赖世雄高级美国英语 lesson 34

　　Hello everybody, welcome again to Radio English on Sunday. This is Bruce,/ And this is Peter.

/ Today on page two hundred eighty eight, we take a look at unit thirty four, which is called "English small talk topics, what is ok and what is not? "Now wait a minute, small talk, does this mean that we talk for a short time?

/ No.

/ Or short people talk? Well, what does this mean?

/ Well actually it is "chat" or "chitchat", something like that, ok.

/ I see, soemthing that it isn't so serious.

/ No, not at all. You know, it's for relaxing or something.

/ I see.

Well, let's take a look at small talk and what kind of topics are ok, if you want to speak to a foreigner whose native language is English. We'll begin, of course, the first paragraph here, on page two hundred eighty eight, if you just joined our program.

When in Roman, do as the Ramans do. What may be perfectly 1 acceptable to talk about in one culture may offend or even shock others when ina different culture. Accordingly, it is important to know what topics are safe to discuss with stranger or acquaintances from a different background. Topics which can be discussed freely within a culture are referred to as small talk.

So the last sentence of this paragraph gives us a definition of "small talk". Topics which can be discussed freely within a culture are referred to as "small talk". We'll give you many examples of these topics in a moment, but the idea is very important. If in your culture, it's ok to talk about something, it may not be ok to talk about that, same topics, in a different culture. That's why we always tell you, When in Rome, do as the Romans do.

/ Oh, this lesson can be very very important for those who are studying English as a second language. Very likely in future you may have a chance to travel around, so you are in a foreign country, you are sure to do, or to (by by) the laws or..

/ Local customs?

/ Right there.

/ That's right, it's very good idea. People will sonsider you rude.

/ Small talk, 不能说成 Small talks. But what is the "sweet talk"?

/ "Sweet talk"? Well, you are now asking the right guy. :P/ Oh, yeah?

/ That means usually the guy is trying to get the girl and he's telling her things that she wants to hear, right?

/ Yeah, 甜言蜜语罗。不过这个sweet talk还可以作动词用哦。

To sweet talk somebody into doing something,He sweet talked me into marrying him.

He sweet talked me into lending him my car.

Ok, next paragraph.

As with any other language, English has its onw stock of non-offensive topics. Among these are the weather, occupation, immediate 2 conditions, family and family life and shool or work. Topics in English which should never be broached 4 include one's personal life, physical appearance, unless complimentary 5, income and age, as well as religious, sexual, or political views. Each of these topics, both approved and taboo 6, will be discussed in more detail later.

After we told you in the first paragraph what small talk means, in the second paragraph we give you examples of the kind of topics which are considered small talk. We don't have to review them right now, because we're going to go into each one of those in detail throughout the rest of this lesson.

/..don't talke about one's physical appearance, unless complimentary. You look very handsome,/ You look so..strong.

/ Everytime Bruce would say once he sees me, hey, here comes a ghost. a monster. :PRemember one thing, all the girls are beautiful,/ ..at heart. :P/ ..uhh, not necessarily. All the girls are beautiful execpt that some are even more so.

/ It's a good example of "sweet talk". You wanted a good example, here is one from Peter. :POk, let's continue over to the next page,Small talk is extremely useful when first meeting others. Actually, one purpose of small talk is not to find out the answers to questions like "how are you?" or "nice day, isn't it?" but rather to gauge 7 whether the person is the sort whom one would like to know better. While talking about essentially 8 unimportant matters such as the weather, life in the office, or how many children, if any, one has, each speaker has the opportunity to determine whether the other is cooperative, interesting, potentially useful or friendly, etc. If a person answers the enquiry about the weather with a grunt 9 or "I hate sunny days", no further energy need be wasted.

______gauge, v,To determine the capacity, volume, or contents of.

测定确定容量、体积或内容To evaluate or judge:

评估；判断：

gauge a person's ability.

评估一个人的能力____grunt, v, n,To utter a sound similar to a grunt, as in disgust.

发哼声，咕哝发出类似呼噜的声音，如因出于厌恶gruntv.tr.

To utter or express with a deep, guttural sound:

咕哝着说出以深沉的喉音说出或表示：

He merely grunted 10 his approval.

他只是咕哝了一声以表示同意vi.

