英美概況社會生活 Social Life

1、Social Life,Chapter I The Family British society is based on family life and the family is a self-contained economic and social unit with mother, father and children living together alone in their own house. So marriage signifies the beginning of a new and independent family and means a great deal i

2、n British life.,1. Marriage,In terms of marriage no child can marry below the age of sixteen, whether with or without the parents consent. Between 16 to 18 the parents content is necessary. But over the age of 18 the parents consent is unnecessary.,Nowadays it is quite normal for a girl of 16 to go

3、out with a boyfriend. If they are together for a long time and know each other well, they will invite each other to their house to meet their parents on the basis of “going steady”. The first step towards the wedding is an engagement ring which is placed on the third finger of the girls left hand.,F

4、or the wedding, many British couples go to church to have the ceremony, no matter whether they are religious or not. For the church ceremony the girl is usually dressed in a long white dress and attended by her close relatives and friends. The bride and bridegroom make considerable promises of loyal

5、ty to each other, but first of all the vicar(教區(qū)牧師) will ask them whether each is willing to marry the other.,The bride is given away by a close relative to her husband, usually by her father, which indicate that the bond of marriage is stronger than any previous family bonds, stronger than the bond

6、between the bride and her mother. After the wedding there is always a reception of a light meal to which all the relatives and friends are invited.,2. Meals,British meals are an important element in family life, because British meals have a great effect on family life when the family members sit tog

7、ether round the table at definite time. Visits at meal time are impolite. They do not expect you to be invited to share the meal.,Breakfast,Breakfast is often a rather hurried and informal meal, which is taken sitting at the table. A full breakfast commonly begins with a cereal(谷類), like corn-flakes

8、（玉米片）, to which milk and sugar are added. Then fried egg, bacon (熏豬肉)or sausages(香腸) may follow with fried bread or fried potatoes. Buttered slices of toast (烤面包)conclude the meal, and tea or coffee is drunk with it.,Lunch,The midday lunch time is from about 12:30 to 2:00 p. m. On Sundays, the famil

9、y usually sit together to lunch. The first course is a small quantity of soup. The main course consists of meat, potatoes and other vegetables. After the main course there is always a light course called the dessert or “sweet”.,Afternoon tea,The next meal is “tea” in the afternoon, called “afternoon

10、 tea”. At about five oclock the mother and children may have cups of tea, with slices of bread and butter, and cake. If they wait a little later for the father to come back from work, they may have “a high tea(臺茶/茶餐)”, which is a heavier, cooked meal, often including a plate of chips with fried egg

11、or fried fish. The evening meal varies from family to family.,Chapter II Character and Manners性格與禮貌,The British people have their own mentalities and attitudes. They have their own way of thinking and acting.,1. Exclusiveness,The best-known quality of the British people and, in particular, of the En

12、glish people is their exclusiveness. It is very difficult to know such a man who does not talk much, never says anything about himself, does not show much emotion and hardly ever gets excited. Perhaps there are two reasons: one is the special geographical location of Britain; the other is the distin

13、ct development of its history.,2. Conservativeness,The English people are so conservative that they have to wait a long time before they are prepared to try something new. Englishmen think their way of doing things is always the best, and always the most normal.,One is that the British people have b

14、een slow in adopting rational reform. In the 1960s the 24 clock was at last adopted for railway timetables. The public attitude to the monarchy(君主制) illustrates conservativeness. Another example is that the British people favor the old ways. When central heating was developed in the U.S.A. the Engli

15、sh people thought this was a horrible thing.,3. Politeness,In Britain, all politeness is based on the basic rule of showing consideration for others. The British people do not readily ask you to do anything inconvenient for them. In the daily life of the British “Excuse me” is heard as an apology fo

16、r troubling somebody. Sorry express regret for an unconscious disturbance; also replaces “no”, when you cannot accept to a request.,“pardon” or “sorry” rather than “what” is the normal polite way of asking sb. to repeat what he has said. A bare “yes” or “no” is considered very rude when you reply to

17、 an offer. They are quite particular about table manners. E.g. At table, it is advisable to sit up straight. The British people usually do not cry and shout in public.,4. Love of Privacy,The right to privacy and personal freedom is unquestioned by the British. There is a common saying among the Brit

