采用对比的英文文章

Design and Behavior

When the members of the House of Commons of the British Parliament(英国议会下议院) are debating how to rebuild the parliament building(议会大厦) that had been damaged by bombs during World War II ,Winston Churchill(温斯顿.丘吉尔) argued that the building should be reconstructed exactly as it had been before the war .He said that changing the design of the building would result in a change in the way the government actually works. It was in this context that he made his famous statement ,“We shape(塑造) our buildings and they in turn shape us.”He knew that culture is built into physical structures and that these structures do carry messages and influence how we behave.

While there are similarities between the American and British forms of government ,there are also significant differences that can be seen in the physical design of the House of Commons as compared to the American House of Representatives(美国众议院). Both countries have two major political parties ,but party loyality(忠诚) is weak in the United States and strong in Britain .The British ,who are generally known for being polite and reserved(保守的) compared to their American cousins ,have more heated debates in the Commons than is typical of the US Senate(参议院) or House of Representatives.

The Commons is a relatively small room in which benches(长椅) line each side in rows facing the benches on the opposite side of the room .Members of the Conservative Party(保守党) sit on one side facing their opponents in the Labour party(工党) on the other side .Members do not have separate seats or desks but sit

shoulder-to-shoulder with members of their own party. Form their seats they look across the aisle(走廊) where they can see the members of the opposition party on the other side of the small room. Senior party members are in the front rows and more junior members are in the back ,giving us the British political phrase“back bencher”to refer to a less important member. To vote members get up from their seats and walk out to give their vote to clerks(文员) who sit outside each of two doors. Members go through one door to vote no or through the other to vote yes. This system supports party solidarity(团结) ,because to vote against the party, a member has to move his or her whole body away from party members in full view of everyone in the chamber.

In the US Congress(国会) each member has his or her own desk and the desks are arranged in a half circle facing a podium(讲台) at the center .There is an aisle that separates the desks of members of the Democratic Party(民主党) from the desks of members of the Republican Party(共和党) ,but each member speaks to the Speaker of the House(众议院议长) who sits on the podium .Members are not siting or speaking as part of a solid group shoulder-to-shoulder with one another and opposing another group ,but as individuals .To vote a member merely answers a roll call by saying yes or no or records his or her votes by pushing an electronic button on the desk .As you might expect ,members are less likely to vote along party lines than in the British system and party discipline is much weaker .Members are more likely to experience themselves as separate persons making individual choices rather than as representatives of their party .

From this example we see that design and the arrangement of furniture

structures communication and influences behavior .We can say that cultural patterns are built into designs and buildings .These physical forms influences our perceptions(看法) of situations and play a role in molding our behavior by directing our attention and by positioning us in relation to other participants(与会者) .Some designs ,such as the French café table ,draw people together and encourage conversation .Other designs ,such as the row seating in train stations and airports ,separate people and discourage interaction .

-------From the book of

Doing culture cross-cultural communication in action

-------Write by

Linell Davis