When she was questioned by the principal it was true that she kept staring at the floor and refused to meet his eye. And in English there is a saying “Don’t trust anyone who won’t look at you in the eye.”
It so happened that one of the teachers had a Latin American background and knew about Puerto Rican culture. After talking with the girl’s parents, he went to the principal and explained that according to Puerto Rican culture, a good girl “does not meet the eyes of an adult.” Such behavior, he explained, “is a sign of respect and obedience.”
Fortunately, the principal accepted the explanation, admitted his mistake and the matter was settled properly. This difference in interpreting a simple eye gesture was a lesson in cultural diversity that he would not easily forget.
Rules about eye-language are numerous and complex. What has been mentioned gives a good idea of this; we shall not go further into detail.
3.1.4 Smiles and laughter
Smiles and laughter usually convey friendliness, approval, satisfaction, pleasure, joy and merriment. This is generally true in China as well as the English-speaking countries. However , there are situations when some Chinese will laugh that will cause negative reactions by westerners. To illustrate, here is an excerpt from a letter by an American to a Chinese friend on nonverbal gestures that often cause cross-cultural misunderstanding:
“…One is the different meaning of laughter in China and American. When an American is parking his bicycle, for example, and the bicycle accidentally falls over, he feels embarrassed at his awkwardness, and is quite angered and humiliated when Chinese onlookers laugh. I have seen the same thing happen in the dining room, when a foreigner drops a plate quite by accident and feels badly and Chinese onlookers laugh, compounding his discomfort and causing anger and bad feeling.”
Such laughter, of course, is not at the person or his misfortune—whether he be a foreigner or a Chinese. It can convey a number of feelings: don’t take it so seriously; laugh it off, it’s nothing; such things can happen to any of us, etc. However, for people unaware of this attitude, the reaction to such laughter is usually quite unpleasant and often generates ill feeling towards those laughing.
3.1.5 Gestures
Gestures can be particularly troublesome, for a slight difference in making the gesture itself can mean something quite different from that intended. A wrong interpretation of a gesture can arouse quite unexpected reactions.
A well-known case is a gesture made by Winston Churchill, the doughty prime minister who led Britain through the Second World War. As he appeared before a large crowd, he was greeted with cheers and applause. The occasion was a momentous one and Churchill flashed the “V for victory” sign—with the forefinger and middle finger raised to form a “V”. Whether by mistake or ignorance, instead of facing the palm of his hand to the front, he made the “V” with the back of his hand towards the audience. Some in the crowd applauded; some gasped; some broke out in laughter. The prime minister’s gesture, as given, meant quite something else. Instead of “V for victory”, it meant something dirty; it was an obscene gesture!
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关于改革我国中学英语教育的思考
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