1、1Unit 1 CultureIn-Class Reading Bridging Cultural Gaps Gracefully从容得体地跨越文化沟壑1 学习外语时，学会一些小词组就能让你不知不觉地进入另一种文化，而丝毫不暴露你作为一个外国人的身份，但你为什么总是学不会呢？每本汉语课本都一律从问候语开始，但是，作为美国人，每当我要送客出门时，我总是张口结舌说不出话。唐突地说声再见是不行的，然而，这就是我从这些课本里所学到的一切了。因此我只能微笑着点头，像个日本人似地鞠躬，并拼命地想找些话来说，以缓和离别的气氛，使他们觉得我是真心欢迎他们下次再来。因此，我常常靠我中国丈夫的彬彬有礼来掩盖自己的
2、慌乱。2 后来，通过听别人说话，我开始学会了一些使客人听了舒服的言辞，才感到送客这项重要使命我不仅顺利完成了，而且完成得很出色。3 对中国人来说，送客需要有一定的礼仪和很多胜人一筹的本领。尽管没有人期望我去遵守甚至了解所有这些规矩，但作为一个外国人，我不得不学会那些在送客时必不可少的表示客气及推让的话。4 中国人觉得送客必须送到尽可能远的地方送下楼梯到大路上，或者也许一直送到最近的公共汽车站。有时候，我等了半个小时甚至还要更长的时间才等到丈夫送客人回来，因为他一直把客人送到公共汽车站，并等到下一班汽车到站。5 对不是特别重要或比他年轻的客人，我丈夫也许只是说：“我不送你了，行吗?” 当然，客人
3、会让他相信从没想过要麻烦主人送他。 “别送我！别送我！”6 这样好倒是好，但当我成为被送的客人时，我的推让总是无效；而且，女主人或男主人甚至他们两人一定要送我到楼下，并陪伴我走好一段路，而每下一段楼梯我都照例说一遍“不要麻烦，别送了” 。如果我想走得快一点以免他们跟上来，那只会使他们更不舒服：他们得在我后面紧追。最好还是接受这不可避免的礼节。7 再者，匆忙也是违背中国习俗的，因为“匆忙”最要不得。你跟别人分别时说什么呢?“ 慢走。 ”不说“再见” 或“祝一路顺风”而是“慢走” ，对中国人来说，它的意思是“小心”或“脚下留神”或诸如此类的关照话，但其直译是“慢慢地走” 。8 同一个“慢”字还被用
4、于另一句客套话中，那就是在极其丰盛美味的一餐后，主人向客人（说“怠慢了”， ）表示他是一个不称职、招待不周的主人。9 美国和中国的文化截然不同。当赞扬一个美国女主人的烹调技术时，她很可能会说：“哦，你喜欢我就很高兴。我是特地为你做的。 ”而中国的男女主人就不一样（通常是男主人做一些高难度的菜） ，他们会为“没有什么好吃的”，以及没有合适的菜不成敬意而道歉。10 同样的规则也适用于对待小孩。美国的父母谈起自己孩子的成就时十分自豪，会说约翰尼是如何如何成为校队的一员，简是如何被评为优秀生上了光荣榜。中国父母则不同，即使他们的孩子在班上名列前茅，也总是说他们非常“顽皮”、不肯读书以及从来不听大人的话
5、等等。11 中国人以“谦虚” 为荣，而美国人则崇尚 “直率”。这种谦虚使许多中国人去美国人家里吃饭时吃不饱，因为按照中国的礼节，任何东西需要再三推让才能接受，而美国主人则认为“不要”就是“不要 ”，不管是第一次说、第二次说，还是第三次说。12 最近，美国某大公司访华团的一位成员向我抱怨说，关于他们愿不愿意修改某提议，中国人竟问了他们三次，虽然每次美国人都清清楚楚、斩钉截铁地说了“不”。我的朋友很生2气，因为中国人没把他们第一次说的话当回事。我马上就意识到问题所在，真奇怪这些美国人为什么没在去中国之前彻底研究一下文化差异，那样他们在谈判中就可以免去很多困惑和挫折。13 一旦你知道了客人所发出信号
6、的意思以及如何回应，生活就变得轻松多了。当客人刚到的时候，我知道我应该马上问他们要不要喝茶。他们会说：“请不要麻烦了。 ”而这正是我该去泡茶的信号。After-Class Reading美国的进餐习俗1 每个国家都有自己独特的进餐习俗。美国人认为，作为一名有礼貌的客人，第一条规矩就是守时。如果一个人被邀请于六点半赴宴，女主人期待他六点半或稍晚几分钟到。因为通常是她做饭，她算好时间，以便客人到时能吃到新鲜出炉的热面包卷、咖啡和肉。如果客人来迟了，饭菜就不那么好吃了，女主人会感到失望的。如果客人不能按时到，就应打电话给主人，说明理由，并告知什么时候能到。根据具体情况，客人有时会带一盒糖果或一些鲜花
7、，送给女主人以表谢意。2 当客人们陆续到来时，如有女士进屋，在场的男士们应起身等女士入座后再坐下，这通常被视为是一种礼貌的行为。然而，多数年轻人和一些年纪稍大的人，他们重视男女平等，不再遵守这一习俗。来访的客人应留意各种情况，照着在场的美国人去做。3 客人在餐桌就坐时，按照习俗男士应帮助女士推椅入座。有些美国人现在已不再这样做了，所以来访者必须留心别人的做法并效仿。如果宴会是在个人的家里举行，在开始吃饭前，要避免（说话）尴尬，客人可以（自己不说）听别人聊。有些家庭习惯饭前祈祷感谢上帝，有些家庭则没有这样的习惯。如果要做祷告，每个人都要静静地低头坐着，直到祷告结束。如果主人家没有这种习惯，聊天便
8、不会中断。4 美国人与欧洲人使用刀叉的习惯不同。欧洲人右手拿刀，左手拿叉，吃东西时两手都用。美国人则相反，尽可能只用一只手，另一只手放在膝盖上。他们要切肉时通常把叉换到左手。在不吃食物、喝咖啡或在面包上涂黄油时，他们把叉放在自己的盘子上。欧洲人更习惯于饭后喝咖啡，饭没吃完刀叉就一直拿在手里。5 由于美国人进餐时经常会放下刀叉等金属餐具，一些习俗也随之形成。把勺子留在汤碗里、咖啡杯里或其他盘子里都被视作不礼貌。勺子应该放在可以放平的地方（如咖啡勺放在杯托上，汤勺放在汤碗旁边的托盘上，等等） ，而不放在桌布上。这样做就不大可能把金属餐具碰到地板上或把食物碰洒出来。另一个不同的习俗是美国人和欧洲人喝
