-38页 |
| 3．3．1 Three properties of language | 第33-36页 |
| 3．3．2 Four angles of investigation | 第36-38页 |
| 3．4 Adaptation Theory applied in the present study | 第38-42页 |
| 3．4．1 Vague language as adaptation to contextual influences | 第38-39页 |
| 3．4．2 Vague language as adaptation to psychological motivations | 第39-42页 |
| 3．5 Summary | 第42-43页 |
| Chapter 4 Vague Language as Adaptation to Contextual Influences | 第43-63页 |
| 4．1 General situations of adopting vague language in communication | 第43-46页 |
| 4．2 Specific contexts of using vague language in business correspondence | 第46-61页 |
| 4．2．1 Employment of vague language in good-news and neutral letters | 第46-53页 |
| 4．2．2 Employment of vague language in bad-news letters | 第53-57页 |
| 4．2．3 Employment of vague language in persuasive letters | 第57-61页 |
| 4．3 Summary | 第61-63页 |
| Chapter 5 Vague Language as Adaptation to Psychological Motivations | 第63-73页 |
| 5．1 Politeness and vague language in business correspondence | 第63-68页 |
| 5．1．1 Linguistic Politeness | 第64-66页 |
| 5．1．2 Politeness and vague language in business correspondence | 第66-68页 |
| 5．2 Vague language as adaptation to other psychological motivations | 第68-71页 |
| 5．3 Summary | 第71-73页 |
| Chapter 6 Conclusion | 第73-81页 |
| 6．1 Major findings | 第73-78页 |
| 6．2 Implications | 第78-79页 |
| 6．3 Limitations | 第79页 |
| 6．4 Suggestions for further study | 第79-81页 |
| Bibliography | 第81-86页 |
