Body language in intercultural
communication
Name：李丝雨
Class：商务英语2班
Student Number：1062010112
Abstract: Body language is an important part in intercultural communication. This is a kind of language with no voice. It is the main form of the nonverbal communication. Learning body language can help people to understand the culture in different countries, reducing communicative breakdowns and minimizing misunderstanding caused by cultural differences.
Key Words: body behavior; intercultural communication; cultural difference; nonverbal communication
In intercultural communication, there are two different forms of people’s interpersonal communication, verbal behavior and nonverbal behavior. The body language is a part of nonverbal communication, people use their eyes, facial expressions, gesture to help them express. As a silent language, body language plays an important part in our daily life which can't be substituted by sound language.
Because of the communication parties have different cultural background, in fact, it is mainly about the difference between China and Occident, so different countries or different nationalities have different body language. First, all ethnic cultures have different nonverbal communication. Then, the body language was authorized by usage, so it must have social difference. Third, language is in a continuous change, it keeps pace with the times along with the social development, in the different cultural background, the body language have different develop.
The communicative functions of body languages can generalize into three parts: convey feeling; complement emphasize; conditioning atmosphere. Sometimes, with the limited condition, it is not convenient to speak, so people choose the body language. For example, when the leaders began to talk, they always nod to start. And people can use body language to make self adjustment, when the kids don’t understand some words, they will scratch their heads; when the job hunters go for an interview, they will be pace around if they overwhelmed. These behaviors are almost subconscious, but it must be the real thoughts. Sometimes the verbal behaviors can’t
ensure the accuracy and completeness of the information transfer, the body language can help us to modified and describe. For instance, when someone point the way to others, he will put his hand to that direction naturally when he said go straight or turn left. And the body language can quickly show the emotion sufficient. In most countries, when people want to say yes and express their agreement, they will give a nod. But when Indians want to show their agreements, they will move their heads from side to side, exactly the opposite. And Japanese think nod is a habit, even they don’t agree with you, they still nodded with you to let you talk. The Chinese women like gave the child loving caress of fondness, but the western women are not like this at all. Whatever touch, stroke or kiss, all make them uncomfortable. In western cultural, those actions are considered rude, easy to cause the antipathy.
There are three common gestures in intercultural communication, ring gesture “ok”, “v” and thumbs-up.
First, “ok” means all right in American, but it is mean m oney to Japanese, and it is also mean zero to German, Turks think this is a insulting gesture to them. From shape, this gesture which is a ring made of thumb and forefinger like the Arabic numeral zero. In most English national, the meaning of “ok”means all right, but in other countries, this gesture has special meaning. For example, in France or Belgium, “ok” means zero or have nothing at all. If you show this gesture to Japanese, they may think you want asking for bribes. In some Mediterranean countries, If you show “ok” to a man who is Greek, he may think of you are tell him you are a gay or you think he is a gay. To Turkeys, this gesture has strong insulting, because it is represent anus. In Arab countries, this gesture was unusual, the locals think it as debasing and disgraceful. In the nineteen fifties, Richard Nixon went to Latin American countries, hoped to soothe tensions. When he takes out of the plane, he gave an American “ok” to show his friendly. The end result is the crowd that had gathered booed. He didn’t know there is a big difference between Latin American area and American’s body language, as for the locals, “ok” means you are shit.
Second, because of Winston Churchill use the gesture “v” to express the victory in the Second World War, it became popular. But when Churchill point his two finger straights up, his palm face out. If the speaker put the palm face inside, it will totally change the meaning of this gesture, it will mean contemptible. In Australia, New Zealand, and other British Commonwealth of Nations, this gesture is very popular, it means put your hands up or raise your head. Americans always thought the “v” as two. German will think it is a simple of victory. English consider it as go to hell.