18、ish people, “My home is my castle. The wind can come in, but the Kings and Queens and human beings can never come in without my permission. ”,5. Stiff Upper Lip,The British people showing their mentality is called “phlegm(冷淡、不動感情)”. It means calm and undemonstrative(含蓄的) behavior. The British do not

19、 show their feelings very much.,6. Sense of Humor,The English sense of humour is self-deprecating, that is the act of laughing at oneself. An Englishman laughs at his own faults, his own shortcomings, his own failures and his own embarrassment.,Chapter III Customs and Habits,The British people have

20、their own particular customs, particularly the customs associated with the royal family. Here are some important ones: 1. John Bull Image of John Bull: he is short and fat, with a tall hat on his head and a pair of boots on his feet. It is the nicknames for Britain.,英國人的綽號“約翰?！?The Nickname of the B

21、ritish People：John Bull 英國人在國際上有個很通行的綽號約翰牛。這個綽號是英國人自己叫起來的。它源自1727年蘇格蘭作家約翰阿巴思諾特（John Arbuthnot）寫的一本書，名為約翰牛的歷史（The History of John Bull）。阿巴思諾特生于1667年，畢業(yè)于圣安德獸醫(yī)學(xué)院，擔(dān)任過英國宮廷醫(yī)生，還善于寫政治性的諷刺作品。1712年后，共寫了5本關(guān)于約翰牛和其鄰居的諷刺性寓言小冊子。1727年匯輯成書，題名為約翰牛的歷史。 作者在書中諷刺英國在西班牙王位繼承戰(zhàn)爭中所扮演的角色。他把英國人格化，把英國寫成一個叫約翰牛的人物。這個人物是一個頭戴禮帽、足蹬長統(tǒng)

22、靴、手持雨傘的矮胖愚笨的紳士，用來比喻參與西班牙王位繼承戰(zhàn)爭的英國當(dāng)局。約翰牛喜歡虛張聲勢，也很執(zhí)拗，但心地善良。從此以后，人們就把英國人稱為約翰牛。這個綽號多半是形容英國人傲慢、固執(zhí)。,2. Talking About the Weather,Why do Englishmen love to talk about the weather? There are perhaps two reasons. One is the uncertainty of the weather. Another reason is that talking about the weather, unlike

23、discussing politics, seems a way of being friendly, without getting heated. The weather is a subject which is quite safe to talk about.,3. Ladies First,“Ladies First” is also a British custom, though it is less observed today than it used to be. But there is still the feeling that they need protecti

24、on. It is still considered polite to let a woman go first, to protect her from traffic, to help her go on and get off the bus and to do many other things for her.,4. Three “Dons”,The British have the habit of queuing. If somebody jumps the queue(插隊), the British people look down upon him or her. In

25、England, you should never ask a woman her age. Dont try to bargain in Britain when you do the shopping.,5. Three “INGS”,Three “INGS” refer to betting, drinking and tipping, the end for each of which is ING. The British people are great lovers of betting. They bet mainly on horse racing and Bingo(一種用

26、紙牌搭成方塊的賭博). Drinking is a habit of the British people. Most men have the habit of drinking beer, wine and so on. There is another type of drinking , the drinking of tea. Tipping is a custom which the British have. The tipping system in Britain or in the west, consists of small extra payment of a ten

27、th or an eighth of the price of the bill, given to waiters, taxi drivers, hairdressers.,6. Three Royal Traditions,1). Playing the flute is one of the royal traditions. 2). The changing of the Queens guard is another of the royal traditions. There are two places in which the ceremonies take place. On

28、e ceremony is in front of Buckingham Palace. The other is at Whitehall. Both take place at eleven a.m. weekdays and at ten on Sunday.,The Queens guards, dressed in red coats and black trousers, a white belt, in white gloves, with a glittering sword at the waist and a tall black fur hat on the head.,

29、3) The third is a royal ceremony involving only the monarch. Annually, the British Queen makes a parliamentary speech, the ceremony for which is rather solemn.,會議的獨(dú)特儀式 A Particular Ceremony of the Parliament 英國議會有一個獨(dú)特的儀式，至今已有300多年的歷史。英國國王（女王）每年都要到議會去致詞。英王乘坐金飾輝煌的馬車，從白金漢宮來到泰晤士河畔的議會大廈威斯敏斯特宮（Westminster

