| Abstract in English | 第3-4页 |
| Abstract in Chinese | 第5-9页 |
| 1. Introduction | 第9-15页 |
| 1.1 The Background of the Study | 第9页 |
| 1.2 The Significance of the Study | 第9-11页 |
| 1.3 Research Questions and Research Methodology | 第11-13页 |
| 1.4 The Structure of the Thesis | 第13-15页 |
| 2. Literature Review | 第15-23页 |
| 2.1 The Definition of Humor | 第15-17页 |
| 2.1.1 The Etymon of Humor | 第15-16页 |
| 2.1.2 The Cognitive Definition of Humor | 第16页 |
| 2.1.3 The Psychological Definition of Humor | 第16页 |
| 2.1.4 The Sociological Definition of Humor | 第16页 |
| 2.1.5 The Lexicographic Definition of Humor | 第16-17页 |
| 2.2 Humor in Sitcoms | 第17-18页 |
| 2.3 Traditional Studies of Humor | 第18-20页 |
| 2.3.1 The Superiority Theory | 第18-19页 |
| 2.3.2 The Relief Theory | 第19页 |
| 2.3.3 The Incongruity Theory | 第19-20页 |
| 2.4 Modern Studies of Humor | 第20-23页 |
| 3. Theoretical Framework | 第23-31页 |
| 3.1 Introduction of Verschueren’s Adaptation Theory | 第23-28页 |
| 3.1.1 Language Choice | 第24页 |
| 3.1.2 Three Properties of Language | 第24-26页 |
| 3.1.3 Four Angles of Investigation | 第26-28页 |
| 3.2 Humor as a Product of Dynamic Adaptation | 第28-31页 |
| 3.2.1 Humor is the Result of Linguistic Choice | 第28-29页 |
| 3.2.2 Humor is the Product of the Adaptation of the Correlated Factors to theCommunicative Context | 第29-31页 |
| 4. Analysis of Verbal Humor in Friends and Ipartment | 第31-63页 |
| 4.1 A Brief Introduction to Friends | 第31页 |
| 4.2 A Brief Introduction to Ipartment | 第31-32页 |
| 4.3 Analysis of Humorous Utterances Resulting from Linguistic Structures | 第32-41页 |
| 4.3.1 Phonological Level | 第32-35页 |
| 4.3.2 Lexical Level | 第35-37页 |
| 4.3.3 Syntactic Level | 第37-40页 |
| 4.3.4 Discourse Level | 第40-41页 |
| 4.4 Analysis of Humorous Utterances Resulting from Pragmatic Strategies | 第41-46页 |
| 4.5 Analysis of Humorous Utterances in Adaptation to Communicative Context | 第46-56页 |
| 4.5.1 Adaptation to the Mental World | 第49-53页 |
| 4.5.2 Adaptation to the Social World | 第53-55页 |
| 4.5.3 Adaptation to the Physical World | 第55-56页 |
| 4.6 Analysis of Humorous Utterances in Chinese and American Sitcoms | 第56-61页 |
| 4.6.1 Similarities of Humor Generation in Chinese and American Sitcoms | 第56页 |
| 4.6.2 Differences of Humor Generation in Chinese and American Sitcoms | 第56-59页 |
| 4.6.3 Reasons for the Differences of the Humor Generation in Chinese andAmerican Sitcoms | 第59-61页 |
| 4.7 Implications | 第61-63页 |
| 5. Conclusion | 第63-65页 |
| 5.1 Main Findings of the Research | 第63-64页 |
| 5.2 Limitations of the Research | 第64页 |
| 5.3 Suggestions for Further Studies | 第64-65页 |
| Acknowledgements | 第65-67页 |
| Bibliography | 第67-72页 |
| Publication | 第72页 |
