英语跨文化交际案例分析
Revision for the final test Encounters at least 5 possible explanations U10 Grades P99 Perhaps the professor feels that students have a right to have their opinion considered in the grading process Maybe the professor asks students to give themselves grades because she wants them to reflect on their own performance She feels students will learn better if they evaluate themselves It is possible that the professor doesnt feel grades are very important and wants to minimize the pressure of grades Perhaps the professor wants to know students opinion of their own work because it will be helpful information for her as she decides their grades Possibly the professor values highly the students ability of self-reflection And she believes this is just the best way for them to reflect Maybe western teachers tend to believe that it is fairer for students if their own voices are included in deciding their final grades Maybe the taxi driver is trying to cheat Lee Perhaps there are extra charges for luggage that Lee doesnt know about It may be that the driver has included a tip for himself perhaps because he knows Lee is a foreigner and thinks she doesnt know that she should tip One possibility is that there are extra charges for tolls 过路费 that Lee doesnt know about It is possible that there is
something wrong with the meter or fares 车费 have recently gone up and
the meter hasnt been adjusted yet Encounter 1
U1 The Taxi P1 6 Maybe the driver has included a tip for himself – an
unreasonably large one 7 Possibly the driver has included a generous –but not entirely unseasonal –tip for himself perhaps because he knows
she is a foreigner and thinks she doesnt know that she should tip or cause in the past other foreigners have given him very stingy tips Ms Kelsen may feel that teachers should not accept gifts especially valuable ones from students In the West it is rare for individual students to give teachers gifts especially expensive ones Maybe Ms Kelsen does not think it right to accept a gift especially a valuable one just for doing her duty as a teacher Perhaps Ms Kelsen is afraid that other people will find out that she accepted the gift and they will think she took a bribe
Encounter 2
U2 The gift P13 Ms Kelsen may feel that she only did her duty so she has done nothing to deserve such a special gift Ms Kelsen may feel uncomfortable because she assumes Frank cannot afford to give expensive gifts Ms Kelsen may feel that accepting the gift would put her under obligation to Frank Most Westerners feel that accepting a valuable gift entails a degree of reciprocity 酬答 Maybe the teacher really isnt
very interested in helping Hal and his friends She was just being polite in offering to help them Perhaps the teacher is willing to help some but
afraid that she will end up doing most of the work in running the club so she is trying to minimize expectations It is likely that the teacher already teaches English all day and doesnt want to do any more Encounter
3
U7 The English club P68 4 Maybe the teacher would really like to help but simply doesnt have enough time for the club time demands 5 The teacher may not be too busy now but she is reluctant to make a major time commitment before she knows how much free time she will have in her new life time demands 6 The teacher may think the club will be better if students run it themselves teacherstudent perspective differences 7 Perhaps the teacher really isnt very interested in helping Hal and his friends She thinks that in helping her they were only doing their duty so she doesnt own them anything public and private official and personal 8 Maybe the teacher is interested in helping but she believes it is good for students to get the habit of creating their own practice opportunities rather than waiting for the teacher to tell them what to do Case study
从中西文化角度分析 1 Telephone courtesy
Kathy and David a couple from the US signed a one-year contract to work in China both were extroverted and soon made some Chinese friends Before long people started calling them at home David was sometimes away on business trips for a few days and if someone looked for him Kathy often would find the conversation awkward Where did he go the caller typically
would ask Can I pass on any message Kathy asked politely trying to avoid the question Is he out of town the caller was usually very persistent Yes can I help you in any way Kathy tried to be polite but she could not help feeling uncomfortable Chinese perspective In China when someone calls a person who is not home where is heshe or where did heshe go are natural questions By asking them the caller may not necessarily be interested in finding out exactly where the person is Usually the questions are asked simply as a way to carry on the phone conversation before hanging up It is typical Chinese telephone courtesy American perspective In America information about ones daily actions should be private and not generally shared with just others Questions about where someone went or if heshe is out of town are private and hence asking them is seen as rude If the caller had to speak with David before a certain date or time that person could say so by stating something like Yes Id like to leave a message and could indicate the date before which heshe needs to talk with David 2
Criticizing a teacher
Shortly after Raymond started teaching English in an English training center in China the director told him in a round-about way that the
students were unhappy about some of his method and had made some suggestions about his teaching Raymond felt very embarrassed not just because the students had some concerns about his teaching style but because they had complained directly to the director Chinese perspective
In china preserving good relationships and harmony between people is generally considered very important so people generally try to avoid telling a person directly that heshe did something wrong When it is a must to tell it is usually done through a third party In this case the students thought they would upset the teacher if talking to him directly and in person To avoid face-to-face embarrassment it is good to keep their relationship by turning to the director their boss as the mediator about the issue American perspective Americans like to maintain a harmonious working environment too However the way they do so is different from that in china In America students would normally expect and be expected to speak directly with the teacher If students go to a teachers supervisor their action would be seen as a state that the teacher is not respected or trusted by the students and that they have to go above his heard to bring down the power of his boss on him In this case actually Raymond must have felt terribly hurt If the student come directly to Raymond he could have
responded directly to their suggestions and thus avoided the embarrassment of being criticized by his superior 3 its a compliment
Lu was invited to a Christmas party organized by graduate students Most of the people there were Americans After a few drinks Lu noticed that people became more relaxed The things they said to each other and their body language soon turned very flirting 风骚的 Men and women would lean
against each other in the couch almost like boyfriends and girlfriends
One male graduate student sat behind Lu She could felt that his hands were playing with her long hairs She turned around and wanted to stop him but before she said anything he said you look very seductive tonight Lu felt terrible do I Im sorry I dont mean to seduce you The student laughed Why are you feeling sorry Youre very attractive Its a compliment Lu was
confused She did not know how to respond Chinese perspective
Flirting is associated with having a low moral standard It is seen as wrong and would usually arouse disgust And flirting with another person would be the basis for a fight between spouses or a boy and girl friend
American perspective
To westerners flirting is not necessarily seen as a serious expression of interest in another person It is usually something done just for fun It makes both persons feel attractive and special Even married people may flirt with someone elses spouse Between stranger the flirting may just
take the form of discrete分散的 looks and smiles perhaps some
light-hearted words Friends might be a bit bolder in their words and might touch each other casually on the arm or hand 4 Identity Girl-ness
As a visiting professor in an American university Chunghwa was invited to give a lecture to a group of American students he talked about university students in China During the question-and –answer period
after the lecture one female student asked a question that surprised Chunghwa when you talked about female students you referred to them as
girls Why Because they are girls thats what they are called Chunghwa tried to answer but he knew he did not really understand the intend to the question I dont quite understand your question Im afraid In the States we call ourselves women if were old enough to go to the university calling us girls is insulting Chinese perspective In china girl means someone who is young and single In a way it makes a female sound more desirable to be called a girl rather than a woman For most people woman means someone who is married and who probably is not young In fact most single Chinese females such as university students would be insulted to be called women American perspective What to call females is a sensitive and sometimes confusing issue in the west In formal public settings it is customary to call any woman who is past puberty [pjubt] 青春期 a woman even though she may not be legally old enough to vote marry
purchase alcoholic beverages drive a car or sign a contract This terminology became widespread during the womens liberation movement in the 1960s The term girl is sometimes interpreted to be demeaning or
disrespectful