Third, thumbs-up have three kinds of meaning in these countries and areas which are influenced by England. It means you want a lift if you put this gesture to the passing car; next, it means all right, no problem like the gesture “ok”; but if someone thumb up suddenly, it has the insulting. In Greece, if you put your thumb face to the front, it means eat a hold of. And when Europeans are count, the thumbs-up means one, but in most English-speaking countries, this gesture means five.
People’s body language has some similarities, they have trouble with the language, they live in different area, and different cultural background people can have efficient
communication through body language. The similarities body language almost natural formation, but more is acquired. It rooted in their nations, social classes, history of their area, In the globalizes world today, we should learn the difference between different area, it can avoid conflicts in our communication.
Body language is the carrier of culture. There are five types of body language, eyes, gesture, posture, touch and body distance. The eyes means that use the eye to communicate use the eye to send massage.People often compare eyes to the window of mind, and eye contact plays important part in interpersonal communication. From one’s eyes, we can see the person’s inner world. It can help us to solve some barrier in our communication. The Anglo-Americans always pay attention to the eyes contacts rather than Chinese. Because they think less eyes contact means less sincerity, it is also means shyness. But Chinese want to show their courtesy and respect, so they always avoid doing this. With the exchange between Chinese and foreign, the Anglo-Americans often think Chinese look at theirs time to short, and Chinese often feel uncomfortable when Anglo-Americans look at them long enough, especially when an American man look at a Chinese woman. This is because the different cultural setting between Western and Eastern. There are some common to kinds of the Anglo-Americans eyes contact, one is a long time gaze, it means they are interest at you; another is stop look at you, it is means they don’t interest at you, they get tired of it. Chinese like look down to express their modest attitude. For this movement, the Anglo-Americans can’t understand, they think it caused by China’s deeply rooted patriarchal ideology. Gesture means use hand or finger instead of the language communication. The movements of our arms, hands, eyes, and feet constitute another important way in which we broadcast interpersonal data. Many gestures have remarkable regional features. In English countries, people use stand hand and shrug to express they don’t know and have no alternative, but in China, if someone want to show this, they will wave or shake his hand. In English countries, if someone wants to punish himself, he will hit his ears, but in China, people always wiped his face with the back of his hand.1The posture also can reflect the difference between Western and Eastern cultural. In China, we know the importance of collective solidarity, and pay attention to the cooperation. But in American, people emphasized the freedom and individual. In the college course, the American teacher like discuss with his students in the class, their class is free. But this scene in China would be entirely inappropriate. The manner of touch may serve as a reflection of that cultures attitudes and values. Touch means use the body contact to send messages; it is also an important nonverbal communication way. It is used frequently and full of emotional colors, distinctive cultural. The fitness of physical contact is basic in their cultural setting, hug is popular in Western countries, both men and women can embrace in every occasion, but in China, people would be shocked, they think it is over-indulgence. The anthropologist and socialist Doctor Hall advanced 4 kinds of definitions for it. 1. Intimate distance (0-45cm)—proper for spouse and lovers;
2.personal distance (5-120cm)—Proper for friends, acquaintances, and relatives;
3.social distance (120-360cm)—proper for dealing with impersonal thing;
4.public distance (360-750cm)—proper for informal party. Arab and Spanish try to stand close to show friendliness. Chinese people conform to the principle of non-touching culture during the conversation. The important thing to keep in mind is that most English-speaking people do not like people to be too close when doing communication. In intercultural communication, body language is a kind of means to connection, always full of emotional colors. If used well, it can achieve better results. If not, it will be making others unpleasant. So it is important to the English learners to know how significant the body language is, and then improve it.
In intercultural communication, body language an indispensable part, according to statistics, 65% messages send by body language, so we can see how important the body language is. Using body languages wrongly not only makes you fail in interpersonal communications, which would cause conflict in international communication. Study body language can help people understand different countries culture, social customs, and the value, it is contribute to make better communication, avoid the mistakes made by cultural differences, and have successful cross cultural communication.
