feelings British and American people are similar in many ways, But in expressing feeling they haven’t much in common. Nearlyall Americans believe that it is better to share what they think or feel than hide it. A great many of them expect their relatives and friends to say, “I love you” , “I care for you” , or “I’m glad to have a friend like you”. Almost all of them enjoy talking about their own experiences, and a few of them will go so far as to share ideas with foreign visitors the first time they come into contact with them. When some of them are upset they prefer to cry rather than retain their tears. Few Americans consider it bad to show anger in public. The great majority of them would rather let all of it out and say what they feel than bottle it up inside and make matters worse. (§1) In contrast to this is the traditional British reserve, a national tendency to avoid showing strong emotion of any kind. The British like to keep a stiff upper lip. In other words, they don’t like showing or talking about their feelings. They rather prefer hiding them because people who reveal their emotions are thought to be weak and bad‐mannered. For example, showing anger in public is considered to be a sign that the person hasn’t much character. So few British people would dare vent even a little anger in public places. They give little attention to people who complain in public e.g., about being Read and do kept waiting in a traffic jam or in a restaurant. They may pretend not to hear them in order to avoid getting involved. (§2) This attitude is far less common today than it used to be, but a lot of British people, especially among the elderly, still take a great deal of trouble to appear strong. Most British men and women are still embarrassed to be seen crying in public. People are also embarrassed when they see somebody crying, and do not know whether it is better to pretend they have not noticed or to try and comfort them. Women are more likely to respond than men and will put their arm round the person or touch their shoulder. (§3) Many British youths now show feelings of affection in public. Women sometimes kiss each other on the cheek as a greeting and people may greet or say goodbye to each other with a hug. Lovers hold hands in public and sometimes embrace and kiss each other, but many elderly people do not like to see this. However, when British people are part of a crowd they are less worried about expressing their emotions. Football crowds sing and cheer when their side scores a goal. Players now hug one another when they score. Even cricket supporters, who had a reputation for being much quieter, enjoy cheering as well as giving the traditional polite applause. (§4) (From The Oxford Guide to British and American Culture, p.192)
Posted on: Sun, 20 Oct 2013 09:26:23 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015