跨文化交际英文案例

Case 1 Girl-nessAs a visiting professor in an American university, Zhang Hua was invited togive a lecture to a group of American students. He talked about universitystudents in China. During the question-and-answer period after the lecture, one female student asked a question that surprised Zhang Hua.“When you talkedabout female students, you referred to them as girls. Why?”“ Because they are girls. Thats what they are called,” Zhang Hua tried toanswer, but he knew he did not really understand the in tent of the question.“ Idont quite understand your question, Im afraid. ”“In the States, we call ourselves women if we re old enough to go to theuniversity. Calling us girls is insulting.”Do Chinese female college students prefer to be called women?Case 2Many years ago, a Chinese man showed a photo of his wife to some Americanvisitors. Out of courtesy, they all said,” She is very beautiful.” Also out ofcourtesy, the man replied with what he would have done in Chinese under the circumstance, ” Where! Where! ” Quite taken aback, nobody said anything for a moment, until the most ingenious one among the visitors, taking another look at the photo, said,“Oh, everywhere! ”What did the Chinese intend to mean by replying with“ Where! Where! ”?Case 1 Girl-nessAs a visiting professor in an American university, Zhang Hua was invited to give a lecture to a group of American students. He talked about university students in China. During the question-and-answer period after the lecture, one female student asked a question that surprised Zhang Hua.“When you talked about female students, you referred to them as girls. Why?“ Because they are girls. Thats what they are called,” Zhang Hua tried to answer, but heknew he did not really understand the intentof the question. “ I don t quite understand yourquestion, I m afraid. ”“In the States, we call ourselves women if we reold enough to go to the university. Calling us girls is insulting. ”Do Chinese female college students prefer to be called women?Case 2Many years ago, a Chinese man showed a photo of his wife to some American visitors. Out of courtesy, they all said, ”She is very beautiful. ” Aolsuot of courtesy, the man replied with what he would have done in Chinese under the circumstance,” Where! Where! ” Quite takenaback, nobody said anything for a moment, until the most ingenious one among the visitors, taking another look at the photo, said,“Oh, everywhere! ”What did the Chinese intend to mean by replying with“ Where! Where! ”?Case 3 “IJust Wanted to Talk”.Wu tong was a graduate student in a Chinese university. Like many students these days, he was very keen on learning English. He would talk with English speakers as often as he could.One day, he saw a new foreigner on campus, Leonard Ramsay, and overheard him speaking English. When Mr. Ramsay finished speaking with the other person, he turned to go, but Wu Tong stopped him. He went up and said,“ You speak English, is that right?“Yes, why? ”“I d like to practise my English with you, if you dont mind. ”Mr. Ramsay looked a little annoyed.“ I prefer not to, if you dont mind. ”Case 4 An Unwanted Food ServiceDuring a lunch buffet at a conference in China, Wu Fa, the interpreter of the conference,sat with four foreign participants. They were having a good time talking. When Wu Fa stoodup for more food, she asked whether she could bring anything back for them.Everyone thanked her and said“no”. A while later, Wu Fa came back with a plate fullof food, and asked whether the others would like to have something from her plate.Again, the four others said ,“ No”.“ Oh, please take something, I can t eat this much food myself.”The foreigners shrugged and one or two of them even frowned a little.Case 5 Simple Can Be SpecialWen Hong had an American professor in her economics class in China. She had given the professor a lot of help during the course. At the end of the semester， the professor and hiswife invited her to their home for dinner. They said they were going to cook her an American meal.Wen Hong felt very flattered and excited ，since McDonald ， KFC and Pizza Hut had been her only exposure to Western cooking.They had salad to start with ，then steak with potatoes ，followed by ice cream.Wen Hong had expected more courses but the meal came to an end. She knew the professor and his wife were being kind to her ，but somehow she was a little disappointed. She wondered whether Americans do eat like that at home.Case 6 Chinese Coffee CustomsWhile studying in the United States, Lin Jun made a few American friends.One day he invited two of them to his apartment and cooked them a meal. When his friends said they would like some coffee, he started boiling some water.Without asking them any questions, he made three cups of 3-in-1 coffee, the way he usually took it.Both friends tasted the coffee and frowned. One