跨文化交际(UNIT 5)

1、Review of Unit 4,1. What is the relationship between language and culture according to the Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis? 2. Translate the following terms: housewarming disinterested Mind ones ps and qs A nine days wonder 眼红 青天,Intercultural CommunicationUnit 5Culture and Verbal Communication,Warm Up,Pleas

2、e read the story on page 156. What may have been the factors contributing to the failure of the presentation? What can we learn from the story? It is often customary for Americans to start their talk with some jokes or humorous anecdotes, but Germans have different ideas and they tend to consider te

3、lling jokes inappropriate in talks on serious matters. And in German culture, executives who occupy important positions are usually senior in age, and they had not expected the American manufacturer to send a young man as their representative to start business with them, a reputable German distribut

4、or. They may have found it difficult to trust such a young person.,Supplement: Verbal Communication,Verbal communication happens when people from different cultural backgrounds communicate with each other by using language. In intercultural communication, we use words to communicate with the outside

5、 world, share the past, exercise some control over the present, form images of the future.,Supplement: Verbal Communication,Verbal Communication Styles (p179-183) : Direct / Indirect Self-enhancement / Self-effacement Elaborate / Exacting / Succinct Personal / Contextual Instrumental / Affective,Sup

6、plement: Verbal Communication,1. Direct and Indirect Verbal Interaction Styles In the direct verbal style, statements clearly reveal the speakers intentions. Eg. U.S. Americans tend to use a straightforward form of request. In the indirect verbal style, on the other hand, verbal statements tend to h

7、ide the speakers actual intentions. Eg. Chinese tend to ask for a favor in a more roundabout and implicit way.,Supplement: Verbal Communication,2. Self-Enhancement and Self-Effacement Verbal Styles The self-enhancement verbal style emphasizes the importance of boasting about ones accomplishments and

8、 abilities. Eg. In the classified ads, American ad might begin with, “A handsome, athletic male with a good sense of humor seeks a fun-loving partner” The self-effacement verbal style, on the other hand, emphasizes the importance of humbling oneself via verbal restraints, hesitations and modest talk

9、. Eg. In the classified ads, Japanese ad might read, “Although I am not very good-looking, Im willing to try my best.”,Supplement: Verbal Communication,2. Self-Enhancement and Self-Effacement Verbal Styles Compare the following ways to serve tea: Japanese: This is not very delicious, but American: T

10、his is the best I can offer.,Supplement: Verbal Communication,3. Elaborate, Exacting and Succinct Styles An elaborate style emphasizes flashy and embellished language. This style of communication can be seen in many Arab, Middle Eastern, and Afro-American cultures. An exacting style, where persons s

11、ay no more or less than is needed, is used by Americans. A succinct style is characterized by the use of concise statements, understatements, and even silence. A succinct style can be found in Japan, China, and some Native American cultures,Supplement: Verbal Communication,3. Elaborate, Exacting and

12、 Succinct Styles Compare the followings: Arab: #% du/Sie; tu/vous).,Supplement: Verbal Communication,5. Instrumental and Affective Style An instrumental verbal style is sender-based and goal-outcome based. The instrumental speaker uses communication to achieve some goal or outcome. The burden of und

13、erstanding often rests with the speaker. An affective communication style is receiver and process oriented. The affective speaker is concerned not so much with the outcome of the communication, but with the process. The responsibility of understanding rests with both the speaker and the listener.,Su

14、pplement: Verbal Communication,In verbal communication, LC interaction emphasizes direct talk, person-oriented focus, self-enhancement mode, and the importance of “talk”. HC interaction, in comparison, stresses indirect talk, status-oriented focus, self-effacement mode, and the importance of nonverb

15、al signals and even silence.,Reading I,Read the article of “Understanding the Culture of Conversation” (p157-160). What are the different cultures of conversation among people from different countries? Conversation is a rich point (a rich point is something in one culture that makes it difficult to

16、be connected with another culture). It isnt any particular word or grammatical construction that produces the rich point; it is something about the way things are going, something about peoples ideas about how to do a conversation. To handle the rich points, old unconscious ways of doing things are

17、dusted off, new ways are built up. To converse in the new ways, you have to experience culture and manufacture some frames. If you dont figure out the frames, you might speak grammatically correct English, but what you communicate will differ from what you intended.,Reading I,Conversation cultures o

18、f different countries: Mexican: The conversation may start with one topic, and if another interesting topic seeps in you ride it around for a while. Sticking to the first topic is less important than having an interesting conversation. American: The conversation usually has a topic, and the speaker

19、wants to take a straight line through it from the beginning to end. The Americans expect an answer to the orienting question, that is to lance their conversation with self-promotion - heres who I am, heres why Im good at it, heres why you should pay attention to me.,Reading I,Conversation cultures o

20、f different countries: Swedish: The Swedish conversational ideal is to respond in a concise manner without elaborating specific details, esp. those for self-promotion. Thus, what causes miscommunication is often the way ideas are put together into an argument, the way some ideas are selected for spe

21、cial emphasis, or the way emotional information about the ideas is presented. Finish Exercises on page 161. What are different conversation cultures between American English speakers and Athabaskans?,Fill-in Task (161),Whats confusing to American English Speakers about Athabaskans? They do not speak

22、 and avoid situations of talking. They 7. keep silent. They only want to talk to 6. close acquaintances. They play down their own abilities. They avoid direct questions. They never 9. start a conversation . They never say anything 1. about themselves. They are 8. slow to take a turn in talking_. The

23、y talk with a flat tone of voice They are 11. too indirect and inexplicit .,Fill-in Task (161),Whats confusing to Athabaskans about American English speakers? They talk 12. too much . They always talk first. They often talk to 10. strangers or people they dont know. They 5. brag about themselves. Th

24、ey 4. ask too many questions _. They always interrupt. They only talk 2. about what they are interested in . They dont give others a chance to talk They are 3. always getting excited when they talk. They are not careful when they talk about things or people.,Fill-in Task (161),Different conversation

25、 cultures between American English speakers and Athabaskans: Who speaks first (who opens the conversation); Who controls the talk; When its time for a new person to take a turn, such as the length of a pause; (who talks next) How long one should talk; How a conversation should close; (who closes the

26、 conversation) Thus, if American English speakers and Athabaskans tend to judge the others way of talk according to their own ideas about what is the appropriate way for talking, they would have mostly negative impressions of each other concerning the way they talk.,Reading II,Apart from differences

27、 in grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation, what other differences can you find between Chinese and English? Read the article of “The Way People Speak”(p165-169). From the example of the conversation between an Italian and an American, we can see the different conversation patterns in these two cult

28、ures. The Americans do not enjoy verbal conflicts over politics or anything else while the Italians welcome them.,Reading II,High involvement conversation patterns and high considerateness patterns (Deborah Tannen) (p165): High involvement patterns: talk more; interrupt more; expect to be interrupte

29、d; talk more loudly at times and talk more quickly. Many enjoy arguments. e.g. Italian, Russian, Greek, Spanish, South American, Arab, and African. High considerateness patterns: speak one at a time; use polite listening sounds; refrain from interrupting and give plenty of positive and respectful re

30、sponses to their conversation partners. e.g. Asian Cultures like Chinese and Japanese, mainstream Americans.,Reading II,There are also significant differences between the various cultures of the same conversation pattern. Even within the United States there are important regional and ethnic differen

31、ces in conversation styles. The important differences in communication create problems of stereotyping and incorrect judgments among members of diverse groups. Cultural beliefs differ as to whether directness or indirectness is considered positive. In the mainstream American culture, the ideal form

32、of communication includes being direct rather than indirect. Latin Americans and many Asians value indirectness.,Reading II,Ping-Pong conversational style and Bowling style In an American “Ping-Pong” conversation, one person has the ball and then hits it to the other side of the table. The other pla

33、yer hits the ball back and the game continues. Each part of the conversation follows this pattern: the greeting and the opening, the discussion of a topic, and the closing and farewell. However, in a Japanese “Bowling” conversation, each participant waits politely for a turn and knows exactly when t

34、he time is right to speak. That is, they know their place in line. In Japanese conversation, long silences are tolerated. For Americans, even two or three seconds of silence can become uncomfortable.,Conclusion,So far, we can see that there are the Cultural Relativity of Communication - when to talk

35、, what to say and how to say differ from culture to culture. (i) When to talk (the example of the conversation between Anglos and Athabaskans) Athabaskan Indians consider it inappropriate to talk to strangers. They have negative stereotypes of non-Athabaskans as ridiculously garrulous (talkative in

36、an unfavorable sense) and also hypocritical. Anglos would consider it awkward to have a long period of silence when having a conversation. They conclude that Indians are uncooperative, even stupid.,Conclusion,(ii) How to talk (the example of the conversation between Anglos and Athabaskans) Pacing an

37、d pausing Meaning: How fast do you speak? How long do you wait following another speakers utterance, before concluding the other has no more to say? Listenership (the example of the conversation between Anglos and Athabaskans) Mostly it is connected with nonverbal behaviors such as eye contact. Indi