(猪等)发低沉的咕噜声(表示烦恼, 反对等)哼声, 咕哝牢骚vt.

以低沉的声音咕噜着; 发(牢骚)This paragraph tells us about one of the purposes of small talk. We might start out with the question like "how are you" or "nice day, isn't it?", well, we know it's a nice day. What, are you blind? Well, that might be true, but even the blind know whether it's good weather or not. So, that's not really the purpose to find out the answers to these questions, but to find out about the person. Maybe the person doesn't want to talk to you today; he is in bad mood, or depending on the answers you might (decide) "wow, what a friendly guy, I'd like to know him better". So, one of the purposes of small talk is to find out about the person, not the answers to the questions.

/ 有一个语法点要注意一下，no further energy need be wasted. 这里的energy是不可数名词，照理说应该用needs, 用needs可以，但后面要说needs to be wasted. 不过在否定句中这need可以作助动词用，尤其跟not运用的时候，you need not do it, 这个时候就不可以说you need not to do it, 如果作动词用，前面要加doesn't. He doesn't need to do it,如果前面有no, no one need do it, 这里是助动词的用法了。作动词用是这样，no one needs to do it.

/ Excellent teaching point there, Peter. Very good.

/ Thank you.

Well, let's go on to the next paragraph. 8:26Another purpose of small talk, once a speaker is satisfied that the other person is worth talking with, is to explore possible areas of interest or cooperation. By tactfully going through safe topics, some information may be revealed, which leads the speaker into a deeper discussion, espcially when the topic is a shared hobby or interest. Talking about the weather may reveal that one speaker enjoys recreation, like camping or hiking. Shooting the breeze about one's family may disclose similar shared family hobbies like board or card games, or barbecues and picnics. In other words, small talk may serve as probing of the other person's personality and lifestyle.

______worth,Equal in value to something specified 12:

等值的与特定的某物价值相等的：

worth its weight in gold.

与其等量重的黄金价值相等Deserving of; meriting:

值得的；应得的：

a proposal not worth consideration.

不值得考虑的提案adj.

[用作表语, 后接名词或动名词作宾语]

值, 相等于...的价值值得...的, 有...的价值的拥有...价值的财产What is it worth?

(或How much is it worth?)这值多少钱?

It is worth￡500. 它值五百镑。

It's not worth the paper it's printed on.

它(文章等)的价值抵不上用来印它的纸张。

The rarer it is, the more it is worth.

物以稀为贵。

It's worth seeing [hearing, reading]

值得一看[一听, 一读]

be worth notice [the trouble]

值得注意[费点事]

It is worth while visiting [to visit] the place.

这地方值得参观。

It is worth while to discuss [discussing] the problem.

这个问题值得讨论一下。

He is worth a million.

他是百万富翁。

adj, prep值…的；价值…的a car worth $20000价值2万美元的一辆小汽车How much is this bicycle worth? It's worth ￡50.

这辆自行车值多少钱？值50英磅。

值得…的It isn't worth waiting for him.

不值得等他。

n价值the true worth of one's friendship某人友谊的真正价值books of real worth真正有价值的书_____worthy,Having worth, merit, or value; useful or valuable.

有价值的具有价值或优点的；有用的或有价值的Honorable; admirable:

可敬可佩的值得尊敬的；值得钦佩的：

a worthy 13 fellow.

可敬可佩的人Having sufficient worth; deserving:

值得的有充分价值的；该得到的：

worthy to be revered 14; worthy of acclaim 15.

值得受人尊敬的；值得称赞的adj.

有价值的; 有意义的; 配得上的; 可尊敬的, 相称的[常作表语, 其后常跟被动语态动词不定式或of加名词或被动态动名词] 值得...的; 应该...的a worthy cause正义的事业a worthy life有价值的生活a worthy man高尚的人a worthy opponent劲敌a worthy gentleman可敬的先生a man worthy of praise [to be praised]

值得称赞的人acts worthy of punishment应该受处分的行为She says she helps only the worthy poor.

她说她只帮助那些值得她去帮助的穷人(不包括那些她认为好吃懒做等不配取得帮助的人)。

They will prove worthy of the Party's trust.

他们不会辜负党对他们的信任。

He is worthy to have a place in the team.

他配成为该球队的队员。

This book is worthy of being read [to be read].

