语言与文化讲义PPT.ppt

Language and Culture,Course Description,This course deals with both language and culture by studying the relationship of language and culture.,Through this course the students should master the notion and scope of culture so as to make better use of it in both the teaching and study of language.,Class teaching will be combined with class discussion and exercises.,Lecture One General Introduction to Culture,What is culture?,Definition of culture,Components of culture,Characteristics of culture,Cultural diversity and cultural universals,Misunderstanding between cultures and cultural adjustment,What is culture?,“We are alike and we are different.”,According to cultural-sociology,culture involves every aspect of human life.No human society can exist without culture that is the base on which human survive and grow.According to anthropologists,culture means any human behavior that is learned rather than genetically transmitted.From the angle of anthropology,human is not only social man,but also cultured man.Both mans material and nonmaterial life are always living in certain cultural circumstance.Culture is everywhere.,However,it is hard for us to give a concrete definition to culture.The radiant range of culture is extremely extensive and all-inclusive.All the experience,education,language and so on created by humankind are regarded as culture,whatever it is comprehensive ones like world-outlook,space-time outlook,philosophy,value etc.Or it is concrete ones like basic necessities of life,marriage and funeral.All these social life style,behavior,language,hierarchy,norm and moral and so on all belong to culture.,Definition of culture,As early as 1952,Kroeber and Kluckhohn listed 164 definitions of culture that they found in the anthropology literature.And,of course,many new definitions have appeared since.Definitions of culture range from all-encompassing ones(“it is everything”)to narrower ones(“it is opera,art and ballet”).Here are some typical ones of them.,Howard:culture is the customary manner in which human groups learn to organize their behavior and thought in relationship to their environment.,Haviland:Culture is a set of rules or standards shared by members of a society which when acted upon by the members,produces behavior that falls within a range that members consider proper and acceptable.,Smith:In modern society different people communicate in different ways,as do people in different societies around the world;and the way people communicate is the way they live.It is their culture.,Hoebel and frost:culture is an integrated system of learned behavior patterns which are characteristic of the members of a society and which are not the result of biological inheritance.,Bates and Plog:Culture is a system of shared beliefs,values,customs,behaviors,and artifacts that the members of a society use to cope with their world and with one another,and that are transmitted from generation to generation through learning.,Final definition:Culture is the deposit of knowledge,experience,beliefs,values,actions,attitudes,meanings,hierarchies,religion,notions of time,roles,spatial relations,concepts of the universe,and artifacts acquired by a group of people in the course of generations through individual and group striving.,Components of culture,culture,material culture,nonmaterial culture,3.1 Material culture,Material culture refers to tangible items such as cars,watches,television sets,and houses.Whatever it is created by human being or what exists in nature.,3.2 Nonmaterial culture,Nonmaterial culture is comprised of intangible elements such as values,norms,beliefs,emotions,attitudes,aspirations,laws and symbols.Culture shapes values,norms,beliefs,emotions,attitudes,aspirations,laws,symbols,perceptions and material possessions.In turn,these impact culture,which means that cultures are dynamic,always undergoing tremendous change.,3.2.1 Values,Values that characterize what is desirable are a significant part of culture.Very often,values of one cultural group may be in conflict with those of another.,Core Values,U.S.individualism,competition,winning,China collectivism,proper social relationships,maintenance,Confucianism,e.g.1.People in the United States are mostly preoccupied with personalized,interdependent relationships among employees.People in China spend a great deal of time focusing on equality,fairness and justice issues.,2.People in the United States put paramount importance on time.The value Chinese people put on time is rather loose.,3.2.2 Norms,Norms can be defined as rules that guide behavior.,Norms,Proscriptive Norms stating what must not be done,Prescriptive Norms stating what must be done,e.g.The Aymara of the Bolivian Andea prohibit suicide,except in cases where an individual may be possessed by spirits of the dead,which cannot be exorcised.Suicide is considered to be a reasonable alternative.,3.2.3 Beliefs,Beliefs,which directly or indirectly dictate what is right or wrong,also differ from