从跨文化交际角度对比中西方餐桌礼仪的不同_英文_冯心如

TheComparativeStudyofChineseandWesternTableMannersfromthePerspectiveofCross－cultureCommunication○

FengXinruXuYanping

（XinjiangEngineeringInstitute，Urumqi，Xinjiang，830091）

Abstract］Inthemodernsociety，thecross－culturecommunicationbetweenChinaandWesterncountriesbe-［

comesahotissueandtheinfluencesofChinaandWesternetiquetteareincreasinglyprofound，whichcausethedifferencesintablemanners．BytheanalysisofthedifferencesbetweenChineseandwesterndietarycultures，wecancomprehendtherespectiveculturaltraditionsofChinaandthewest，andsetupaharmoniousrelationshipwiththewesterns．

［Keywords］cross－culturecommunication，tablemanners，differences［中图分类号］G04

［文献标识码］A

［8610（2013）04-0092-03文章编号］1672-toprotectourtableculture，wecanmakethetwotablemanners

integrated，whichisgoodforuscommunicatingwithforeigners．So，itisnecessaryforustoknowthedifferencesofthetwotablemanners．TherearenumberlessdifferencesbetweenChineseandwesternfoodcultures，andthosedifferencescausethedifferencesoftablemanners．Thispapermainlytalksaboutthedifferencesoftablemannersbetweentwocultures，toanalyzethecauses，aimtoachievecross－culturecommunicationmoresuccessfully．Forexample，someculturaldifferencesreflectedintablemannersbetweenChinaandtheWest．

Ⅱ．DifferentTableMannersbetweenChinaandtheWest2．1Differencesintablesetting

Firstofall，tablesettingforChineseandWesternarequitedifferences．Chinesepeoplealwayschooseroundtableswhenen-tertainingfriends．TherearelotsofrulesinChinaaboutwheretoputtheroundtableandwhichseattakesprecedenceonthesametable．

ChinesepeopleprefertotheroundtableintheChineseban-quets．Ifthereisjustaroundtableinthefamilydinner，soithasnotableorder．Butifthebanquetsareheldinarestaurantorahallandtherearetwoorovertworoundtable，thenitmusthavethetablesettingorder．Theruleoftablesettingisthatthetoptableistheroundtablewhichisbacktotherestaurantorthehallandtherightofwhichisseniorandtheleftisinferior．Iftherearethreeroundtables，thenthetableinthemiddleissen-ior，therightisnextandtheleftissecond．Anyway，therightishonorandtheleftislow，whateverhowmanythetablesare．

Therearefourbasicwaysofsettingarrangement：Firsthostshouldsitfacingthemaindoor，thenguestofhonorsitontherightofthehostanddeputychiefgustontheleft．Second，whenthebanquetsarrivetothescaleofmorethanonetable，everyta-

I．Introduction

Withthedevelopmentofglobaleconomy，cross－culturecommunicationhasbecomemoreandmorefrequent，andthedifferencesbetweenChineseandwesternculturehavebecomemoreobvious，especiallythedifferencesoftablemanners．

Incrossculturecommunication，themisunderstandingscausedbyculturebarrierappearfrequently．Sometimeswell－meaningtalkingmightmakepeopleembarrassed．So，studyingthedifferencesbetweendifferentculturesandstudyingtherightactionsofcross－culturecommunicationarenecessary．Thepur-poseofknowingthedifferencesandsimilaritiesoftablemannersistounderstandthepresentcross－culturalsituationandtohaveabetterideaofpeople’srelationshipsbyavoidingunnecessarymisunderstandingandmistakes．ThroughcomparingthetablemannersofChinaandWesterncountriesandkeepingpacewiththechangingworldcanbemoremeaningfultoallpeople．

Havingdinnerismorethanthebasicnecessityoflife．

Instead，havingdinnerisanimportantpartofsocialformula．DuetoChineseandforeigners’differentlifestyles，thewayofthinking，culturesandtablemannersshowabigdifference．Chi-nesetablemannershavealonghistory，whichdatedfromZhouDynasty，atthattimetablemannershaveaquitecompletesys-tem．Thosetablemannersgraduallygotoalevelofmatureandperfect，moreover，theytookanimportantpartinthepastandstillhaveadeepinfluenceinthemodernsociety．WesterndiningcustomsoriginateinMerovingianDynasty，France，andinthe20century，ItalianculturecametoFrance，tablemannersandmenuturnedtobemoreelegantanddelicate，fromthattime，booksofetiquettearepublishedgradually．Today，tablemannersinheritinEurope．TablemannersinWesterncountrieshaveinfluenceonChinesetablemannersbecauseofWorldIntegration．Inorder

