Translation of Humor in the American Sitcom 'Friends' from the Perspective of Relevance Theory

This article aims to explore the translation of humor in the American sitcom 'Friends' from the perspective of relevance theory. 'Friends' is widely popular for its mass art form, and humor is an essential element of the show, as it not only makes people laugh through various humorous means, but also reflects the meaning of life through humorous representation. In recent years, research on humor in 'Friends' has received much attention, but few studies have approached it from the perspective of relevance theory. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to study how to translate humor in 'Friends' from the perspective of relevance theory. Since Sperber and Wilson published 'Relevance: Communication and Cognition', relevance theory has attracted great attention and interest in the field of linguistics, and the first relevance translation theory paper was published by Wilson's student, Gutt, which has achieved fruitful results. The text first introduces the definition, principles, and development of relevance theory, and then introduces the definition, function, and classification of humor, such as universal humor, cultural humor, and linguistic humor. Finally, the paper introduces the application of relevance theory in the translation of humor in 'Friends'. Chapter three briefly introduces 'Friends' and the humor in the show, and then analyzes the translation methods of humor in 'Friends', such as literal translation, annotation, paraphrasing, addition, deletion, and free translation. This study uses a relevant theoretical framework to analyze the translation of humor in 'Friends' and explore the real significance of humor translation.