ESL 21B

Essay#1.2

7/6/07

    "When in Rome, do as Romans do" someone said in the class{1} this famous proverb. This proverb shows that it is important to follow the foreign country's ways when people go to foreign country because there are huge differences between own country and foreign country. Especially, the way of communication makes people confuseWForm. According to "Where Do We Stand" by Lisa Davis, people have different way of non-verbal communication, which depends on their cultural back ground and gender. As a result, people sometimes feel uncomfortable when they communicate with other people. In Japan, there are some different communications styles, which make foreignerSing/Plu confuseWForm. Especially, foreigners should admitWChoice different Japanese communications styles when they meet Japanese, and talk to them. Moreover, Japanese like to communicate indirect ways.

    First of all, Japanese hasSing/Plu own personal space when they meet others. In Japan, when people start communication, they just nod their head and sometimes shake their hands because it is Japanese value that people should have some distance when they meet first time. On the other hand, foreign people, especially EuropeWForm or Americans hug their friend and sometimes kiss friends, because it is their assumption that people should stand close when they communicate with others. As, a result, when these foreigners go to Japan, they should have longer communication spaceAwkward than usual one because that space is so short that Japanese feel uncomfortable, and sometimes make misunderstandWForm. For example, according to "Where Do We Stand?" by Lisa Davis, she showsCut American people feel uncomfortable when they talk to Middle East people because they have a different personal space between the American and the man who came from Middle East (19). It shows that the personal space depends on the country, so Japanese and Americans probably have same problem when they meet. In addition, the different personal space sometimes makes misunderstand between the people relationshipsAwkward. For instance, in Japan, the language school students misunderstand that the teacher loves them because teacher's personal space is very short for Japanese student, and that space is same as relationships between a couple in Japan. As a result, Japanese student misunderstand to the foreigner because of different personal space.

    In addition, when theyReference not clear talk to people in Japan, they should careWChoice the language. In America, people use informal words in conversation. For example, according to "American Values and Assumptions" by Gary Althen, American have informal attitude to other people. As a result, they talk to other people with informal language. For instance, in America, people usually call the other person with first name, and they often use prefix word such as "Mr." or "Ms."{2} On the other hand, Japanese uses more formal word in the conversation than American. For instance, when they meet first time, people usually use honorifics and usually call them with last name and prefix word. Moreover, Japanese have much kind of honorifics words, which depend on their social position and partner's social position. As a result, Japanese are very careful about the conversation when they talk to others. Therefore, IfCapitalization Americans toldWChoice to Japanese with informal words as in America, Japanese would feel uncomfortable and be upset. For example, when I was a high school student, my English teacher was American. He feel uncomfortable when he call students because he called students with first name, but other Japanese English teacher called student with last name and prefix words. Moreover, he could not talk to other teacher with formal word. Therefore, he quitted his job at last, and he goes baskSpl to America. ItReference not clear shows that it is difficult to live in Japan without accepting Japanese formality in the conversation.

    Finally, Japanese sometimes avoid communicateVForm others directly. In Japan, people have a belief that using indirect way is good to communicate with others. For instance, in business, when people meet each other first time, they do not introduce themselves with speaking, but they just trade their cards which introduce their name, position and phone number. Moreover, in Japan, when they talk to other people, people usually look downward and they try to avoid gazingWChoice their eyes directly. On the other hand, American likes to use direct ways when they communicate with others because to show their achievement is their assumptions. In the article "American Values and Assumptions" written by Gary Althen, the author shows that American like to seeWChoice the peoples achievementAwkward (11). It shows that it is common to express people achievement in America.

However, in Japan, people may misunderstand when American start to talk about their achievement. For instance, when I was high school student there was one student who had come from America. He usually spoke what did he done in America and what did he got there. However, most of students define him as kind of narcissism personAwkward because it is belief for Japanese that people should not talk toPreposition own achievement. Therefore, American should care about their direct way. In addition, American usually talks with gazing partner's eyes, but it is uncomfortable for Japanese. In fact, in the article "Where Do We Stand?" written by Lisa Davis, the author showsWChoice "And, says researcher and writer Mildred Reed Hall, Americans can even make their business counterparts in Japan uncomfortable with the kind of direct eye contact that's normal here" (20). It shows that Japanese dislike toCut using eye contact, so American should accept this Japanese behavior in Japan.

    In conclusion, Japanese and foreigner have different sense of personal space when they meet and formality when they talk to others. In addition, Japanese avoid direct communication style in some case. Japanese have more personal space than Americans when they communicate, and Japanese use more formal words such as honorifics than American. Moreover, Japanese does not show their achievement with direct way and they avoid taking eye contact to others. Therefore, if Americans wanted to feel comfortable, they should do as Japanese do.