Jerry要去中國出差,找同事Amy請教。
Jerry: Hey Amy...your family is from China, right?
A:Yep. I was born and raised in Shanghai. Why do you ask?
J: Well, I hope you don't mind...but I'm planning a business trip to China soon and I was wondering if you could give me some pointers.
A: You mean like where to go for food or shopping?
J: That would be good, too. But I'm actually hoping you might give me some insights into doing business in China.
A: Ah...sure! I think I can help. Do you have a specific question?
Jerry準備去中國出差,希望Amy能給自己點建議give me some pointers. pointer is spelled p-o-i-n-t-e-r, pointer是指點,建議的意思。Amy從小在上海長大,看來Jerry算是找對人了。Jerry并不是想了解吃飯、購物的事,而是想知道在中國做生意的一些規(guī)矩。
J: Well, for starters, what do they mean by "saving face?"
A: "Saving face" is a catch-all term for the concept of honor. In China there is a protocol to everything and it should be followed, otherwise you and the other party might be embarrassed.
J: So in short...saving face is about avoiding embarrassment?
A: Exactly. Say you're late to a meeting. This would cause you to lose face.
For starters, 首先,Jerry想知道什么是有面子,saving face. Amy解釋說,saving face is a catch-all term for the concept of honor. 有面子包括了所有跟榮譽和顏面有關的問題。
這里所說的catch-all is spelled c-a-t-c-h, catch, a-l-l, all, catch-all,意思是全部包含、統(tǒng)統(tǒng)適用的。Amy說,中國人干什么都講究規(guī)矩,protocol, p-r-o-t-o-c-o-l, protocol, 按規(guī)矩做事,大家都有面子,破壞了規(guī)矩,就會讓人lose face,丟臉,比如說開會遲到。
J: How can you go about regaining your "face", or your honor?
A: It depends on how serious the offense was. If you were late, you can repeatedly apologize and the other person will probably forgive you.
J: But I would need to apologize more times than I would if I was late here in America?
A: Yes. Make many apologies. The person will probably say it's not a big deal, but in fact it could be a pretty big deal to them, so make sure to say sorry if you make a mistake.
如何才能regain face挽回面子呢?Amy說,這要看你錯誤的嚴重程度。It depends on how serious the offense was. 如果開會遲到,你最好使勁道歉,請求對方原諒。對方可能嘴上會說,it's not a big deal,沒什么大不了的,但事實上,他們心里可能非常在意,所以一定要再三道歉。