said she always took coffee black ， the other said he preferred to have less sugar in his coffee. They also told him that the spoon is for stirring the coffee ，not to drink from like he did. LinJun was embarrassed. He had thought that everyone drank coffee the same way as he did.Case 7 Noise from NoodlesJane and Peter were Chen Dong s landlord and landlady when he was in the States. They had become good friends by the end of his one-year stay. They kept in touch with each other after Chen Dong returned to China. Jane and Peter decided to visit China soon after Chen Dong left the States.They made a special stop in Guangzhou where Chen Dong lives. Chen Dong had promised to show them around the city and let them try some authentic Cantonese food. One thing ，in particular ，he wanted them to try was noodles. He knew several restaurants that served good noodles and took the couple to one of them for lunch one day.Noodles typically come in soup in Cantonese cooking. Chen Dong started eating the noodles with chopsticks ，while Jane and Peter exchanged a look at the noise that came with his eating. After a little hesitation ，they asked for forks. A waitress told them that they did not have forks ，and Chen Dong explained that noodle restaurants do not usually keep forks because no one would think of using forks for noodles.In the next half an hour ，Jane and Peter had a hard time trying to roll the long noodles onto their chopsticks. Chen Dong said ，“ that s not the way we eat noodles. You put the noodles directly to y our mouth with your chopsticks.”“But that s not the way we eat noo，dle”s Jane and Peter said, frowning.Case 8 Dinner in a Chinese HomeBesides taking Peter and Jane to restaurants, Dong Chen also invited them to his home for dinner once. Dong C hen s mother is a nice wife, and made eight courses for four of them.“Im sorry there isnt much for dinner, she said.”“God this is much more than enough food,” Jane said. Peter was toooverwhelmed to even respond to Dong Chen motherDong Chen was a li ttle embarrassed.“This is whautswueally say to guests，even though there s plenty of foohde expla”inedWhat bewildered Jane and Peter most was that though Dong Chen s mother kept saying that the food was not good ，she constantly served helpings to Jane and Peter Peter did not like two of the courses very much ，and felt bad that his plate was full with whatever he would not be able to eat. At seeing Dong Chens mother s next move to serve him foo，d he said in a begging voice，“ Please don t give me any more food Let me do it myself Case 9A Not-sociable DrinkMartin was sent by an American company to work in a special economic development zone in China for a year. He became very friendly with a few Chinese colleagues. Soon, he started to go out with them. He noticed that Chinese like to have something , such as peanuts, when they have beer, instead of just drinking beer without anything to eat as many North Americans do.One day he was invited to a dinner party to celebrate a colleagues birthday.They ordered alcoholic beverages and toasted the guest of honor frequently. Soon Martin realized that the plan was to get their friend drunk. Each colleague would offer a toast, concluding with a cheery “ gan bei! ” and tried to get Martin to join in, even though he was unwilling to do it. Martin didnt think it a goodidea, and tried to talk them out of the game. However, he was accused of not being a good friend for not co-operating.Martin remained an outsider during the rest of the dinner. He was getting increasingly worried as he watched the poor guest become increasingly inebriated.Case 10 A Misunderstanding at a Dinner TableRoger was a student majoring in East Asia Studies in an Americanuniversity. He started an e-mail correspondence with Zhang Li, a sociology major in China, who was introduced to him through a mutual friend.Upon graduation, Roger got a big gift from his grandfather. Grandpa wouldpay for a round-trip ticket to China. He told Zhang Li the good news, and thetwo decided to meet.Zhang Li decided to give Roger a very special welcome: she and the three women students in her dormitory would cook him an authentic Chinese meal, as Roger had told her that he loved Chinese food.However, when Roger was presented the dinner, he was almost terrified by some of the food: pork stomach soup, pig liver with ginger and spring onion, chicken with mushrooms in which the chicken had been cut to pieces with bones attached to the meal.Fortunately , there were courses like tofu, stirred fried beef, steamed fish and vegetables that Roger loved. He tried to stick to them but Zhang Li kept putting food he did not like on his plate. When she asked how he liked the liver, Roger said, It s very unusualand interesting.