WRAP UP YOUR VISIT WITH THE PERFECT GIFT
1. "It is better to give than to receive", "Never look a gift horse in the mouth", "Beware of Greek bearing gifts". Gifts are fundamental element in culture and our lives as social creatures.
2. There are occasions when giving a gift surpasses spoken communication, since the message it offers can cut through barriers of language and cultural diversity. Present a simple gift to your host in a foreign country and the chances are he or she will understand you perfectly, though you may not understand a single word of each other's languages. It can convey a wealth of meaning about your appreciation of their hospitality and the importance you place upon the relationship. Combine the act of giving with some knowledge and sensitivity to the culture of the recipient and you have an invaluable chance to earn respect and lay the foundations of a durable and mutually beneficial business relationship.
3. For all countries, take account of climate, especially in regard to clothing. Some gifts can be ruined by extremely hot or humid climates, possibly causing their receiver considerable anguish. Consider the kinds of products that are abundant in the country concerned and try for something that is uncommon there. Think about the level of language skills: a book with hundreds of pages of English text may be at best useless, at worst embarrassing, to a person with limited English. Inform yourself as much as possible about local customs, rules and etiquette, especially to do with wrapping, presenting, superstitions, taboos and importantly customs and quarantine regulations.
4. Hongkong Chinese greatly appreciate simple greeting cards, though obviously they will not refuse small tokens of friendship in the form of gifts.
5. Books with plenty of illustrations are most appreciated in Indonesia. Inappropriate items: alcohol, products made from pigs, warm clothing. Ties and cufflinks are not commonly worn.
6. In Iran, short-sleeved shirts and any visual representation of naked or partially dressed people, male or female, are highly inappropriate. Don't bother with ties, videos or records. As in all Islamic countries, there is a strict taboo on any pork products.
7. Respecting the Arab tradition, gifts should endeavour to praise the recipient in Iraq and should never be of an order that cannot reasonably be reciprocated.
8. Avoid certain colour combinations: red, white and black (colours of the Nazy flag); and red, green and black (the Palestinian flag) in Israel.
9. Gifts are normally exchanged at the beginning of meetings with Japanese and should be given and received with both hands. It is seen as impolite to give an unwrapped gift 'The emphasis should be on high quality, though not necessarily expensive items.
10. When in Jordan, it is preferable, but not vital, to avoid green in packaging. Do not give books, videos, etc. that mention Israel. Normal Arab customs apply, so no alcohol, pork, women's clothing etc. Arabs generally do not greatly appreciate handcrafts in wood, fabric or pottery. Gifts should ideally appear valuable.
11. Again the exchange should be made with both hands in Korea. Also, similar to Japan, is the emphasis on presentation. Do not use red ink to write the names of the recipients. It is worth remembering that it is customary for a gift given to a company to be shared out around the office concerned, so items that lend themselves to this practice - like a bottle of good whisky - are very well received.
12. Laos has virtually no cultural taboo items. It would be difficult to offend with virtually any gilt.
13. Business contacts in the People Republic of China are keen recipients of good Scotch whiskey and American cigarettes, to the point where it is almost obligatory to take some along when you go there.
14. Do not open gifts in the presence of the giver in the Philippines. Not recommended are items alluding to religion. Many people are Catholic and many others Moslems. This also means literature and art with any possible sugestions of lewdness or racism are to be strictly avoided
15. For Thailand, gifts should not be wrapped or packaged in black. Modest gifts like ties, scarves and key rings, are much appreciated. Traditionally, sharp objects like knives or even letter openers are not given as gifts.
16. No special gift-giving customs in Vietnam, but the Vietnamese are enthusiastic gift givers and like very much to receive them as well.
(By Gibson, Rusek, Swan)
I. UNDERSTANDING TEXT ORGANIZATION
The following sentences are missing from the passage, decide where they should go.
1. They are also an important part of our business relationship.
2. The following is a brief account of the etiquettes of gift - giving of some countries of Asia and the Middle East.
3. Or if not obligatory, it certainly helps to warm relations.
4. Liquor and wine can be problematic for reasons pertaining to Vietnamese tastes rather than morality or religion.
Suggestions:
- Find what the personal pronouns and the demonstrative pronouns in the given sentences refer to.
- Pay attention to repetition in consecutive sentences.
Answer Key:
II. DEALING WITH UNFAMILIAR WORDS
Match the words and phrases from paragraphs 1 - 7 with their meanings.
1. never look a gift horse in the mouth (para. 1)
a. indecency, rudeness
2. beware of Greeks bearing gifts (para. 1)
b. mentioning indirectly
3. anguish (para. 3)
c. prohibition for cultural, religious or customary reasons
4. taboo (para. 3)
d. mental pain
5. reciprocated (para. 7)
e. never be too critical of anything you have received as a gift
6. alluding to ( para. 14)
f. given in return
7. lewdness ( para. 14 )
g. gifts given by certain people are meant to offend or bring dangers
Answer Key:
III. CHECKING COMPREHENSION
Read the following statements. Write T if the statement is true, F if the statement is false and IE if there is insufficient evidence, according to the passage.
1. Differences in culture and language can be overcome by gifts.
2. Overseas visitors are advised to give gifts to their bosses.
3. Climate should not be considered when giving gifts.
4. To present a gift in a tropical country might create hostility.
5. Whiskey would be a welcome gift in Laos.
6. A silk scarf is an appropriate gift for a Jordanian host's wife.
7. Umbrellas are popular gifts in Hong Kong.
8. An Israeli business manager would undoubtedly appreciate the gift of a black, white and red striped tie.
9. It is recommended to give wine to Vietnamese.
10. An inexpensive pigskin wallet would probably be appreciated in Japan, Vietnam and Laos.
Answer Key:
IV. WRITING SUMMARIES
Complete the table below with the information from the passage.
