勺
︾全‘︸
肠
吵宜之
OnCulturalDifferencesofBodyLanguages
betweenEnglish，RussianandChinese
YangHua
SuPervisor:ProLZhuY血e
SehoolofForeignStudies
AnhuiUniversity
APril，2003CONTENTS
勺‘，JAeknowledgements
Abstraet(English).
Abstraet(Chinese)4
户、J11以
114户fJ
︸、J11勺白
ChaPter1Introduction.·.·.·.·.··········································……
1.1TheDefinitionofBodyLanguage..................·················……
1.2TheOverviewofPreviousStudiesofBodyLanguage..……，..……
1.1，口.气j，J
ChaPter11CulturalDiffereneesofBodyLanguagesbetween
English，Russian&Chinese.............................................……
2.1CulturalDiffereneesofBodyLanguagesbetweenEnglish，Russian
&ChineseinSPiritualstratum...............................……，.……
2.2CulturalDiffereneesofBodyLanguagesbetweenEnglish，Russian
&ChineseinInstitutionalStratum...................................……
2.3CulturalDiffereneesofBodyLanguagesbetweenEnglish，Russian
&ChineseinMaterialStratum........................................……
2.4AnExPerimentontheExtenttoWhichThreeAsPectsofCulture
InnuenceBodyLanguages......·.·..··········································……
八UO内j444
Chapter111Studying&TeaehingtheCulturalDifferencesof
BodyLanguages
1Principlesforstudying.·.········································……
ZNeeessity&WaysofIntroducingCulturalDifferencesofBody
，J气」
LanguagesintoForeignLanguageTeaehing
或U4ChaPterIVConelusion
，了0044SeleetedBibliograPhy
n，4
APPendix1Questionnaires二
APPendix2IndextoFiguresACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
DuringmystudyintheSehoolofForeignStudiesofAnhuiUniversity
forthemaster’5degree，1leamedalotunderthesuPervisionofthose
leamedeXPertsandseholarsinlinguistiesandliteraturefields.Their
industriousworkandenthusiastieeneouragementhavebeenaconstant
insPirationtome·
IwouldliketotakethisoPPortunitytoeXtendmygratitudetoallthose
whohaveofferedmetheirhelPinmystu即andinthecourseofwritingmy
thesis，ineludingProf.HuaQuankun，Prof.HongZengliu，Prof.Zhou
Fangzhu，Pro:ehenzheng几，Pro:巨亘夏互园，Pro￡HeGon自ie，Pro￡
LiYongfang，Prof.TianDebei，andProf.Zhangming·
Myindebtedness15duePartieularlytomysuPervisor，Prof.ZhuYue，
forhisvaluablesuggestionsandinsPiringeomments.1am
himforhisPatienthelPandPreeiousadviee.Withouthis
comPletionofmythesiswouldhavebeenimPossible.
alsogratefulto
instruction，the
Finally，gratefulac知owledgementsaremadetomyclassmatesfor
theirsuPPortandkindeneouragements.AbstTSCt
Bodylanguages，asimPortantPartsofnonverbalcommunieation，
ineludegestures，faeialexPressions，Posture，eyecontaet，touch，body
movements，ete二Therearesimilaritiesbetweenbo勿languages，butmost
ofthebo勿languagesvaryeulturally.WiththedeveloPmentof
interculturalcommunieation
，thecontactsbetweentheChinese，theEnglish
andtheRussianPeoPlesareontheinerease，andthediffereneesbet、veen
bo勿languageshavebeenamongthemajorbarrierstoeffieient
eommunieatiofl.
ThePresentPaperfirstmakesacontrastivestu勿oneultural
differencesofbodylanguagesbetweenEnglish，RussianandChinese，then
elassifiesthediffereneesofthebodylanguagesbetweenthet}lree
languagesintosPiritual，institutionalandmaterialdifferences.Inaddition，
thePaperPutsforwardthreePrinciPlesguidingthestudyoftheeultural
extensionsandtheirdifferenees.Finally，thePaperholdsthattheeultural
eXtensionsofbodylanguagesshouldbeintrodueedintotheteaehing
activitiestocultivatethestudents’all一roundcommunicativeeomPetence.
TheoriginalityofthisPaPerliesintheelassificationoftheeultural
differeneesofthebodylanguagesofChinese，EnglishandRussianillto
threelevels:sPiritual，institutionalandmaterial.ThePaperholdsthatthe
sPiritualfactorsarethemainintemaleausesoftheculturaldiffereneesof
thebodylanguages，theinstitutionalfactorsaretheextemaldrivetothe
formationoftheeulturaldifferencesofthebodylanguagesandthematerial
factorsaretheembodimentandtheimPortanteonditionsofformingtheir
diff七rences.
ThePapersuggeststhatthestudyofthePrinciPlesoftheeultural
differeneesofbodylanguages15eondueivetotheunderstandingofthe
valuesystem，moralstandard，customs，historiealbaekgroundandmodeof
thinkingofanationandcomestotheconelusionthatthestudyofbody
languagecultureshouldeonstituteanimPortantPartofthesecondlanguage
teachingandlearning.
Keywords:intereulturalcommunieation:bodylanguage:
eulturaldifferenees;foreignlanguageteaching摘要
体态语作为非言语行为系统中最重要的组成部分，包括目光语、
手势语、身体姿势等多个方面;各语种体态语之间具有一定的共性，
同时也存在着很多的文化差异。随着跨文化交际的日益频繁，英俄汉
“三方交际”也呈渐多之势，三方体态语的文化差异己是交际的主要
障碍之一。
正文首先概述了国内外体态语及体态语文化差异研究现状;其后
从精神或观念性差异、制度性差异、物质性差异三个方面对英俄汉体
态语的文化差异进行了分类;接着本文阐述了体态语文化差异的研究
和教学问题，提出了研究体态语的文化内涵及其差异三个原则，并强
调重视将文化内涵导入教学活动之中以促进现代高等外语教学的发
展。
本文的创新之处在于将“英俄汉体态语文化差异”的研究归类于
各自“主导文化”(mainculture)差异的“精神或观念性差异”、“制度
性差异”和“物质性差异”三个层面之中。本文认为:在形成差异的
三方面因素中，精神或观念性因素是形成英俄汉体态语文化差异的“内
在因素”，制度性因素是形成英俄汉体态语的文化差异的“外在驱力”，
而物质性差异则是英俄汉体态语文化差异的重要表现及
其形成的重要
条件。
本文提出研究体态语文化差异的原则对理解体态语所属语言国主
流文化的价值观念、道德风尚、风俗习惯、历史背景、思维方式等多
重文化内涵有一定帮助;为了培养高校学生全方位的跨文化交际能力，
本文还提出:应加大外语教学改革力度，重视将体态语的文化内涵及
其差异导入教学活动之中。
【关键词】跨文化交际;体态语;文化差异;外语教学ChaPter1Introduetion
1.1ThedefinitionofbodyIanguage
Bo勿language(alsokinesies)，whiehineludesgestures，faeial
eXPressions，Posture，eyeeontact，touch，bodymovements，ete.，15amost
imPortantPartofnonverbaleommunication.Ithasfive一nain
eommunieativefunetions:rePeating，eomPlementing，regulating，
contradietingandsubstituting.
AceordingtoLan’yA.Samovar(2000:149)，nonverbalcommunication
involvesallthosenonvethalstimuliinaeommunieationsettingthatare
generatedbyboththesourceandhisorheruseoftheenvironmentandthat
havePotentialmessagevalueforthesoureeorreeeiver.GenerallysPeaking，
iteanbeelassifiedintofourgrouPs:(l)bodylanguage(2)Paralanguage
(silence，tum一taking)(3)objectlanguage(PhysiealapPearanee，smell)(4)
environmentlanguage(themessagesofsPaeeandtime，thearrangeme
一
ntof
settingand50on).
Thusthetermbodylanguageshouldnotbeeonfusedwiththeterm
nonverbaleommunicationandgesture.TherelationshiPbetweenthese
threeconceptscanbeillustratedbyFigure1.
Figurel
Nonverbalcommunieation
Bodylanguage
gggestureee
1.2TheoverviewofPreviousstudiesofbodylanguage
Theseientifiestu勿ofbo勿languageeanbetracedbacktothetimeofaneientGreece.ThefamousPhilosoPherAiistotlefirstmadeananalysison
humans’aetionsbywhiehhumansexPressedtheirideasandwishes.As
timegoeson，bo勿languagehasdeveloPedintoaninterdisciPlinarysubject
eoneerningbiology，linguisties，sociology，Pedagogy，Politicalseieneeand
themostimPortantofall，anthroPologyandeommunieativeseience.
Sincethe1950’s，manyworksonbo勿languagehaveapPearedinthe
areaofsoeiologyandanthroPology.ManyanthroPologists，suel，as
AmerieanseholarsRayL.BirdwhistellandJuliusFast，basieallyfoeused
theirstudiesontherelationshiPbetweenbodylanguagesand
eompnunication，ThetermKinesicswasinitiatedbyBirdwhistellinhis
IntroductiontoKinesicsin1952.Itreferstotheseieneestudyingthebo勿
language，anditstask15toformandeodehumans，actionsandbo勿
behaviorsinordertostudysystematieallytherelationshiPbet、、厂een
nonverbalbodymovementsandeommunication.AnotherAmeriean
anthroPologistFastinhisBo办La双gu哪矜in1970thoroughlydiseussedthe
eommunieativemeaningsandfunetionsofbodylanguage.
