1、Unit 4 Verbal Communication 2ObjectivesLearn the culturally loaded wordsLearn the cultural reflections on proverbsLearn taboosLearn the differences in cultural thought patterns3 CONTENTS I.Warm-up cases II.Detailed Studyculturally loaded wordscultural reflections on proverbstaboosdifferences in cult
2、ural thought patternsIII.SummaryIV.ExercisesV.Assignments4Case 1.Shoes for Street WalkingI.Warm-up casesQuestion:Why did the Italian shop owner make such a blunder?Shoes for street walking.Come in and have a fit.5to have a fit-to become suddenly and violently angry or upsetShoes for street walking.C
3、ome in and have a fit.Interpretation:a street walker-a prostitute Case 2.A Misunderstanding Caused by a JokeBackground information6n Roger,the Personnel Executive of a large American multinational firm,worked in Brazil to help promote business.n Rosalita,a Brazilian woman Roger had known for some ti
4、me.Roger generally had a very good impression of her and always felt at ease with her.n One evening,they met at a party,attended by both Rogers employees from the United States and many Brazilian business people.Case 2.A Misunderstanding Caused by a Joken Rosalita said to Roger,“Id like to introduce
5、 you to one of my good friends.She is a very capable woman and is presently thinking of working in a joint venture so she can provide a better living for her large family.She is very much interested in your company.”7Question:Could you give Roger an explanation?n Very soon,Rosalita excused herself a
6、s politely as she could,and did not speak with Roger for the rest of the evening.Roger was confused by Rosalitas behavior.n Hearing that,Roger smiled and replied,“OK,but I just hope I dont get hustled.”Case 2.A Misunderstanding Caused by a JokeT h e p r o b l e m r e s u l t e d f r o m t h e misund
7、erstanding of the word“hustle”.In colloquial American English,there are at least two meanings for the word“hustle”.-to force sb to make a decision before they are ready or sure;-to work as a prostitute/romance or sex is hinted.8CommentAs a Personnel Executive of a large American multinational firm,R
8、oger must have attended many parties.At these parties,he will always encounter people eager to get a job from him in his company,so he often gets hustled.This is just what Roger was implying to Rosalita regarding her friend.9However,the word“hustle”has another meaning in which romance or sex is hint
9、ed.Rosalita must have thought Roger was referring to this and considered it as an insult to her friend.10Case 3 Look outn A foreign student in the U.S.was sitting by a window reading a book.n She heard someone yelling“Look out!”,so she stuck her head out of the window.n Just then a board hurtled dow
10、n from above,narrowly missing her.She looked up,half in anger and half in fright.Questions for discussion:In this case,what does“look out”mean?Could you give a similar case like this?n There was a man on the roof doing repairs.“Didnt you hear me call Look out?”he demanded.“Yes,and thats what I did,”
11、she replied.11Look out-to stick your head outside of sth.(window/door)to take a look -to be careful,especially when there is dangerCase 3 Look outComment:12II.Detailed Study Loaded words and phrases are those which have strong emotional overtones(n.暗示，弦外音，寓意暗示，弦外音，寓意)or connotations(n.涵义，言外之意涵义，言外之意
12、),and which evoke strongly positive or negative reactions beyond their literal meaning.1.Culturally Loaded WordsWhat are loaded words?龙干部母马扁担一本书知识分子社会科学Can you find the equivalent words in English for these Chinese words?female horse?/mare?social science?/the humanities?a carrying pole;a shoulder po
13、ledragoncadrea bookintellectual14InterpretationsIn CC,it is a totem with many royal associations.龙颜，龙床，龙袍。龙颜，龙床，龙袍。In EC,dragon refers to horrible,disgusting monsters.龙龙Beowulfthe conventional title of an Old English heroic epic poem consisting of 3182 alliterative long lines,set in Scandinavia,comm
14、only cited as one of the most important works of Anglo-Saxon literature.Its composition by an anonymous Anglo-Saxon poet is dated between the 8th and the early 11th century.First page of Beowulf in Cotton Vitellius A.xv BeowulfIn the poem,Beowulf,a hero of the Geats in Scandinavia,comes to the help