这本书值得一读。

tactful, --->tactfully, adv,Possessing or exhibiting tact 11; considerate and discreet 16:

机敏的,谨慎的具有或表现出机敏的；为他人着想的和谨慎的：

a tactful person; a tactful remark.

机敏的人；谨慎的话语probe, n, v,To explore with or as if with a probe:

用或似用探针进行探测：

probe a wound to find its extent; probing the anthill with a stick.

探查伤口以确定其大小；用棍探测蚁穴To delve 17 into; investigate.

调查；查究probev.intr.

To conduct an exploratory investigation 18; search.

进行探索性的调查；搜寻刺探; 调查; 查究probe a matter to the bottom彻底调查一件事探查；探寻；深挖She tried to probe my mind and discover what I was thinking.(喻)"她试图探查我的心意,想知道我在想什么。"调查；刺探to probe rumors 19 to the bottom彻查谣言来源Well, here's another function of small talk or purpose. At first we use small talk to find out if this is the kind of person I want to get to know. If we feel that "oh, this guy's ok", if we keep using small talk, we may learn more about the person's personality or lifestyle, and find out whether "oh, you like to do this, too? You like boarding? oh, so do I. " or "you enjoy collecting this sort of things? So do I. Maybe we can get together. " So small talk may seem small to some people, but it serves to very good purposes.

/ Line three, by tactfully going through "safe topics", 这个tactfully, 就是很圆滑地，很有技巧地，He knows how to deal with people, then we say he's tactful, or rather he's sophisticated. He knows the art, that is an art, in dealing 20 with people, 但如果一个人不懂这些的，tactless, 不老练的，不圆滑的，/ I know that word.

Ok, let's go ahead. We'll finish this page and go on to the next.

Everybody complains about the weather, but nobody ever does anything about it, so goes an old saying. Perhaps the safest of all small talk topics is the weather. Whether good or bad, a comment about the temperature or sky condition, sunny day, cloudy day, rainy day 11:19 etc. never offends. Commenting on the crowded traffic or the late bus, or high prices in the department store, immediate conditions is also appropriate. Similarly, most people do not mind talking about their work, family or school life, either, since for most people, these are experiences held in common. Even so, asking whether someone is married or not crosses over into personal information, and therefore should be avoided. If the speaker happens to mention that he or she has children or is married, however, it is alright to pursue the topic.

So we start out talking about a safe small talk topic, the weather, also, immediate conditions. What is going on around the speakers as they are waiting for something? You may be waiting in a line to buy tickets, or waiting in a line to buy food in a fast food restaurant, and you see somebody in front of you, maybe you want to start a conversation to meet then or get to know more about them, you could say, "gee 21, what is it all slow here?" or "well, the service here isn't bad, is it?" You might start according to immediate conditions. However, we should not go too quickly into personal information. Some students have asked some of my colleagues who are single, but the student didn't know that, rather tactless questions. For example, "are you married?" , well, that might seem like an ok question, but not to American, that is considered personal. Then when my colleague asked "well, no, I am not," the student asked, "why not?" which is even more tactless.

/...

/ That's ok, and then maybe the westerner, or foreigner, will tell you how much it cost, but usually we don't discuss money, unless it's something like "how much for the movie ticket, how much is the cab fare", and taxi fare, and things like this. That's ok, but not things personal.

/ to comment on something, comment + on,He refused to comment on the issue.

He refused to make comments on the issue.

Well, now we are on the final page of our lesson. Let's take a look at the first paragraph.

Asking such questions as "how much do you weigh? how old are you?" or "how much do you earn?" are taboo in English, at least as starters for conversation. Only when friends are close would they ask such questions of each other. Likewise, for most people, religious or political convictions or sexual mores 22 are considered private matters. These should not be discussed until one speaker offers his opinion first. It is not necessary, though, to respond in kind. The other speaker can change the subject to show that this is a taboo subject.

Well, we gave you examples of personal information. Your weight, your age, your income, as the first three questions of this paragraph. We do not talk about such things, especially at first, not with strangers or acquaintances; only with close friends. We don't even begin to talk about religious, political or sexual topics unless one of the friends starts to ask, but this does not mean that you are required to answer. You could politely change the subject. For example, "oh, I see. By the way..." and then you start to talk about different topics. Your friend won't be offended, because your friend realizes that you are not ready to talk about this subject yet, they are still too personal for you, and that's ok.

