It is often said that “When in Rome, do as Romans do”. Do you think people should adapt and accept the culture of the country they are visiting? Do you think it is possible to learn a culture without learning the language?
| OUTLINE 1 | |
| [1] | Paraphrase |
| [2] | Answer: should adapt – can learn but not fully |
| [3] | Topic 1: should adapt |
| [4] | Idea 1: integrate into -> not be isolated |
| [5] | |
| [6] | Idea 2: Gain mutual understanding, avoid conflicts |
| [7] | |
| [8] | Topic 2: can learn but not fully |
| [9] | Idea 1: learn through observation |
| [10] | |
| [11] | Idea 2: know language -> communcate -> deeply understand |
| [12] | |
| [13] | Conclusions |
| EDUCATION
(1) Integrate into: hoa nhap vao (2) New arrivals = new comers (3) Decipher (v): giai doan/ hieu can ke (4) |
Many believe that “When in Rome, do as Romans do”, meaning that visitors should respect and integrate into culture of host nations. While I agree with this view, I partly disagree with the opinion that people do not need to learn language to understand a new culture.
It is clear that new arrivals should appreciate and follow traditional customs and behaviour of host nations. First, integrating helps them broaden their horizons and enrich their cultural knowledge. For example, if an Asian student studies in Western countries and is open to new cultures, he or she can discover unique cultural features of these countries. Another reason is to help gain mutual understanding and avoid conflicts. Imagine that if a person travels to mulism countries and eats meat in front of local people, conflicts and isolation, even fights, are predicted.
On the other hand, visitors can learn the essence of a culture to a certain limit without learning foreign languages. New comers can assimilate customs and social norms through observation and imitating local people. For example, by watching daily activities of local households from eating habits to how they organize their lives, visitors can partly understand the local culture. Nevertheless, in order to obtain in-depth understanding, it is better for new arrivals to learn native languages. This is because cultural features of a nation have been accumulated and developed for centuries, it is implausible to decipher fully without learning language to either communicate to locals or search for more detailed information.
In conclusion, while I hold the belief that visitors should have a sense of appreciation and respectability towards the culture of where they are visiting, learning a culture without knowing wording is plausible to a certain extent. |