30、 Palace）。英王在上院（the House of Lords）的王位就座后，派遣一名手持黑杖的信使去大廈另一端的下院會場，通知下院的議員到上院（the House of Commons）聽英王講話。但是當(dāng)信使走到下院附近時，下院的警衛(wèi)立即把大門關(guān)緊，把信使關(guān)在門外。這時信使用黑杖（Black Rod）在下院大門的銅環(huán)上連敲三下，要求進(jìn)入。當(dāng)下院議長（the Speaker）表示同意后，警衛(wèi)才打開大門讓信使進(jìn)入下院。然后信使向下院傳達(dá)英王旨意，并向議長深深鞠躬。此后，議長起身，帶領(lǐng)下院議員魚貫走入上院。,議會的這一儀式起源于1642年。英王查理一世（Charles I）（16001649）

31、是英國歷史有名的暴君（tyrant）。他對抗議會（parliament），壓迫清教徒（Puritan）。他在1629年解散議會，此后11年獨(dú)斷專行，史稱為“ 11年暴政”（Eleven Years Tyranny）。最后他的統(tǒng)治被推翻，他以暴君、叛國者、殺人犯被處決。是英國歷史上僅有的被處死的國王。 1642年1月，查理一世闖進(jìn)下院，要抓捕與國王對抗的5名議員。但議長針鋒相對，慷慨陳詞，說他只聽從議會的指令，斷然拒絕交出這5名議員。查理一世只好悻悻地離開下院。此時議員高喊：“特權(quán)！”“特權(quán)！”以抗議查理一世的粗暴行為。以后，為紀(jì)念這次反對封建特權(quán)的勝利，下院每次開會都采用這一儀式，一直到現(xiàn)在。

32、不過現(xiàn)在已完全變成一種儀式。,Chapter IV British Holidays and Festivals,In Britain, many holidays and festivals have a Christian background. Christmas is a Christian holiday that celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ. No one knows the exact date of Christs birth, but most Christians observe Christmas on December 25

33、. On this day, many go to church, where they take part in special religious services. During the Christmas season, they also exchange gifts and decorate their homes with Christmas trees. The word Christmas comes from Cristes maesse, an early English phrase that means Mass of Christ.,Father Christmas

34、,Its on December 25th.,Merry Christmas!,the traditional Christmas tree comes from a German tradition Queen Victorias husband, Prince Albert was the first man to introduce Christmas trees to Britain.,Christmas is the biggest holiday in England. Schools usually have a two week holiday and all the offi

35、ces and shops close over the Christmas period. It is a time very similar to Spring Festival in China, when people spend time with their families.,Christmas Day Christians will go to Church on this day. On Christmas Evethe night before Christmas Daychildren all over Britain put a stocking at the end

36、of their beds before they go to sleep. Their parents usually tell them that Father Christmas will come during the night. Father Christmas is very kindhearted. He lands on top of each house and climbs down the chimney into the fireplace.,chimney,fireplace,The Christmas Dinner, usually at lunchtime on

37、 Christmas Day is the most important meal. Christmas Dinner:- turkey, sausages, bacon Roast potatoes, boiled potatoes, carrots, cauliflower, sprouts. Dessert- Christmas pudding (made from dried fruit and nuts) with a white brandy sauce,Christmas Day （節(jié)禮日）is a national holiday, and the next day (26th

38、 December), called Boxing Day is also a national holiday. It is called Boxing Day because it is the day that traditionally employers would give their employees a Christmas box containing gifts or money similar to the idea of the hong bao in China.,Pantomimes（啞?。?these are traditional at Christmas. A

39、 pantomime is a comedy play and is usually based on a famous fairytale (such as Cinderella), but includes jokes and songs. The leading role of the man is always played by a woman, and there is always a “Dame” (an old woman) that is played by a man.,The Queens Speech is a traditional Christmas messag

40、e given by the Queen at 3pm on Christmas Day. It is broadcast on TV and lasts for about 10 minutes. The Queen will sum up the previous year and express her hopes for the coming new year.,The Christmas Symbols,Star-A heavenly sign of prophecy fulfilled long ages ago - the shining hope of mankind Red-The first color of Christmas symbolizing the Saviors sacrifice for all,Fir tree Evergreen-The second color of Christmas shows everlasting life. The needles point heavenward. Bell-Rings out to guide lost sheep back to the fold - signifying all are preci