38、rectness Meaning: Only a part of meaning resides in the words spoken; the largest part is communicated by hints, assumptions, and listeners filling-in from context and prior experience.,Conclusion,e.g. A Greek wife (or daughter): Can I go to the marketplace? Husband or father: (never say no) If you

39、want, you can go. meaning No. Yes, of course, go. meaning Yes. (iii) What to say - topics (See the exercises on p164) Conversation is used as an icebreaker and to create warm memories for everyone attending a social or business function. There are topics you can, and will discuss, with your dearest

40、friends. However, when youre among a group of acquaintances or business associates keep your conversational topics neutral.,(p164)Which topics are regarded as the appropriate ones in conversations?,Weather, Pet, Work, Hobby, Sex, Family, Age, Income, Property, Marital status, Politics, Religious bel

41、ief, Disease, Death, Disability,Group Work (p170-172),Read the three dialogues on page 170-172, then try to find out the problems and ways to avoid such problems in intercultural communication.,Group Work (p170-172),Dialogue 1 It means that “I agree that there is need for keeping the production line

42、 running on Saturday”. The Chinese employee should say: “Id love to, but Ive promised my son to celebrate his birthday with him on this Saturday. Im sorry I may not be able to come in.” The American is cultivated in a low-context culture while the Chinese employee comes from a high-context culture.

43、In general, the Chinese mode of communication is often indirect and implicit while the Western mode of communication tends to be direct and explicit.,Group Work (p170-172),Group Work (p170-172),Dialogue 2 The boss refuses to tell the employee directly what he actually feels about his work because he

44、 thinks that that may make the American employee lose face. It is natural for the employee to press for definite answers to his questions because he is American and, in his culture, it is usually right to do so even when one is communicating with ones boss.,Group Work (p170-172),Dialogue 3 The Ameri

45、can supervisor uses a “straight talk” low-context approach in dealing with the work problem, whereas the Greek subordinate uses a “face talk” high-context approach in dealing with the issue.,Compliments(p162-163),Making Good Introduction,Suppose an important client is visiting your corporate headqua

46、rters. Youre having a conversation when the president of your company walks into the room. Its up to you to make the introductions. But whom do you introduce to whom? Which persons name do you state first? Your client is important to you and your company, but certainly the company president is also

47、important. Do you have a dilemma? Not if you understand the background of making introductions, which is basically, “The person with greater importance takes precedence.”,Making Good Introduction,Sequence of introduction - a useful format: Always state the name of the most important person first; Us

48、e words like “May I” or “I would like to” or “It is a pleasure to”; Follow with words like “Introduce” or “Present” (“Present” is more formal); Then state the name of the Lower ranking person; Always add a brief sentence about the lower ranking person, such as a job title or project he or she is wor

49、king on, a recent success, or a common interest with the senior. This provides the senior with information to begin a comfortable conversation.,Making Good Introduction,Examples: “Ms. Gold Crown, may I introduce Mr. No Crown. Mr. No Crown just completed a trip to our Asian facilities.” “Mr. Gold Cro

50、wn, I would like to introduce Ms. No Crown. Ms. No Crown is the CEO of our company.” “Ms. Gold Crown, may I present Mr. No Crown, who is an avid sailor.” (The presenter knows that Ms. Gold Crown is also a sailor, so this informs them both of a common interest) If the situation is more casual, you ca

51、n use first names, “Goldie, Id like you to meet Silvery. Silvery plays percussion in the Wind Symphony.” Or a very casual introduction of a relative, such as “Goldie, this is my sister Sherrie.”,Case Study,Case 17(Page176) Mr Richardson is very pleased to have made the acquaintance of Mr Chu and fee

52、ls they have gotten off to a very good start. In contrast, Mr Chu feels quite uncomfortable with Mr Richardson. He is particularly bothered that, instead of calling him David or Mr Chu, Mr Richardson used his given name, Hon-fai, the name rarely used by anyone, in fact. It was this embarrassment whi

53、ch caused him to smile. He would feel more comfortable if they called each other Mr Chu and Mr Richardson. Nevertheless, when he learned that Americans feel uncomfortable calling people Mr for any extended period of time, he decides to adopt a western name. He chose David for use in such situations.,Case Study,Case 18(Page176-177) In this case, he had to say “No” at least three times. Indeed, British recipients of such hospitality sometimes feel that their host is behaving impolitely by forcing them into a bind.,Case Stud