Ibunka! - Unit 1 / OSF 1

People in Other Cultures Part 2

People from a range of cultural backgrounds responded to the ΖEXQND 6XUYH\ on this topic. Here DUH D IHZ RI WKHLU UHVSRQVHV IRU \RX WR UHDG DQG WKLQN DERXW

1

In Japan, people seem to talk about their social situation (their employer or family) rather than about their private lives. I work for an English conversation school, so every RTSYM . MF[J FY QJFXY Y\JSY^ ƳWXY RJJYNSL NSYJWFHYNTSX \NYM XYZIJSYX ;JW^ TKYJS FKYJW RJJYNSL XTRJTSJ KTW YMJ ƳWXY YNRJ . KJJQ YMFY . PST\ YMJNW RFWNYFQ FSI JRUQT^RJSY status but I don’t know anything about them as individuals.

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1-01

2

When introducing myself in Japan, for example to other club members, I usually talked about my hobbies in very general terms, like “I like music” or “I like shopping”. When I went to the US to study, I found myself saying much more detailed things, such as the genres of music I like. I got the feeling that most people wanted to be seen as unique. It was a bit XYWJXXKZQ FY ƳWXY GZY FKYJW XTRJ YNRJ . QJFWSJI YT YFQP FGTZY R^XJQK \NYM HTSƳIJSHJ .

1-02

3

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1-03

4

For me, It depends very much on my mood. When I'm in a good mood or a social mood, I try to draw attention to myself. I want to make an impression on the people I'm introducing myself to. But when I don’t feel like talking, I try to blend in. I say only very general things, so that I'm not asked any questions. In France, this strategy works pretty well. But in Japan, I have the impression that people are more interested in those who blend in. When I introduce myself by saying something very bland, they show their interest by asking questions. So I understand now that the strategies that helped me to “fade into the background” in France have the opposite effect here in Japan. And on the contrary, when I try to attract attention by emphasizing my uniqueness, I get very few questions in return. I never realized this difference before I took this survey! 5

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1-04

1-05

COMPREHENSION 1

Read the responses and mark the statements true or false .

VOCABULARY

True False

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