恭维语在中西方文化交际中的差异

1、毕 业 论 文 题 目： From Compliments to Discuss Cultural Distinction in Daily Communication Between the East and the West 系 别：外语系专 业：英语语言文学姓 名：焦刚学 号：指导教师：李冰河南城建学院2009年6月1日 FROM COMPLIMENTS TO DISCUSS CULTURAL DISTINCTION IN DAILY COMMUNICATION BETWEEN THE EAST AND THE WESTByJiao GangA Thesis Submitted in P

2、artial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Bachelor of Arts In EnglishUnder the Supervision of Professor Li BingHenan University of Urban ConstructionJune 2009摘要恭维语是一种普遍的社会现象, 恰到好处的使用它能拉近交际双方的距离，避免语用失误。在跨文化交际中 ,它们起着问候、鼓励、致谢、开启话题及缓解矛盾等作用，同时由于中西方在社会结构，以及文化背景方面的不同，导致了恭维语在实施过程中的文化差异，了解其中的文

3、化差异不仅有助于人们在跨文化交际中恰当的使用恭维语，而且还可以避免文化冲突，同时比较中西方恭维语在语言形式、应答、恭维目标几个方面的差异,指出跨文化交流中恭维和接受恭维造成误解的原因,对于跨文化交际具有重要意义。在跨文化交流中,中国人一向内敛,奉行“慎言”“寡言”原则,在言语上自制而谨慎,对他人的语言又有高度的敏感性,相形之下,美国人则比较外向,惯于表达自己,也愿用语言表达内心世界。他们更相信语言的创造力,强调个人的外向延伸,要解决恭维语交流中出现误解这一问题,只有相互了解彼此之间的文化和文化背景。语言与文化是不可分的,只有努掌握彼此之间的语言以及文化背景才能使我们在跨文化交流中尽量少出错误,

4、这不仅对恭维语,对其它言语行为也是同样重要的。关键词: 恭维语；差异；应答；误解；跨文化交际。AbstractCompliments are a universal social phenomenon. If we use it exactly, we can shorten the distance of our communicator and avoid pragmatic failure. In the process of cross-cultural communication, they play a role of greeting, expressing one's

5、thanks congratulating and encouraging others, opening a conversation and loosing conflicts etc. At the same time, owing to the different social systems and cultural backgrounds between the east and the west, such complications result in a cultural difference in the course of using compliments .To un

6、derstand the difference can not only help one use compliments correctly ,but also can avoid cultural conflicts in the intercultural communication. Probing the differences between Chinese and Western compliments in a cross-cultural perspective and analyzing the course of misunderstanding are the key

7、to a successful cross- cultural communication. In cross-cultural communication, the Chinese have always been reserved, sticking to the principle of prudence and reticence, obeying the principle of self-control and carefulness when communicating, having a high degree of sensitivity toward others lang

8、uages. By contrast, the Americans are outgoing. They are prone to express themselves and willing to use language to express their inner world. They also believe the creativity of language, emphasizing the outward extension of the individual. So only if we understand each nations cultural backgrounds

9、 can we have a good cross-cultural communication. Language and culture are inseparable, only do we strive to master the language as well as their cultural backgrounds can minimize the cross-cultural communication errors. This does not only aim at the compliment language, but also is equally importan

10、t to speech act.Key words: compliment; difference; response; misunderstanding; cross- cultural communication.Contents1.Introduction12.The Main Existing Reasons for Cultural Differences in Chinese and Western Compliments23.Difference in Using Language34.Difference in Response Formulas.45.Difference i

11、n Target of Compliment65.1 Appearance65.2 The Difference of Complimenting Other's Ability and Achievement76.Dispel Misunderstanding in Cross-cultural Communication.87.Conclusion11Works Cited121. IntroductionLanguage is the carrier of social culture, it recording and transferring the culture. Wit

12、h no exception, compliment as a language phenomenon and the most common speech are very common in daily life. When people use the language of compliment, there would be under certain social environment, they should pay attention to those differences, such as different nationalities, cultures, histor