“ This seemed to make Zhang Lihappy. And she gave him more liver. Roger tried to stop her, but she would not be stopped. Roger was so frustrated that he told her that he did not really like it that much. “ But you said it was unusual and interesting!”Zhang Li said. “ WeRoger said carefully, trying not tothey both mean something less than positive, hurt their feelings.Zhang Li and her friends became concerned at this.”“ So you don t like thefood? ” I m not used to eating liver, that s all. But I do like the chicken, the beef,the tofu, and the vegetables. I have had more than enough to eat. I never make this much food at home, ” Roger was eager to let them know how much he appreciated their effort.“ Trust me, I m enjoying the food. I know what I like.Having said that, he found a piece of chicken that was less bony, held it in his hand to eat it, and then licked his fingers. Zhang Li and her friends looked at each other in shock.It was not a perfect first meeting for either Zhang Li or Roger.Case 11 Over-dressed TouristsAs a van stopped in front of Niagara Falls, a group of Chinese officials streamed out. They were dressed in suits and ties, wearing leather shoes. Many of the men also had left the manufacture s tag on the sleeve of their suit jacket.As they wandered around Niagara Falls, some of them started to smoke. Their attire drew the stares of North American tourists, some of whom quietly laughed with their friends and pointed at the Chinese visitors. Others frowned at seeing the smoking and shook their heads in disapproval.Case 12 Tie CultureJane was a tourist and spent some time staying with a Chinese friend at her home. They watched a children s porgram while having breakfast one morning.A young man, the host of the program, gave instructions of a game to a few children, and then joined them running in a circle.JaneMy, he s wearing a tie and running crazy with the children!exclaimed.The Chinese friend shrugged,” Is this very unusual?”Case 13 An American in ChinaProfessor Smith and his assistant ， Chen Ming ，were doing fieldwork in a small city in China. It was hot and humid, and both were casually dressed. One evening as they were leaving for dinner ， a local administrator told them that the mayor of the city, who was interested in the type of research they were doing, would like to say hello to Professor Smith. As luck would have it ，the Mayor was dining in the same restaurant as Smith and Chen Ming.Professor Smith said he had to go back to his room to change.“ You look fine，Come on，the mayor is waiting ，” the administrator said.“No, I can t meet the mayor in my shorts”Case 14 The Generosity of a Chinese StudentMatt was invited to a Chinese university to give a few lectures. During his short stay there, a graduate student volunteered to show him around the city. Matt accepted the offer gratefully. It was summer and soon both Matt and the graduate student began to get quite hot. While Matt took some pictures, the graduate student went to buy some drinks.“ Thank you. How much do I owe you?” Matt asked.“ Nothing. ” The student smiled.“ Are you sure? ”“ Yes. ”At lunchtime, Matt suggested they have a quick meal. They stopped by a McDonald. Again, the graduate student tried to pay for Matt.“No, this is my treat. Youre a student, I m a professor. You ve given me thtime to show me around. You already paid for my drink. I can t let you pay for my lunch again. ”Case 15 A Gift from a Chinese StudentXie Dong did his graduate study in an American university. He came back to China for summer vacation. When he went back to his program, he paid his supervisor a visit and presented him a gift.The professor opened the gift. It was a ginseng with its many tiny roots spreading out in a very artistic pattern. It clearly was an expensive gift.The professor s eyes shone at the ginseng, but he then began to feel uneasy.“Xie Dong, I appreciate your kindness, but I can t take this as a gift.”“ Why? Don t you like it? ” It was Xie Dong s turn to be uneasy now.“ Oh, sure, I love it. But I can t accept it.”“Why?”“ Because I didn t do anything to deserve such a gift.”Case 16 Telephone CourtesyKathy and David, a couple from the US, signed a one-year contract to work in China. Both were extroverted and soon made some Chinese friends.Before long, people started calling them at home. David was sometimes away on business trips for a few days, and if someone looked for him, Kathy often would find the conversation awkward.“ Where did he go? ” The caller typically would ask.“ Can I pass on any message? ” Kathy asked politely, trying to avoid the question.“ Is he out of town?”calTlehrewas usually very persistent.