InUSAin1959，EdwardT.HallPublishedhisbookTheSl’lent
Language，whieh15takenasthefirstandfoundationalbookofanew
diseiPlineInterculturalCommunicatl’On.Thenfrom19605to19705，with
therapiddeveloPmentofintereulturalstudies，alotofworksinthis
researehareawerePublished，suchasASelectedReaderbyDavidHooPes，
Intor
culturalCommunication:AReaderbyLarrySamovar&Rieliard
PorterandAnIntroductiontoInterculturalCOmmunicationbyJohn
Condon&FathiYousef(HuM/enzhong，1999:10一11).Thestu勿ofbo勿
languagehasbeeomeanimPortanteomPonentofthediseiloline
InterculturalCommunicationbeeauseofthesignifiealltrolesitPI即5ineommunicationanditseulturalvariations.
Ontheonehand，thefurthersociologiealstudieshaveProvedthatbody
language，asthebasiceomPonentofnonvethalbehaviors，Playsan
imPortantroleinhumans’eornn以unieation.ft15saidthatinconversationthe
eommunieativemessageseonveyedbyverbalbehaviorsonlyeonsist30%
ofthewhole，andtheothermessagesarealleonveyedbynonverbalmeans
(basieallybo勿language).PsychologistAlbertMehrabianevenProPoseda
formula:“thetotaleffeetofaPieeeofeonveyedmessage=7%ofwords+
38%ofvoiee+55%offacialeXPressions，，(丫认ngZijian，1990:577).
Althoughwedonotknowwhetherthesefiguresareaecurate，atleastthey
letusseethesignifieantroleswhiehbo勿languagePlaysin
communication.Ontheotherhand，seholarshavefoundthatbodylanguage
15alsoaPartofeultureand15eharaeterizedbynationality.Itscultural
variationsalrea勿beeomeaehiefbarriertointereulturaleommunieation.
From1970’5theformerSovietlinguistsalsobegantheirstudieson
eulturaleonnotationsoflanguageandbodylanguage.Theynamedthenew
diseiPline刀晚、:eoc刀IPa、oe功e、ue(thesimilarnameinEnglishmaybe
La双gu以ge浅Culture).AmongtheworkstherePresentativeonesare
Language浅Cultureby1.M.Vereshchagin&VG.Kostomarovwhowere
thefounder-membersofJI衣“ZeoC卿l〕aHo6edeHue，TheoreticalFO双ndati()ns
ofJlu、。eoc刀军，a、ooejeouebyGD.Tomashinand50on.Ineontrasttothe
studiesofM/estemseholars，theformerSovietandnowRussianlinguists
studybodylanguagewithaliteraryapProaeh，that15tosay，theytryto
analyzemeaningsandfunctionsofbodylanguagewithexamPlesfrom
classicliteraryworks，agoodattemPtatcombiningbodylanguagestudy
withlanguageorliteraryteaehing.Seholarsathomehavealsocontributedalot.InChinatheseientific
studyofbodylanguageonlybeganattheendof1980’5.TherePresentative
worksareIntroductiontoBodyLangu以gebyGengErling(1988)，
LanguageandCulturebyDeng、认nehangandLiuRunqing(ChapterXIV)
(1989)，PractiealBodyLangu以geeditedbyFanYunhuaandLiJiequn
(1991)，LanguageandCulture:IntroduetiontoRuSSian
刀晚。:eoc刀碑Pa、oe动eouebyGuYijinandWUGuohua(Volume11)(1991)，
InterculturalCOmmunicationbyJiaYuxin(1997)，InterculturalNonverbal
Communieatl’OnbyBiJiwan(1999)，andtheseriesofbookson
interculturalcommunieationeditedandtranslatedbyHuM/enzhongsuehas
IntroduetiontoInterculturalCOmmunication(1999)，ete二Theauth(》rof
thisartielehasalsomadeasurveyonChin澎5aeademiePeriodicalnetwork
(https://www.doczj.com/doc/fb4084851.html,).Theresult15:intheseetionsof“ArtsSeienee，，and“GeneralEdueationandSoeialScienee，，from1994to2002，theauthol内lias
hit79p即ersaltogetherbytyping“体态语”or“身势语”aske卿ordsand
7p叩ersaltogetherbytyping“体态语文化差异”or“身势语文
化差
异”askeywords·
GenerallysPeaking，theChineseseholars’studiesonbodylanguages
eonsistoftwoParts:communieativefunctionsandeulturaldifferences.On
thebasisofforeignseholars’researehesChineseseholarshaveaddedrnore
sPeeifieandeonvineingexamPlesfromChineseeulture.
Judgingfromwhat15mentionedabove，weeanseethateultural
differeneesofbodylanguage，asbarrierstointereulturalcommunication，
havealrea勿drawnaninereasingattentionfromscholars.
ButthePreviousstudiesonbodylanguagesareeitherfoundinthe
studiesofintereulturaleommunication，刀欢H己eocn护aHoe动e月ueand
nonvethaleommunication，whiehonlyeonsistofseveralParagraphsorPagesandarefarfromdetailedstudies，ortheyjustmakebriefeomParisons
ofbodybehaviorsinmanydifferenteultureswithmanydisereteexamPles，
whicharenotsystematic.Untilnow，therehasbeennoresearchdoneonthe
culturaldiffereneesbetweenthebodylanguagesofChinese，Englishand
Russian，nottomentiontheintroductionoftheeulturalextensionofbody
languagesintoseeondlanguageteaehing.
OnthebasisofthePreviousstudiesandachievements，thisPaperfirst
foeusesacomParativestudyofeuituraldiffereneesofbo勿languageson
threelanguages:English，Russian，andChinese.Withtherapid
develoPmentoftheworldeeonomy，Political，eeonomieandeultural
interehangebetweenChina，America，Britainandotherwestemeountries15
beeomingincreasinglyfrequent.Suchbeingtheease，theeontactsbe认veen
ChinesePeoPleandforeigners，esPeeiallyPeoPlefromEnglish一sPeaking
eountriesandRussia，areinereasing.IneommunieationPeoPleare
encounteringmorebarrierseausedbyeulturaldifferenees，ineludingthe
culturaldifferencesofbodylanguages.
ThePaPerthenelassifieseulturaldiffereneesofbodylanguagesof
eachmaincultureintothreestrata:sPiritualstratum，institutionalstratum
andmaterial.Intheauthor’5oPinion，thestudyofeulturaldiffereneesean
beconduetedattwolevels:atthefirstlevelthestudy15foeusedon
Phenomenon(differeneesthemselves);attheseeondlevel一ontheeauses
ofdiffereneesWhieharedeePlyrootedineulture.Theformertellsuswhat
15different，whilethelattertellsuswhytherearesuehdifferenees.This
Paper15justanattemPttomakeastudyofeulturaldiffereneesofbody
languagesattheseeondlevelthroughanewelassifieation，whieh，inthe
author’5oPinion，eanhe1Pusbetterunderstandtheeultureofastudied
language·FinallythePaperPutsforwardthreePrinciPlesofstu勿ingcultural
differeneesofbo勿languagesandProPosessomeeoneretewaysof
introdueingresearehaehievementsintoforeignlanguageteachinginorder
tohelPteachersandstudentsunderstandtheculturalconnotationsofbo勿
languagessuehasvaluesystem，moralstandard，eustoms，historieal
backgroundandmodeofthinkingofanationandcultivatestudents’
all一roundintereulturaleommunieativeeomPetenee.
lOChaPter11CulturalDifferencesofBodyLanguagesbetween
English，Russian&Chinese
Theeulturaldiffereneesofbo勿languagesbetweenEnglish，Russian
andChinesearethemajorconeemonwhiehwearetofoeusoureffertin
thisehapter.Firstofall，letusseetherelationshi
Pbetweenthesethree
languagesinthelanguagefamiliesoftheworldillustratedbyFigure2.
FigureZ
世界语系
thelanguagefamiliesoftheworid
汉藏语系
theSino一Tibetanfanlily
印欧语系
theIndo一EuroPeanfamily
阿尔泰语系等其他语系
theAltaiefamily，etc.
缅甸语等
BuTrnese一改C.
日耳曼语族
Gerrnanic.
斯拉夫语族
S】avie.
意人利语族等其他语系
Italie.ete二
西日耳曼语支
W己stGermanle.
东斯拉夫语支
EastSlavie.
汉语
Chinese
英语
English.
