Question

 

Misunderstanding means East-West cultural clash. A failure to understand different customs lead to misunderstanding.

A common example of this clash occurs in China when Westerners complain that the Chinese are noisy and impolite, and feel uneasy with the questions: "Where are you from?" "Where do you work?" "How much do you earn?" "Are you married?" One Westerner has described this question and answer process as a "Laowai (foreigner) Litany." It's not surprising that foreigners in China who are not familiar with Chinese culture would be shocked by the questions and might feel that Chinese were meddling in their affairs.

Why do Chinese and Westerners have opposite behaviour in public and in society? Cultural differences partly explain this. Chinese culture is founded on collectivism. Instead of considering themselves individuals, Chinese are, above all, members of a community. They identify more with employees of the company, citizens of the country, husbands or wives, or fathers. They are used to thinking of groups. With this community spirit, it's not uncommon to approach others with questions. So, "Where are you from?" could mean "I'm interested in you and ready to be your friend;" "How much money do you earn?" could mean "If you don't earn enough to feed yourself, I'm happy to invite you to share my rice porridge;" and "Are you married?" could mean "If you're still single, I'll help you find a girlfriend."

For Chinese, asking a stranger questions is a normal way to show sympathy and to invite someone to have a friendly conversation. Chinese on a 10-hour train ride would be considered impolite or even arrogant if they refused to ask or answer questions. That is why a Chinese train ride is always happy and animated for Chinese, but can be noisy for a European.

Western culture is based on individualism. A Westerner sees himself or herself both as an individual and member of a community. Thus any insistence on communicating through questions might be considered annoying. In Europe, a person on a 10-hour train ride, will be considered polite if he or she wants to keep silent for the whole journey. This is also why train rides in Europe are agreeably quiet for Europeans, but possible painful for Chinese.

There seems to be fundamentally nothing wrong with being interested in strangers, depending on the circumstances, but either asking questions or not asking questions could prove indelicate. Whoever you are, be relaxed and polite no matter whether you get intrusive questions or a perfunctory hello.

1.Which is wrong about the above four questions in paragraph 2 ?

A. The Chinese use them to show their sympathy.

B. The Westerners will be shocked at these questions

C. They are often asked to open a conversation by Chinese people.

D. They imply the spirit of individualism.

2.According to the passage, all the following shows the culture differences between we Chinese and the Westerns except_________________.

A. the Chinese consider themselves to be members of a community while the Westerns don’t

B. western culture is founded on individualism

C. your questions will annoy a Westerner if he/she doesn’t want to communicate

D. train journey in Western countries are often quiet but noisy in China

3.On a ten-hour train ride___________________________.

A. the Chinese will probably talk with strangers happily

B. the Westerners are certain to talk with strangers

C. it is impolite for both the Chinese and the Westerners to keep silent

D. it is often painful for the Westerners to be in silence

4.The underlined word “animated”(in paragraph 4) possibly means_______________.

   A. causing shameful feelings               B. filled with noise

   C. full of life and spirit                    D. important and agreeable

5.The main idea of the passage is probably_____________________.

A. we shouldn’t ask the Westerners the four questions

B. culture differences may lead to misunderstanding

C. it’s wrong to be interested in strangers

D. asking a stranger questions is a normal way to show sympathy

 

Answer 1

【答案】

1.D

2.A

3.A

4.C

5.B