13、ical periods, economic base, peoples values, living habits and different aesthetic manners. In the process of implementation, compliments can reflect each others social status. Generally speaking, such differences are a reflection of cultural diversities. In the process of cross-cultural communicati

14、on between eastern and western countries, compliment is one of the most common used languages. It often plays a role of greeting, gratitude, opening the topic, as well as the role of loosing the contradictions. But each nation has its own language and culture which are different from the other natio

15、ns. These languages and cultures have their own unique form and content which have a distinctive national characteristic. As different nations, there are huge differences in the use of compliment and response, for example: When one was invited to dinner at a friends house, the Americans always boast

16、, “your wife is very beautiful”, while in China people always said, “Your child is clever”. With regard to compliment and its response, the Chinese and westerners are different. Westerners tend to bravely say “Thank you”, whereas the Chinese are not as straightforward as they are, they often say “不行

17、, 不行” , “哪里，哪里” or “差远了” and so on to express his humble attitude .Therefore, in the process of verbal communication, the Chinese and westerners often make some jokes when they use the language of compliment, which sometimes even cause unpleasant results. The paper aims at pointing out that it is no

18、t enough to only master the language itself. The key in cross-cultural communication is to study the culture which hides behind language such as values, customs and taboos by making use of the differences among the form of language, response and compliment.2. The Main Existing Reasons for Cultural D

19、ifferences in Chinese and Western ComplimentsChinese and Western cultures are totally two different types of culture. Because of different social structures and cultural backgrounds, each nation formed its own values, ways of thinking and cultural statute. As we know, China is a country with five-th

20、ousand-years history and culture. Meanwhile China is also a traditional agricultural country, whose culture is based on morals of farming civilization. The Chinese often regard the nature as a whole harmony and claim the integration between human beings and the whole universe, which forms the ideolo

21、gy of “Nature and Humanity" and the values based on groups. While due to the impact of traditional education of ancient China, China is a hierarchy society and attach great importance to the doctrine of “noble if the upper, humble if the down” and “lower oneself to show respect to others”. On t

22、he other hand western countries didnt have such a long history, especially the United States which is relatively a short history country with multi-ethnic and multi-cultural capitalist rule. The early immigrants came to the North American continent to find a new life in order to keep away from the s

23、hackles of feudal tradition and their oppression. Therefore, such sentences “that all men are equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of Happiness” were written in Declaration of Independence. The principle tha

24、t “All men are born to equal” has become every Americans pursuit, and they are deeply rooted in their hearts. So from this point of view, this principle is based on objects and extravagant local business as well as is one typical western culture. The western culture emphasizes on the universe philos

25、ophy called “Separation of the Universe from Man” and their value is mainly based on the individual. So the westerners take little about the concept of hierarchy and the thought of respecting the noble. When communicating with people, they often adopt the “strategy of seeking the same” in order to m

26、aintain equality with each other.3. Difference in Using LanguageOne evidential feature for our Chinese using the compliment is to express respect to the people who is worthy. When asked about the names of others, the Chinese always say, “你贵姓?” or “ 你尊姓大名?”. When someone built a new house, people alw

27、ays say, “恭喜你大厦落成”. When a family had a baby, people always say, “恭喜你喜得贵子”. The above utterances can be heard at any time in our daily life. While the westerners have a different state. They think that such language is entirely superfluous. When asked about ones name, they simply use this question,

28、“Can I have your name?” or “Whats your name?” After the other side giving a short answer, the questioners always reply “You have a lovely name” and they seldom use respect language at the beginning. In many occasions the Chinese always use compliment to heighten the opposite people and detract himse

29、lf, however westerners use compliment to advocate equality. They think that it is inappropriate to use immoderate courtesy and compliment, thus they often adopt a rather simple adjectives to praise people, such as “good, great, nice”. In order to achieve the effect of humor and exaggeration, sometim

