Question

Meeting people from another culture can be difficult. From the beginning, people may send the wrong signal. Or they may pay no attention to signals from another person who is trying to develop a  relationship.

Different cultures emphasize (强调) the importance of relationship building to a greater or less degree. For example, business in some countries is not possible until there is a relationship of trust. Even with people at work, it is necessary to spend a lot of time in “small talk”,usually over a glass of tea, before they do any job. In many European countires--- like the UK or France--- people find it easier to build up a lasting working relationship at restaurants or cafes rather than at the office.

Talk and silence may also be different in some cultures. I once made a speech in Thailand. I had expected may speech to be a success and start a lively discussion; instead there was an uncomfortable silence. The people present just stared at me and smiled. After getting to know their ways better, I realised that they thought I was talking too much. In my own culture, we express meaning mainly through words, but people there sometimes feel too many words are unnecessary.

Even within Northern Europe, cultural diffeerences can cause serious problems. Certainly, English and German cultures share similar values; however, Germans prefer to get down to business more quickly. We think that they are rude. In fact, this is just because one culture starts discussions and makes decisions more quickly.

People from different parts of the world have different values, and sometimes these values are quite against each other. However, if we can understand them better, a multicultural environment (多元文化环境)will offer a wonderful chance for us to learn from each other.

1.In some countires, eating together at restaurants may make it easier for people to ___________.

A．develop closer relations                  B．share the same culture

C．get to know each other                   D．keep each other company

2.The author mentions his experience in Thailand to show that ______.

A, the English prefer to make long speeches

B.too many words are of no use

C.people from Thailand are quiet and shy by nature

D.even talk and silence can be culturally different

3.According to the text, how can people from different cultures understand each other better?

A．By sharing different ways of life

B．By accepting different habits.

C．By recognizing different values

D．By speaking each other’s language.

4.What would be the best title for the text?

A．Multicultural Environment

B．Cross-Cultural Differences

C．How to Understand Each Other

D．How to Build Up a Relationship

 

Answer 1

【答案】

1.A

2.D

3.C

4.B

【解析】

试题分析：本文论述了的是多元文化背景下，人们交往的不同方式及跨越文化的差异。只有尊重不同的风俗习惯，才能相互理解。

1.根据文章第二段最后一句“… people find it easier to build up a lasting working relationship at restaurants or cafes rather than at the office.”可知。

2.文章第三段举出了在Thailand 一次讨论会的例子，证明谈话方式各国也是不同的。

3.根据全文，只有了解不同文化背景和不同文化习惯，人们才会相互理解。

4.本文说的是多元文化背景下，人们交往的不同凡是，跨越文化的差异。只有尊重不同的风俗习惯，才能相互理解。

考点：文化类阅读。

点评：本文论述了的是多元文化背景下，人们交往的不同方式及跨越文化的差异。文章采取了举例论证的方法，注意每段的开头句，本文中每段的开头句即是每个段落的大意，把握好文章的开头句就把握好了文章的整体结构，可以提高阅读效率。