High-context Culture and Low高低语境

Supplimentary Materials

1. Key Terms:

1.

Sensation

（感觉）

：

sensation is the neurological process by which people become aware of

their envi ronment.

（感觉是人们意识到周围环境的神经过程）

2.

Organization

（组织）

:

把从周围选择的刺激信息，以一种有意义的方式整理，组合。

3.

Interpretatio n

（释义）

：

Interpretat ion refers to attaching meaning to sense data.

（赋予信息意

义）

4.

High context culture

（高语境文化）< /p>

：

Cultures in which less has to be said or written because

more of the meaning is in the physical environment or already shared by people are labeled

high

context.

（在高语 境文化中，在人们交际时，有较多的信息量或者蕴涵在社会文化

环境和情景中，

或者内化于交际者的心中；

相对地讲，

明显的语 码则负载较少的信息量。

这也意味着，在强交际环境文化的人们对微妙的环境提示较为敏 感。

）

5.

Low context culture

< br>（低语境文化）

：

Cultures in which little of the meaning is determined by

the context because the message is encoded in the explicit code are labeled low context.

（在

低语境文化中，

交际过程中所产生的信息量的大部分由显性的语码负载，

相对地讲，

< br>只

有少量的信息蕴涵在隐性的环境和情景中。

这也意味着 ，

在低语境文化中的人们习惯用

语言本身的力量来进行交际。< /p>

）

2. Additional Information:

?

Supplementary English Case:

6.2.1.a

This demonstrates that even stimuli we can be aware of we do not attend to continually. Being

in

a

busy

airport

terminal

is

a

good

example.

While

there,

you

are

confronted

with

many

competing stimuli. You simply cannot attend to everything. However, if in the airport terminal an

announcement is made asking you by name to report to a courtesy telephone, you would probably

hear your name even in that environment of competing stimuli.

6.2.1.c

Think of how speakers of English categorize life. Most probably use the categories of human

life

and

animal

life.

Now

think

of

how

you

typically

categorize

animal

life:

probably

into

wild

animals and domesticated animals.

Now think of how you typically categorize domesticated animal life: probably into animals use

for

food,

animals

used

for

sport

and

recreation,

and

pets.

Look

at

the

picture

of

the

puppy

and

capture your feelings. Most of us see this puppy in the category of pet for which we have learned

to relate warm, loving feelings. Puppies are cute, cuddly, warm, loving creatures. Now look at the

pictures

below

and

capture

your

feelings.

Most

of

us

who

love

dogs

find

these

pictures

uncomfortable and disgusting. How can people eat dogs? They

’

re pets, not food! It all depends on

where you categorize them. Dogs are pets in some cultures and food in others. In the Arab world,

dogs are acceptable as watchdogs and as hunting dogs but are not kept in the home as pets because

they are seen as unclean and a low form of life. To call someone a dog is an insult among Arabs.

People

in

most

cultures

have

strong

ideas

about

which

foods

are

acceptable

for

human

consumption and which are not. People in some countries think the custom in the United States of

eating corn on the cob is disgusting because that food is fit only for pigs. The Ukrainian favorite

food salo, raw pig fat with black bread and vodka, might cause nausea in some, as would knowing

that horse meat from California is served in restaurants in Belgium, France, and Japan.

Your reaction of disgust is a culturally learned interpretation and that interpretation can be quite

strong.

In

1989,

California

made

it

a

misdemeanor

for

any

person

to

sell,

buy,

or

accept

any

animal

traditionally

kept

as

a

pet

with

the

intent

of

killing

the

animal

for

food.

More

recently,

animal rights groups have protested the sale of live animals, such as turtles, frogs, lobsters, crabs,

fish, and chicken, for food at Asian- American markets. Asian tradition is that fresh meat is tastier

and more healthful, that the best meat is that

“

that enters your house still breathing.

”

Animal rights

activists contend that the animals are treated inhumanely in the shops and are killed in ways that

cause

them

unnecessary

pain.

Asian-American

groups

argue

that

eating

dogs

and

cats

is

an

extreme rarity among Southeast Asian immigrants and call the law and the animal rights activists

racist.

In some cultures, parts of some animals are categorized as medicine. In other cultures, certain

animals are considered sacred and would certainly not be eaten. The Hindu elephant-headed God

Ganesh

is

accompanied

by

a

rat

whenever

he

travels.

Rats,

like

cows,

are

deified

in

India.

No

Hindu worship is complete without an offering to Ganesh and his companion, the rat. Rats are fed

and rarely killed in India.

A case analysis

Can you use Confucianism to explain why Chinese people have both

fan

and

cai

in one meal?

Confucianism encourages a sense of balance and harmony. The distinctive process

of preparing

Chinese cuisine is based on Confucius and his philosophy of balance. There is a division between

fan

,

Chinese

for

grains

and

other

starch

foods,

and

cai

,

vegetable

and

meat

dishes.

A

balanced

meal, then, must have an appropriate amount of

fan

and

cai

.

?

中文补充案例及材料：

6.2.1.a

（选择）英语国家重长大的人对理解某些日语 发音有一定的困难。有些日语的发音

现象在英语里不存在。

例如：

obasan

aunt

obaasan

grandmother

kita

came

kitta

hear

6.2.1.b

（组织）不同国家对颜色的划分不同。

6.2.1.c

（释义）不同的文化对狗的态度不同：西方国 家视之为宠物；韩国视之为美食。

龙在中国文化是吉祥的象征，而在西方文化中却是邪恶的象征。

英语中有，

“

lucky dog

”

“而在汉语中却有“狗眼看人低”

，

“狗仗人势”等词语。

Many people consider dogs as pets, however, in some countries such as Korea, dogs are delicious

food.

Can you explain your feelings about this photograph?

6.3

（高语境，低语境）美国的课堂上经常放映关于日本茶道的电影。日本茶道是道教传统< /p>

的反映，

崇尚精神高于物质，

崇尚繁忙生 活中的安宁。

茶道在和谐的音乐中把主人和客人联

系在一起。< /p>

此处无声胜有声。

一切尽在共同的经历，

一切尽在茶室，

插花，

书法，

瓷器之中 。

茶道是高语境的典型例子。而在低语境中人们会说“快点，喝杯茶！

< br>”茶中没有共同的经历

可分享。

6.3

脸的概念：在中国文化中

face

有两种解释方法：脸和面子。尽管二者可以互换，但意义

却不近相同。脸代表信心而 面子代表荣誉和名誉。

中国的道教有阴阳之分，阴阳是掌控自 然和生命的一种平衡的力量。

中国的食物注重色，香，味俱全是平衡和和谐的表现。

中国就餐时既吃饭又吃菜也是平衡和和谐的表现。

6.3 Cross-cultural tips

6.3.1

跨文化交流中

“