30、es they even add an adjective before derogatory term, such as “terrific, awfully”, “You are awfully nice.” When using compliment, a significant difference here is the different position of personal pronouns. The Chinese people always like to put the second person “you” on the first place of the sent

31、ence when they compliment on somebody, such as “Your dress is so saucy”, “Your design is so fashionable”. While the westerners use the first person, putting “I” on the first place of sentence. Please look at the following examples:. I think your coat suits you. 你的外套蛮合身。. I like your hairstyle. 你的发型不

32、错。. I am so proud of you. 你是我的骄傲。Westerners tend to express personal feelings. They have their own opinions toward things and all these opinions are not achieved overnight. They think that the best compliment is to faithfully reveal their own point of view and also like “self assertiveness”, which i

33、s different from we Chinese who tend to hold the group consciousness. The Chinese are rarely confront with people. They implied something as much as possible and they are good at seeing how circumstance changes when communicating. They also have a high degree of sensitivity and acceptance toward to

34、ones language, thus forming a self-made and cautious character.4. Difference in Response FormulasBecause the Chinese and the Westerners have different cultural backgrounds, there are huge differences in observing the world as well as the thinking patterns of treating things and corresponding mode of

35、 behavior patterns. These differences are the culture differences, which are vital barriers in the cross-cultural communication. To respond to others compliment, the westerners are always pleased to accept and say “Thank you” to express his humility.For example. A: What a lovely room you have.B: Tha

36、nk you! Im really satisfied with it myself.你的房子真不错.谢谢，我自己还确实满意.Here there are several American-style compliments dialogs:One is neither clearly echo, nor directly negative to the other side:.A: Youre wearing a lovely skirt.B: Well I happened to see it when I was shopping.你穿的裙子真漂亮。我昨天去购物时正好碰上便买下来了.An

37、other is to accept the other sides compliment partly .A: Your French is very good.B: Well my listening is not bad, but I still have problem with speaking.你的法语不错.我的听力还可以，但表达还是个问题.A: Youre very smart today! B: Thank you! So are you.你今天好漂亮.谢谢，你也一样.The above examples fully explain that when the westerne

38、rs response compliment they both express their true attitudes and maintain their own self-esteem to give the other a more specific answer. Generally speaking, when the Chinese respond the compliment, they apparently deny or not completely accept it. The following are some compliments and compliment

39、response we often hear. Here there are several Chinese-style compliments dialogs:.M: 几年不见你还是那么年轻。 I have not seen you for years, you still look so young.W: 什么呀，别拿我开玩笑。 No，dont joke on me.A: 小明真聪明Xiao Ming is very clever.B: 您过奖了You are just praising me.A: 你妻子今天真漂亮。Your wife looks pretty today.B: 她呀，就

40、知道臭美。Oh，she just likes to show off.When the Chinese accept compliment they are very happy in heart, but they take a negative attitude in their words. The key question is the modesty, which Chinese always regarded as a virtue. So when one person is complimented or boasted, they will mannerly say“不敢当,

41、我不行”. But this response pattern is not consistent with the habits of westerners. Taking the Americans for example, the Americans regard excessively modesty as self-display and a behavior to show their incompetence when talking with people. Their cultural backgrounds are: Praisers always wish that th

42、e opposite could affirm their own praise of give a positive evaluation response, such saying “Thank you” to encourage praisers. It is just about the Americans natural attitude and the Chineses excessively modesty that reflect the two nations' cultural differences, and these should be particularl

43、y important in the cultural communications.5. Difference in Target of ComplimentWe will analyze the existed diversities in targets between the Chinese and the westerners from the following two aspects.5.1 Appearance (fashion and sensitive topic)Appearance is one of the most important compliment targ

44、ets in East-Western compliments. Womens appearance (color, shape, clothing, dress, demeanor, etc.) often be complimented, especially by men, for example:.You look so pretty when you smile, you should do it more often.你笑起来真美，你该常常这样Women also can be complimented, in The United States a student can com