15、of Hrogar,the king of the Danes,whose mead hall(in Heorot)has been under attack by a monster known as Grendel.After Beowulf slays him,Grendels mother attacks the hall and is then also defeated.Victorious,Beowulf goes home to Geatland in Sweden and later becomes king of the Geats.17干部干部-a small group
16、 of people who are specially chosen and trained for a particular purpose.骨干队伍骨干队伍-a member of this kind of group.干部干部In EC,many people dont know what itmeans.(not a common word)Some other substitutes:official,functionary,administrator,etc.But none of these gets exact same meaning as Chinese word“干部干
17、部”.18知识分子知识分子 In CC,it refers to people including college teachers,college students,middle school teachers,and such people as medical doctors,engineers,interpreters.In EC,it refers to people of high academic status(college professors)much smaller range of people.not always a complimentary term,somet
18、imes used in derogatory sense.19社会科学社会科学Social Sciences in Chinese covers all the fields except the ones in the natural science and applied sciences.Same as“the humanities”in English.While in English,“social sciences”cover a smaller area of learning.It includes political science,economics,history(of
19、ten classified under the humanities)and sociology.-the branches of learning that study human society,especially its organization and relationship of individual members to it.20Table 4.1 Birds and animals (male or female)Generic term male female the youngchicken cock/rooster hen chickduck drake duck
20、ducklinggoose gander goose goslinghorse stallion mare foalcattle/cow bull cow calfdog dog bitch puppysheep ram ewe lambdeer stag doe fawnpig boar sow shoat21bull,cow,cock or hen,male,female,she Not all animals or birds have specific names that denote different sex.bull,cow,cock or hen are frequently
21、 used to distinguish sex.bull seal,cock sparrow,hen sparrowmale,female,she are also acceptable.male leopard,female panda,she wolf22Table 4.2 副副 viceassociatedeputyassistantlieutenantunderExamples in Chinese 副主席副教授副主任副秘书长副州长副国务卿English CounterpartsTerms in Englishvice-chairmanassociate professordeput
22、y directorassistant secretarylieutenant governorundersecretary23SummaryA term in one language does not necessarily have a counterpart in the other language;（扁担）（扁担）Words or terms in both language appear to refer to the same object or concept only on the surface,but actually refer to quite different
23、things;（龙）（龙）24Things or concepts are represented by one or perhaps two terms in one language,but by many more terms in the other language,ie,finer distinctions exist in the other language;（社会科学）（社会科学）Terms have more or less the same primary meaning,but have secondary or additional meanings that may
24、 differ considerably from each other.（龙）（龙）252.Cultural Reflections on ProverbsProverbs may provide interesting glimpses orclues to a peoples geography,history,social organization,social views,etc.Consider the following:A new broom sweeps clean.Many hands make light work.Dont put off until tomorrow
25、what you can do today.Kill two birds with one stone.Haste makes waste.26Give a person a dose of his own medicine.Where theres smoke theres fire.The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence.Beauty is only skin deep.Spare the rod and spoil the child.27Man proposes,God disposes.尽人事，听天命。尽人
26、事，听天命。/谋事在人，成事在天。谋事在人，成事在天。It is a sin to steal a pin.勿以恶小而为之，勿以善小而不为。勿以恶小而为之，勿以善小而不为。Revenge is a dish that could be eaten cold.君子报仇，十年不晚。君子报仇，十年不晚。Every dog has its day.人人皆有得意日人人皆有得意日。/十年风水轮流转十年风水轮流转。28a dogs life 生活悲惨；忧愁的日子生活悲惨；忧愁的日子go to the dogs毁灭，堕落；每况愈下毁灭，堕落；每况愈下 dog-eat-dog 狗咬狗的；损人利己的狗咬狗的；损人
27、利己的;竞争激烈的竞争激烈的Dog days一年中最热的日子一年中最热的日子doggy bag餐馆里的打包袋餐馆里的打包袋p Love me,love my dog.爱屋及乌爱屋及乌29The above expressions get similar/same meanings both in English and Chinese.But some others get dissimilarities:良药苦口利于病，忠言逆耳利良药苦口利于病，忠言逆耳利于行。于行。瓜田不纳履，李下不整冠。瓜田不纳履，李下不整冠。一人得道，鸡犬升天。一人得道，鸡犬升天。30Hard to find equi
28、valentsAbsence makes the heart grow fonder.An apple a day keeps the doctor away.Let sleeping dogs lie.You cant teach an old dog new tricks.You cant have your cake and eat it too.31Lightening never strikes the same place twice.福无双至，祸不单行。？福无双至，祸不单行。？坏事不过二坏事不过二。祸无双至。同一灾害不会在同。祸无双至。同一灾害不会在同一场所重复发生。一场所重复发
