【新编大学英语】（第一册）Unit 3 A 无声交流（3/3）

英语自学网

Hints:
North Americans
Latin Americans
Middle East
结尾处有冒号。Although we rarely think about it, the distance that we stand from someone during a conversation is also an important part of communication. Generally , North Americans prefer more space than do Latin Americans and people from the Middle East. At an international meeting a pair of diplomats may move slowly across a room as one of them tries to increase the personal conversation distance and the other tries to decrease it. The person who prefers more distance usually loses the fight when he finds himself with his back against the wall.
Although we spend many years learning how to speak a foreign language, misunderstandings can occur unless we also know the nonverbal language and the correct behavior of that culture. We are not really prepared to communicate in a foreign language unless we know whether to shake hands or bow, when to sit and stand, and how to behave in unfamiliar situations. Perhaps a fifth skill ought to be added to the four traditional communication skills of reading, writing, speaking, and listening: cultural awareness.