Using words

1
Using words

• The Westerner in China
• wants everything to be translated
• the college president welcomes them to the
  college
• a local official welcomes them to the city
• other organisations they visit welcome them
• discovers that all these speeches sound very
  similar
• and do not contain much specific information

2
Explanation

• High-context culture
• the meaning is in the situation
• the situation determines the words
• may use many fixed phrases
• Welcome you to come again.
• people often just say what they should say in
  that situation

3
Explanation

• Low-context culture
• less fixed phrases
• speeches should contain some new information

4
Formal language and behaviour
Hi!
Gday! (Australian)

• Americans
• often call people by their first name
• may be embarrassed by polite rituals
• Some cultures are more formal
• German Sie/du
• Thai 12 words for you!

5
Sincerity

• Is American informality rude? Lazy?
• Americans value informality
• personal, spontaneous conversation is more
  sincere
• like two friends chatting
• Chinese culture
• carefully follow etiquette to show your sincerity

6
Question

• You meet somebody at work, and invite her and her
  husband to your house for dinner.

• In Chinese culture
• How should the host behave?
• How should the guest behave?

7
Case study Dinner with Friends

• Janice George (American)
• Liu Lingling Yang Feng (Chinese)

8

• Liu Lingling and Yang Feng were busy in the
  kitchen
• Liu invited Janice and George to look at their
  new CD player and colour TV
• half an hour later, she sat down and the three of
  them started eating dinner
• Yang Feng kept bringing out dish after dish
• there was more food than George and Janice could
  eat
• they wished that Yang Feng would sit down so that
  they could talk to him
• afterwards, they were unhappy that they had no
  chance to talk

• Janice and George prepared spaghetti and salad
  (they were lucky to find the ingredients in hotel
  shops)
• Liu Lingling and Yang Feng asked the price of the
  TV, video player, vacuum cleaner, etc
• they took small tastes of the appetizers
• they seemed surprised when Janice and George sat
  down
• they only ate a little spaghetti and salad
• Janice and George talked about their families and
  jobs
• Theyre going to have to eat again when they get
  home!

9
American host-guest roles

• A good host
• provides enough food, but not too much (that
  would be wasteful)
• makes sure everybody is involved in conversation
• A good guest
• is not greedy
• eats everything on their plate, if possible
• compliments the food (but not more than once or
  twice)