In order to learn a language well, we should also learn about the country as well as the cultures and lifestyles of the people who speak it.
To what extent do you agree or disagree?
我完全贊成這個斷言，即：要學好一門語言，我們還應該了解這門語言的國家、文化和人民的生活方式。
I fully support the assertion that to learn a language well, we should also learn about the country as well as the cultures and lifestyles of the people who speak it.
先來看看我們一般情況下是如何定義“真正學好一門語言”的。按照我的理解，學好一門語言意味著能夠妥當?shù)厥褂盟＿@里，對于妥當使用它而言，我們需要知道：由于文化上的差異，很多東西會因此而非常不同。比如，中國人常通過問“吃了嗎？”來表達問候，而這對于西方人來講便構成了午飯或晚飯的邀請。因此，缺乏了對不同國家文化方面的知識，就會引起對所發(fā)送或接收到的信息的錯誤理解，結果便會導致誤解。這樣一來，我們就不能說我們講得妥當，再進一步，我們就不能說我們講得好。
Let’s first see how we normally define “l(fā)earning a language really well”. By my understanding, learning a language well would mean being able to speak the language in a proper way. Here, with speaking it properly, we need to know that due to cultural differences, many things are just so different from culture to culture. For example, the Chinese often greet each other by asking ‘Have you taken your meal?’ which, to the Western ears, would make an invitation to lunch or dinner. Therefore, the lack of a knowledge of the cultures of different countries will give rise to wrong interpretations of the message issued or received and as a result, lead to misunderstandings. In this way, we can not say that we are speaking the language properly and further, we can not say that we speak it well. 第二，我們學習一門語言的最終目的是用它與講這門語言的人進行交流，主要就是母語為這門語言的人。設想我們對美國或英國什么也不了解，包括其政府、人民、傳統(tǒng)以及其它方面，你想你能妥當?shù)刂v英語，從而與美國人或英國人達到有效的交流嗎？我要說：至少我是做不到的。
Second, the ultimate purpose for us to learn a language is to use it in our communication with other people who speak it, mainly the native speakers. Suppose we know nothing about the US or Britain, including its government, its people, its tradition, and its other aspects. Do you think you can speak English properly, thus achieving effective communication with the American or British people? I’ll say at least I can’t.
第三，我們還需要知道我們所學語言國家的人民的生活方式才能妥當?shù)刂v他們的語言。舉個例子吧：中國人吃豬肉，但穆斯林不吃。還有，穆斯林宗教氣氛濃郁，每天多次舉行儀式。如果我們不知道這些事情的話又怎能指望與他們交流而不招致麻煩呢？按照這一邏輯，如果我們不能保證妥當?shù)刂v好他們的語言，我們又怎么說他們的語言我們學得很好呢？
Third, the lifestyle of the people whose language we are learning is also something we need to know in order that we can speak their language properly. For instance, the Chinese eat pork, but this is not the case with Muslims. Also, Muslims are very religious people and perform rituals many times a day. If we don’t know these things, how can we expect to communicate with them without incurring troubles? In this logic, if we cannot make sure that we are speaking their language properly, how can we say that we have learned their language well?
由此，我們可以得出結論了：學好一門語言，我們還必須了解這個國家以及這個國家的文化和其人民的生活方式。
From the above discussion, we can draw the conclusion that to learn a language really well, we also need to learn about the country as well as the cultures and lifestyles of the people who speak it. |
