1、1Unit 3 Verbaland Non-verbal CommunicationUnit overview Both Units 1 and 2 mention a key word “communication”.As Thomas Payne points out in Text B of Unit 2, most of us, linguists or non-linguists, have the common-sense notion that “the main purpose of human language is communication”. Thus to devel
2、op a deeper understanding of the nature and function of language, we need to take a close at human communication. This unit examines this topic from a cross-cultural perspective, illustrating the similarities and differences in verbal and non-verbal communication between different cultures, which la
3、ys a foundation for further exploration into the interface between language and culture in the following units. Text A People in different communities demonstrate different perceptions and rules of both verbal and non-verbal communication. The way they interact is culturally relative in almost every
4、 aspect, including when to talk, what to say, pacing and pausing, listenership, intonation and prosody, formulaicity, indirectness, and coherence and cohesion. Text B Some non-verbal behaviors are practically universal and have the same meaning wherever you are (e.g., smiling and facial expressions
5、of anger, surprise, fear, sadness, and so on). But for cultural and historical reasons, there have also developed great differences and variations in such aspects as eye contact, touch, gestures, and territorial space, etc. Without an awareness of respect and accommodation for people from a differen
6、t background, these differences are likely to cause misunderstandings in cross-cultural communication.The two texts supplement each other in that Text A illustrates cross-cultural differences in both verbal and non-verbal communication while Text B focuses on non-verbal behaviors and addressesboth d
7、ifferences and similarities. Teaching objectives This unit is designed to help students develop their reading skills, communicative competence, critical thinking, intercultural reflection and abilities of autonomous 2learning in the following aspects.Reading skills: Use context to understand a new w
8、ordIdentify cohesive devices Predict the content of an upcoming sentence/paragraphCommunicative competence: Develop a coherent and cohesive oral/written discourseUse topic sentences, supporting sentences and concluding sentences in presentations/essaysCommunicate constructively in team workCritical
9、thinking:Evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of personal experience as evidence in argumentationOrganize the arguments using an outlineNote and reflect on the differences between academic writing and everyday writingIntercultural reflectionIdentify similarities and differences in non-verbal commun
10、ication across culturesBe aware of multiple levels of differences on which cross-cultural communication can falterInterpret communication behaviors from cultural and historical perspectivesTeaching strategies Non-verbal communication and cross-cultural communication are both interesting topics in li
11、nguistics. The teacher can introduce the two texts by quoting anecdotes or relating to studentsown experiences (question 5 in Preparatory work, p. 59). For students who lack experience of cross-cultural communication, the topic can be led in by discussions about inter-subcultural communication. Text
12、 A is a research articlefrom an academic journaland its structure and writing style are quite clear. It is recommended to draw students attention to the authors logic (i.e., ways of arguing) and use of evidence in class. If well-planned, all the questions in Preparatory Work and Critical reading can
13、 be dealt with in some detail in class. The teacher can follow all the questions in Understanding the text to check students comprehension of the text, while the tasks in Evaluation and exploration can be 3divided and assigned to groups. For example, in Making an outline (p. 62), the teacher can div
14、ide the students into three groups, each responsible for one topic. For classical works in intercultural communication, please refer to: Hall, Edward T. (1955). The Anthropology of Manners.Scientific American,192: 85-89.Hall, Edward T. (1959). The Silent Language. New York: Doubleday. For more updat
15、ed information, please find the following journals:Cross-Cultural Communication published by Canadian Academy of Oriental and Occidental Culture (CAOOC)Across Languages and Cultures published byAkadmiaiKiadLanguage and Intercultural Communication published byRoutledge Journals, Taylor and (2) every
16、culture has its own conventions about what to say on particular occasions, and without knowledge of these conventions, we can by no means appropriately interpret the messages in cross-cultural communication. In Para. 29, Tannenrefers to her first visit to Greece to exemplify the cross-cultural diffe
