歷年考研英語閱讀理解1997年02

[00:03.87]1997 Passage2 [00:07.41]A report consistently brought back [00:09.53]by visitors to the US is how friendly, courteous, [00:13.58]and helpful most Americans were to them. [00:16.92]To be fair, this observation is also frequently [00:20.14]made of Canada and Canadians, [00:23.07]and should best be considered North American. [00:26.40]There are, of course, exceptions. [00:29.12]Small-minded officials, rude waiters, [00:31.94]and ill-mannered taxi drivers are hardly unknown in the US. [00:36.88]Yet it is an observation made so frequently [00:39.91]that it deserves comment. [00:42.63]For a long period of time and in many parts of the country, [00:46.39]a traveler was a welcome break in an otherwise dull existence. [00:50.95]Dullness and loneliness were common problems of the families [00:54.88]who generally lived distant from one another. [00:58.20]Strangers and travelers were welcome sources of diversion, [01:02.09]and brought news of the outside world. [01:05.69]The harsh realities of the frontier [01:07.91]also shaped this tradition of hospitality. [01:11.34]Someone traveling alone, if hungry, injured, or ill, [01:15.87]often had nowhere to turn except to [01:18.04]the nearest cabin or settlement. [01:21.16]It was not a matter of choice for the traveler [01:24.18]or merely a charitable impulse on the part of the settlers. [01:28.42]It reflected the harshness of daily life: [01:31.66]if you didn't take in the stranger and take care of him, [01:35.38]there was no one else who would. [01:37.71]And someday, remember, you might be in the same situation. [01:43.26]Today there are many charitable organizations [01:46.79]which specialize in helping the weary traveler. [01:50.32]Yet, the old tradition of hospitality to strangers [01:53.85]is still very strong in the US, [01:56.37]especially in the smaller cities and towns away from [01:59.87]the busy tourist trails. [02:02.78]"I was just traveling through, got talking with this American, [02:06.81]and pretty soon he invited me home for dinner--amazing." [02:11.76]Such observations reported by visitors to the US [02:15.29]are not uncommon, [02:16.91]but are not always understood properly. [02:20.34]The casual friendliness of many Americans [02:23.16]should be interpreted neither [02:24.74]as superficial nor as artificial, [02:27.88]but as the result of a historically developed cultural tradition. [02:33.12]As is true of any developed society, [02:36.26]in America a complex set of cultural signals, assumptions, [02:41.40]and conventions underlies all social interrelationships. [02:46.64]And, of course, speaking a language does not necessarily mean [02:50.75]that someone understands social [02:52.86]and cultural patterns. [02:55.56]Visitors who fail to "translate" cultural meanings properly [02:59.28]often draw wrong conclusions. [03:02.01]For example, when an American uses the word "friend", [03:06.04]the cultural implications of the word may be [03:08.56]quite different from those it has in the visitor's [03:11.28]language and culture. [03:13.77]It takes more than a brief encounter on a bus to distinguish [03:17.31]between courteous convention and individual interest. [03:21.65]Yet, being friendly is a virtue that many Americans value highly [03:26.09]and expect from both neighbors and strangers.

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