/ ..hey, remember to pay me back the money!

Oh, I see, by the way ....shall we go on a picnic tomorrow?

likewise, --->by the same token,Hey, you should do your best to help the poor, likewise at home you should do your best help your parents. ..you should do your best to help the poor, by the same token, at home your should ...同样地，...

Now let's finish it.

Foreigners are usually forgiven the indiscretion of asking others of offending questions. Still, it is not a good idea to wear out one's welcome. When a subject has been turned down, only a tactless person will persue it. Being sensitive to others' feelings and sense of privacy will win more friends and influence more people than a reckless line of questioning. When curiosity seems to be getting the upper hand, remember that silence is golden.

_______reckless,Heedless or careless.

粗心的不注意的或粗心大意的Headstrong; rash.

鲁莽的草率的；莽撞的Indifferent to or disregardful of consequences:

不顾后果的对后果不关心或忽视的：

a reckless driver.

横冲直撞的司机adj.

不注意的; 粗心大意的鲁莽的; 不顾一切的be reckless of the consequences毫不顾及后果be reckless of expenditure乱花钱be reckless of不注意Such reckless spending is a crime.

如此挥霍是一种罪恶。

_____to get the upper hand, to have the upper hand.

A position of control or advantage.

上风，优势控制或有利的地位_____mores,The accepted traditional customs and usages of a particular social group.

习俗，惯例为特定社会集团或群体所接受的传统风俗和习惯Moral attitudes.

道德态度Manners; ways.

风格；方式So here, we first..remind that maybe you will ask question which someone considers taboo or very very personal, and this person will try to change the subject, or show you, usually in a polite way, that "I would rather not talk about that". Don't ask "why not, why won't you tell me?", that will be a rectless line of questioning. Ok, just change the subject. I am sure there are other ideas or other qualities of the person that you can find out about without offending that particular person. And if you are not sure, remember, silence is golden.

/...(he sings, "silence is golden, golden..."/ That's a beautiful song.

/ curiosity,Curiosity killed the cat. 这个kill要用过去式。好奇心会把猫杀死？

/ Well, here my ..pretty good place to use it. If you want to start a relationship with somebody, and you are nauturally curious, we all are, you might start to ask more questions than the person you are interested in really wants to answer, so now you have a choice to make. Are you going to be curious and not control yourself and lose this relationship? Or kill the cat, in this case? Or are you going to be tactful, and perhaps later you will find out the answers to those questions, after you do become close friends. So you have to control this desire to learn everything about somebody right away, if you don't, you will kill the relationship, jsut as the cat can get into serious trouble if it looks in the wrong places out of curiosity.

嘿，不要好奇哦，否则会惹麻烦啊。

Hey, don't be too nosy 23.

/I am really glad you brought this up. If someone says, please don't be nosy or "you are too nosy," there is an example of that you are ready to kill the cat; you are talking about the taboo subject. Another way people may try to stop you asking questions is "mind your own business. " When you hear that, you are also close to the taboo. Don't go any further.

/...to wear out one's welcome. 人家请客，你一直在那里聊天，11点了还不走，12点了还在聊。。

/..not only that..but..can I have some more beer? Oh, you don't have any? Go out and get some.

/ .. you are wearing out your welcome; you have already worn out your welcome. 你已经不再受欢迎的意思。

______金山词霸：wear out one's welcomev.呆得太久而不受欢迎/ ..yeah, I remember that when you came to my house..

Ok, let's go back and finish up our re-reading of English small talk topics, what is ok and what is not.

_____prevail over, 也有占上风，胜过..的意思。

______________Pan. 2003. 6******************************************************************************************************************Unit 34English Small Talk Topics: What is ok and what is not? 慎选英语闲聊话题"When in Rome, do as the Romans do." What may be perfectly acceptable to talk about in one culture may offend or even shock others when in a different culture. Accordingly, it is important to know what topics are "safe" to discuss with strangers or acquaintances from a different background. Topics which can be discussed freely within a culture are referred to as "small talk".