9、东西时都从汤勺的侧面喝，而不是从前端。6 美国人吃面包时不用刀叉，而是通常把面包掰开用手拿着吃。美国人用手拿着吃的东西还有玉米棒、芹菜、萝卜和橄榄。在美国，人们不用手来抓生菜吃，也不端起汤碗把碗底剩下的汤喝光。7 如果客人在就餐时因故不得不离开餐桌的话，他（她）应该向女主人说：“ 对不起，我能离开一会儿吗？”进餐结束后，客人们应把餐巾放在桌上，然后起身。客人不用按原样把餐巾折好，除非是暂住的客人，要住下来吃不止一顿饭。8 饭后，客人通常再呆两三个小时，但客人要考虑周到，注意不要因呆得太久而不受欢迎。出于礼貌主人也许会劝客人多呆一会，但多数宴请 11 点钟左右就结束了。9 按照习俗，客人临走时应
10、感谢女主人令他们度过了一个愉快的夜晚。你可以说一些表达感谢的话。通常的说法有：“再见，你让我来参加宴会真是太好了！”，或“再见了，今晚过得开心极了！”，或“ 谢谢，我过得很愉快！” 对于那些比宴会更盛大的款待，如在主人家过3夜或过周末，习惯上还应给主人寄一封感谢信。课内阅读练习答案 Part One Preparation1. What They Think of Each OtherSample The two passages are typical stereotypes of Americans and British people and are similar to what Iv
11、e read from some other sources. Sometimes British people do have mixed opinions about Americans. Being the world leader in many areas, the U.S. is a symbol of power and wealth, while Britain, once the empire on which the sun never sets, is now making slower progress. So their jealousy, if any, is un
12、derstandable.My experiences with people from both countries support some ideas in the passages. For example, quite a number of Americans know very little about things outside their country.This is probably because the U.S. is so strong that the whole world is learning from it in many aspects, and th
13、ese Americans do not see the need to learn about other countries. I think this is not good for them. With the world being increasingly globalized and competitive, people need to know about other countries so they can still have their competitive edge. It is also true thatBritish people, compared wit
14、h Americans, are more polite; “gentlemanlike” is probably a better word. It is interesting to read about what Americans think about British people and vice versa. I agree with most of the things mentioned in the two passages, but there are things with which I dont quite agree. First, “British people
15、 believe that Americans have no culture, and that except for a few intellectuals, Americans are not very interested in culture.” It is true that theU.S. has a rather short history, but this does not mean that Americans have no culture. The great majority of the Americans were immigrants in history.
