Job Discussion Forums

[Susie]

How are you enjoying life as an immigrant in Hong Kong?

What kind of an existence are you having?



I'm reading a book entitled, "Cultrally Speaking : Managing Rapport through Talk across Cultures" edited by Helen Spencer-Oatey, Continuum London and New York.

Spencer-Oate wrote:

One afternoon after work, a British teacher of EFL, who had recently started teaching at a college in Hong Kong, decided to visit some friends who lived in a different part of the city. She went to the appropriate bus stop, and as she walked up, a group of her students who were waiting there asked, 'Where are you going?' Immediately she felt irritated, and thought to herself, 'What business is it of theirs where I'm going? Why should I tell them about my personal life?' However, she tried to hide here irritation, and simply answered, 'I'm going to visit some friends.'

Later she discovered that, 'Where are you going?' is simply a greeting in Chinese. There's no expectation to answer explicitly: a vague response such as 'Over there' or 'Into town' is perfectly adequate. Her students, according to Chinese culture, were being friendly, respectful and polite.

This incident prompted the foci of Spencer-Oatey's book

1. people's use of language can influence interpersonal relations (the students' question irritated the teacher and she started to form a negative impression of them);

2. people may try to 'manage' their relationships with others (the teacher did not want the students to know that she was irritated, and so she tried to hide her annoyance);

3. different cultures may have different conventions as to what is appropriate behaviour in what contexts ('Where are you going?' is a polite greeting among acquaintances in Chinese, but is an inappropriate explicit question in this context in English).

My own existence as an immigrant in HK is that I'm trying to understand the 'aliens'.

[AsiaTraveller]

[mcNug]

Really, are they that different? They're people like everyone else. They eat, they sleep, they like having dinnner and seeing a film with friends. Special holidays are normally a family occasion. I've felt no differences with anyone I've met here. I've made friends the same way I made friends in my own country.

I just don't understand this whole "alien" thing at all.

[dandan]

What seems more pertinent than any cultural explanations here is the realisation that there are self-obsessed, paranoid teachers in the world who get upset and irritated when a couple of their language students ask 'Where are you going?' whilst waiting at a bus stop. Seems quite a normal question for a language student to practise when meeting their teacher at a bus stop.

That said, that there are academics making a living writing books coming up with trite cultural explanations for this is perhaps even wierder.

It never ceases to amaze me how many things people can find to get upset about if they really put their minds to it.

[echo2004sierra]

McNug are you Chinese?

Overseas Chinese perhaps?

Can you speak Chinese?

[mcNug]

No, No & I'm doing my best to learn!

The comments I say are relevant for any corner of the world!

And dandan, jolly well said!

[Susie]

I have read some of your own inspired writings Dandan. Thank you very much for those. One such example can be found via the weblink below:

http://www.eslcafe.com/forums/job/viewtopic.php?p=29470&highlight=#29470

I'd be very interested to read more of your writings on the topic of culture, if you wouldn't mind letting me have book, chapter and verse.

On the mainland, I hear tell that teachers don't criticise the ben4 dan4 笨蛋 hai2zi0men0 孩子们, instead they praise you3 nao3 zi0 de0 有脑子的. Praise to Dandan, Susie, AsiaTraveller, and echosierra!! I hope I haven't forgotten anyone?