[1]：杨华，英汉身势与文化内涵对比分析，安徽大学学报，2002
Chapter1.Body language Listening, Speaking, Using English, Writing 一、章节分析（Section Analysis ） (一)综述 本章节是语言运用部分。通过听，说，写方面的训练，提高学生语言词汇方面的能力，加强他们运用语言知识来表达思想感情的能力。针对高一新生情况using language 的任务是培养学生如何正确有效的使用字典，为以后的学习打下基础。 （二）目标 Listening 1帮助学生通过抓关键词培养其听力理解能力。 2听说结合，提高听力教学效果。 Speaking 1帮助学生运用本课关于肢体语言信息，培养他们良好的礼议。 2鼓励学生在此过程中动脑动口，学会推荐自己及如何评价他人。 Using English 1帮助学生如何有效的使用字典。 2培养学生自习自研能力。 Writing 1了解书信式“提醒单（reminder ）”和邀请信的写作思路。 2掌握写作方法。 3根据简要提示写出符合要求的reminder as well as 邀请信。 （三）重点和难点 Listening 培养学生抓关键词汇：adj /adv attentively; politely; serious ,nervous n art; steps; movements; sages; points messages v dance Speaking 通过表演掌握如何推荐自己以及如何评价他人，同时能运用Do’s 和Don’s 句型。Using English 了解字典中不同符号的含义以及如何能有效地运用字典，培养自学能力。 Writing 根据提示写出符合要求的short messages 并能采用生生互评。
Yesterday, another student and I, representing our university's student association, went to the Capital International Airport to meet this year's international students. They were coming to study at Beijing University. We would take them first to their dormitories and then to the student canteen. After half an hour of waiting for their flight to arrive, I saw several young people enter the waiting area looking around curiously. I stood for a minute watching them and then went to greet them. The first person to arrive was Tony Garcia from Colombia, closely followed by Julia Smith from Britain. After I met them and then introduced them to each other, I was very surprised. Tony approached Julia, touched her shoulder and kissed her on the cheek! She stepped back appearing surprised and put up her hands, as if in defence. I guessed that there was probably a major misunderstanding. Then Akira Nagata from Japan came in smiling, together with George Cook from Canada. As they were introduced, George reached his hand out to the Japanese student. Just at that moment, however, Akira bowed so his nose touched George's moving hand. They both apologized - another cultural mistake! Ahmed Aziz, another international student, was from Jordan. When we met yesterday, he moved very close to me as I introduced myself. I moved back a bit, but he came closer to ask a question and then shook my
沟通:没问题吗? 昨天,我和另一个学生代表我们大学的学生会去首都国际机场迎接今年的国际学生。他们是来北京大学学习的。我们会先带他们去宿舍,然后去学生餐厅。等了半个小时后，他们的航班到了,我看见几个年轻人进入等候区，好奇地环顾四周。观察了他们一分钟后, 我便过去和他们打招呼。 第一个到达的是来自哥伦比亚的托尼·加西亚。紧接着是来自英国的朱丽.亚史密斯。在与他们碰面并介绍他们彼此认识后,我（对看到的情景）感到很吃惊。托尼走近朱莉娅,摸了摸她的肩膀，并亲吻了她的脸颊! 她后退了几步，看上去有些吃惊,她举起双手,仿佛在自卫。我猜想这里可能有个大的误会。然后日本的永田明笑着走了进来,同时来的还有来自加拿大的乔治.库克。我为他们作了介绍后,乔治把手伸向了这位日本学生。然而,就在那时田永明鞠了一躬，所以他的鼻子碰到了乔治伸过来的手。他们互相道歉——这又是一个文化上的误会! 另一个国际学生艾哈迈德·阿齐兹,来自约旦。我们昨天见面，我作自我介绍的时候,他靠我很近。我往后退一点,但他又走向前问了我一个问题,然后同我握手。当来自法国来的达琳.库隆从门口匆忙进来时,她认出了托尼·加西亚微笑的面孔。他们握了握手,然后在对方的面颊上吻了两下,因为法国成年人见到熟人就是这样做的。相反，艾哈迈德阿齐兹只是朝女孩子们点了点头。来自中东或其他一些穆斯林国家的男士在谈话时通常站得离其他男士很近，但一般不会和女士接触。 随着认识的国际朋友越来越多,我也了解到更多不同文化背景下的“身体语言”。各种文化背景下人们互致问候的方式不尽相同,相互接触和相互所感到舒适的程度也并不一样。用口头语言交流的同时,人们还使用不出声的语言，通过身体间的距离、动作或姿势来表达他们的感情。比如, 英国人通常不会站在离别人很近的地方，也不会一见面就（用身体）触碰陌生人。不过,来自西班牙、意大利或南美国家的人会站在离别人很近的地方，而且更可能（用身体）接触对方。现在世界上大多数人见面要互握手问候,但有些文化（背景的人）会使用另外一些寒暄方式。比如日本就更喜欢鞠躬。 这些行为都无所谓好坏,只不过是文化发展的不同方式而已。然而,我发现肢体语言的文化风俗是多元的——同一种（民族）文化中也并非所有成员的行为都一样。但总的来说,在当今文化交融的世界，学习不同国家的习俗肯定能帮助我们避免交往中的困难。
