Across Cultures.docVIP

Unit one Communication Across Cultures I． Warm up Read the following and answer the questions below There is a folk tale that comes to us from the foothills of the Himalayas(喜马拉雅山脉). A man was trying to explain to a blind friend what colors are. He begins with the color white. “Well,” he said, “it is like snow on the hills.” “Oh,” the blind man said, “then it must be a wet and dampish(有些潮湿的) sort of color, isn’t it ?” “No, no,” the man said, “it is also the same color as cotton or wool” “Oh yes, I understand. It must be fluffy(绒毛似的，蓬松的)color” “No, it is also like paper.” “Then it must be a crackling or fragile color,” said the blind man. “No, not at all. It is also like china.” Questions Why is it difficult to explain to a blind person what colors are? Do you sometimes find hard to make yourself properly understood by others? If you do, why do you think it is hard? II. An introduction to Intercultural Communication 1. What is intercultural communication? Intercultural communication can be simply defined as communication between people of different cultures. intercultural communication = communication across cultures = communication between cultures(people from different cultural background ). 2. What is the history of intercultural communication? Intercultural communication has a long history. The need for intercultural communication is as old as humankind. In the ancient time, there had been wandering tribes, traveling traders and religious missionaries(传教士) traveling to alien(外国的，异族的) lands to encounter (to meet , trade or preach ) other people of different cultural background. Due to the cultural differences, these early meetings turned out to be hostile, because knowing, understanding and recognizing another culture is difficult. Greek playwright Aeschylus once wrote 2000 years ago: “Everyone is quick to blame the alien.” That is why there were many wars in the history of the world. In fact, it is quite true in today’s society. It is not uncommon to hear