16、They inherited the cultures of the countries or regions they came from and during the years of struggling to settle down in the new continent they developed their own culture. For example, they share a lot of festivals with other nations or regions and they also have their own. I have many American
17、friends and obviously they cherish their own culture and also respect other cultures because the U.S. itself is multi-national. Second, Americans think that “The British are snobbish and do not seem very friendly.” Although most Americans are open and most British people are conservative and reserve
18、d, this does not mean the latter are necessarily snobbish. My personal experiences show that it is easier and faster to make friends with Americans, but friendship with British people usually lasts longer.2. Testing Your StereotypesSampleChinese Americans the British1 hospitable 1 adventurous 1 cons
19、ervative2 modest 2 creative 2 gentlemanlike3 intelligent 3 straightforward 3 reserved4 hard-working 4 open-minded 4 humorous5 creative 5 independent 5 mild6 self-confident 6 emotional 6 reliable47 warm-hearted 7 imaginative 7 sincere8 generous 8 romantic 8 serious3. Ways to Learn About a Particular
20、CultureSample I think going to visit a country is an efficient and direct way to learn about the country and its culture. As the saying goes, “Seeing is believing.” Culture includes customs, music, food, clothing, and so on. When you are in the country, you will be able to meet people there, eat the
21、 food and be exposed to their daily lives. This kind of personal experience is what you can never get from watching movies and reading books. However, this way has a big disadvantage: It needs a lot of MONEY, especially when traveling to a distant country. I enjoy watching movies and documentaries t
22、o learn about the culture of a country. Reading is also a good way for this purpose. Documentaries and movies present us with views of the country, while books provide us with detailed descriptions along with beautiful illustrations.All these can fire our imagination and imagining something is somet
23、imes even more fascinating than actually seeing it. Besides, it can save us a lot of money. Documentaries, movies, and books have a big disadvantage too. They can only give us visual information instead of personal experiences, and to learn about a countrys culture, we need to feel it, touch it, sen
24、se it, or even taste it. To me, the best way to experience a countrys culture is through lectures and face-to-face talks with natives of that country. On our campus, there are many foreign students from various countries, and I have made friends with a lot of them. We go to movies, play sports, atte
25、nd parties, and celebrate traditional festivals of various countries together. From those activitiesIve learned a lot about cultures of different countries. Apart from learning their cultures, Ive also improved my English by trying to understand them and make myself understood. Of course, theyve als
26、o improved their Chinese. However, theres one big disadvantage: It is time-consuming.Sometimes I find myself fail to finish my other assignments.Part Two Reading-Centered ActivitiesIn-Class ReadingPost-ReadingReading Comprehension1 1 Topic sentence (Para. 1):Its rather difficult for a foreigner to e
27、nter another culture without all his foreignness being exposed.2 Supporting evidence:A Parting customs in China (Paras. 1-7)i One custom: The host and hostess should say to guests words and phrases that will smooth over 5the visitors leaving and make them feel they would be welcome to come again.The
28、 authors problem: She constantly found herself tongue-tied.Her solution: At first she often hid behind her husband and then she gradually picked up the phrases.ii Another custom: The host and hostess feel they must see a guest off to the farthest feasible point except those less important or younger
29、 visitors.A problem she met with as a guest: She tried to discourage the host and hostess from seeing her off, but failed.Her conclusion: Its better to accept the inevitable.B Chinese modesty vs. American straightforwardness (Paras. 8-12)i At a party when complimented for cooking skillsA Chinese hos
30、t or hostess will appear to be modest and apologize for giving “nothing” even slightly edible and for not showing enough honor by providing proper dishes.An American hostess is likely to say, “Oh, Im so glad that you liked it. I cooked it especially for you.”ii When talking about their childrenChine
31、se parents will say that their children, even if at the top of their class in school, are always so “naughty”, never studying, never listening to their elders, and so forth.American parents will straightforwardly speak proudly of their childrens achievements.iii Hearing the word “no”A Chinese will n
32、ot take it the first time.An American will take it to mean “no”.3 Conclusion (Para. 13): Life becomes much easier once you have studied thoroughly on cultural differences.21 T 2 T 3 F 4 F 5 F 6 T 7 T 8 T31 As we know, cultural changes exist all the time, so do cultural gaps. Some gaps mentioned in t