俄语
RUSSisn-
Thetermeulturehasbeendefinedinmanyways.Herewejusttalk
abouttherePresentativeonesandtrytobringforwarditsconcePtinthis
PaPCf·
Theearlyw七stemdefinitionsl叮PartieularstressonsPiritualeulture.A
tyPicalexamPle15SirEdwardTylor，whoPresentedthefirstimPortant
anthroPologiealdefinitionofeultureinPrimitiveCulture(1871).He
(1979:13一14)definedeultureas“thateomPlexWholeWhichincludesknowledge，belief，art，law，morals，eustomsandothereapabilitiesand
habitsacquiredbymanasamemberofsociety，，.LaterAmeriean
anthroPologistsOghumandHengesrevisedTaylor’5definitionby
suPPlementingmaterialstratum.AecordingtotheeXPlanationof”Cihai”，
thegreateneycloPediadictionaryoftheChineselanguage，eultureinits
widestsensereferstoallthematerialandsPiritualcapabilitiesaequiredby
manandallthematerialandsPiritualwealthereatedbymanintheeourse
ofsoeialPractiee:initsnarrowsense，eulturereferstosPiritualeapabilities
andProducts，ineludingallkindsofideologies.
“从广义来说，指人类在社会实践过程中所获得的物质、
精神的生产能力和创造的物质、精神财富的总和;从狭义来
说，指精神生产能力和精神产品，包括一切社会意识形式”。
(《属幻翻1999:4365)
TosumuP，thePaperagreesthat“eulture15creationactivitiesand
aehievementsofthemankindassoeialgrouPs，，(M尼1Guangqi，2000)，i.e.in
thisPaper，culture15denotedinthebroadsenseandeultureeanberoughly
dividedintothreestrata:sPiritualeulture，institutionaleultureandmaterial
culture(SeeFigure3).
Figure3
Culture马
InstitutionalSPiritual
(theCore)
Material月
SPiritualculture15refleetedininvisibleformswhiehresultfrom
PeOPle’5thinking，includingideologies，values，
standards，beliefs，
themind(works
eoneePtsoftimeandsPaee，
waysofthinking，aesthetie
and50on.It15Productsof
ofPhilosoPhy，historyandliterature，forexamPle).It15
l2tangible，andmostsPiritualeulture15indiseemible，that15，imPlieit，hidden
andabstraet.SPiritualeulture15themoststablestratum，thecoreofeulture.
玩eontrastwithsPiritualeulture，institutionaleulture15refleetedthrough
socialregulationsandrulescommonlyabidedbyPeoPleinthesamesoeiety，
usuallyreferringtothosethatareusedtoadjusttherelationshiPbetween
https://www.doczj.com/doc/fb4084851.html,ws，regulations，systems，organizations，ete.
belongtothiscategory.Materialeulture，asthetermitselfsuggests，15
eonerete，substantialandobservable，whieh15reflectedthroughrealthings
，
suchasbuildings，elothes，food，tools，https://www.doczj.com/doc/fb4084851.html,uallytheyarewhatweean
seeandwhatweeantouch.
Thestudyofeulturaldiffereneescanbeeonductedfromvarious
PersPeetives.TobegeneraliteanbeeonductedfromthePersPectiveofthe
East&thew亡st:tobesPeeifieitcanbeeonduetedfromthePersPectivesof
raee，nationality，nationalarea，socialrank，oeeuPation，sex，age，
environment，anditeanevenbeeonduetedfromthePersPeetiveofanytwo
individuals.Aeeordingtosomeseholars’oPinionssuchasMarshallSinger，
everyone’5eulturalbackground15individual.That15tosay，infact，culture
variesnotonlyintereulturally，butalsointraculturally，andevenwith
differentindividuals，50whenwecometothestudyofeulturaldiffereliees，
firstofallweshouldehoosetheobjeetofstudy.
ThePaPeragreeswithProfessorHuW已nzhong(1999:7)whoholdsthat
viewedfromtheereatorsofeultureandthesubjeetsoftheeultural
aetivities，there15aMAINCUIJUREamongdifferentculturalasPeetsin
everycountryornationality，Whlehshouldbethemajorobjectofourstu勿.
ForexamPle，inChinatheHanculture15themainculture.Andtheothers
suehasarea，socialrank，oecuPation，sex，ageareSUBCULTURES，认·hieh
areintheseeondPlaeeofourstudy.ThediffereneesbetweenindividualsareonlymeaningfulwhentheyarerePresentative.
Ontheonehand，therearesimilaritiesbe朴刀eenbo勿languagesin
differenteulturesbecauseofbiologiealnature.ForexamPle，inmost
countriesandnationalitiesPeoPlesmilewhentheyarehapPyandtremble
whentheyfeeleold:ontheotherhand，mostbo勿languages，justlike
verballanguage，arenotbiologicallyinheritedbutaleamedbehavior
acquiredfromPeoPle’5eXPerieneeanduPbringinginthesoeietytheyare
bominto，thereforeabodylanguage15eloselyrelatedtosoeietyandshaped
byeulture.IndifferenteountriesandnationalitiesbodylanguagesVary
culturally.
ThisPaperelassifiesculturaldifferencesofbodylanguagesaeeording
tothethreestrataofeachmainculture:sPiritualstratum，institutional
stratumandmaterialstratum.
2.1CulturaldiffereneesofbodylanguagesbetweenEnglish，Russian&
ChineseinsPiritualstratum
、乞riousnationalitiesereateeachuniquecultureinitseommon
language，eommonregionandeommoneeonomielife，intheeourseof
whiehtheeulturalviewsformthelivingsouloftheeulture(W亡1Guangqi，
2000).Itrunsthroughalltheeulturalactivities，叭d15manifestedineaeh
eomPonent:religiousbeliefs，values，Psyehology，thinkingandbehavior
PattemsandProduetsofmindsuehasbodylanguagestudiedinthisPaper.
AlthoughsPiritualeulture15indiseemible，itsimPaetonsoeiallife15great.
ForeXamPle，thefamousPsyehologistSigmundFloydholdsthatone，s
behaviorsresultfromhisownunconseioussPiritualaetivitiesor
Psyehologicalactivities.LuXungaveuPPractieingmedicineresolutelyin
1904andbeeameawriterinordertosavethenation，holdingthatthe
l4imPactofsPiritualfaetorsonculture15thegreatest.
ThusthePaperholdstheviewthatsPiritualfactorsaretheintemal
causeofeulturaldifferencesofbodylanguage.
2.1.1Culturaldiffereneesofreligiousbeliefs
HumansfeltagreatPsychologiealneedforsuPemat
uralPowersin
fearofdeathandtheuneertainfuture.Thisleadstohumans’worshiPPingto
gods，i.e.religiousbeliefs.Andwethinkthis15thereasonwhyreligions
canstillexistanddeveloPinmodemsocietywithhighlydeveloPednatural
seiencesandsoeialseiences，suehasinUSA.Howevef，indifferent
historiealPeriodstheinflueneesofreligiousbeliefsoneultureandtheir
manifestations，suchaslanguageandbo勿language，areindifferentways
anddifferentdegrees.
InearlydaysreligionProdueedaverygreatimPaetoncultureand
involvedalmostalltheasPeetsofsoeiallife.Outofthesacredfaithand
worshiPPingtomysteriousnaturalPowers，alotoftabooseameintobeing，
ineludingverbalandnonvethaltaboos(behaviortaboo，diettabooete.)
WiththedeveloPmentofsoeiety，theimPactofreligiononculture
subsidesgradually.Thoughtheinflueneeofreligion15beeomingweaker
andweaker，itsimPactonlanguageandbodylanguage15obvious，beeause
bothverballanguageandnonverbalbodylanguageareformedgraduallyin
thelonghistoriealriver.Theculturaldiffereneesofreligiousbeliefsarea
greatPartoftheculturaldiffereneesbetweenbodylanguagesinEnglish，
RussianandChinese.
TakethegestureforPrayingforexamPle(seeFigure4)
l5Figure4
BBBo勿勿InEnglishandRussiannnInChineseee
lllanguageeeeeee
https://www.doczj.com/doc/fb4084851.html,ingrighthandtorowaerossbyyyPuttingPalmsss
rrrayingggtouchingforehead，belly，leftshoulderrrtogethef，withouttt
aaaaandrightshoulderinProPerorder，thennnwaggingorwithhh
eeeeerossingfingersofbothhandsorrrwagglnggg
PPPPPuttingthePalmstogether:::::
22222.CrossingfingersbyPuttingmiddleeeee
fffffingeronforefinger(astheidiomgoesssss
“““KeePyourfingerscrossed!”)(thiswayyyyy
ooooonlyexistsinEnglish，seeFigures)))))
Cross15thesymbolofChristianity.Jesuswas
ontheerosstodedieatehimselftorescuingand
redeemingthemankind(Jesuswasbetrayedbyhis
diseiPleJudasandkilled勿theRomangovemor
PontiusPilateontheeross).GodoftheTrinity15
boththeCreatorandtheSavior.HeembodiesthegreatestProvidenceof
Godtothemankind.50，sincerelybelievinginChristianity，theBritonsand
AmericansPrayforhapPinesswiththisgesture.