［作者简介］冯心如，女，山东人，新疆工程学院讲师，硕士，研究方向：语言学与语言教学；

徐艳萍，女，北京人，新疆工程学院讲师，硕士，研究方向：语言学与语言教学。

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CULTUＲEFengXinruXuYanping/TheComparativeStudyofChineseandWesternTableManners

fromthePerspectiveofCross－cultureCommunication

bleshouldhavearepresentativeofhostandthesettingisonthesamewayofthehost，sometimesheorshecanfacetothehostonthemaintable．Third，takingthetableofthehostsittingasthesign，theguestonitsrightishonorandtheleftislow．Fourth，ifthepositionofthehostisinferiortotheguestofhono-r，thehostcanaskguesttositwherethehostshouldhaveseatedandthehostsitonhisright．Asforthedinningoflessthanfivepeople，itstablesettingcanfollowthosefourrules：rightishon-orandtheleftislow；themiddleseatissenior；theseatoffacingthedooristhetop；flexibilityarrangement．

Butthewest，thelongtablesarethechoiceinthebanquet．Theyalsothinkthattherightishonorandtheleftislow．Inthebanquet，thehostandhostesssitfromeachother，gentlemanofhonorsitnearthehost，hisMadamesitnearthehostessandtheothersfollowthem．Intheinformalparty，itfollowsthatwomenisfirst．Ifamanandawomanhaveadiner，themanshouldlet

tletshesitneartothepas-thewomansitonhisrightanddon’

sageway；anywaythemanoughttoletthewomansitinside．Whentherearetwocouples，ladiesshouldsitagainstthewallandtheoppositearetheirhusbands．Whentwomenwithawoman，menshouldletwomansitinthemiddleplace．Whentwopeoplehaveadinner，theseniorsitinside．Besides，menshouldremovethechairsandletwomensitfirst．

2．2Differentindinnerware

Secondly，inChina，thedinnerwareweusearethose：thechopsticks，smalldishes，spoons，bowlandsoon．Intheban-quet，waterglassisontheleftofthedishesandwineglassisontheright．Chopstickandsoupspooncanbeputonthespecialseatorinthepapersleeve．Andthetoothpickandashtrayisnec-essary．

Inwest，theyprefertousetheknifeandfork，spoon，dish，glassandsoon．Inthewayofsetting，Chinesedinneriseasybutwesterndinneriscomplex．Thesettingwaysofthewesterndin-nerintheworldisbasicallyunified．Thecommonprincipleis：underplateisplacedinthemiddle；forkisontheleftandknifeisright，knifepointkeepsupwardandknifeedgeinward；spoonisputtedonthefrontofplate；maindishisleftanddinnerwareisright，theothersareputtedbycircumstances．Besides，thenum-berofwineglassesequaltothevarietyofwine．Andtheputtingwaysareintheorderofthatstrongwineglass，wineglass，champagneglass，beerglass．Thenapkinisplacedontheplate．Iftheguestwantstoputsomethingintheplatebeforethedinner，thenapkincanbeputtedbesidetheplate．

Thereisonecommonrule：righthandwithknifeandlefthandwithfork．

2．3Differencesintheorderofserving

Thirdly，inChina，Thefirstdishesarecolddishes，bever-ageandwine；thenthehotdishes；nextstaplefood；atlastthesweetsandfruit．Whenthebanquethasmanytables，eachtableshouldbeoneverydishatthesametime．Besides，hotdishesshouldbeservedfromtheleftsideoppositetheseatoftheguestofhonor，singlecopiesofvegetablesorsidedishesandsnacksshouldbegiventotheguestfirstthenthehost．Plasticdishes

tputtheirlikewholechicken，wholeduck，andwholefishcan’

headsandtailstowardthehostseat．Ingeneral，therearesever-alwaysofserving：First，thebigdishisputtedside，self－servedbythepeople．Second，awaiterholdsadishonebyonetoeachguest．Third，itisinfullbloomwithsmalldishes，andtheneachoneenjoysthosedishes．Inthebanquet，eachdishlikeslideshow，eachtimeadishisserved．

