Task 5. Read the text “Odours” and translate it.

Date: 2015-10-07; view: 439.

Task 3. Read the text “Space” and translate it.

Task 4. Find answers to the following questions in the text and write them down:

1. How do Americans view space?

2. Are there cultures where people view space as belonging to all?

3. In what cultures do people want to be far apart?

4. In what cultures do they want to be close?

SPACE

People from different cultures often vary in their attitudes toward space. North Americans tend to prefer about two feet or so of distance between themselves and those with whom they speak. But in some cultures (some Arabian and South American cultures), people stand closer to each other; not following this practice is considered impolite. For another example, North Americans view personal space as a right and tend to respect this right of others; thus, they stand in line and wait their turn. People from some other cultures view space as belonging to all. Thus, they jostle for space when boarding trains, standing at ticket counters, shopping in stores and so on. In encounters between people whose cultures have such different attitudes toward space, actions are likely to be misinterpreted.

Task 6. Find answers to the following questions in the text and write them down:

1. What is the attitude of Americans towards body odours?

2. How do Asians view body odours?

3. Does “breathe the breathe” mean an act of friendship for Asians?

4. Where could encounters between people with different attitudes toward body odours lead to?

ODOURS

People from different cultures may have different attitudes toward body odours. To illustrate, Americans work hard to neutralise body odours or cover them up and view those with body odours as dirty and unsanitary. On the other hand, in some Asian cultures people view body odours not as something to be hidden but as some­thing that friends should experience. Some of the people from these cultures feel that it is an act of friendship to “breathe the breath” of the person with whom they con­verse and to feel their presence by smelling. Clearly, encounters between people with such widely different attitudes could lead to serious miscommunication.