29、生。One swallow does not make a summer.一叶知秋。？一叶知秋。？一燕不成夏。一花独放不是春。一燕不成夏。一花独放不是春。32Surface similarities,but differencesIt takes two to make a quarrel.A miss is as good as a mile.Gilding the lily.Life begins at forty.If you lie down with dogs,you will get up with fleas.近朱者赤，近墨者黑。近朱者赤，近墨者黑。33Please choose
30、 the proper words for each phrase.hare horse snail mouse bee mule as busy as a _ as slow as a _ as stubborn as a _ as timid as a _ snailbeemulehareas strong as a _ horseas poor as a church _ mouse343.Taboos-a cultural or religious custom that does not allow people to do,use or talk about a particula
31、r thing as people find it offensive or embarrassing:Excreta and acts of human excretionSexual intercourse/certain parts of the bodyFour-letter wordsSwear words(age,sex,occupation)35Human Excretiongo to the can/go to the Johngo and see ones auntIm going to pick some flowers.Can I add some powder?I wo
32、uld like to powder my nose.I wonder if I could go somewhere.heed/answer the call of nature May I be excused?Nature calls me.36Sex/Body parts,etc.Whats the English expression for the state of the lady?37She is expecting a baby.She is in a family way.She is expecting.She is in a delicate condition.She
33、 is well-along.She is about to have a blessed event.38dieGodepartdepart from this worldgo to a better worldgo the ways of all fleshpass awayEnglish euphemisms for death:39diseaseAbbreviations:SARS(Severe Acute Respiratory Syndromes)AIDS (Acquired Immure Deficiency Syndrome)V.D (venereal disease)性病性病
34、big C/long disease/terminal illness (cancer)40Old Age senior citizens advanced in age golden years Whats the English expression for people at an old age?414.Differences in Cultural Thought PatternsCase 1.(p.78)The puzzle of Tal,an African student from Gambia who had recently commenced his postgradua
35、te administration course at a British university.Understanding and appreciation of differences among cultures in cognitive processing and problem solving is a major step toward successful intercultural communication.42nEnglish-speakers-linear and directnSemitic-combination of tangential and semi-dir
36、ectnAsian-circularnRomance-more consistently circuitousnAmerican-factual-inductive(ascertain facts,find similarities,and formulate conclusions)nRussian-combination of direct and circuitous approaches/axiomatic-deductive(move from general principle to particulars which can be easily deduced)nArab-int
37、uitive-affective(facts are secondary to emotions)43 III.Summary Culturally loaded words Cultural reflections on proverbs Taboos Differences in cultural thought patternsExercises A.Comprehension Check (p.80)441-5 F F F T F 6-10 T F T T TB.Questions for Discussion(p.81)451.Are“梅兰竹菊梅兰竹菊”culturally-load
38、ed words?If yes,illustrate it.2.What does“gilding the lily”mean?3.What is taboo?Give some examples.C.Expression Understanding(p.81)46Keys for reference:天网恢恢，疏而不漏天网恢恢，疏而不漏棋逢对手棋逢对手金玉良言金玉良言肥缺肥缺Give the Chinese equivalents:1.Justice has long arms.2.Diamond cut diamond.3.Golden saying4.Fat officeC.Expres
39、sion Understanding 47Keys for reference:5.船到桥头自然直船到桥头自然直6.宁为鸡头，勿为牛后宁为鸡头，勿为牛后 7.牛饮牛饮8.如履薄冰如履薄冰Give the Chinese equivalents:5.You will cross the bridge when you get to it.6.Better be the head of a dog than the tail of a lion.7.drink like a fish8.tread upon eggsD.Whats your opinion?(p.82)Questions:Woul
40、d following his advice get you a good job in China?If you were trying to“sell yourself”in a resume in China,what points would you make?Does your cultural thought pattern limit your way of presenting yourself in this manner in your resume?48E.Cultural Puzzle(pp.82-83)a)No.sometimes it is better not t
41、o correct the person right away,especially if he or she is very busy.Also,if other people are present,the person may be embarrassed to find out he or she pronounced your name incorrectly.However,if the person pronounces your name incorrectly more than once,you should tell him or her.49E.Cultural Puz
42、zle(p.83)b)Yes.If you want to be polite and formal,it is best to apologize first,and then say your name correctly.c)Yes.If the situation is informal,you can just say your name correctly without apologizing.5051IV.Assignments1.Research Topic Different colors have different associations in different languages.Please make a close study of the“color”languages in Chinese and English.2.Watch the video“A Journey to India”