33、he passage still exist but others have become narrower and narrower. For example, seeing people off to the farthest feasible point, apologizing for a very delicious meal by saying they have prepared very little and saying “no” before they accept an offer to avoid causing any trouble on the hosts sid
34、e are still what Chinese people do nowadays. But Chinese parents wont say to others any more that their children are always naughty and they also praise them publicly for their achievements, though modesty is still considered to be a good trait. Besides, Chinese people are much more straightforward
35、than before now and in most cases they would say whats on their mind. So nobody would go hungry as guests now.2 Yes. Examples: When Americans receive a present, they will unwrap it immediately. But the Chinese will never do that. They will wait until the giver / sender is gone. Americans say “Hello”
36、 to each other when they meet, while Chinese people say: “Where are you going?” or “Have you eaten?” if its mealtime. But this is not always true. Many people are influenced by Western cultures and they will say “Hello” too and between close friends greetings can be very different. Some taboo topics
37、 in American culture are not taboos in China in the strict sense. These are: age 6(especially a females age), salary or income, religion, marital status, etc. When some people dont want to talk about any of these topics, they can easily avoid that by giving an intelligent but ambiguous answer. In su
38、ch cases, both parties wont feel embarrassed. Americans decide before the meal who will pay for it, but the Chinese will say nothing before the meal, and when it comes to payment, everybody will volunteer to pay, so theres usually a lot of expressions of politeness and protests. It sounds very noisy
39、. Americans, or other Westerners, value privacy more than the Chinese. For example, when someone is doing something, Chinese people would probably go closer and see what they are doing, but foreigners will not do that. Dining customs are also different. At the dinner table, some Chinese men may try
40、to persuade the others to drink as much as possible, but Americans or other Westerners never do that.Vocabulary1 1 saveA help sb. by making it unnecessary for them to do sth. they dont want to doB keep money so that you can use it later, especially when you gradually add more money over a period of
41、time2 missionA an important job that sb. has been given to do especially when they are sent to another placeB a group of important people who are sent by their government to another country to discuss sth. or collect information3 doA be suitable or acceptableB cook4 exposeA leave sth. no longer cove
42、red or protectedB make public sth. bad or dishonest5 modestyA behavior in which one avoids talking about themselves, their achievements, or their abilities, even if they are successfulB the quality or state of being not large in size or amount, or not expensive6 observeA watch sb. or sth. carefullyB
43、 obey (a law, rule or custom)7 flightA a set of stairs between one floor and the nextB a journey in a plane or space vehicle8 bowA (v.) bend your body over sth., especially in order to see it more clearlyB (n.) a knot of cloth or string with a curved part on either side, used especially for decorati
44、on9 pick upA lift sth. up from a surfaceB learn sth. by chance rather than by deliberately trying to get it10 take7A need or requireB understand or interpret sth. in a particular way2 1 E 2 K 3 A 4 G 5 O 6 C 7 F 8 M 9 H 10 N 11 I 12 J 13 L 14 B 15 D3 1) with 2) arranged 3) majority 4) proportion / r
45、ate 5) similar6) reaches 7) including 8) background 9) parents 10) whether11) who 12) both 13) meetings 14) families 15) dating16) before 17) decision 18) advice 19) marriage 20) rateTranslation1 If you sing the song several times, the children will pick up the words.2 We tried to assure the nervous
46、 old man that flying / air travel was safe.3 An inadequate supply of vitamin A may lead to night blindness.4 I can use a computer, but when it comes to computer repairing, I know nothing about it.5 Many a mother tries to have her dreams realized by her daughter.86 The bad weather discouraged people
47、from attending the parade.7 I gave him some pills to ease his pain.8 The job involves working abroad three months each year.Part Three Further Development1. Grammar Review1 noticing 2 supporting 3 solved 4 staring at 5 helping6 running 7 going on 8 removed 9 following 10 exposed2. Vocabulary Review1
48、 A involves / involved: If an activity or situation involves something, that thing is part of it ora result of it.B include: contain sth. as part of sth. elseC involved: include or affect sb. or sth.2 A haste: great speed in doing sth., especially because you do not have enough timeB hurry: (v.) do
49、sth. or go somewhere more quickly than usual, especially because there is not much time.C hurry: (n.) As a noun, it is often used in phrases like “in a hurry”, meaning “more quickly than usual”, and “(theres) no hurry” is used to tell someone that they do not have to do something quickly or soon.3 A cooperation: a situation in which people work together for a particular purposeB corporation: a big company, or a group of companies acting together as a single organization4 A recognize: know who sb. is or what sth. is, because you have seen, hea