45、pliment hisher teacher like this.You look very elegant today.您今天真的美极了。When American women meet such a compliment, she will not feel shy. However, on the contrary, they think it is a kind of honor. While in China, the appearances of women are often the targets of compliment. But there is a limit in c

46、omplimenting the appearance of women, especially between females. If a boy compliments a girl's appearance whom he doesnt know, his behavior may even be regarded as “vulgar” .If an American boy pays tribute to his known Chinese girl and says, “You are a sexy girl.” It is very likely that this go

47、od-hearted boy will suffer a sharp curse. The Chinese culture this kind of brazen compliment will be regard as a frivolous behavior or even vulgar.5.2 The Difference of Complimenting Other's Ability and Achievement There are two major differences in capabilities and achievements of the complimen

48、t. First of all, the Americans focuses on the results, such speeches can be seen everywhere.For example,.You have done a good job. 你工作得不错。. Well done!干得好！. I am satisfied with what you have done.你所做的我很满意。 Meanwhile the Chinese emphasize on the personal qualities: such as: “smart, wisdom and so on”.

49、We often hear such a compliment:16. what a smart baby宝宝真聪明17 .Your mother is so capable你妈妈好能干18 .This is my colleague; he will study in the United Stated. 这是我同事，他就要去美国留学呢According to the compliment on achievements and ability, the Americans pay much attention to reality, emphasizing the results. Whi

50、le Chinese like to use abstract language and beat about the bush with cautions. In addition, Wolfson and Maness studies have shown that “in western society people coming from the higher social status are more likely to use compliments. This study also prove that compliment involved in ability and ac

51、hievement is a sternly judge, which must be made by a capable person. Under unequal social status, especially between the working relationships, the competence to make a judge is strongly linked with higher technology and abundant knowledge. Besides, it is an overt rule to express your judgment indi

52、rectly to your superiors” (王德杏，1998：36). Another rule is that it is wise to wish the uppers to make a judgment to their subordinates working behaviors. While in China, it is generally the lower social status or the inferior give a complement to the superiors as a means of acquiring favor from the su

53、pervisors. We often hear such compliments19.刘经理真行，既有管理能力，又有组织能力.It is because of such compliments that the higher manager can not grip the real situation, and may also cause errors in the actual work of leadership.6. Dispel Misunderstanding in Cross-cultural Communication.Wolfson pointed out, “in pa

54、rticular, what counts as a compliment may differ very much from one society to another.” (Wolfson N, 1981: No 2) in the eyes of the Americans, some of their compliments seem to phrase someone, while for the Chinese it may be regarded as humiliation. On the contrary，to we Chinese some apparent compli

55、ments may be nonsense or meant to offend toward Americans. The following example is a compliment for the Chinese people; but is offendence for Americans.20. A: Your necklace is pure gold, isnt it?B: Yes, it is. My husband bought it for me.A: You are lucky to have a husband who earns so much. His mon

56、ey makes you more attractive.A: 你的项链是纯金的吧！B: 是的，我老公卖给我的。A: 你真幸运，有一个能挣这么多钱的老公，把你包装得越来越迷人了。Most Americans can not accept the above views. They will think the charming of B is made up by money, and talking about peoples income has become a violation of privacy to others. So if you compliment an America

57、n woman like this, she is bound to angry. Similarly, the westerners regard some paroles as a compliment, while the Chinese treat it to be incredible, even create a feeling of hatred. For example, Sino-foreign joint ventures of U.S. Experts commented that the Chinese workers are very competent, sayin

58、g “You are clever as well as owls”. But the translator translated it literally “你们像猫头鹰一样聪明”. This translation made the Chinese workers unhappy. In fact, at this time it was better for the interpreter to translate it as “你们非常聪明”. Because in China owl is regarded as ominous sign that one may run into bad luck, while the Americans take the owl as a symbol of wisdom. So there is a saying in English “as well as an owl” (the same as the owl is so smart)”.（沙保华，1990：64）When analyzing the reasons of cross-cultural c