TheEastemOrthodoxinwhiehmostRussiansPuttheirfaith，together
withtheCatholicismandtheProtestantismarethethreegrouPsof
Christianity.TherelationshiPbetweenthemeanbeillustratedbyFigure6.
gure6(耶稣创立的)基督教
Christianity
公元1054年分裂
天主教Catholieism
(罗马公教或加特力教)正教Orthodoxia(东止教)
16世纪土教产生
新教Protestantism
(主要包括“路德”、“加尔文”和“安立甘”二宗)
我国所称“基督教”、“耶稣教”多指新教
16Christianity，whiehwasfoundedbyJesus，sPlitin1054A.D.:one15
Catholieismandtheother15Orthodoxia(alsoEastemOrthodox).Thenin
the16thcenturytheProtestantismbrokeawayfromCatholieism，ineluding
Lutheranism，CalvinismandAnglieanCommunion.Christianityinour
eountrymainlyreferstoProtestantism.
EasternOrthodox，CatholicismandProtestantlsmtaketheOld
TestamentandtheNewTestamentastheHolyBible，50inthisresPectthe
culturaldifferencesbetw
eenEnglishandRussianarefew.Thebody
languagebywhiehRussiansPray15similartothatofBritonsand
Americans.
InChinesethegestureforPraying“PuttingPalmstogether，，camefrom
Buddhism.Thisgesture15thesaluteofBuddhists.PuttingPalmstogetiler
meansthatBuddhistsareeoneentratedandtheywanttoexPresstheir
resPeetandhoPe.PuttingPalmstogether15aetuallytheetiquettethat
aneientIndiansdid.Indiansthinkthattherighthand15thesaeredhand，
whilelefthand15thenethand，50Indiansusedtousetwohandsfor
differentPurposes.ButwhentheyPutthescaredandthenethandstogether，
itsymbolizesthathuman，5saeredside15unifiedwithhisnetside，认·hich
indicateshuman，5truth，honesty，PietyandresPeet.Sineethefoundati(，nof
Buddhisminthe1stheenturyB.C.，thisetiquettehasbeenadoPtedin
aetivitiesofBuddhism.Inabout64A.D.Buddhismwasintroduced
northwardstoChina.Consequently，thisgesturebecomesPartofthebody
languageofChinesetoo.
It15veryinterestingthattoaPiousBuddhistthegesture“PuttingPalms
together，，15doneonlywhenbothhandsarelifteduntilbeforetheface，
moreover，bothhandsshouldnotbewagged.ButWhenforeignersmake
thisgesture，theyusuallyaddsomeeXtrabo勿movements，suehastuming
roundPalmsornoddinghead，whiehmakesfuninstead.TheChinese认‘ay
l7ofmakingthisgesture15ofteneomPaniedwithwagginghands，nodding
head，andevenwithexPressingwishesorally.
ThegestureforswearingeanserveasanothertyPiealexamPleofthe
differeneeofreligiousbeliefs.(SeeFigure7)
Figure7
BBBodyyyInEnglishhhInChineseee
lllanguageeeeeee
SSSSS1.Raisingrighthand，PalmoPen，andddSwearingbyPointinggg
WWWeaflflgggsometimesPuttinglefthandon”theeeforefingertotheee
HHHHHolyBible””heavenorthesun(尽sss
22222.OnlyholdingtheHolyBiblehighlyyytheChineseidioms9000
bbbbbyrighthanddd“指天誓日”or“指天天
发发发发誓””
Becauseofthesimilarreligiousbaekgroundsthegesturesforswearing
inEnglishandRussianarestillbasieallythesame.
InChinesethegesture“指天誓日”or“指天发誓”eomesfrom
Taoismwhlehhashadahistoryofmorethan1800yearsandinflueneed
ChineseeulturedeePly.AecordingtothereligiousdoctrineofT’aoism，
太上老君15themostreveredandrespeetedGodandthesun，themoon，
thestarsete.shouldbeconcurrentlyworshiPPedtoo.Moreover，Taoism
holdsthattheworldeonsistsoffourParts:”Heaven，，，”Ground，，，”Human，，
and”Devil”.Amongthem”Heaven，，15themostsacredandlofty，50when
ChineseusethisgesturetoexPresstheoath，itmeanstheyareveryserious
andwillfulfilltheirPledgeconseientiouslytoo.
2.1.2Culturaldiffereneeofvalues，Psyehology，thinkingandbehavior
Patterns
IntheeourseofintereulturaleommunicationtheimPaetofvalues，
Psyehology，thinkingandbehaviorPattemsonbodylanguage15Profound.
l8ItmakesPeoPleexPressthemselvesuneonseiouslybythebo即languageof
theirownorinterpretothers’bodylanguagewrongly一aecordingtotheil·
owneulture一whichusuallyleadstoeommunieativeeonfliet.Nowlet’s
seesomeexamPles.
It15saidthatshakinghands15anoldeustomofthePrimit
ivePeoPlein
theStoneAge.Meetingeaehother，PeoPlePutdowntheeluborsharpstone
forhuntingtoholdahand，inordertoshowthattherewasnohostility.
Nowadaysthegestureofshakinghands15widelyusedallovertheworld
forgreeting，nevertheless，culturaldiffereneesstillexist.(SeeFigures)
Figures
BBBo街街InEnglishandRussiannnInChineseee
lllanguageeeeeee
SSShakingggHoldinghandstightandattheeeHoldinghandslooselyanddd
hhhandssssametimeaneye一eontaet1555tryingtoavoidadireettt
卜卜嘿粼粼requiredddeye一cofltacttt
TheChineseholdthatit15modestandeleganttoshakehandsloosely
andavoidadirecteye一eontaet，esPeeiallyWhenthereareoPPositesexes.
HoldinghandstightandlookingateaehotherdirectlymakestheChinese
feeluneasyand15takenasaveryroughbehavior.Ontheeontrary，Britons，
AmerieansandRussiansareunhapPytoholdhandslike“adeadfish，，
becausetothemadead一fishhandshakeshowsPeoPle，5wea幻less，
reluctance，evencontemPt.Inaddition，intheireulture，greetingortalking
aeeomPaniedbylookingdirectlyattheother’5eyes15asignofhonesty，
otherwise，thePeoPletheygreetwouldbeconsidereddishonest，frightened，
orabsent一minded，astheAmerieanidiomgoes“Don’tbelievethosewho
darenotlookstralghtatyoureyes.，，W亡thinkthis15thereasonwhythe
ChineseareoftenmisunderstoodbyRussiansaseunningorunreliabletoo.
l9MyeolleagueElla，aU扮aineteacher，teaehesRussianinourSchoolmore
thanfiveyearsandnow15alreadywellaequaintedwithChineseeulture.
SheoftensaystheChinesewayofhandshake15oftenandveryeasily
misunderstoodbyforeignersbeeauseofthetotallydifferenteultural
eoneePts.Evenknowingthis，she15stillhardlyabletogetusedtoit
Psyehologieally.Moreover，Russiansthinkit15veryunluckytoshake
handswhilestePPingonthethresholdorthroughthedoor.Thereisa
ProverbinRussian“qePe3noPorHe3瓜oPoa盯Le只，He6ee邻oB盯b，，.
AnothertyPiealexamPlewhiehcanillustratetheimPactofcultural
PSychologyonbo勿language15theeoneePtof“theevileye，，.Ineontrastto
EnglishandChineseculture，theeoneePtof“theevileye，，，whleheomes
fromtheaneientRomanculture，hasProdueedagreatin1Pacton
PsyehologyofRussians.Theybelievethattherearedevilsinthebaekof
theleftshoulderintheunseenworldandtheirevileyeeanbring
misfortunestopeople.“毒眼会把人看坏(eoas，eoasHT、)，’(Zhao
Minshan，1996:301).50asforthePosition，therightside15Preferredin
Russianculture.Andinordertoavoidmisfortuneseansedby“theevileye，，，
RussiansusuallydonotsPeakthegoodwordsinadvanee.EsPeeially，they
avoidPraisingexeessivelysuehas“Youareveryhealthy!”，“Youdri、re50
well!”Instead，theysaysomehostilewordstoeXPresstheirsineerewishes·
Forinstanee，towishotherPeoPlesuccesstheyusuallysay:“HHnyXa，HM
nePa!”(Wishyoueanhuntnothing，evenaPieeeoffeatller!):thebestway
towishothersagoodtriP15toseoldhimeeaselessly.Asforbodylanguage，
whenRussianshearexcessivePraiseorblessing，orseecatonthel·oad，
whieh15takenasunluekythingsinRussianculture，theysPit3times
behindtheleftshoulder
，andatthesametimeusuallysay“Tb中y!几中y!
XoTL6HHee双asHTb!”orstrikewoodwithhandinordertoavoidlrotlbles
20andmisfortunes.
Therearestillmanyotherbodybehaviorsvaryingculturallyinthis
category.Forinstanee，almosteveryonehastheeXPerieneeofPointinga
wayforothers.Haveyouevernotieedthedifferenceofmakingthisgesture
betweenPeoPlefromdifferenteountries?FromehildhoodChineseare
taughtthatit15imPolitetouseforefingertoPointatthings.Thiseonee:Pt15
alsoreflectedinlanguage.Aswe知ow，theChineseidioms“指指点点”，
“指手画脚”and“指桑骂槐”eontainthederogato汀sense.This15thesame
withRussian，astheRussianPhrasegoes“HeToKa益Tenan、玖eM.”(Donot
usethefingertoPointatthings.)TotheChineseandRussianstheWhole
Palmshouldbeusedinstead.However，asforBritishorAmerieanPeoPle
thenameoftheforefinger15“indexfinger，，，50theydonotthinkit15arude
gesture.