P2语篇领悟答案 1．cultures 2.own 3.a 4.they5．may 6.each7.women8.with9．in10.feelings P4 用本单元所学词组、句型翻译下列短文 身体语言是与人交流的一种方式。然而，并非所有的人都可以用同一种身体语言进行交流，有着不同文化背景的人们对彼此的手势很有可能产生误会。比如，我们向某人点头时表示我们同意他的观点，但在有些国家点头表示的是反对；我们认为交谈时正视别人表示我们在认真倾听，但在有些地区却意味着敌视。即使在同一个国家的不同地区也会有不同的身体语言。因此，如果你身在国外，了解当地的身体语言是非常重要的。 Body language is a way of communication. However，not everybody can use the same body language to communicate with others. People from different cultures may misunderstand the gestures they use. For example，when we nod at somebody we mean we agree to his opinion. But in some countries nodding one's head means disagreement. We will look at somebody in the eye to show that we are listening to him attentively，while in some districts，it means hostility. People may have different body languages even if they live in the same country. Therefore it is very important for you to have a good understanding of the body languages there if you are in a foreign country.
Module 11 Body language Unit 1 They touch noses! Lingling: We’re going to have some Russian teachers at school tomorrow, and I’m welcoming the visitors. How do I do that? Betty: Lingling, you know, in Russia, people usually kiss three times, left, right, left. Lingling: What! No, I didn’t know that. We Chinese often shake hands and smile when we meet visitors, and sometimes we nod our heads . But we never kiss. Only parents and children do that. Betty: That’s because people do different things in dif ferent countries. Lingling: So what do people in the US usually do when they meet? Betty: In the US some people shake hands, and some kiss or hug each other. In India people put their hands together and nod their heads. And do your know what Maori people in New Zealand do when they meet? Lingling: No, What do they do? Betty: They touch noses!
Unit2 Body language Debbie and Simon are students. They both have part-time jobs at a travel company. A Well-dressed lady entered the office. She looked at Debbie and Simon, and then walked over to Debbie. Debbie gave her a cheerful greeting. “What’s the matter?” Mr Yang asked. “People always choose choose Debbie instead of me. I don’t understand.” “I do. It’s the way you communicate.” “ How can that be?” Simon asked. “I don’t get a chance to speak.”“Communicating is more than just speaking. Your body language is important too.” “Body language?” “It’s the way you stand and sit. It’s your gestures and the expression on your face. Your whole appearance communicates things. You don’t give people a good impression, Simon. You look down, you never smile and you on’t turn your head towards them. “Look at Debbie. She’s holding her head up. She he always smiles and looks friendly. Her body language is making people feel welcome, so they go to her for help.”