17、rence in formulaicity, i.e., what is novel and what is conventional in different languages.(6) Generally speaking, the eight levels are arranged in the order of importance, from the core of verbal communication to more peripheral factors. The first three levels and the fifth level belong to what is
18、said while the last three center on how it is said. The fourth level, listenership, is the only level examined from the perspective of the hearer. (7) As has been illustrated in part II, verbal communication involves many hidden rules and conventions that vary from culture to culture. Since every in
19、dividual has his/her own unique experience, education background,and beliefs, etc., no two interactants would share exactly the same communicative rules and conventions. In this sense all communication is cross-cultural. Summary writing Ways of communication are culturally diversified in almost ever
20、y aspect, from what to say to how to say it. When to talk (and when not to) is culturally relative. People from one culture may find a particular silent moment unbearable while it is deemed appropriate in another culture.What to say also differs greatly across cultures. Many of us consider raising q
21、uestions asa natural or even basic part of daily communication, but in some cultures questions are perceived imposing and hence rarely asked. A certain degree of indirectness in communication is universal in all languages, but how to be indirect varies from culture to culture. American men value “st
22、icking to facts” while Japanese and Arab often insist on elaborate “small talks”. Cross-cultural differences can also be observed in the different ways of showing listenership, control of pace and pause, use of conventional and novel language, and variation of intonation. Even when peopleare asked t
23、o describe or write about the same thing, their 7organization of a discourse will very likely differ in ways of establishing coherence and cohesion as Kaplan illustrated. II. Evaluation and exploration 1. Evaluating the text (1) Personal experiences and anecdotes help elucidate abstract and difficul
24、t terms and add to the vividness of the text. Controlled use of personal experience may also shorten the distance between the author and the reader. But the overuse and misuse of personal stories can also damage the objectivity and credibility of the argumentation. (2) Beside personal experience, Ta
25、nnen mentions a lot of academic researches (e.g. in para 4, 7, 8, 10, 21, 23, 38 and 39), which all add weight to her arguments. (3) It is obviously not an exhaustive list. Cross-cultural communication can vary at many other levels, e.g., proxemics and turn taking in a multiparty context. 2. Explori
26、ng beyond the text (1) Questions for exploration 1) There are altogether 16 questions which help structure the text in part two and they are not equally important. The question in para 2, for example, is a global one that covers all the eight sections in the main body, while the question in para 20,
27、 “Now how many milliseconds shall I wait?”, is just an example to illustrate why pacing and pausing is an automatic level. a. See above. b. The first question in para 7 is asked to introduce the topic of this section, what to say. It is a transition from section 2.1 to section 2.2. c. This is a rhet
28、orical question requiring no answer. It is asked simply to reinforce our conviction that questions are basic to the educational setting, which forms a sharp contrast with the case of Gonjans. 2) In all the known languages there are strategies of making indirect requests/apologies/invitations/, etc.
29、In a strict sense, the use of language is an indirect means to achieve communicative ends. How to be indirect differs from culture to culture. For example, in English a request is often put forward as a question of ability (Can you pass me the salt?). 3) For example, introvert people may be more tol
30、erant of silence in face-to-face verbal interaction while extroverts usually find silence awkward and uncomfortable. This is primarily an interpersonal difference since in all cultures there are introvert and extrovert people. Gaze is another example. People with more aggressive personality usually
31、hold longer and steadier gaze when they talk to others, while shy perpleare more likely to diverge in eye contact. 8Language enhancement I. Words and phrases 1. Adverbs and prepositions (1) off; (2) out; (3) across; (4) away; (5) up; (6) between, for; (7) after; (8) out of, into; (9) off; (10) up; (
