新浪教育_新浪网

13：HUMILITY

http://www.sina.com.cn 2003/11/16 18:40 中图读者俱乐部

　谦逊

　PROVERB谚语

　　Chinese Proverb

　　The more noble, the more humble.

　　越高贵，越应谦逊。

　　Pride goes before destruction.

　　骄者必败。

　　American Proverb

　　Too much humility is pride.

　　过分的谦虚就是骄傲。

　　Honesty is the best policy.

　　诚实为上策。

　INTERCULTURAL DIALOGUE跨文化对话

　　Dialogue 1Well Done(干得好)

　　Bob: You did a fabulous job on that report.

　　Chang: We did our best. I wish we’d had more time.

　　Bob: For what? It really couldn’t have been better.

　　Chang: I wouldn’t like to think so.

　　Bob: You mean you left something out?

　　Chang: What do you mean by saying that?

　　Bob:你的那个报告完成得非常好。

　　Chang:我们尽了全力，要是再给我们一些时间就好了。

　　Bob:为什么？我觉得那个报告已经很完美了。

　　Chang:我不这么想。

　　Bob:你是说你漏掉了什么内容吗？

　　Chang:您这样说是什么意思？

　　Dialogue 2

　　In his book“The Importance of Being KeQi,”Yao Wei offers an example of Chinese humility. A Chinese carpenter who has emigrated to the United States goes to a furniture company looking for a job. He is a highly skilled maker of tables with twenty-five years of experience. Yao portrays the interview dialogue as follows.

　　Employer: Have you done carpentry work before?

　　Carpenter: I don’t dare say that I have. I have just been in a very modest way involved in the carpenter trade.

　　Employer: What are you skilled in then?

　　Carpenter: I won’t say“skilled.”I have only a little experience in making tables.

　　Employer: Can you make something now and show us how good you are?

　　Carpenter: How dare I be so indiscreet as to demonstrate my crude skills in front of a master of the trade like you.

　　An American employer at this point might very well show the humble Chinese applicant to the door. But, were he to persist in requesting a sample, the Chinese carpenter would finally (and with continuing expressions of humility as he worked) fashion a veritable work of art, which no doubt, he would describe as the work of a beginner even as the employer admired his speed and skill.

　　姚侠在他的《客气的重要性》一书中写过一个关于中国人谦虚的例子。一个刚刚移民到美国的中国人到一家家具公司找工作。他很会做桌子，并有25年的经验。下面是他面试时和雇主的一段对话：

　　雇主:你以前做过木匠活吗？

　　木匠:我不敢说做过，只不过对此略知一二。

　　雇主:那你干什么活最熟练？

　　木匠:不能说“熟练”，只不过在做桌子方面略会皮毛。

　　雇主:现在你能做件东西给我们看看吗？

　　木匠:我怎敢在大师面前献丑。

　　一般到这种地步的时候，美国雇主会送这个谦虚的中国人出门了。但是这个雇主坚持要面试者做一件样品，木匠只好同意，一件精雕细琢的木制品很快在他手中完成，这位雇主在旁边叹服的时候，中国的木匠还在不停地说这只是一件初学者的作品呢。

　CONCLUSION结论

　　In comparison with the Americans, the humble comunication style is favorable for the Chinese.

　　和美国人相比，中国人更喜欢谦逊的交流风格。

　FURTHER ANALYSIS深入分析

　　Humility applies not only to conversational practices but also to other types of social situations. An amusing example occurs when a large number of Chinese prepare themselves for asgroupsphotograph. All understand that the front row, especially the center-front location, is the place of honor and recognize that proper humility requires that they not willingly place themselves in the front. Even the senior people usually try to remain away from the front row, with the result that everyone begins to crowd /into/ the back rows. After some good-natured scuffling and earnest appeals from the junior members and the photographer to the senior ones, the situation resolves itself properly.

　　中国人的谦虚不仅体现在谈话上，在各种社交场合都会发现谦虚的影子。中国人照群体像时的表现很有趣。所有人都知道前排和中央是最荣耀的地方，每个人都不愿坐在那里以表示自己的谦虚。甚至那些级别高的人也常常不愿立即就位，这样做的结果是所有人都往后排挤。在摄影师和级别低的人的极力要求下，那些级别高的人才慢慢移到前面就坐。

　SELF-TEST自测题

　　How Humble Are You?

　　1. You help another person save a child from a burning building and then leave the scene. The next day, the press is calling YOU the“hero”. Would you set the record straight?

　　2. If you made it big, would you go to your high school reunion just to show off?

　　3. You suspect that your significant other has cheated on you and in retaliation you have a short fling. Months later you find out your suspisions about your partner are wrong. Do you apologize and admit your own indiscretion?

　　4. Do you think your obituary should be a full article with a picture?

　　5. You overhear your significant other say you are the best lover they’ve ever had. Do you think: They’re rightI am.

　　6. When you daydream about your tombstone, it reads: Loved by all.

　　7. Are you a dynamo in the sack?

　　8. Do you have framed pictures of yourself alone, with no one else in the photodisplayed in your house? Don’t lie!

　　9. Would you hire someone smarter than you?

　　10. Do you ask what your country can do for you rather than what you can do for your country?

　　For the above items, the more you answer yes, the less humble you are.

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