英汉恭维语对比研究分析

ChapterOneIntroductionInmankindverbalcommunication,complimentisapositiveverbalcommunicationbehaviorwithhighapplicationfrequency.Complimentisapoliteverbalbehavior,itisthespeaker’spraiseofthelisteners’orrelatedpersons’goodqualitiesorvirtues.Compliment,asasocialphenomenoncanbeobservedinalllanguagesandcultures,anditbelongstothescopeofpoliteness,whichhaslongbeenmadeanimportantobjectofstudyinlinguistics.Inrecentyears,alongwiththerapidmovementtowardspragmatics,complimenthasbecomethecentraltheme.Asauniversalphenomenoninsociety,itsmainfunctionsaremaintainingsocialorder,maintainingfriendlyinterpersonalrelations;reducingconflictsandmisunderstandingsbymeansofpolitespeechactssoastoattaintheaimofcommunication.Politenessasasocialphenomenoncanbeobservedinalllanguagesandcultures.Itisanintegralpartofourdailylifeandacrucialcomponentofhumancommunication.Theroleplayedbypolitenessinsocialinteractioncannotbeunderestimated.Asmembersofsocialcommunities,weaddressandgreeteachother,payinvitationsandoffers,expressthanksandapologies,andsoon.AsEnglish-speakingcountriesandChinahavedifferentcultures,insomeextent,theculturaldifferenceswouldinfluencetheusageofpolitelanguageincross-culturalcommunication.Itisveryimportantforustoanalyzethedifferencesinusingpolitelanguage,andmakesomestrategiestoachievethegoalofmakingagoodcommunicationwithforeigners.However,thedifferenceofcomplimentsindifferentlanguagesmaycausemisunderstandingsorevenculturalconflictsininterculturalcommunication.Therefore,acontrastivestudyonthedifferencesofcomplimentsindifferentlanguagesisabsolutelyneeded.Thereasonwhycomplimentisselectedasresearchtopicliesinthatitiswidelyappliedandfrequentlyusedinhumanverbalcommunication.BothEnglishandChinesehaverichandcolorfulcompliment,whichhasthefunctionofgreeting,encouraging,showingthanksanddevelopingtopicsandrelievingconflicts.Manystudieshavefoundthatcomplimentinvolvesinallwalksofsocialculture.Tomakecomparisonincomplimentfrommultiplelayerscanrevealdifferentculturalvalues,thushavebettermasteringofcross-culturalcommunicationtechniques.Thesignificanceoftheresearchis,asEnglishandChinesecomplimentshavecertaindifferencesduetoculturaldifferences,thusbringingsomedifficultiesandchallengesincross-culturalcommunication.Howtocorrectlyandproperlyusecomplimentsisvitaltothesmoothcross-culturalcommunication.Therefore,thispaperisaboutacomparativestudyonEnglishandChinesecompliments,aimingatseekingforrelatedsuggestionstotrytoeliminatethedifferencesofcomplimentbetweenEnglishandChinese,thusfosteringthesmoothandsuccessfulcross-culturalcommunicationbetweenChinaandthewest.ChapterTwoLiteratureReview2.1ConceptofComplimentAccordingtoHolmes,complimentreferstothespeakers’verbalbehaviorsofhavingpositiveevaluationonthelisteners’meritsoradvantagesclearlyorimplicitly.Theinformationfunctionofcomplimentliesinitsevaluationmeaning,whileitsemotionalfunctionliesinexpressingadmirationandjealousandadmiration,creatingakindofharmoniouscommunicativeatmosphere.Hence,complimentiscalledassociallubrication.Duetodifferentculturalbackgrounds,contentsandoccasion,formsandresponseofcomplimentbetweenEnglishandChinesearedifferentaccordingly.Compliment,asanusualverbalbehavior,clearlyoreuphemisticallyexpressthespeakerorthelistener’spraiseandappreciationaboutouterappearanceandquality,behaviorsandabilities,peopleorthingsrelatedtothespeakerandlistener.Throughusingcompliment,thecomplimentmakerandreceiverscouldensureandmaintainthesmoothcommunication,reduceunnecessarycontradictionsandmisunderstandings,thusshorteningthedistanceandenhancingfriendship,guaranteeingthesmoothandorderlydailylife,studyandwork.2.2StudiesonEnglishandChineseComplimentAccordingtoJ.Holmes(1988),complimentsareeffectiveingettingpeopleintoconversation,reducingthetenseofrelationshipandshorteningthedistance.Whatismore,itisencouraging,givingthehearerahappymood.Toachievethispurpose,complimentsareoftenused.Complimentspeechacthasbeenbelievedto“greasethesocialwheels”andthustoserveas“sociallubricants”.Itissaidtoaimprimarilyatmaintaining,enhancing,orsupportingthehearer’sface.Acomplimentisaspeechactwhichexplicitlyorimplicitlyattributescredittosomeoneotherthanthespeaker,usuallythepersonaddressed,forsome‘good’(possession,characteristic,skill,etc.)whichispositivelyvaluedbythespeakerandthehearer.AccordingtoN.Wolfson(1983),acomplimentingeventhasbeensaidtoserveas“asociallubricant”,whichisprimarilyaimedatmaintaining,enhancing,orsupportingtheaddressee’sface.Throughtheaboveauthorizedresearchesoncomplimentexplanation,theauthorgetstoknowthatcomplimentisakindofpolitenesswhichcouldhavepositiveeffectsonothers;complimentreferstoakindofpraiseandappreciationinregardstoresponsethehelpprovidedbyothers,thevirtuesormeritsoftheopposite.Anyway,complimentbelongstoacommonsocialphenomenoninpeople’sdailylife.DomesticscholarJiaYuxin(1997)hasdoneaspecificinvestigationonthesituationofcomplimentusedbyChinesefromdifferentclassesofthesociety,andfoundthatinbothsyntaxstructureandsemantic,theChinesecomplimentarehighlyformalizedwithdisciplines.ComparedtothesyntaxstructureofcomplimentinEnglish,therearesimilaritiesbetweenEnglishandChinesecompliment.Whiletheabovestudiesaremostlyaboutoralcompliment.Forwrittencompliment,therearefewerstudiesonit.Tosummarize,thedifferencesofcomplimentbetweenEnglishandChinesereflecttheculturaldifferencesbetweenEnglishandChinese,whichwouldbebeneficialforpeopletoimprovecross-culturalcommunicationcompetenceeffectively,thususingcomplimentproperlyincross-culturalcommunicativeoccasionsandprovidingreferencesforforeignlanguageteaching.Therefore,thispaperwillcutswiththecontents,forms,occasionsandresponseofcomplimentinEnglishandChinese,discussdifferencesandsimilaritiesbetweenthem,thussummarizingmajordifferencestoenlightenthestudyofEnglishlanguage.ChapterThreeComparisonofComplimentbetweenEnglishandChineseItistruethatbothEnglishandChinesehavemanycompliments,whiletheyhavehugedifferencesinmanyaspects.Below,theauthorwilldiscussspecificdifferencesofcomplimentsbetweenEnglishandChinese.Eventhoughcomplimentplaysansignificantroleincommunication,ifpeoplemakemistakesinselectingcomplimentobjects,itmayleadtotheresultswhicharetotallyagainstexpectation.Therefore,toselectpropercomplimentobjectsisthepremiseandbaseofusingcomplimentproperly.3.1InComplimentContentsandObjectsDuetodifferentsocialvalues,focuseswhicharouseattentionsfromsocialcommentsaredifferentaccordingly,thisdecidesthedifferencesofcomplimentbetweenChineseandthewestincontentsandobjects.3.1.1Objects:EqualityandHierarchyofClassBecauseofdifferentcultures,EnglishandChinesecomplimentshavedifferenceinobjects.InEnglishculture,almosteveryonecouldbetheobjectofcompliment.Everyonecouldbecomplimentmakerandreceiverwithoutdifferencesinageandgenderandgeneration,positionandrelationshipordistance.Forinstance,onafamilyparty,inEnglishculture,amancansaytothewifeofhisfriendwith“Youaresobeautifultoday”.Inthemeantime,thehusbandcouldalsopraiseabouthiswife’scookingbysaying“Youhavecookedaprettygoodmeal”.InEnglishculture,therearemanycomplimentmadebypeoplefromhigherpositionstopeoplefromlowerpositions.Forinstance,inacompany,themanagercouldgivepropercomplimentandpraisetothestaffwhohasaccomplishedthejobortaskwithexcellencebysaying“Welldone”.However,inChineseculture,complimentstresseshierarchyofclass.ComplimentobjectsinChineseculturecouldbedividedintothefollowingtypes:firstofall,complimentobjectsaremostlysameingender,thatis,manmakecomplimenttoman,andwomanmakecomplimenttowoman.Besidessomespecialoccasionsorsituations,menseldommakecomplimenttowomen.MeninChinadonotpraisewomeninouterappearance,sodowomen.BecauseinChina,ifamanorawomanmakecomplimentofouterappearancetoothers,heorshewouldbethoughtascrookedorsuperficial.What’smore,complimentbetweenmanandwomanmaycauseupsetandanxietyinthecomplimentreceiver.ThismaybeconnectedwiththelessonofthedifferencesbetweenmanandwomanintraditionalChineseculture.Secondly,thecomplimentobjectsinChinesecultureareseldompeoplewhohaveintimacywiththecomplimentmaker.Oneimportantfunctionofcomplimentliesinmaintaininginterpersonalrelationship.InChineseculture,forpeoplewithcloseintimacy,theydonotneedcomplimentsforhospitality,becausecomplimentbetweenclosefriendsorpeoplewillbetakenas“useless”and“unnecessary”.Complimentwithclosefriendsorpeoplemaycauseupsetineachotherorthinkitasrequestproposal.Forinstance,ifakidsuddenlysaidtohisfather“爸爸你今天真帅”,thefatherwouldsay“你有什么事吗？”.Becauseinsuchasituation,complimentfromakidistakenasabehaviorwithpurpose.Besides,inChina,parentsseldompraiseandmakecomplimenttotheirownkids.Besidesparentsandkids,otherfamilymembersandrelativesaswellasclosefriendsseldomusecompliment.Atlast,complimentobjectsandthecomplimentreceiverareintheup-downrelationship.Inotherwords,inChineseculture,itisusualthatthelowerclassmakecomplimenttotheupperclass.Complimentobjectsaremostlyleadersinthecomplimentmaker’swork,teachersofthecomplimentmakerorlifeguideofthecomplimentmaker.InChineseculture,peoplearenotequalinessence,therearehierarchyofclassinpeople.Thepeoplewithlowersocialpositionsshouldexpressenoughrespectandadmirationtothepeoplewithhighersocialposition,andtrytohigherthepositionofthecomplimentreceivers,whohavehigherpositions.Inthemeantime,thecomplimentmakerwhoisinlowersocialposition,shouldtrytomakeself-dispraisetoshowhisorherextremerespectandadmirationtothecomplimentobjectswithhighersocialposition.Furthermore,inEnglishculture,familymemberscouldbetheobjectsofcompliment.Westernersneverbemeantomakecomplimenttotheirfriendsorfamilymembers.Forinstance,thewifemaypraiseherhusbandforhardworkingandgreatachievementorbeingpromoted,andsoon.Parentswillpraisetheirsonsordaughterstobesointelligentandexcellent,andsoon.AllofthesearecommoninEnglishculture.WhileinChina,tomakecomplimentaboutfamilymemberswouldbetakenasimpoliteorsuperficialbehaviors.InChina,ifsomeonepraisesormakecomplimenttohisownparentsandkids,heorshewouldbedespised.Therefore,objectsofcomplimentinChineseculturearefocusedonothersorfamilymembersofthem.ThisreflectsthattheChinesefocusesonmodesty.Chinahasthousandyearsofhistory,andtheylovetobeaddictedtothepast,thisdecidestheoldinbeingthemajorobjectofcompliment.InChina,peoplelovetouse“old”(老)topraiseormakecomplimenttopeople.