32、11) out of2. Verbs (1) illustrate, vary, discussing, exemplifying, signaling, mean, say(2) vary(3) differ(4) illustrated(5) exemplifies(6) expounds(7) demonstrates(8) elucidate, interpret 3. Words in context Open to discussion:To guess the meaning of a new word, one can first recognize its part of s
33、peech, analyze its word formation, identify its attitude if necessary, and then evaluate its meaning in the linguistic context. II. Sentences and discourse 1. Paraphrasing (1) Athabaskan Indians consider that it is inappropriate to talk to people they do not know. According to Scollon, this causes a
34、 strange effect when theAthabaskan Indians meet people from other cultures. The non-Athabaskans may want to make acquaintance with the Athabaskans by talking to them, but the Athabaskans will not talk to the non- Athabaskans before they become acquaintances. (2) Gonjans take it for granted that ques
35、tions are always asked to achieve indirect functions, so they never ask questions for pure information. (3) The Americans usually take it for granted that in communication people should be direct and say no more or less than needed, and that what people say is exactly what they mean. This is especia
36、lly true in business and education and applies more to American men than to women. (4) No two people have just the same cultural background. Therefore, all communication is cross-cultural to someextent. In this sense, understanding cross-cultural communication can help us understand the nature of la
37、nguage and tackle 9problems in the world, especially those caused by and related to the use of language, e.g. obstacles in foreign language teaching and learning. 2. Translation (1) 物理学家通过观察物质元素在不同环境中的表现及其与其他物质的相互作用来理解它们的本质。与此相似，我们通过观察交际中的语言以及语言与其他交际符号系统的关联来认识语言的本质。(2) 外语学习者可能会把在一种新的语言中所学的显性的词汇和语法填充
38、到母语交际系统中隐性的语篇框架或副语言外壳里。(3) 社交网络总是区域性而非全球性的，不同社区的人有不同的语言手段来实现交际目标，与其他文化模式一样，人们说话的方式将他们界定为一个“（言语）社区”。(4) You are very likely to find many people who have stereotyped ideas about the forms and functions of language.(5) Please let me elaborate on my proposal.(6) Runaway inflation further plagued the wag
39、e- or salary-earner. (Edwin O. Reischauer)(7) Such jokes tend to reinforce racial stereotypes.3. Paragraph completion (1)B (2)E (3)C4. Rhetorical devices (1) rhetorical question; (2) antithesis, rhyme; (3) antithesis, alliteration; (4) ellipsis Rhetorical question: If winter comes, can spring be far
40、 behind? Antithesis: Rude words bring about sadness, but kind words inspire joy.Antithesis and rhyme: Man proposes, God disposes.Alliteration: The fair breeze blew, the white foam flew (S.T. Coleridge: The Rime of the Ancient Mariner).Ellipsis: Fred took a picture of you, and Susan took a picture of
41、 me.Intercultural reflection 1. Chinese and American people are different in many aspects of non-verbal communication. Text A and Text B have already made a quite comprehensive list for this, including when to speak, pausing, listenership, intonation, indirectness, cohesion and coherence, eye contac
42、t, touch, gestures, and territorial space. In addition to all these, Chinese and Americansalso differ in courtesy, use of facial expressions, and participation in group communication, etc.Classroom tactics: please refer to the distinction between intuitive and critical ways of thinking defined in Un
43、it 2 of Teachers book (p. 11). 102. The different conventions of eye contact between East Asians and Americans may be partly accountable in their history and culture. American culture has a deep evolutionary root in capitalism, which nurtures an efficient and reasonable social system. In such a cult
44、ure, directness is encouraged in both verbal and non-verbal behaviors. Eye contact, as a sign of directness, helps the speaker get and hold the hearers attention and facilitates message conveying. In East Asian countries Confucianism has longbeen the overwhelming ideology. In accordance with this id
45、eology, communicators must strictly conform to the social hierarchy, and direct eye contact is supposed to be impolite and hence prohibited between social unequals. 3. Since Kaplans (1966) ground breaking research in comparative rhetoric, many scholars have made efforts to validate or falsify his co
46、nclusion from different perspectives. Some conclude that Chinese are more indirect in verbal communication in order to show politeness; while others conduct empirical researches (e.g., in writing) to test this finding. Kaplans (1966) observation of different ways of thinking between Chinese and English awaits further evidence, yet it is fair to say that cross-cultural differences of thought patterns seem to show in both verbal and non-verbal communication. (c.f. eye contact in Question 2)