Sometips：intheweddingbanquetorotherredbanquet，theplatesonthetablecanbeoverlapped，meaningthatagoodthingcomesagainandagain．While，intheWhiteBanquetlikefuneraltheplatescannotbeoverlapped，thereason，Ithink，youcanguess．

Westernservingstepsareusuallylikethis：breadandbut-ter，colddishes，soup，seafood，maincourse，dessert，coffeeandfruit．Theyeatthecolddishes，soupandbreadatthesametime．Colddishesalsoknownasappetizerdish，servedasthefirstcourseusuallywithanaperitif．Andsoupincludesstainssoupandcreamsoup．Themaincoursehasfish，pork，beef，andchickenandsoon．Dissertusuallyhasice－cream，puddingetc．

2．4Differencesinthehostisverywarmandmodesttotheirguests

Fourthly，thehostwouldprepareasumptuousfeastbeforethecomingofguestsinChina．Therearedaintiesofeverykindpreparingonthetable．Therichusuallyeatshellfishandcrab，whilethecommonpeopleeatchicken，duck，fish，etc．Whenthefeaststarts，hosturgesgueststodrinkandeatmoreandpickupfoodfortheirguestfrequentlywiththeirownchopsticks．Inthehost＇sopinion，theaimtoentertainistoletgueststodrinkandeattotheirheart＇scontent．Whilethehosturgestheirgueststodrinkandeatmore，theyalwayssay：”Thereislittletoeat，pleasemakethisdoforeating，”or“thesedishesarenotsogood，enjoyyourself．”AfeatureinChinamustbementioned：Peopleeattogether．Itmeansthatpeopleusetheirownchop-stickstopickupfoodinoneplate；theothersalsopickupfoodinthesameplate．However，thehostoftenuseshisownchop-stickstopickupfoodforguests．Thisisasignofgenuinefriend-shipandpoliteness．Whenthefeastisfinished，thehostwillin-vitetheirgueststodrinktea．IthasbeenacustominChina．Theychatwhentheydrink．Thehosturgesgueststodrinkteare-peatedly．Ithintstoguestthattheyshouldgonow．

Furthermore，thehostarrangestheseatsinadvanceinordertogetthenamesofthesepeoplewhojointhebanquetontheirmarks．Thentheguestsareseatedinarow．Thearrangementofseatsembodiesrespectforguests．Whereaguestisseatedde-pendsonhisage，socialstatusandsoon．“Takingtheleftforupper”，itisthetraditionalcustominChina．Itmeanstheleftseatsarehigherthantherightone．Theguestofhonorshouldbearrangedontheleftofthehost．Inthepast，Chineseadvocatedsouth，eastandtheleft．Withthetime＇sgoing，theviewofposi-tionhaschanged．Itdosenotonlyinheritthetradition，butalsousesomeviewsofWesterncountiesforreference．Theguestshouldbearrangedontherightofthehost．Atpresent，whenpeopleholdmeetingortakeagroupphoto，theyareaffectedbythisrule．ChineseentertainedguestwiththeEight－Immortalta-bleintradition．Theseatfacedtothedooristheseatofhonor，whiletheothersareseatedaside．Thehigher－levelisseatedintheupperseatandthehostssitatthelowerseat．Theolderguestsareseatinorder．Whentherearemorethanonetable，thehostandthehostessseattogetherinthemaintable．Thedis-tancefromthemaintabledeterminedthepositionofthesepeo-

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语文学刊·外语教育教学

ple．Theshorterthedistanceis，themoreimportanttheguestis．Themaintableisstandardized．Therighttableishigherthantheleftone；theclosetableislowerthanthefarone；themiddleta-bleishigherthantheoneplaceaside．

Inwesterncountries，thehostneverservesmorethan6dishes，souporfreshfruitcupormelonorshellfishbeforethecomingofguests；Fishisavailableonlyifshellfishisnotservedasafirstcourse；theentrée，ormaincourse，isusuallymeatorfowlalongwithvegetables；thenSalad，dessertandcoffeeareof-fered．