culture to another.Beliefs are at the core of forming particular worldviews.,e.g.1.The Higgi of Nigeria believe that receiving anything with a left hand is sign of bad manners.,2.Among the U.S.people one needs to carefully monitor the use of particular fingers lest they should offend anyone.,3.Non-Christian Japanese celebrate Christmas because the occasion symbolizes spiritual renewal to welcome a savior.,4.While the U.S.people believe in freedom of the press,speech,and association;the Chinese people value kin ties and cooperation above everything else.,5.Mexicans believe in the uniqueness of each individual,not so much as evident through actions and achievements like Americans do,but through a persons inner qualities or soul(alma or espiritu).While the U.S.people might feel uncomfortable about using a word such as“soul”to describe an individual because it is regarded as too personal.The Mexican interpretation is based on their belief in an emotional world,involving power and love-hate relationships.,3.2.4 Emotions,Emotions provide channels for self-expression.When and how to show emotion is very much regulated by culture.In the majority of cultures around the world,females are less restrained from showing emotion than males.However,even with such a generalization,cultures differ tremendously in how emotion is expressed.,e.g.1.It is not uncommon to meet young people on a U.S.college campus kissing and passionately involved with each other in a romantic fashions.,2.Such intimate behavior between opposite sexes is scorned or even considered taboo by Japanese,Africans and Arabs.Even holding hands with someone of the opposite sex in public is considered impolite.Parents of such children would be blamed for raising them without proper instructions.,3.2.5 Attitudes,Culture can also be expressed in terms of attitudes that people have toward life in general or some aspects of it.,e.g.A futuristic attitude which is so typical of U.S.people is not uncommon in other societies.One often hears a statement like“See you tomorrow”,while other people would say“See you tomorrow,if God wishes”.The former case shows a group of people who seem to have a handle on life and can almost predict with certainty that tomorrow will be here.In the latter case,events are usually left in the domain of a superior power,God.These attitudes definitely affects ones actions.,3.2.6 Aspirations,Aspirations which affect the goals that we design for ourselves and our perceptions of the world around us are related to attitudes.,e.g.1.If a culture stresses friendship and cooperation like Africans,a stranger will be taken care of with great kindness and hospitality.,2.If a culture emphasizes competition and individualism like Americans,a stranger will be looked upon with suspicion and sometimes open hostility and aggression.,3.2.7 Laws,Laws are also a major component of culture.What might be taken as social customin one culture,may be law in another.,e.g.Whereas a marriage license in many countries legalizes a marriage,in traditional Africa,parental consentis enough to make a marriage bond legal.Even in moderntimes where a license is necessary,a marriage withoutapproval by the elders is not well regarded.Although alicense may have been granted,there is always a fear thatfailure to be blessed by the wise,old people will rendersuch a relationship weak from the start.,3.2.8 Symbols,Finally,culture can be defined in terms of symbols that a group of people are associated with.,e.g.1.A flag with fifty stars,white,blue and red colors and an eagle symbolizes the United States of America and so do very big cars.,2.Movies that are shown abroad tend to portray the United States as a country with many rich people and plenty of guns.,3.Langue belongs to a typical symbol that records and expresses different cultures.Whatever it is form,construction or grammar,different languages embody different cultures.Chinese characters that are square show Chinese peoples righteousness and philosophy of integrity.German grammar show Germans formality and seriousness,etc.,Characteristics of culture,The discovery of culture,the awareness that it shapes and molds our behavior,our values and even our ideas,the recognition that it contains some element of the arbitrary,can be a startling or an illuminating experience.Shapiro,Regardless of how many definitions we could have examined,there would have been a great deal of agreement concerning the eight major characteristics of culture.a)Culture is learned.b)Culture is transmitted from generation to generation.c)Culture is based on symbols.d)Culture is subject to change e)Culture is integrated.f)Culture is ethnocentric.g)Culture is adaptive.,4.1 Culture Is Learned,Without the advantages of knowledge from those who lived before us,we would not have culture.In fact,“the groups knowledge stored up(in memories,books and objects)for future use”is at the core of the concept of culture.All of us are born with basic needsneeds that create and shape