AnothersimilarexamPlethateanbePresented15thegesturefor
beekoningsomeonetocome(SeeFigureg).
Figureg
BBBodyyyInEnglishandRussiannnInChineseee
lllanguageeeeeee
““ComeeeHandextendedtowardPerson，，Handextendedtowarddd
hhhere，，，closedhand，PalmuP，withhhPerson，oPenPalm，Palmmm
(((beckoningggforefingerontymovingbackanddddown，withallfil、gersss
SSSOineoneeeforth(inChina，thissameeeerookedinabeckoninggg
tttocome)))gesturewouldbeeonsideredddmotion(inRussia，thissameee
oooooffensivebymany)))gesturemeansgoodbye)))
TOChinesetheEnglishorRussianwayofmakingthegesture15
inapProPriate，becauseChinesejustmakethesamegestureforbeckoning
2lehildrenoranimals:sometimesthisgesture15eonsideredoffensiveby
many，50itevenmayarousetroubles.ButifRussiansseetheChinese’
beckoninggesture，theywould90aw即insteadofcomingnearer，because
theythinktheChinesejustsaygoodbyetothemnonverbally.
Inaddition，shruggingshoulder15widelyused
byBritish，AmerieanandRussianPeoPletoshow
thatone15indifferent，Powerlessorhavingno
seerettoeoneeal.Butthere15nosuehkindof
gestureinChinesebodylanguage.(SeeFigure10)
Figure10
2.1.3CulturaldiffereneeofProduetsofmind
BodylanguagecanalsobeshapedbyProductsofmind.Itreferstothe
imPaetofworksofPhilosoPhy，naturalseieneesandsoeialseieneeson
bodylanguage.
Takethewell一知owngesturefor“vietory，，forexamPle，whieh15now
widelyusedallovertheworld(SeeFigure11).
Figure11
BBBo街街InEnglishhhInRussiannnInChineseee
lllanguageeeeeeeee
ttthegestureeeWiththeeeOriginallythereee1OriginalWay:::
ffforrrforefingerandddwasnogesturesforrrraisingbotharmsss
““vietory，，，middlefingerrr“victory，，，nowalsooohighly，wagginggg
影影影raisedtofon刀刀usethegestureeehands:(SeeFigure12)))aaaaa“V，，，withtheee“V，，，butshouldnottt2NowthegestureeePPPPPalmofhandddmakethisgestureee“V，，15alsoused，，
tttttowardsothersssabovesomeone，sssmoreover，thesalneee
hhhhhhheadddgesturehasanotherrr
mmmmmmmmmeaning“Two，，，
Figure12
条了犷
︾嘎歼It15saidthatthedoughtyPrimeMinisterWinston
Churchillfi
rstmadethisgestureduringtheSeeondWbrldWar
22toshowhiseonfideneeofthevictoryovertheGermanFaseism.The
gesture“V，，juststandsfor“vietory，，.Beearefulthattherightwayof
makingthisgesture15faeingthebaekofyourhandtoyourself.
“AsheapPearedbeforealargecrowd，hewasgreetedwithcheersand
apPlanse.TheoecasionwasamomentousoneandChurehillflashedthe‘V
forvictory’sign……Whetherbymistakeorignoranee，insteadoffacing
thePalmofhishandtothefront，hemadethe“V，，withthebackofhis
handtowardstheaudienee.SomeinthecrowdapPlanded;somegasPed:
somebrokeoutinlanghter.ThePrimeMinister’5gesture，asgiven，meant
quitesomethingelse.Insteadof“Vforvietory，，，itmeantsomethingelirty:
itwasanobseenegesture!”(Deng、认nehangLiuRunqing，1990:135).
AlthoughRussiansandChinesehavealrea勿aeeePtedthegesturefor
“V，，inEnglish，therearestillsomedetailstowhiehyoumustPayattention.
InRussiayoushouldbeearefulwiththewayofmakingthisgesture.Ifthe
gesture15madeabovesomeone’5heed，thiswillleadtotroubles.Beeause
inRussianitreferstoananimal’5homandsymbolizescuckold，asthe
Russianidiomgoes“太eHaHaeTaBH二aPoraM哪y.(He15aeuekold)，，.In
Chinesethisgesturemoreoftenmeans“Two，，，50youshouldeonsiderthe
situationsfordeeidingitsmeaning.
Thegesture“OK，，alsocomesfromtheEnglishlanguage.Britonsor
Americansusethethumbandforefingertoformaringstandingfo一the
le枕er“O，，，withtheotherthreefingersraisedtoformtheletter“K’，.
OriginallytherewasnosuehkindofgestureinRussianandChinese.“OK，，
meantnothingtoRussiansandChinesebecauseofthe
differeneebetweenlanguages.ButalongwiththedeveloPment
ofintereulturaleommunieationthisgesturehasalreadyeome
intothebo勿languageofRussianandChinese.(SeeFigure13)
23ThegesturesfornumbersareformedundertheinflueneeofProductof
mindtoo.Thefigure14wellillustratesthediffereneesofgesturesfor
numbersbetweenEnglish，RussianandChinese.
Figure14
English
{{{{{少少橙橙影影{{{肇肇嚼嚼{{{
00000111222333444
誉誉誉馨馨嗜嗜{{{嘴嘴令令
55555666777888999
Chinese
誉誉誉澎澎曝曝曝曝{{{誉誉
lllll222333444555
寥寥寥参参色色龟龟留留
666667778889991000
RllSSian
誉誉誉澎澎背背嚼嚼{{{誉誉
11111222333444555
GenerallysPeaking，weshouldPaymoreattentiontothegestures
standingforthree，six，seven，eightandninebecauseinEnglishand
Chinesethesegesturesdifferalotandoftenleadtomisunderstandingin
24communication.ForexamPle，theChinesegesturefornumber“eight，，15
justtheformoftheChineseeharaeter“八，，，buttoforeignersitmorelikes
theformofaPistol.InRussianthereareonlygesturesfornumbersfrom
onetofive.
Inaddition，thewaytoeountonfingers15differentinthesethree
languagestoo.TheEnglishway15raisingfingersbyturns，beginningwith
therighthandfromforefingertothelittlefingerandendingwiththethumb
ofthelefthand.TheRussianway，ontheeontra叹叭15bendingfingersby
turns，beginningwiththelittlefingerandendingwiththethumb.(Liu
Guangzhun
，1999:106)TheChineseway15similartotheRussianway，but
differsintheorderofbendingfingers.Itbeginswiththethumbandends
withthelittlefingeL
2.2CulturaldifferencesofbodylanguagesbetweenEnglish，Russian&
Chineseininstitutionalstratultt
Professor认/angYuesheng(2000:10)ofBeijingUniversitydefines
institutionas“thecom们nunicationrulesfornledafternumerouseonflicts
andcomPromisesintheeourseofeommunieating，，.
AfamousAmerieanscholarSamuelP.Huntington(1989:12)，the
authorofTheClashofCiviliZationsandtheRemakingof肠rldOrcler，also
ProPosesthatinstitutionrefersto“stea勿PeriodicbehaviorPatternsthatare
treasured，，.
Fromtheabovementioneddefinitionsweeancometotheconelusion
thattheinstitutionaleulture15manifestedinregulationsand山les
eommonlyabidedbyPeoPleinthesamesoeiety，ineludinglaws，
regulations，systems，customs，morals，https://www.doczj.com/doc/fb4084851.html,uallyPeoPleareforeed
toabidebytheserules.Thusinstitutionaleulture15theextemaldri、:eto
formtheeulturaldiffereneesofbodylanguagebetweenEnglish，Russian
25andChinese.
sllnO2.2.1Culturaldiffereneeofmorals，soeialregulatio
MoralsandsoeialregulationsProdueeimPactmanyasPeetsof
eulture，ineludingbodylanguage，andsomeofthemhavealrea勿beeome
rulesthatPeoPlemustabideby.
TakegreetingforexamPle.(Seefigure15)
Figure15
BBBo勿勿InEnglishhhInRussiannnInChineseee
lllanguageeeeeeeee
KKKKKAformofgreeting，，Aformofgreeting，1555Nosuehformmm
IIISSinggg15onlyamongtheeeamongtheoPPositeeeofgreetinggg
oooooPPositesexesorrrsexesorPeoPleoftheeeee
aaaaarnongWomeflllSa们neSeXXXXX
It15saidkissingandhuggingalsoeomefromtheaneientRoman
culture.IntheaneientRomewomenwerenotofequalsoeialrankwith
men，50onlymenwereallowedtodrink.Thuswhenmeneamehome，the
veryfirstthinghedidwastosmellhiswife’5liPstoeheckifshehaddrunk
aloneathome.AfterPassingthroughmanygenerations，thisformof
greetingusedbyaneientRomanhusbandsandwiveshasbeeomemodem
etiquettebetweenmenandwomen.”
