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Cultural Impact on Human Being
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E: Hi. Welcome to 'Let's Talk'. Today we're going to talk a little more about what we talked about last time, which is culture and how culture gives a set of rules and also gives you a set of glasses. How you see the world, what you should do in the world.
R: That's right our culture teaches us how to behave and how to look at life, what to think about other people and how they behave.
E: So we thought we start out with a game. Now if I said to you please connect these nine dots with four straight lines could you do it.
R: So Elyn is my 老师 and I told her 'Oh, I don't know this.' So I'll just start with the dot, keep going and just try to hit all the dots and I only have four lines.
E: Oops!
R: Oops! I missed that one.
E: Try again.
R: Then I'll try. I'll start here again. Oh, dear I guess I go here and I go one two three four, oh I missed those. I only have four lines. It's very difficult. I didn't hit all the dots.
E: No here is how you can do it. You go down here and here.
R: So what is different. These lines are much longer and are out side of the nine dots.
E: Right. And why did we do these? You're think 'Oh, Rebecca and Elyn have gone crazy.' No. The reason why we did this is to help you think about your framework. Do you know what a framework is? A frame of a picture is the out side of the picture, and it sets you inside of a box. This is like a box, those nine dots, and that what our culture is like.
R: So those nine dots could be the way that I see the world. I start at one dot but I only see those dots.
E: But sometimes if you're with some foreign friends they have a different framework. They have a different 'nine dots'. And in order to connect you have to go outside of the dots to understand them.
R: So that's right. So to hit all of those you make big long connecting lines.
E: Right.
R: And they were connected. It's a good illustration. It's a silly game. But it's a good idea, because in order to understand someone else's framework you need to know your own first. Who would you say teaches you your cultural rules?
E: Well I suppose it was grandma, wasn't it? Mum, dad, grandma, our framework is set up by those people around us in our family. And in America first they teach children to say thank you and in China first they teach children to say '阿姨' and '叔叔' and '奶奶'. And so the culture and the framework begin(s) at very early age. And they continue(s).
Every culture is different, you know, if you had to go to a dinner party and you had show up at seven, when would you arrive? They said 'We are having a dinner party. It's at seven.' When would you get there?
R: Well I am...My children make funny of me I am notoriously late. Notorious is meaning famous for being late. But I'll try to be there at seven but I'll think as an American from the south that probably ten after seven is still ok. I'm close to seven I'm not early and not too late.
E: Right. Cause if you were too early they might still be fixing dinner.
R: Right.
E: And in American culture if someone is fixing dinner you don't want to be there for that. You want to be there after seven so that maybe they've already fixed it. But I know you told me (that) in Germany it's very different, right?
R: Oh, yes it was actually very good for a person who is always late to life in Germany because my German neighbors and friends really told me 'You should be on time.' If they say seven they mean exactly seven, not after and not before. And it was very good for me to learn that. I had to really think hard about it. But you know every culture is not that punctual either.
E: No. I have some friends from South Africa and they were telling me that if you had a big meal perhaps everyday they'd show up around 'Oh, anytime within the morning.' If it was a morning event anytime in the morning is fine. Or an afternoon event anytime in the afternoon is fine. So every culture is different.
R: It's true. We know the Argentineans set a time and if it's runs very late, you know, half an hour or an hour late, they assume that you're happy. You had extra time to enjoy. You're not upset waiting. And it would true for them too. So time is different there. These are all differences in our cultures.
E: So we know that you like to think about these things perhaps you don't have chance to meet a lot of foreigners. But when you do you know that perhaps the way they do things is different from yours and not to be offended, just to try and understand what is like in their country. Maybe you can ask them 'What it's like in your country?'
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文化对人的影响
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E：大家好，欢迎收看‘你说我说’。今天我们继续上次的话题，谈谈有关文化如何赋予我们一套规则。如何给我们一副‘文化眼镜’，教给我们如何看世界，以及如何在这世界中行动。
R：文化教给我们该如何表现自己，如何看待生活，如何看待其他人以及他们的行为。
E：我们将从一个游戏开始，如果我让你用四条直线将这九个点联接起来。你能做到吗？
R：Elyn是我的老师，我告诉她我不知道该怎样做。我就从这个点开始，试着把所有的点联起来，我只有四条直线。
E：哦！
R：差了一个点！
E：再试一次。
R：我还从这里开始。用四条直线联接它们。哦，这两个点没联上。只用四条线，这太难了！
E：不，你应该这样做。
R：你们看到区别了吗？这些线很长而且超出了这九个点的范围。
E：没错。我们为什么要做这个游戏呢？你们可能会想：Rebecca 和Elyn发疯了吧？不，我们做这个游戏是想帮你们思考一下自己的思维框架。你们知道 framework（框架）吗？一张画的边框叫做frame，framework把你限定在一个盒子中。那九个点就像一个盒子，我们的文化也是这样的。那九个点就像我们看世界的方法，我从一个点出发，但我局限在这些点里。但有时如果你和一些外国朋友在一起，他们有不同的思维框架，有不同的‘九个点’。为了使彼此能够联系，你应该走出这九个点的范围并理解他们。
R：是这样的。要联接所有的点你应该用更长的线。
E：对。
R：这是个很好的例子。游戏有点滑稽，但道理很正确。
为了理解别人的思维框架，你首先要了解自己的思维框架。你说是谁教给我们那些文化规则的呢？
E：可能是祖母吧。父母，祖母，总之是身边的家庭成员
为我们建立起这种思维框架。在美国人们首先教孩子说谢谢；而在中国人们通常首先教孩子们叫阿姨、叔叔、和奶奶。这种思维框架很早就开始建立了并一直持续着。
各个文化是不尽相同的。如果你要去参加晚宴而且必须七点钟到达，你会几点到呢？别人告诉你，我们的宴会七点开始，你会几点到呢？
R：我的孩子们开玩笑说，我迟到都出名了。notorious 意思是声名狼籍的。但我会尽量在七点钟到达。但作为一个来自美国南部的人，我们觉得晚十分钟也是可以的。我会尽量在七点到，不早也不太晚。
E：对，因为如果你太早到，他们可能还在准备晚餐
R：是这样的。
E：在美国，如果别人在准备晚餐，他们不希望你在那里，他们希望你七点以后到，那时他们可能已经准备好了。但你告诉我在德国情况有所不同。
R：对。对那些经常迟到的人，在德国生活对他们改变习惯是很好的。因为我的德国邻居和朋友们都告诉我，你一定要准时。如果他们说七点开始，就是七点准时开始，不早也不晚。我很高兴了解到这一点，我确实得为这事留心。但不是所有的文化都很在意守时的问题。
E：是的，我有几个从南非来的朋友。他们对我说，如果你举办一个盛大的宴会，客人可能随时到来。如果宴会是在上午举行，那么上午的任何时候都可以来；如果是在下午举行，那么下午的任何时候都可以来。各种文化的确不太一样。
R：是的。我知道当阿根廷人订好了一个时间，如果时间拖得很晚，比如晚了半个小时或一个小时，他们会觉得你很高兴，你可以享受闲暇的时间，不会因等候而生气，对他们来说也是这样。所以各种文化中对时间的认识是不同的。
E：我想你们也爱思考这方面的问题。也许你没有很多机会和外国人接触，但当你确实面对他们时，你应当知道他们做事情的方式可能不太一样，这样就不会出现不愉快了。尽量想想他们国家的情况，或者直接问他们：“这事在你们国家是怎样的？“
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