“old”inChineseculturemeansrichexperiencesandlonglife.Forinstance,DengXiaopingishonoredas“邓爷爷”.Forthecomplimentaddressingoftheold,theyarecalledas“老大爷”,老大妈”.Whileinthewest,peopledodgetheaddressingof“old”whichistakenasakindofcomplimentinChineseculture.Besides,thewesternerslovetomakecomplimentabouttheirownfamilymembers,includingtheirspouseandparentsandkids.Inthewest,peoplehavethetabooin“oldness”,becausetheythink“old”meansuselessandweaknessinpowerandhealth.3.1.2Contents:ExternalandInternalBesidesthedifferencesincomplimentobjects,EnglishandChinesecomplimentsalsohavedifferencesincontents.InEnglishculture,contentsofcomplimentsaremostlycloselyconnectedwiththeouterthingsofindividuals,suchasappearanceandclothesanddress-upaswellasindividualobjects.Forinstance,“Yourhairstylereallysuityou.”Whilemakingcomplimentsaboutouterappearance,Englishpeopleinclinetomakecomplimenttowomen.Oncetherearesomethingchangesornewinwomen’shairstyleorclothes,peoplewillmakecomplimentintimeregardlessoftheirageandjoboreducationbackground.Inthewest,manorevenstrangewomancanpraisetheouterappearance,figureandclothesofawoman.Forinstance,“youlooksosexy”isacommoncomplimentinEnglishculture.Parentscouldevenuse“sexy”topraisetheirdaughter.Asforthecomplimentforouterappearance,westernersfocusonthedeliberatedecorationeffects.Forinstance,theEnglishspeakingpeoplelikeAmericansmakecomplimentabouthairstyle,andtheyseldomadmirethegoodqualityofhair,theymaysay“Youlooknicetoday”veryoften,andforthecomplimentof“Youlookbeautiful”.Obviously,inEnglish,complimentforouterappearancestressessuitability.InEnglish,“Youlooknicetoday”suitseveryoneregardlessofwhetherheorsheisreallybeautifulornot.ComplimentcontentsinEnglishcultureusuallydonotinvolvetoaperson’squalityandabilityandachievements.BecauseinEnglishculture,tomakecomplimentaboutsomeone’sabilityandachievementsneedsgoodunderstandingbetweenthecomplimentmakerandreceiver.Besides,thesecontentsofapersoncannotbejudgednormakecomplimentatrandom.SuchdifferencesincomplimentsmaybeconnectedwiththedifferentfunctionofcomplimentinEnglishcultures.InEnglishculture,thebasicfunctionofcomplimentistoshortendistanceandmaintainnormalinterpersonalrelationship.Thus,complimentcontentsinEnglisharemostlyexternalthingsorobjectsofindividuals.InChina,theouterappearanceofwomenarealsocontentsofcompliment,whileitisnotinthedominantplaceofcomplimentcontents.What’smore,theChinesefocusesonnaturaltemperamentoftheouterappearance.Besides,complimentforouterappearancearemostlyhappenedbetweenwomen.WhileinChineseculture,besidesthebasicfunctionofmaintainingpersonalrelationship,complimenthasanimportantfunction,thatistogaingoodimpressionsandcreditfromthecomplimentobjects,thusexpectingtogainsomething,somebenefitsorinterests.Therefore,inChineseculture,contentsformakingcomplimentsareusuallycloselycorrelatedtotheinternalabilitiesofthecomplimentobjects,suchascapabilitiesandcultivation,moralityandsenseofachievements,andsoon.Forinstance,amancouldmakecomplimenttoanotherbysaying“哥，我就知道你是个好人，你不会不管我的”.Inthiscompliment,“好人”coversthequalityofthecomplimentobjectinbeingkindnessandmercyandgood,theintentionofthecomplimentmakerliesinrequiringthecomplimentobjecttotakecareofhim,whichreferstointerestsorbenefitsexpectedbyhim.InEnglishculture,sometopicsshouldnotbethecontentsofcompliment,suchasageandname,charactersandfamilylife,marriagelifeandsalary.Becausetheseareprivacyforthem.WhileinChineseculture,suchcontentsarealwaysmentionedformakingcompliment.Forinstance,ifsomeonehasaverygoodjob,hemayreceivecomplimentlike“你的工作这么好啊”or“你的收入肯定很高”.Forinstance,forthecontentsaboutcomplimentinouterappearanceandability,inbothEnglishandChinese,thefrequencyisveryhigh,whilethefocusofthesecomplimentsaredifferent.InEnglishspeakingcountries,especiallyinAmerica,positivecommentsonindividualouterappearanceareindominance,individualcostumeandhairstylearefocusofcompliment.Besides,thereceiversofthesecomplimentaremostlywomen,thisiscloselyconnectedwiththefashionofAmericansocietyinpayingattentiontotheouterappearanceofwomen.3.2InLanguageExpression3.2.1InSyntax:FormalizationandEmotionalTheChinesecomplimentdoesnotfocusontheformbutemotionexpression.Therefore,inlanguageexpressionform,Chinesecomplimenthasrelativelyfreeandcasualformsinsyntaxandvocabulary.InChinesecomplimentexpression,thereisauniquefeaturewithChineseculture,thatistoquotesomeidiomsandproverbsorsayingswhicharewell-knowntopeople,forinstance,“老骥伏枥，志在千里”,“赛西施”,“千里马”,andsoon.Withthequotationofthesefamoussayingsandidioms,whilemakingcompliment,itmakesChinesepeopletounderstandthecommendatoryofthewordsontheoneside;ontheotherside,italsoachievesthebeautyofChinesecomplimentlanguageinbeingeuphemistic,thusreflectingtheflexibilityanddiversityofChinesecomplimentinforms.However,ifthesewordswhichconveyedbeautifulmotivationandwishesaredirectlytranslatedintoEnglishones,itwillcauseunexpectedmisunderstandinginEnglishpeoplewhohavenoknowledgeofChineseculturalknowledge.Insyntax,Englishcomplimenthasstrongformatting.AccordingtoWolfson,therearemainlythreeformsinsyntax,theyareNounPhraseplusis/looksplusreallyandadjectives;thesecondsyntaxformatisI+reallylike/love+Nounphrase;thethirdformatisPronoun+is+(really)+a+adjective+nounphrase.ThemajorfunctionofcomplimentinbothEnglishandChineseisformaintainingtheharmoniousrelationshipbetweenpeople.WhileEnglishcomplimentinclinestoexpressequalityandconsistency,andChinesecomplimentinclinestoexpressrespectandcareinothers.Indifferentorsameoccasions,expressionmannersofcomplimentinEnglishandChinesearedifferent.Forinstance,whensomeonecomestotheother’shouseforanvisit,andisabouttoleave,inEnglishculture,theguestswouldmakethankstothetreatmentofthehost,andmakecomplimentaboutthegooddinnermadebyhimorhertoshowpleasureandhappinessinenjoyingthetimewiththem,andsay“Itissonicetobewithyouthisevening”or“Thisdishisdelicious”“Ihadapleasanttime”,andsoon.WhileinChineseculture,inthesameoccasion,theguestswoulduseakindofapologytoexpresstheirthankstothehost,suchas“今晚做了这么多菜，辛苦你了”or“今晚打扰你这么久，真不好意思”,andsoon.3.2.2InVocabulary:AdjectivesandAdvInComplimentsinCrossCulturalPerspective,NessaWolfsonpointedoutthatinform,westerncomplimenthasaverybigoutstandingfeature,thatisthefixedstyle.Fromboththevocabularieswhichconveythemeaningofpraiseinsemanticinthewholesentenceandthewholestructureofthesentence,westerncomplimentisahospitalitywhichhashighsenseofformat.NessaWolfsononcemadeasummaryofthe666empiricalexamplesofwesterncomplimentshehasconnected,andfoundthatnearly80%oftheEnglishcomplimentusuallyuseadjectivestoexpressthepositivecommentsonothers,therestcomplimentaredonethroughverbs.TheusualadjectivesusedinEnglishcomplimentare“like”and“love”.InChinesecompliment,mostofthemcontainadv,andthemostusualadvusedinChinesecomplimentare“真”,“太”,“很”and“特别”,andsoon.InChinesecompliment,usualadjectivesusedbypeopleare“好,行,乖,棒and能干”,andsoon.Besides,inChinesecompliment,therearefewerverbs.ThelargeamountofinterjectionisauniquephenomenainChinesecompliment.Suchas“你看,啧啧!”“啊呀你看人家这孩子!”InEnglish,whilemakingcomplimenttoothers,theystressindividualviewpoints,suchas“Iloveit”or“Ilikeit”.InChina,peopleinclinetostressotherswhilemakingcomplimenttoothers,andthewordslike“你们”and“你的”arefrequentlyused.InbothEnglishandChinesecompliments,adjectiveandadvarewidelyused.WhileinEnglish,thefrequencyofusingadjectiveishigherthanthatofinChinese.InEnglishcompliment,positiveadjectiveslike“very,goodandperfect”arefrequentlyused.InChinese,complimentmakingusesmoreadvtomakethecomplimentstrongintoneanddegree.Forinstance,“我很喜欢这件连衣裙”,here,withtheadv“很”,itdeepensthedegreeofcompliment.“Ilike”and“我喜欢”aresimilarinsemantic,whilefromemotionalcolor,Chinesecompliment“我喜欢”hasmoreemotionalcolorsthanEnglishcompliment“Ilike”.“我喜欢”isusuallyusedtoexpressthepreferencesandwillingnessofthespeaker,andinmostsituations,thisphraseisunderstoodasindirectrequestratherthancompliment.Therefore,inChineseculture,peopleseldomuse“我喜欢”tomakecompliment.3.3InComplimentResponseandAnswerAsChineseandEnglishspeakingpeoplehavedifferentwaysofthinkingandvalueconcepts,itleadstodifferencesincomplimentresponseandanswer.3.3.1InResponse:RefuseandAcceptFortheresponsetocompliment,theChineseandwesternershavedifferentattitudestowardscomplimentmadebyothers.Ingeneral,thewesternersinclinetoadmitcomplimentmadebyothers,andtheyusuallyuse“Thankyou”or“Thanks”asresponse.accordingtoAmericanpsychologistEdward,whohasdoneaninvestigationaboutthecomplimentmadefromothers,65.14%ofthemthinkupsetwhilereceivingcompliment,andtheymayhavesomecomplimentreflections.Otherstudiesalsofoundthatfromtheperspectiveofpolitenessmaxim,todisagreecomplimentmadebyothersisabehavioroffacedamage,thustoshowagreementisthebestchoice.However,theChineseusuallydenythepraiseorcomplimentfromothers.Becausetoadmitthecomplimentmadebyothersisagainstthemodestsocialcriterion.Thusincommunication,forconsideringbothmodestyandadmittanceofcompliment,theChineseusevariousmannersofansweringtocompliment.Beingaffectedbytheculturaltraditionof“modestyisvirtue”,peopleinChinamostlyuseself-dispraisemannerslike“哪里哪里”,“不行”and“惭愧”or“过奖了”tomakeresponsetothecomplimentfromothers.TheresponsemannersofbothChineseandEnglishcomplimentarebasicallydividedintothreetypes,whichareacceptance,agreementandpleasure.Fortheacceptresponse,itcouldbedividedintoappreciationtoken,whichuses“Thanks”or“谢谢”asanswer.Suchanswercouldavoidexpressingattitudestowardscompliment.Ontheoneside,whenthecomplimentcouldonlybetransferredsinglywithoutreturningtothecompliment-maker,peoplealwayssay“Thanks”tocomplimentfromothers;ontheotherside,whenthecommunicationpartieshavedifferentpositions,andtheonewhohashigherpositionsmakecomplimenttotheonewithlowersocialposition,thereceiverusuallyanswerwith“thanks”.Thecomplimentresponsemannerofagreementusesformof“Ilikeit,too”“我也挺喜欢的”asanswers,thusshowingsameattitudeandviewpointtothecompliment-maker.Theresponsemannerofpleasureforcomplimentusuallyuses“Iamgladtohearthat”(我听了很高兴)asanswerstoshowingthehappymoodofthecomplimentreceiver.Thesmileresponseusessmileornoddingtoapproveandagreethecomplimentmadebyothers.TheresponseofcomplimentinEnglishandChinesehasdifferentfocuses.TheEnglishpeoplefocusesoncomplimentacceptance,whiletheChinesepeoplefocusesonrefusal.Thisiscausedbythedifferentculturalbackgroundsandvaluesandcommunicationrules.TheChinesehabituallyresponsetothecomplimentfromotherswith“哪里哪里”,whichconveysameaningignoredbypeople,thatis,thisresponsemadebyChinesepeoplefocusesonthecomplimentreceiverratherthancompletelydenythecomplimentmaker’spercipient.Whilemakingresponsetocompliment,theChinesepeopleusuallyusecorrectiveacceptance.Besides,theselectionofcomplimentresponsemodebetweenChineseandEnglishculturesisaffectedbythedistanceofinterpersonalrelationship,socialpositionandthegapinage,andsoon.Inaword,complimentisanimportantmanneroflanguageuseforcoordinatinginterpersonalrelationship.Complimentisvitaltoestablishandmaintaingoodinterpersonalrelationship,maintainsocialharmonyandfosterthesocialcivilization.Therightuseofcomplimenthelpssmooththecross-culturalcommunication.TolearnandmasterthedifferencesofcomplimentinEnglishandChinesehasimportantsignificancetotheforeignlanguageteachingandcross-culturalcommunication.3.3.2InAnswer:AdmitandModestyInEnglishcultures,thecomplimentreceiversmostlyacceptthecomplimentfromothersbysaying“Thankyou”,andtherearefewersituationsthatEnglishspeakingpeoplewilldenyorrefusecompliment.Becausetodenyorrefusecomplimentfromothersareusuallytakenasimpolite,thusdamagingemotionandhurtingtheharmoniousandfriendlycommunicationatmosphere.With“thankyou”,itexpressestherealattitudeofthecomplimentreceiver,maintainsself-dignityandgivesaclearanswertothecomplimentmaker.Inthepremiseofacceptingothers’compliment,inEnglishculture,peoplemakefurtherresponseandfeedbacktothecomplimentthroughgivingagreementandacceptance,besides,duetopoliteness,theywillalsoanswertothecomplimentmakerwith“yourhandwritingisreallybeautiful!“Yoursarealsobeautiful!”.Inaddition,formakingthecomplimentmakernottofocusattentionsorcomplimentonthecomplimentobjectsexcessively,thecomplimentobjectswillreturnthecomplimenttothecomplimentmakerorothersaroundthem,forinstance:A:YourvoiceisveryattractiveB:Really?A:Youarereallygoodatrepairing!B:Thankyou,butIthinkPeterismuchbetterthanme.Ofcourse,inEnglish,peoplealsodenyorrefusecomplimentfromotherssometimes,andsuchsituationhappenswhenthecomplimentreceiverthinksthecomplimentmakerdoesnotpraisebutsatirizeorlaughathim.InChineseculture,peopleusuallydonotdirectlyacceptcomplimentgivenbyotherseveniftheyareveryhappyandpleasant,nordirectlyreflecttheirhappinessaboutreceivingcomplimentfromothers.Inthecontrast,theChinesepeoplemustcalmdownwithoutexcessiverevealingorrepresentation,otherwise,theywouldbetakenaslow-cultivatedorwithlowmodesty,ingeneral,theChinesepeopleusuallydirectlydenycomplimentfromothers.Forinstance:A:你儿子真听话啊B:这是人多不好意思了，你待会再看看。TheChinesepeopleusuallytrytodecreaseorminimizethecomplimentgivenbyothersproperly,inotherwords,Chinesepeopletrytoreducetheunnece