behaviorbut how we go about meeting those needs and developing behaviors to cope with them is learned.,From infancy,members of a culture learn their patterns of behavior and ways of thinking until most of them become internalized and habitual.We learn our culture in many ways and from a variety of sources.,e.g.1.The little boy in the United States whose grandfather tells him to shake hands when he is introduced to a friend of the family is learning culture.,2.The Arab boy who is reading the Koran when he or she is one day old is learning culture.,3.The Indian child who lives in a home where the women eat after the men is learning culture.,4.The Jewish child who helps conduct the Passover ceremony is learning culture.,5.The French child who is given hard cider at dinner is learning culture.,Conscious Learning at the second(cognitive)level,Unconscious Learning at the first level,Culture Learning,Conclusion:a)Learning cultural conceptions,rules,and behaviors usually goes on without our being aware of it.,b)The essential messages of a culture get reinforced and repeated.,c)We learn our culture from a large variety of sources.,4.1.1 We learn our culture through proverbs.,In nearly every culture,proverbs,communicated in colorful and vivid language,offer an important set of instructions for members to follow.These“words of wisdom”endure,so that each generation learns about what a culture deems significant.Because proverbs are learned easily and repeated with great regularity,they soon become part of an individuals belief system.,e.g.1.a few proverbs from the United States a)Strike while the iron is hot.-In the United States,people who take quick action is valued.b)Actions speaker louder than words.-Americans are a“doing”culture,hence activity and“getting things done”are important to the dominant culture.c)God helps those who help themselves.-This saying calls attention to the strong belief in America that people should show initiative.,2.some proverbs from places other than the United States a)A proverb is like a swift horse.-The Yorubas of Africa believe that people are not qualified to take part in communal discussions unless they are also to quote the proverbs relevant to each situation.The“swift horse”proverb simply underscores the importance of proverbs to this culture.b)One does no make the wind but is blown by it.-This saying,found in many Asian cultures,suggests that people are guided by fate rather than by their own devices.,c)Even if the bridge be made of stone,make sure it is safe.-This Korean saying expresses the wisdom of going slowly and being cautious and reflective.d)Nothing done with intelligence is done without speech.-This Greek saying emphasizes the importance of talk as a means of communication.e)Wisdom is better than jewels.-This Jewish saying expresses the importance of learning and education.,f)A zebra does not despise its stripes.-From the Massai of Africa,this saying expresses the value of accepting things as they are,of accepting oneself as one is,and of not envying others.g)A mans tongue is his sword.-With this saying,Arabs are taught to value words and use them in a powerful and forceful manner.h)He who stirs anothers porridge often burns his own.-The Swedish,a very private people,teach the value of privacy with the proverb.,i)However crowded the way be,the hen will reach her eggs.-The African proverb stresses the love of a mother for her children.j)When spider webs unite they can tie up a lion.-This Ethiopian proverb teaches the importance of collectivism and group solidarity.k)We are all like well buckets,one goes up and the other comes down.-This proverb expresses Mexicans belief that life is a series of opposites-life and death,illness and health,pain and pleasure.There are thousands of proverbs from hundreds of cultures,andeach offers specific definitions and instructions about life.,4.1.2 We learn our culture from folk tales,legends,and myths.,The stories each culture tells their people,whether in the form of folk tales,legends,or myths,are all intended to transmit the culture from person to person and from generation to generation.,Folklores Folklores constantly reinforce our fundamental values.e.g.1.Pinocchios nose growing larger because of his lies,2.Columbus being glorified because he was daring,3.Cinderellas story being well known worldwide with varied version given different emphasis by different cultures,Tales Every culture has thousands of tales,each stressing a fundamental value.,e.g.1.Americans revere the tough,independent,fast-shoot cowboy of the Old West.,2.The English Admiration of good manners,courtly behavior,and dignity is reflected in the Canterbury Tales.,3.The Japanese learn about the importance of duty,obligation and loyalty in the ancient story of The Tale of the Forty-Seven Ronin,Myths Myths are useful tools for teaching culture because they cover a wide range of cultural concerns.Perhaps their most significant contribution is that they deal with the ideas that matt