英语六级必读美文009：语言_大学英语阅读

英语六级必读美文009：语言

　　important part. According to one study, words convey only 7 percent of a persons message. intonation and voice quality communicate 38 percent, and nonverbal cues transmit a whopping 55 percent. That means people pick up more from nonverbal communication than from the words a person says, When studying about a foreign culture then, it just makes sense to pay attention to how people use nonverbal cues.

　　事实上，他们已经沟通过了，即便一句话也没说。非语言要素在任何形式的双向沟通中都占了很重要的一部分。有些人会认为那是最重要的一部分。一项研究表明，言语只传达了7%的讯息，语调及音色传达了38%，而非语言的暗示传递了极大的55%o这就表明人们从非语言沟通中领悟到的比从说出来的话语中的还多。所以，在研究外国文化时，注意人们如何使用非语言暗示是很有道理的。

　　Gestures prise a major form of nonverbal communication. In contast to sign language, used by deaf people to communicate elaborate messages, gestures function as visual icons which represent a single idea. But often these gestures are embarrassingly culture-bound. For example,when the Maoris of New Zealand stick out their tongue at someone ,it is a sign of respect. When American schoolchildren make the same gesture, it means just the opposite. Also, Americans often indicate OK with their thumb and forefinger touching to form a circle. The same gesture means money to the Japanese, zero to the French and a vulgarity to Brazilians. For that reason, people in a foreign culture must use gestures with caution.