人教版Unit 4 Body Language 教学重点及难点 1. the important points of teaching to understand the different meanings of different body language in different cultures to train students' reading skills by extensive reading 2. the difficult points of teaching to show students how to learn skim, scan and extensive reading 教学过程 step 1. Greeting and revision Step 2. Lead- in Step 3. Pre- reading Step 4. While-reading 1).Fast reading 2).Detail reading Step 5. Post-reading Step 6. Consolidation Step 7. Homework. 出示关于课文的一个问题： 1. How many ways can you think of to greet someone If you CANNOT speak? 然后让学生快速浏览课文，说出自己的感受。 2. 让学生快速阅读课文，回答问题 What's the main idea of the text? 学生回答后询问 From what sentences did you get the main idea,阅读课文，理解课文主旨大意。 3. 让学生仔细阅读课文，在v. -ing 分词语句下画线，说出这些语句的作用：增强了现场感，给读者带来身临其境的感受。阅读课文，理解课文中的语法运用。 4. 学习课文后面的 Discovering useful structures，再次强化v. -ing 结构的运用形态。培养学生运用 v-ing 结构的能力。 1. Listen to the tape and choose the topics of the text. 2. Skim the text and match the topics with the paragraphs. 3. Scan the text and answer the detailed questions. 4. Read the text carefully and fill in the blank. 5. Test about the reading 板书设计
Module 3 Body Language and Non- verbal Communication 推理判断题之写作目的题(阅读理解) 方法指导 推断写作目的的题目题干中常有purpose,或后面需接表示目的的动词不定式等。推断作者写该篇文章的目的,有两大思路,解题时要综合考虑: 1.主旨推断法 写作意图与文章主旨密切相关,因此,解答这类题跟解答主旨大意题和选择文章标题一样,用略读法,即重点关注文章首尾段和各段的首尾句,找到主题句,抓住文章主旨,然后由主旨来推断作者的写作目的。议论文、新闻报道、说明文等,其主题句多在文首。 2.文体推断法 作者的写作目的与文体密切相关。 (1)议论文的目的通常是说服读者接受或赞同某一观点,倡导某种做法等。 (2)说明文的目的是使读者获得某种知识,提出某种建议、劝告或呼吁,或希望引起有关部门或人士对某种现象给予重视。
(3)记叙文的目的一般是分享一段有趣的经历,告诉读者一个有趣的故事,使读者获得乐趣;若是夹叙夹议的文章,则是表达作者的感悟或给读者某种教育或启示。 (4)广告是作者要推销一种产品或一种服务,因此其目的是吸引更多顾客、游客、读者、订户、观众等。 典例引领 El Ni?o, a Spanish term for “the Christ child”, was named by South American fishermen who noticed that the global weather pattern, which happens every two to seven years, reduced the amount of fishes caught around Christmas. El Ni?o sees warm water, collected over several years in the western Pacific, flow back eastwards when winds that normally blow westwards weaken, or sometimes the other way round. The weather effects, both good and bad, are felt in many places. Rich countries gain more from powerful Ni?os, on balance, than they lose. A study found that a strong Ni?o in 1997-98 helped America’s economy grow by$15 billion, partly because of better agricultural harvests:farmers in the Midwest gained from extra rain. The total rise in agricultural incomes in rich countries is greater than the fall in poor ones. But in Indonesia extremely dry forests are in flames. A multi-year drought(干旱)in south-east Brazil is becoming worse. Though