NowadayskissingeanbegivennotonlyonliPs，butalsooneheeks，
onhandsete二Thewayofkissingvarieswiththeeountrlesandthe
relationshiPsbetweenPeoPle.
InUSAthekissing15onlyamongtheoPPositesexesoramongwomen.
TobesPeeifie，Parentsusuallykisskids’forehead:kidskissParents’lower
jaw:friends，relatives，elassmatesoreolleaguesofthesamegeneration
oftenkisseaehotheroncheeksorjustsymbolieallytouehoneheeks:
kissingonliPsandhuggingusuallyonlytakePlacebetweenloVerSor
26betweenhusbandandwife.
TheBritishculture15moreeonservative.Thisfeature15refleetedin
manyasPeetsofitseulture，suehasPolitieal
monarehy，aneientbuildings，evenweights
measures一GB，5.ThustheBritonsare
system一eonstitutional
alld
also
eonsideredreservedineommunieation.Forgreeting
theyoftenshakehands，theydonotkissandhug50
oftenlikeAmerieansdo，butthewayofkissingand
hugging15similartoAmerieans.Moreover，inthe
uPPersoeiety
kissingladies’
exists.(Figure
andtheseholars’circletheetiquetteof
(notgirls’)handstoshowresPeettohonorablewomenstill
16)
Maybe
，theformingofthisetiquette15relatedtothedressinghabits.
W七knowthatBritishladiesusedtowearbigskirts，50itwasnot
eonvenienttokissladies’cheeks.
HereanotherPoint15worthnotieing.IntheeoneePtofBritishand
Amerieaneulturesthemenwhokissandhugeaehotherareusually
susPeetedtobehomosexuals.Basedonthisidea，theyaeeePttheelose
Physiealcontaetbetweenmen，sometimesevenwomen，i.e.PeoPleofthe
samesexasahomosexualrelationshiP.W七thinkthis15whyw已stemers
visitingChinaforthefirsttimeareoftensurprisedtoseeinChinathattwo
youngfriendsorstudentsofthesamesexoftenwalkwiththeirarms
aroundeaehothers’shouldersorholdinghands.Tothemit15notaProPer
behavior.
InsoeialintercourseRussiansoftenshakehands，hugorkisseaeh
othertoo.IneontrastwiththewaysinUSAorIJK，thehuggingandkissing
betweenRussianmenareanormalsoeialPhenomenon，indicatingnothing
butafriendlygreeting.Moreover，thehuggingbetweenRussians15ealled
27“thebear’5hugging，，beeauseRussiansliketoshowtheirwarmthand
enthusiasmthroughanexaggeratedhugging.
玩Chineseeulture，beforetheSongDynasty，therulesofintoraction
betweenmenandwomenwerenotveryeonservative.Theeultural
environmentandSocialeustomshadbeenquiteoPenuntiltheSuiandT么ng
Dynasties.Forinstance，therelationshiPsbetweenmenandwomeninthese
two勿nastieswerenotrestrietedverymuehbeeausesomeoftheleadersof
thetwodynastiesbominnoblefamiliesinwestChina’5ShanxiPro、了ince
werecloselyrelatedtominoritxethniegrouPssuehasXianbei，which
eouldbewellillustratedbymanyPaintingsoftheThngDynasty.However，
havingleamedthelessonsofthecollapseofPreviousdynastiescausedby
betrayalorrebellionoftooPowerfulsubordinatesorgenerals，theemPerors
ofNorthSongDynastybegantostrengthentheconcentrationofPowerand
imPosedrigorousmoraledueationandeontrolonthesoeiety.Inlinewith
Politiealneeds，LismorNeo一Confueianism(aConfueianschoolofidealist
PhilosoP冲ofSongandMingDynasties)eameintobeingduringtheNorth
SongDynasty.InadditiontoestablishingarigidsoeialorderamongPeoPle，
TaoismorLismalsoquotedandcreatedmany50一ealled“etiquettecanons，，
toPreventdireeteontactbetweenmenandwomenbeeause“It15the
eonventionthatmeflandwomenshollldnotbeindireettouChwitheaeh
other.”(《孟子·离娄》:“男女授受不亲，礼也。”)That15tosas，menand
womenofonefamilyshouldnotsittogether，orhangelothesinthesame
Plaee，orusethesametowelorcomb，orPassthingfromhandstohands.
Sisters一in一la、vandbrothers一in-la、veannottalktoeaehother.Whena
marrieddanghterreturnshome，herbrothersshouldnotsittogetherwith
herattableorusethesa们nebowltohaveameal.
Sincetherewere50manystrietrulestorestriettheinteractionbetiveen
menandwomenevenwithinthesamefamily，it15easytounderstandwhy
28theChineseeanhardlyaeeePtkissingorhugginginPublieasafonnof
greeting.
ThetraditionalChineseformofgreetingformen15bowingormaking
ashortbowbyelaspingone’5handsbeforetheehest(“作揖，，):andfor
womenit15makingacurtsy(“道万福”).It15obviousthatallthese
Praetice
swerePossibletokeePPeoPlefromPhysicaltouehing，however，
nowadaysthesegreetingformsarebasicallyrareoutsideofmovies
dePietinganearliertime.
GenerallysPeaking，weholdthattherestrictionsandfettersformed
duringtheNorthSongDynastyandafterhaveanegativeimPactoneulture.
A且erthebaPtismof小eM盯4‘hMovement，ehineseeulturehas
alreadybeeomemuehmoreliberal，butveryelosePhysiealeontactbetween
oPPositesexesinPublicremainsinapProPriate，eventaboos.M爬aresure
thatwiththereformingandadvaneementoftheChinesesoeietythe
restrictioninthisasPeet15tendingtosubside.ForexamPle，in
eommunieationwithforeignerstheleadersofoureountryalreadygreetby
kissingandhugging·
2.2.2Culturaldiffereneeoflaws，rules，systemsandorganizations
AlthoughthegunwasfirstinventedinChinainthe1ZtheenturyAD
(In1132AD，duringtheSouthSongDynastytheChinesestrategistChen
Guiinventedakindofgun.)，whenitwasintroducedintoEuroPeinthe
13theentury，itsfurtherdevelopmentinEuropeandi娜actonEuropean
eulturewasmuchmoresignifieantthaninChina.
TheimPactofotherweaponssuehas知ifeorswordonChinese
eulture15greater.InChineseelassienovelsoroPerasthere15aeommon
seene:afterthefeudaloffieialshavesettledalawsuit，Pronouneingdeath
sentenee，theyusuallysay:“Pushoutandbeheadhimorher!”TheChinese
29gestureindicatingbeheading15illustratedbyFigure17
SeverelawsaPPlied饰theRussianemPerorsof
Pastageshaveaverygreatinflueneetoo.It15said
thatinthereignofPetertheGreat，indealingwiththe
rebellion，799soldierswerekilledjustfromtheendof
SePtembertoOctober1698，corpseseouldnotbe
Figure17
eleaneduPforfivemonths.(Russia，H.I.Paplenko，TheBlog忆岁匆ofPeter
功eGreat:ehaPte:111).In彻ssia，sineethel6‘handl7‘heenturies，出elnain
squareofacity，forinstanee，theRedsquareofMoseow，hadalwaysbeen
ehosenforcarryingoutdeathsentenees.Theeitizenswerecalledtogether
eithertolistentothegovemmentdeereesPromulgatedbyezars，orto认厂ateh
deathsentencesbeingearriedout.Thereusedtobetwowaystoearryout
deathsentenees:one15beheading，theother15hanging，buttheformer15
theusualway.Thusthesquarewheredeathsenteneesusedtobeearriedout
15ealledtheforeheadPlace夕7d6Hoe，eemo)，referringtothePlaeeof
emPerororthePlacewheresomeonegetsbeheaded.Theterribledeath
sentenee15vividlyrefiectedinRussianbodylanguage.(SeeFigure18)
Figure18
BBBodyyyInEnglishhhInRussiannnIllll
lllanguageeeeeeeChineseee
https://www.doczj.com/doc/fb4084851.html,ingPalmtoeuttheneckkkUsinggg
https://www.doczj.com/doc/fb4084851.html,ingtheforefingertoooPalmtooo
kkkillingorrrforefingertoformmmeirelearoundtheneek，thennncuttheee
sssuicideeeaPistol，PointingggPointinguPwardsandddneckkk
tttttheforefingeratttshakingtheheadorshowinggggg
ttttthetemPlesssthewhitesofone’5eyesssss
AnotherasPectofthiscategory15thattherearemanysPecialbody
movementsinChinesebeeauseofthediffereneeinPolitiealsystemsand
ideology.Forinstanee，ChineseYoungPionee扩5salute(raisingtheright
handabovethehead)，differfromthoseinEnglish.Certainlythiskindof
30bodylang
uageusedtobeveryeommonintheformerSovietUniontoo，but
fromtheRussianforeignteaeherandsomeothernativesPeakerswegetto
knowthatinRussiaaftertheehangeofPolitiealsystemandideology，these
bo勿behaviorsgraduallydisapPeared.
Inaddition，thedifferentworkingdiseiPlineseanalsoleadtodifferent
bodylanguages.Forinstance，inw己stemeountriessuehasGreatBritain
andAmericaifyouwanttoeallothers，attention，interruPtatalkoraskfor
PermissiontomakeasPeechatameeting，youshouldlifttheforefinger.It
15thesilent，，Exeuseme”.However，inoureountry，wearealwaysrequired
toraisethehandbeforemakingasPeech.
2.3CulturaldiffereneesofbodylanguagebetweenEnglish，Russian&
Chineseinmaterialstratum
Likelanguage，bodylanguagealsoeameintobeinganddeveloPsin
human’5laborduringalonghistoriealProeess.Bothofthemaretheresults
ofhuman’5interactionwithenvironmeflt，50thesoeialactivitiesofeachera
andmaterialachievementsinevitablyleavemarksonlanguageandbody
language，whiehareembodiedinPhysicalProduets，suehasarehiteeture，
dressing，eatinghabitsandtoolsete.Thebodylanguagesbelongingtothis
categoryjusteannotsendmessageswithoutrealthings.Forinstanee，if
someonedoesnotstandontheroad，ifthere15nomotorvehielerunningon
theroad，thegesture“thumbuP，，willnotbeinterpretedassomeonewants
togetafreeride.Inthissense，thePaperholdsthatthediffereneesin
materialstratumarenotonlytheembodimentofeulturaldiffereneesof
bodylanguagebetweenEnglish，RussianandChinese，butalsothe
imPortantconditionofformingdifferenees.
2.3.1Culturaldiffereneeofeatinghabits
3lThehistoryofmakingandeatingbread15over5000years.Aeeording
tohistoriealreeords，PeoPleinancientEgyPt(in4000B.C)begantoPay
taxesbybread.Romans，forthewealthintheNileandNorthAfriea，such
asWheat，bread，eonqueredEgyPtandbroughtthemethodofmakingbread
toEuroPe(In30B.COetaviusledtheRomanannyandannexedPtolemaie
DynastyinEgyPt).IntheMiddleAges，i.e.thefeudaleraofEuroPefrom
476B.C(theextinctiontimeofthewestRomankingdom)to1640A.D.
(thetimeofBritishbourgeoisrevolution)，whltebreadwasthefoodthat
onlythenoblemencouldenjoyandwasasymbolofhighsocialPosition.It
evenmadethesocialstatusofbakershigheratthattime，beeauseitwas
stiPulatedatthattimethattenantfarmersshouldnotrubflourormake
breadbythemselves，theyeouldonlyeatthebrownbreadmixedwith
imPuritiesgivenbyfeudalbarons.ThegestureofPuttingbreadintothe
mouth15themarkofeatingbreadfor1500years.
50farasRussians’eatinghabitsareeoncerned，ontheonehand，the
ladle15themosttraditionaltablewareofRussians.Theknifeandforkwere
introducedintoRussiafromthew已stlateron.Accordingtothe
introductionofforeigneXPerts，evennowadaysintheeountrysideofRussia
alotoffamiliesstilluseladlesbasieallytohaveameal.Ontheotherhand，
oneofthemostfamousRussiandishes15theredsouP“坦H，，.Thereare
someveryfamousProverbsaboutitinRussianlanguage，suehas“HeTa
xo3，益Ka，姗oP既roBoPHT，aTa，二To坦HBapHT’，(ToapPraiseahousewife，s
workoneshouldnotseehowshesPeaks
，buthowsheeookstheredsouP)，
“坦H及aKauja一nH坦aHaoa:坦H及aIcama一M盯、Hama，，(TheredsouPand
gruelareourfood，theredsouPandgruelareourmother)，that15tosaythe
redsouP15oneoftheRussians’staPlefood.Thelevelofeookingthered
souPhasnearlybeeomethequalificationstandardforahousewife.
Aeeordingtowhat15mentionedaboveweeaneasilyunderstandwhyin
32RussiathegestureofeXPressingeating15toformaladle.
UsingehoPstiekstohaveameal15aninventionoftheChineseand15
aeharaeteristicoftheChineseeulture.Chinahasanextremelylonghistory
ofusingchoPstieks.TheearlieststatementcanbeseeninShiji(orThe
Recordof关{istoly).“KingZhouusedivoryehoPstieksandJizisighed.，，
Generally，ChinesePeoPleeanusethechoPstiekstorePlaeeallmovements
ofhands.ThishabitPassesonfromgenerationtogenerationandhasagreat
influeneeonChineseeulture.Therefore，usingtheforefingerandthe
middlefingertoformehoPsticks15themostrePresentativeChinesebo勿
languagereferringtoeating.Thenwhydoforeignersnotusethegestureof
imitatingaforktorePresenteating?Intheauthor’5opinion，eomParedwith
eatingbreadwithhands，thehistoryofusingfork15relativelyshort一only
about200years.NowadaysmostPeoPlestilleatbreadwiththeirhands:
moreover，usingfingerstoimitatetheforkalsoseemsunsightly.(See
Figure19)
Figure19
BBBodyyyInEnglishhhInRussiannnInChineseee
lllanguageeeeeeeee
ttthegestureeeMakingtheeeMakingtheeeForminggg
iiindieatingggges加relikeeegesturelikeusingggchoPstiekswithhh
eeeatingggPuttingbreadddladletoeattttheforefingeranddd
iiiiifltothemouthhhhhthemiddlefingerrr
TherearesomeothersPecialbo勿Practicesrelatedtothe50一ealled
，，wineeulture”and”teaeulture，，.ForexamPle，inChinawhenone’5teaeuP
orwineglass15beingrefilledChinesePeoPleusuallymaketwokindsof
gesturescomPaniedWiththeverbalexPression“Thankyou!”:one15
PuttingoneorbothhandsuPrlght，PalmoPen，besidetheeuPorglassthe
gesture:theother15knoekingatthetablegentlybyusingtheforefinger.
Theformer15thetraditionalway，whilethelatter15widelyusedinthe
33southemregionsofChina.There15aChineselegendabouttheseeondone.
It15saidthatthisgestureeomesfromtheChineseetiquette一kowtowing，
1.e.gettingdownonone’5kneesandknockingatthegroundnoisilywith
one，5head.InQingDynastytheemPerorQianlongoneemadean
insPectiontourintheciviliandressinsouthChina.HePouredthe
well一知own”Longjingtea，，ofChinafortheaeeomPanyingoffieers.Ifthis
hapPenedinsidetheimPerialPalaee，theoffieerswoulddefinitelygetdown
onkneesandknoekforthanks，butinordertoavoidrevealingthetruthand
safeguardtheetiquettebetweentheemPerorandministers，oneclever
ministerthoughtofagoodidea，that15，rePlacingthegestureo尸，知eeling
down，川withfingercrookedtoknockatthetabletoP.Sineethenthis
eonvenientgestureeameintoexistenceinourChineseculture.
InRussiathe”wineculture”15morefamous.Russians，capaeityfor
liquor15worldfamous，oneveryfestival，holidaysorbirthdaysRussians
drinkthevodkainalargeamount.50inRussiatherearealsosomesPeeial
gest
uresrelatedtowine，which15verydiffieultforforeignerstounders·tand
withoutstudy.ForexamPle，thegesture“班e卫K盯‘n幼L玖eMnoroPJIy
(mee)，，(usingthethumbandtheforefingertoformaeirele，thentapPing
one’5ehinorneckwiththeforefinger)means“theinvitationfordrinking，
somebo勿wantstodrink，somebo勿15drunkorsomebo勿15adrunkard，，.
InRussiaiteanoftenbeseenthatstrangemenmakethisgesturetoeach
othernearshoPs，wherewine15sold.Ittumsoutthatinordertorestl·iet
exeessivedrinking，
withthebigbottle
thegovemmentofRussiarequiresthatthewinebesold
PaekagingtoraisePrice
Power.However，
moneytogether
bymakingthegesture
forrestrainingthePurchasing
severaldrunkardseouldPool
tOb即thewine·
exPressingdrinking
Mo3HHe玖，，(SeeFigure
“BHeTaB月只Tb
Another
60月Lujo益
gesture
flaJle玖
0f
Figure20
M
20)15similartotheChinesegesture
34offigure6，
do、Vnvvardsto
withthePointing
simulateagobletorawine
uPwardsandthelittlefinger
bottle.
ThegesturerePresenting“1amfull，，differsfromlanguagetolanguage
too.InEnglishit15layingflataerossone，5ownneekwiththePalm，in
Russian一“nPoB叨HTLn知L双eMnomee，，，rowinginthethroatwiththe
forefingertoshowthattoomuchfoodhasbeenstuffedthroughone’5neek，
inChinese一Pattingone’5bellywithasinglehandorbothhandstoshow
thatthestomaehhasalreadybeentoofull.(SeeFigure21)
gure21
2.3.2Culturaldiffereneeofthetraffie，eeonomy，sPortaetivity
玩1886，thefirstautomobilewasProdueedinw亡sternEuroPe.On
29thofJanuaryin1886CarlFriedrichBenzinGe瀚anyfirstobtainedthe
Patentoftheautomobile.Itmarkedthebirthoftheautomobile.Sineethen，
inBritainandU.S.A，whleh15knownas”theeountryonthefourwheels”，a
largenumberofnewwordsandnewbo勿languagesrelatedtoearshave
eomeintouse.Thegesture“thumbuP，，inEnglishmeans“good，exeellent，
agreement，，，but15moreoftenusedtogetafreerideinamotorvehiele.