As with any other language, English has its own stock of non-offensive topics. Among these are the weather, occupation, immediate conditions, family and family life, and school or work. Topics in English which should never be broached include one's personal life, physical appearance (unless complimentary), income, and age as well as religious, sexual, or political views. Each of these topics---both approved and taboo---will be discussed in more detail later.

Small talk is extremely useful when first meeting others. Actually, one purpose of small talk is not to find out the answer to questions like "How are you?" or "Nice day, isn't it?" but rahter to gauge whether the person is the sort whom one would like to know better. While talking about essentially unimportant matters such as the weather, life in the office, or how many children---if any---one has, each speaker has the opportunity to determine whether the other is cooperative, interesting, potentially useful or friendly, etc. If a person answers the inquiry 24 about the weather with a grunt or "I hate sunny days," no further energy need be wasted!

Another purpose of small talk, once a speaker is satisfied that the other person is worth talking with, is to explore possible areas of interest or cooperation. By tactfully going through "safe topics," some information may be revealed which leads the speaker(s) into a deeper discussion, especially when a topic is a shared hobby or interest. Talking about the weather may reveal that one speaker enjoys recreation like camping or hiking. Shooting the breeze about one's family may disclose similar shared family hobbies like board or card games or barbecues and picnics. In other words, small talk may serve as probing of the other person's personality and lifestyle.

"Everybody complains about the weather, but nobody ever does anything about it," so goes an old saying. Perhaps the safest of all small talk topics is the weather. Whether good or bad, a comment about the temperature or sky condition (sunny day, cloudy day, rainy day, etc. ) never offends. Commenting on the crowded traffic or the late bus, or high prices in the department store (immediate conditions) is also always appropriate. Similarly, most people do not mind talking about their work, family, or school life, either, since for most people these are experiences held in common. Even so, asking whether someone is married or not crosses over into personal information and therefore should be avoided. If the speaker happens to mention that he or she has children or is married, however, it is all right to pursue the topic.

Asking such questions as "How much do you weigh? How old are you?" or "How much do you earn?" are taboo in English, at least as starters for conversation. Only when friends are close would they ask such questions of each other. Likewise, for most people, religious or political convictions or exual mores are considered private matters. These should not be discussed until one speaker offers his opinion first. It is not necessary, though, to respond in kind. The other speaker can change the subject to show that this is a taboo subject.

Foreigners are usually "forgiven" the "indiscretion" of asking others offending questions. Still, it is not a good idea to wear out one's welcome. When a subject has been turned down, only a tactless person would pursue it. Being sensitive to others' feelings and sense of privacy will win more friends and influence more people than a reckless line of questioning. When curiosity seems to be getting the upper hand, remember that "Silence is golden."*************************************************************************************************************************acquaintance, n, 认识的人He is no friend of mine; he's just a nodding acquaintance.

make one's acquaintance, 认识某人I made his acquaintance long before I went to college.

refer to A as B, 把A称做B，You can refer to a Toyota as a car, but you cannot refer to a car as a Toyota.

你可以称丰田是一辆车，但却不能把任何车叫做丰田。

broach 3, v, 提及，谈到，talk about,At the meeting, Gary broached the subject of salary raises to the boss.

grunt n, 咕噜声，怨言We could hear a fierce grunt of pain as the deer was shot down by the hunter.

tactfully, adv, 圆滑地，技巧地,机智－－－＞tactless, 不教练的，Jack 25 is tactful in dealing with people.

shoot the breeze, 闲聊，瞎扯The young men were sitting on their motorcycles and shooting the breeze; they obviously had nothing to do.

probe, v, 探索，探究，explore,The mayor instructed the police to probe thoroughly 26 into the case. 市长指示警方彻查本案。

..so goes the old saying,so goes an old saying,As the old saying goes,As the old saying puts it,comment, n, + on, ，可数。v, +onmake a comment on...

I don't feel that I should comment on Helen's transgressions 27.

Don't make comments on matters which don't concern you.

indiscretion, n, 言行不检。可数或不可数皆可。－－＞discretion.

indiscreet, adj, 言行不检的，不谨慎的，－－－＞discreet,reckless, adj, 鲁莽的，不顾一切的，A reckless driver is likely to get caught in a traffic addident.

The soldiers are fighting against the enemy, reckless of danger.

get the upper hand, 占上风，have the upper hand,Our basketball team got the upper hand in the second half.