Английский язык межкультурная коммуникация. Учебное пособие

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The Infinitive

The infinitive is the base form of a verb. In English, when we talk about the infinitive we are usually referring to the present infinitive, which is the most common. There are, however, four other forms of the infinitive: the perfect infinitive, the perfect continuous infinitive, the continuous infinitive and the passive infinitive. The negative infinitive is formed by putting not in front of any form of the infinitive. The to-infinitive is used in many sentence constructions, often expressing the purpose of something or someone's opinion about something.

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The complex object and complex subjekt

The Complex Object — a syntactic construction which is lexically dependent and found after a limited number of verbs in the Active Voice. The complex object consists of a noun in the common case or an indefinite pronoun or a personal pronoun in the objective case serving as an object in the sentence, and a predicative which may be expressed by a noun, an adjective, an adverb, an infinitive with or without the particle to, an ing-form and a participle.

Subject+Predicate+Complex Object (Noun/Pronoun+Infinitive)

The Complex Subject — the combination of a noun in the common case (or a pronoun in the nominative case) and an infinitive forms. The predicate which is usually expressed by a verb in the passive voice is placed between the noun and the infinitive. The relation between the noun and the infinitive is that of subject and predicate.

Noun/Pronoun+Predicate+Infinitive

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The Participle

The Participle - a word having the characteristics of both verb and adjective. It is an English verbal form that has the function of an adjective and at the same time shows such verbal features as tense and voice.

The Gerund

The gerund is a non-finite form of the verb. Gerunds are formed from verbs by adding -ing. The gerund looks exactly the same as a present participle, but it is useful to understand the difference between them. The gerund always has the same function as a noun (although it looks like a verb).

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SUPPLEMENTARY TEXTS

Text 1. Food

How much you eat can cause offense in some cultures. For example, your hosts in Russia, Greece, and Italy could be offended if you don't eat enough.Pay careful attention to how you use your chopsticks in Asian countries. Never use them in a gesture or for pointing, and never stick them upright in your rice bowl: this is an omen of death. Don't use them to spear a piece of food or to tap a glass or bowl, either. And never cross your chopsticks; they should always lie side by side1.

Try to avoid turning down vodka in Russia – when it's offered, it's a sign of trust and friendship. Vodka is served neat2, and you should drink it all at once; Russians consider sipping3 vodka to be rude. Muslims, Mormons, and Seventh Day Adventists avoid alcohol. Hindus, India's largest religious population, consider it unholy to eat beef. Most are also vegetarian. Muslims and Jews are forbidden to eat pork (and, in addition, Jews do not eat shellfish), and Roman Catholics may choose fish rather than red meat on Fridays.

2neat – неразбавленный, в чистом виде

3sip - пить маленькими глоточками

1side by side – рядом

Text 2. What Is a Language Barrier?

A language barrier, in the most basic and simplistic use of the term, is the lack of a common language that prevents two or more people from speaking to or understanding each other through verbal communication. While many types of language barriers appear in society, we offer a few examples of language barriers to explain.

An English-speaking person traveling in China and encountering people who only speak Chinese could be said to be facing a language barrier in her efforts to communicate. The Chinese citizens may

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understand her gestures for things like "phone" or "water," but in terms of a shared common language, they have none.

These barriers normally occur between people who speak different languages or have different native languages in a single place of meeting or communicating. For example, a barrier could occur between an English language speaking person and a foreign language speaking person, like someone who speaks Spanish, while somewhere in the U.S. that places English as the major native language in the area.

Another example can be when someone is language learning in new language classes and cannot completely speak the second language to someone who has that new language as a native language in their area. The learner’s conversation may be stuck due to the different dialects used. Cultural differences can also make an interaction like this be hard to communicate effectively. This is an example of a linguistic barrier that can affect methods of communication with someone from a new country or culture. Native English speakers often see this complication when learning a new language and trying to have a conversation with someone who has that language as their own language.

There are other kinds of language barriers that relate less to literal "language" and more to issues around dialect, slang or in some cases, a lack of a shared vocabulary with which to discuss a particular topic. For someone with no business background, discussing the possibility of a collaboration with a corporate CEO may present a significant language barrier because the lack of shared vocabulary on the part of the CEO and the participant who is not business savvy leaves the pair without an ability to come to a verbal understanding.

Language barriers are significant because they are often an impediment to progress. This progress can take the shape of a business deal, a relationship, an emotional understanding or the possibility of creative collaboration. Even worse, language barriers can sometimes cause misunderstandings that lead to conflict, frustration, offense and hurt feelings.

For the majority of people who are participating in a conversation with someone who does not share the same language, the biggest issue they face is that the person may misunderstand them and

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that misunderstanding could possibly result in hurt feelings or serious offense. In some cases, misunderstandings can lead to violence.

Text 3. Difference between active listening and passive listening

You might hear what someone is saying to you, but are you actually listening? There’s a big difference between active listening and passive listening. Whether you are an active listener or a passive listener can affect your relationships and job prospects and may also be indicative of certain personality traits. This makes active listening an important skill to master to make a good impression at college or job interviews.

In active listening, the listener pays full attention to the speaker and his words and makes an effort to understand the message. Active listening builds rapport, understanding and trust by actually hearing the message behind what the other person is saying, not just what you think they are saying or what you want to hear. The active listener spends more time listening than talking. However, he both listens and responds to the speaker, either through body language or words of his own. The active listener is genuinely interested in hearing and understanding the other person’s point of view and engages in intellectual exchange. Empathy is an important component of active listening because having empathy for the other person validates his words and recognizes his feelings. Typically, an active listener is strong willed, self-motivated and open to new ideas.

In passive listening, the listener may appear to be listening to the speaker and her words but makes no effort to understand the message. Unlike the active listener, the passive listener is not paying attention. Whenever you listen to music while you are doing something else, such as studying or doing chores, you are passive listening. You may be aware of the music, but your attention is on your task. A passive listener in a conversation or learning environment may accept and retain the information she hears but does not question or challenge the message or show interest through words or body language. She

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avoids getting into debates and giving opinions and is unreceptive to new ideas. Sometimes, the passive listener talks more than she listens. While this may suggest that she is an active participant in a conversation, she is actually not paying attention to what the other person is saying.

One example of the importance of listening is at a job interview. An active listener will make a much better impression than a passive listener. This is because active listening is two-way communication between parties. The active listener interacts with the interviewer by commenting and asking questions and reacting appropriately to what he says. On the other hand, the passive listener does not react at all and may appear to be bored, disconnected or ignorant. An employer seeking someone who is engaged, self-motivated and open minded is more likely to hire an active listener than a passive one.

In your personal life, active listening is important because the better your communication skills, the more likely you are to have good relationships with others.

To improve your listening skills, you must pay attention to the other person. If you're in a meeting, turn your chair toward her, sit up straight and relax your shoulders. If you're talking on the phone, turn away from your computer and other distractions. Try repeating what the other person says mentally to reinforce her message and maintain focus. Acknowledge the message with verbal and nonverbal cues, such as nodding, asking occasional questions and making comments when she pauses. Develop empathy by asking yourself, "How would I feel if I were that person?" This makes her feel heard and helps you figure out the best response to her message.

Text 4. What is the meaning of Cultural Imperialism

The Cambridge dictionary quite simply defines cultural imperialism as one “culture of a large and powerful country, organization, etc. having a great influence on another less powerful country." To truly understand the modern meaning and significance of cultural imperialism, however, you have to know more than its basic

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