InRussiaandChinawheretheindustrialdeveloPmentofautomobile
15relativelylateandthebasiedeveloPmentofautoindustry15insocialist
Period，thegestureforeallingataxiorgettingafreeride15differentfrom
theoneinEnglisheountriesandhasbeeomePoPularonlyinrecentyears·
35(SeeFigure22)
Figure22
BBBo勿勿InEnglishhhInRussiannnInChineseee
lllanguageeeeeeeee
ttthegestureee1Itmeans“good，，Itmeans“good，，Itmeans“good，，
““thumbuP，，，exeellent，agreement，，，exeelleflt，，exeelleflt，，
氰氰氰2It15usedtogetafreeeeagreement，，，agreement，，，rrrrride(SeeFigure23)))))))
Buttherearedifferencesinthiskindofgestures
betweenUKandUSAtoo.Aswe玩ow，Englishmen
drivebyleftandsitontheright，whileAmerieans
dojusttheopPosite.Therefore，whenthetraffie
lightsdonotwork，Englishmenstretehtheright
handoutoftheircarwindowstohintthedireetion，
blltAmericansmuststretehthelefthand。
Asforbo街languagesinmodemeeonomielifeandsPortsactivities，
manyChineseandRussiangesturesinthiscategoryarejusttakenfrom
W已Stemeountries.ForexamPle，basketha
llwasinventedinU.S.A.in1891.
InthisyearasPortsteaeherJamesNasmithinSPringfield，Massaehusetts
inventedthebaskethallsPortandmadethefirstrulesofthegame.In1908
USAmadetheunifiedbaskethallrulesandintrodueedtothewholeworld
inmanylanguages.Afterwards，baskethallwithitsruleshasbeengradually
sPreadalloverAmeriea，EuroPeandAsiaandhasbeeomeaworldsPort.50，
inbaskethallgamesthegestureforsubstituting(twoforearmssurround
eachother)，thegestureforstoPPingarethesameinRussia，Chinaand
EnglishsPeakingeountries.GenerallysPeaking，thiskindofbo勿language
15moreifltemational，50theculturaldifferencedoesnotexist.w己thinkthis
15thereasonwhytheChinesebasketballPlayerYaoMing，theRussian
36forwardAndereKirilenkoandthefamousAmerieanbasketballPlayer
JordanMichaeleanPlaybasketballtogetherwithoutmisinterpretationsof
thegesturerules.
2.4AnexPerimentontheextenttowhiehthreeasPeetsofeulture
influeneebodylanguages
InordertofindouttowhatextentthethreeasPectsofeul加re(sPiritual，
institutlonalandmaterial)influeneebodylanguages，theauthoreondueted
aneXPerimentonbodylanguageintheSehoolofForeignStudiesofAnhui
Universitybymeansofquestionnaires(SeeAPPendixl).Figure24
Presentstheinformationofsubjects.
Figure24
MMMMMGradeeeNUmbetttaaajorrrrrrr
EEEnglishhhThird一yearstudentsss4000
RRRuSSiaflllFourth一yearstudentsss2000
Thesubjeetsareallthird一andfourth一yearstudentsbeeauseinEnglish
dePartmenttheeourseInterculturalCommunieation15offeredtothird一year
students，andinRussiandePartmenttheeourse瓜HZeoc”澳PaHooedeHue15
offeredonlytofourth一yearstudents.
Thestudents，feedbacksaboutinfiueneeofsPiritualfaetors，
institutionalfaetorsandmaterialfaetorsonbodylanguagearePresentedby
Figure25，Figure26andFigure27.
TheresultsoftheeXPerimentinotherasPectswillbementionedin
Chapter3.
37Figure25
IIInfluenceofffNUmberofffPereentageofffNumberofffPereentageofff
sssPiritualfaetorsssEnglishhhEnglishhhRussiannnRussiannn
ooonbodyyymaJ0rSSSmaJ0rSSSmaJ0rSSSmaJofsss
lllanguageeeeeeeeeee
GGGrCattt255562.5%%%l66680%%%
QQQQQ88820%%%44420%%%uuultegreattttttttttt
SSSomCCC66615%%%//////
LLLittleee1112.5%%%//////
NNN000////////////
Figure26
IIInflueneeofffNumberofffPercentageofffNumberofffPereentageofff
sssPiritualfaetorsssEnglishhhEnglishhhRussiannnRussiallll
ooonbodyyymaJ0rSSSmaJ0rSSSmaJ0rSSSmaJ0rSSS
lllanguageeeeeeeeeee
GGGreat///233357.5%%%l33365%%%
QQQuitegreattttttttttt
SSSome/Little///l77742.5%%%77735%%%
NNN00000000000
Figure27
Influeneeof
sPiritualfaetors
onbo勿
language
Great/
Quitegreat
Some/Little/No
Numberof
English
maJ0rS
Pereentageof
English
majors
Numberof
Russian
maJ0rS
Pereentageof
Russian
maJots
47.5%
52.5%
45%
55%
9一11Q︸一，.111一内乙
Thestudeflts’feedbacksshowthatmorethan80%ofthestudenis
thinktheinfiueneeofsPiritualfaetorsonbodylanguage15greatorquite
great;morethan50%ofthestudentsthinktheinfluenceofinstitutional
faetorsonbodylanguage15greatorquitegreat:onlyalmost45%ofthe
studentsthinkthat
materials，suehasarehiteeture，dressing，eatinghabits，
toolsete.have“eertaininfluenee，，，“quitegreatinfluenee，，and“verygreat
38influence，，onbo勿language
Theconclusionweeanarriveat15thattheimPactofsPiritualculture
onbodylanguage15thegreatest，thesPiritualfaetorsarethemaininte扭al
causesoftheculturaldifferencesofthebodylanguages:theinstitutional
faetorsaretheeXtemaldrivetothefonnationoftheeulturaldifl七reneesof
thebo勿languages:ineontrasttothesPiritualandinstitutionaleulture，the
influenceofmaterialcultureonbo勿language15relativelyweak，it15the
embodimentandtheimPortanteonditionsofformingtheirdifferences.
39ChaPter111
Studying&TeaehingtheCulturalDiffcrences
ofBodyLanguages
3.1PrineiPlesforstudyingtheeulturaldiffereneesofbodylanguages
FromthePreeedingehapterweeanseethattheredoexistgreat
eulturalvariationsofbo勿language，50thestudyofit15undoubtedly
necessary.lnthisehaptertheauthorwilleomeuPwithsomePrineiPlesfor
guidingourstu勿·
First，ininterculturalstudyweshouldalwaystrytoavoid
ethnocentrism(thebeliefthatone’5eulture15PrimarytoallexPlanations
ofreality)，thesameattitudeshouldbetakentowardsthestudyofbody
language.AvoidingethnoeentrismrequiresthatPeopleresPectanykindof
eultureandnotjudgeanothereulture’5behavioronthebasisoftheirotvn，
iftheydiffer.This15beeausethePurposeofintereulturalstudy15tohelP
PeoPIeunderstanddiffereneesbetweencultures，helPthemtoconquer
culturalbarriersinPraetieeandfinallytoPromoteasueeessfulintereultural
communication.
Seeond，weshouldnotexaggeratethediffereneeandignorethe
generalityofbodylanguageeulture.
AlthoughthePapertriestocallattentiontocul加raldiffereneesof
bodylanguagebydemonstratingmanyexamPles，weshouldbearinmind
thatbo勿languagehasgeneralitytoacertaindegreetoo.Someare
biologiealones，asthePaperhasalreadystated，othersaretheresultunder
thegreatimPaetofinterculturaleommunication.Inreeentyears，withthe
rapidProgressofmodemseieneeandteehnology，theeonnectionbet、veen
PeoPlefromdifferentregions，nationsandeontinentsaregettingmueh
tighterandeloserbymeansoftourism，migration，communieationsystem
4Oand50on.Asaresult，themergingofeultures15taklngPlaeenaturallyin
eulturalinterehanges.Somebo勿languagesthatoriginallybelongedtoone
eulture，noweanbeworldwidelyaceePtedandused，suehasthegestures
“OK，，and“V，，.Inthissense，wethinkthatthebodylanguageeulture，like
theeultureitself，15nota
oftheeulturaldin七renees
statieone，50weshouldknowthatoureonelusion
ofbo勿language15time一boundandmaybecome
obsolete.
ThenanotherquestionmaybePutforward:willtheeulturaldifferences
ofbo勿languagedisapPearinfutureduetotheeomingglobalization?The
PaperholdsthatsineesPiritualeulture15themaincauseofeultural
differencesofbodylanguage，it15thecovertcultureincludingideologies，
values，waysofthinking，beliefsand50on;it15relativelystableineontrast
toinstitutionalandmaterialculture，50wethinkthatthebo勿languages
relatedtothiseat