heavy rains brought about by El Ni?o may relieve the drought in Californ ia, they are likely to cause surface flooding and other disasters. The most recent powerful Ni?o, in 1997-98, killed around 21,000 people and caused damage worth$36 billion around the globe. But such Ni?os come with months of warning, and so much is known about how they happen that governments can prepare. According to the Overseas Development Institute (ODI), however, just 12% of
阅读课教学设计 教学年级：高一年级 课题名称：Unit 4 Body Language , Module 4（必修） 教材版本：人教课标版 授课时间：40分钟 一、学生分析 高一年级的学生正处在求知的旺盛期，思想活跃，好奇心强。经过1-3模块的学习，学生已经基本熟悉了高中阶段英语教学的特点，逐渐掌握高中英语的学习策略和方法，具备了一定的阅读能力。但不可否认的是，随着高中课程的不断深入，学生原有的阅读水平已经无法适应高中阶段大容量、多文体的特点。学生使用策略进行阅读的意识和能力仍然处在一个较低的水平上，此时，他们更渴望教师在不同文体的阅读策略上加以指导。 二、教材分析 本节课为高一年级必修第四模块，第四单元Body Language中的阅读课，主题为“Communication：No problem?”，属于叙事加议论文体。文章可以分为两个部分，第一部分采用叙事手法，以事件引入的方式来引题，起着为主题铺垫的作用。第二部分采用的是议论手法，围绕段落的主题句“Not all cultures greet each other the same way, nor are they comfortable in the same way with touching or distance between people.”来展开，最后作者提出自己的观点“In general ,though, studying international customs can certainly avoid difficulties in today’s world of cultural crossroads! ”。这是高中必修模块1—5中唯一一篇议论文体的阅读文章，采用的是学生并不熟悉的以尾段突出主题的手法，结构较为复杂。对于学生来说，要找到这两个部分之间的内在关联，读懂其文体特征，进而理解其中心意义存在一定的难度。然而，正因为有这样难度才使得这篇课文成为对师生来说都具有挑战意义的一篇课文。教师可以通过这篇课文的教学，教给学生必备的阅读策略，培养学生的阅读技能，使学生成为一个“高效独立的阅读者”（刘道义，2007）。 三、教学目标 通过本课文的教学，学生能： 1．运用议论文的阅读策略辨别出一篇文章的主题句、支持句和结论；利用课文中学到的关键信息以书面方式条理清晰地写一篇小议论文； 2．掌握与本课主题相关的生词，解读其中的长难句；
U2 Body language 语法，词汇与练习 一、动词-ing形式作主语 作主语的动词-ing形式具有名词的特征，有时又称为动名词。 1. 动词-ing形式作主语时，谓语动词用单数； ?当作主语的-ing短语太长时，常用it作形式主语，而把-ing短语置于句子后部。 注意：在下列句式中常用动词-ing短语作主语。 It is no use/no good/useless/senseless/fun/nice/a waste of time + doing. 二、动词-ing形式作宾语 动词-ing形式作宾语时常跟在一些特殊的动词或动词短语的后面，如： 动词：admit, appreciate, avoid, consider, delay, dislike, enjoy, finish, forgive, imagine, keep, mind, miss, practise, resist, suggest 等 短语：can’t help, feel like, give up, put off, be worth等 注意： 1. allow, advise, forbid, permit等词后面可以直接跟动词-ing形式作宾语，也可以 接sb. to do结构。 如：They don’t allow smoking/us to smoke in the meeting room. 他们不允许在会议室吸烟。 2. forget, remember, stop, regret, try, mean, go on等后接动词-ing形式和不定式的含义有所不同。如： I regretted making the speech at the meeting. 我后悔在会议上作了发言。 I regret to tell you that you are fired. 我很遗憾地告诉你，你被解雇了。 3. need, require, want作“需要”讲时，后面可以接动词-ing的主动式或不定式的被动式，其含义相同。如： My bike needs repairing/to be repaired. 我的自行车需要修理。 Language（常用短语搭配） be interested in, give up, think about, such as, feel like, insist on， the key to, prefer to, look forward to, be/get used to(习惯于), take to, pay attention to, in addition to…