Sometimes，thedishespreparedforguestsareextremelysimple．TheWesternershopetheirguestsjoyful．Meanwhile，theythinkthatinvitationisjustanoccasionforintercourse，achanceofthemaintenanceoffriendship．Andthemostimportantistogetmuchusefulinformationbyentertainment．Influencedbythisidea，entertainmentinWesterncountrieshardlyattachim-portancetofood，butalsohavevariousandfreewaysofenter-tainment．Theycreatearelaxed，comfortableanddelightedairfortheirguestinathousandandoneways．Theywanttomaketheirguestenjoythatgoodtimefreely．Whenthefeaststarts，theWesternersarealsowarmtoguestsandurgegueststodrinkandeat，butonlyonceortwice．Atlast，theWesternersliketohavesomepastriesanddrinkcoffee．Thecoffeespoononlyusedtostirthecoffeeisnotusedtopoundthesugarcubeintopieces．Whenpeopledrinkcoffee，theyeatsomepastriesanddonottakepastryinonehandaswellascoffeeinanotherhand．Drinkingdoesnotalternatewitheating．Otherwise，peoplewillfeeltheyaregreed-y．Inaddition，peopledonotaddsugartocoffeeforotherswith-outknowingothers’taste．Ⅲ．Conclusion

Insummary，differenttablemannersembodythedifferentcultures，whichisshownintheChineseandWesternfromtheabovefourmaindieteticdifferences．Chinaandwesternhavealotofdifferences．Nowweknowaboutthedieteticculturebe-

2013年第4期

tweenChinaandwestern．Thenwhatshouldwedotofacethisgapinthegraduallyglobalizingworld？

Wecannotdenyanyofthecultures．Wecannotsaythatthiscultureorcustomisrightandthatiswrong．Equalrespectshouldbeattachedtoeverycultureintheworld，eventothosethatarenotinexistenceanymore．Weshouldgettolearnhowtocoordi-natethedifferentcultures．Theworldisbecomingaglobalvil-lage．

Chinaisthecountryofalonghistorywithanancientcul-ture，andenrichinginculturaltraditions．Shefeedsthe1．3bil-lionChinesepeople，andChinesecultureisveryinclusive；inthecourseofdevelopmentitabsorbsalotofdifferentcultures．Moreover，nowChinadoesmoreeffortstodrawalltheoutstand-sreformandopeningupingachievementsintheWorld．China’

policycreatetheconditionsoninternationalrelationsandculturalexchanges．Weneedtousesuchanopportunitytoabsorbtheex-cellentculturesfromothercountries，todevelopandcreateChi-snewculture．ThisworkcanmaketheworldtoknowChinana’

betterandletChinagototheworld．

Differentculturesaddthemostcolorfulelementtotheworldinthe21stcentury．Theculturalgapshouldnotbetheobstacletothecivilizationofhumanbeing．Itoughttobethemotivationofourgoingfarther．

【Ｒeferences】

［1］杜学增．中英（英语国家）文化习俗比较［M］．外语教学

1997．与研究出版社，

［2］关世杰．跨文化交流学［M］．北京大学出版社，1995．［3］杨洁．跨文化交际中的餐桌礼仪差异［J］．文教资料，

2011（4）．［4］陈弘美．餐桌礼仪实用知识［M］．世界图书出版社，

2005．［5］冯玉珠．餐饮礼仪全攻略［M］．对外经济贸易大学出版

2005．社，

从跨文化交际角度对比中西方餐桌礼仪的不同

冯心如

(新疆工程学院，新疆

徐艳萍

乌鲁木齐830091)

［摘要］中国是礼仪之邦，其餐桌礼仪源远流长。西方餐桌礼仪也是很有讲究。在当今社会:随着东西

方跨文化的交流的平凡以及中西方礼仪的加深;导致双方餐桌礼的方面差异产生;本文着重于比较中西方餐桌礼

我们可以了解中西方各自的文化传统;同时可以更加了解西方国家的文化仪。通过对中西饮食文化差异的分析，

习俗，并且建立起良好的关系。

［关键词］跨文化交际;

餐桌礼仪;差异

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