“ Yes, can I help you in any way?” Kathy tried to be polite, but she could not helpfeeling uncomfortable.Case 17 “ Not So Close, Please ”He Jia had lived in the United States for 7 years before she came back to work in China. She found that she had become accustomed to social habits in North America and that some Chinese behaviours now caused her some discomfort. For example, one day, back in China, she was in a queue to use an ATM. She had noticed that people were standing very close to each other. In fact, the person behind her could, if she or he wanted, to see her enter the PIN of her ATM card. He Jia wanted to make people aware of the discomfort of the user by keeping her distance from the person in front of her. However, the people behind her pushed her to move forward.Case 18 The Privacy of the PageSimon and Cheng Feng often studied together to prepare for exams. One day, in the middle of a study session, Simon said he wanted to get a coffee. He asked Cheng Feng if he wanted any, but he said,“ No”. When he came back, hefound Cheng Feng reading his notes. He was upset and, although he didn t sayanything at the time, he never studied with Cheng Feng again. Cheng Feng noticed the change and wondered what had happened.Case19 The Privacy of PhotographsRose invited Lili to her home one day. While they were having coffee, Rose showed Lili a few pictures of her boyfriend in a photo album. Lili casually turned to other pages after that.“ I ,I m sorry.Rose stopped her,“ I d rather you not look at other pictures.”Lili was embarrassed, and apologized,Case 20 The Privacy of PriceAfter living in the States for some time, Ping Li observed that Americanslike to comment on each others looks and clothes. nSoshwehseaw a fellowgraduate student wearing a nice dress at a party, she complimented her by saying. “ This is a very beautiful dress.” “Oh thank you , I bought it last yearbefore Christmas , ” the student very pleased.“ How much was it? ” Ping Liasked.“ Well I don t quite remember, ” the student seemed unprepared for the question, and answered a little hesitatingly.Case 21 The Privacy of the PersonZou Qing and Nancy became friends after they met in a course they both took Nancy had had gray hair much earlier than people of the same age ，and had been dyeing her hair for several years.While they were having a break one day in between two classes, and Zou Qing noticed that Nancy had some invisible gray hair on her. She told her so, but Nancy changed the topic right away.When everyone else left ，Nancy said to Zou Qing ，“ Please don t mention my gray hair while there were men around.”Case 22 Unacceptable CuriosityMr and Mrs Peterson came to China with a tour group. One evening, they decided to take a walk outside their hotel. They soon noticed that quite a few people stared at them. One man even quickly walked past them and then turned back to look at them several times. Both Mr and Mrs Peterson feltuncomfortable about the staring and went back to the hotel sooner than they had planned.Case 23 Confusion in Communicating LoveLe, a Chinese woman, and Bill, an American man, were very much in love. Their relationship started with their shared interest in photography. As time went on, however, Le became dependent on Bill whenever she wanted to take a picture, because she felt that Bill was a much better photographer than she was. Whenever she noticed a scene that would make a good image, she would ask Bill to take the picture for her.Bill was not very pleased but did not say anything for a while. However, Le soon got to a point where she began to ask Bill to load and unload the film. Bill decided that it was too much for him to bear. He exploded,“ What s the matterwith you? Don t you know how to load and unload a film? Can t you take apicture any more? ”Le was so shocked that she burst into tears.“ I ask you to do things only becauseyou do it better than me. What s wrong with that?”Case24 Unwanted AttentionTeresa is a Chinese American teaching English temporarily at a Chinese university. She is very easy going, and soon the students got to know her well enough to invite her out regularly.Crossing the very busy and wide streets in the city was a scary experience for Teresa, and she complained of it repeatedly. As a result, the female students began to try to help her by taking her hand or grasping her arm while the male students seemed to be shy about protecting her.Teresa was uncomfortable with her female students touching her, and told the women they did not need to do it. Her female students thought she was beingpolite and continued to take care of her the same way. Teresa became so uncomfortable that she tried to move away from her female students whenever they had to cross the road.Case 25 Holding HandsChris was a visiting professor in China. On one day, one of his students, SunHui, showed him around the city. Sun Hui soon noticed that Chris was interestedin taking pictures of men that were walking arm-in-arm or touching each other when they talked.“ I don t see anything special about those men,” Sun Hui said curiously.“ Well, we don t see much of that in men in the States,” Chris said, “ Thegay, aren t t