Introduction_to_UK讲解.ppt

Course Syllabus Goals: 1. Upgrade your English level through learning the culture and society of UK and USA 2. Broaden your knowledge about history, politics, economy, cultural and social life, and custom of the two countries Significance of understanding culture in learning a language Culture is not only carried by a language but embedded in the language. Thus to learn a language, one has to learn the culture. The purpose of using a language is to communicate. Yet, to know only the language without a good knowledge and understanding of the culture makes one, in most cases, fail in communication, or at least not very efficient in that. This is particularly true in the case of cross-cultural communication. Examples of clash in cross-cultural communication 1) A department head of a Chinese school introduces a new American teacher to other faculty members, “Ladies and gentlemen, Im delighted to introduce to you a very pretty girl, Miss Brown. She is a very good teacher from the USA.” The American teacher is embarrassed by these words. What seems to be the problem or which words are not proper in the sentence? “pretty” and “good” 文化差异: 介绍应该突出被介绍人的身份、学历、职务等，而不应该是外貌和抽象的评论. Modified sentence: “Ladies and gentlemen, Im delighted to introduce to you a new teacher from the USA., Miss Ann Brown. She is a doctor of American Literature with experience of teaching English as a Foreign Language.” 特别忠告: 介绍客人要介绍客观事实，不要主观评论。要注重身份，不要着眼外貌. Another example: 2) An Englishmen is sick and his Chinese colleague expresses his concern. Chinese: You look pale. Whats the matter? Englishman: Im feeling sick. A cold, maybe. Chinese: Go and see the doctor. Drink more water. Did you take any pills? Chinese medicine works wonderful. Would you like to try? Put on more clothes. Have a good rest. Englishman: You are not my mother, are you? 文化差异：美国人比较看中个人的独立性。受人照顾往往被视为弱者。 特别忠告：对病人表示关心，不必尽提建议。 Proper response: Im sorry to hear that (youve got a bad cold). I hope youll be all rig