Countries Recommended Not recommended
Israel
Vietnam
Indonesia
Korea
Thailand
Jordan
Hongkong
Philippines
People's Republic Of China
Laos
Answer Key:
THE CONSEQUENCES OF FOOD PRODUCTION
A. Agriculture transformed Homo Sapiens from a rare to an abundant species because the need for the labour of even the very young provided an incentive to produce numerous offspring. An increased population, however, brought with it epidemics, famine, conquest and unremitting warfare... As humans increasingly lived together in crowded settlements, in towns, and later in cities, new health hazards appeared. Cultivated plots of land which humans walked on over and over again to produce crops became a focus for disease spreading rats, fleas, and mosquitoes. The birds that humans had domesticated, or which were attracted to the fields, spread bacteria, protozoa, viruses, helminths and other parasites. Even cattle presented a health hazard.
B. The high-carbohydrate, low-protein diet of agriculturists brought with it beriberi, pellagra, rickets, and other diseases caused by vitamin and amino-acid deficiencies. A liking for sweets is an ancient trail which humans share with other primates. A cave painting in Spain, dating from perhaps 20,000 years ago, shows people using ropes to reach a beehive with its store of honey. This carbohydrate, though, existed in only small quantities in the pre-agricultural environment. It was usually so difficult to obtain that it could not do much damage to human health until the practice of agriculture made it abundant ...
C. Food production both caused and accompanied drastic changes in political, social, and economic life. Without this adaptation, complex societies - the state, the empire, and later the industrialized nations - could not have developed. This adaptation also brought with it a new attitude toward material objects and possessions. Since some people were able to obtain more land than others, the egalitarian society of the hunter-gatherers gave way to increasingly greater differences in wealth, power, and status. For the first time, societies became divided into the rulers and the ruled, the rich and the poor. Wealth and power did not merely appear for the first time; they also became hereditary.
D. In contrast to the diversity of skills possessed by every hunter-gatherer, the food-producing adaptation compartmentalized skills into highly specialized occupations. This adaptation soon contributed techniques that altered the internal properties of natural substances. Clay, earth and ore were modified to produce pottery, glazes, and metals. If clay, for example, is heated to a high temperature, it is transformed into pottery, and ceramics, substances that can no longer be returned to their original state. The humans' new ability to change the very nature of matter must have profoundly enhanced their intellectual awareness and their confidence in being able to serve their own needs. Domestication, after all, involved simply guiding normal biological processes, whereas the new technology involved a control over matter itself.
E. People in our threatening century often tend to look back with envy on the seemingly idyllic past of leisured hunter-gatherers or simple agriculturists. But since turning back is impossible, we must live today with all the consequences - whether good, evil, or neutral - of innovations stemming from the development of food production. The population explosion, the shortage of resources, the pollution of the environment, exploitation of one human group by another, famine, and war - all have their roots in that great adaptive change from foraging to production.
F. On the other hand, it was food production that permitted the cultural potentiality of the human species to develop freely. Having become liberated from the limitations and constraints dictated by the environment, the innate capacities of our species could now be expressed much more fully...
(By Peter Farb)
I. UNDERSTANDING TEXT ORGANIZATION
The following sentences have been removed from the passage. Decide where they should go in the passage.
1. The new diet also produced obesity and widespread dental decay because of the intake of sugar.
2. They thus gave certain people in the society political authority and social privileges that had little reference to their abilities.
3. Had such specializations been absent, the technological achievements that developed as part of this adaptation would have been impossible.
4. Our path today is still laid out for us by those innovations made so many thousands of years ago.
Suggestions:
- Find what personal pronouns in the given sentences refer to.
- Focus your attention to the clue words: also, such ..., those.., thus.
Answer Key:
II. EXTRACTING MAIN IDEAS
Below are the main ideas of the paragraphs. Match the ideas with the paragraphs.
1. However, the invention of agriculture also freed human beings to develop technologically and culturally.
2. Agriculture brought about inequalities in wealth and power among human beings, and these inequalities became hereditary.
3. The adoption of agriculture resulted in a population increase and, as a result, new diseases and health problems appeared.
4. Many of the problems in the world today are consequences of the invention of agriculture, but we cannot return to the way the world was before the invention of agriculture.
5. Agriculture changed the diet of human beings, which brought about various diseases caused by certain deficiencies in their diet, as well as obesity and tooth decay.
6. Instead of everyone having many skills, agriculture brought about the specialization of individuals in one skill, which gave rise to the beginning of technology.
Answer Key:
III. CHECKING COMPREHENSION
1. Decide whether each of the following sentences is true (T) or false (F) or doesn't say (DS). Write the letter T or F or DS before the sentences.
1. Agriculture increased the rate of development of the human species.
2. The increase in population occurred because parents had more time to take care of their children.
3. Various diseases were caused by a lack of vitamins and amino - acids.
4. In pre- agricultural lime, people did not eat much honey because they knew that too much honey was bad for their health
5. The more developed the society, the easier for the human beings to catch diseases.
6. Wealth and power resulted in equalities among human beings.
7. It was not necessary for everyone in agricultural societies to have many skills.
8. Agriculture produced not enough food than was immediately necessary.
9. Technology, like domestication, can alter the properties of natural substances.
10. Human beings like the pre- agricultural lifestyle more than their present one.
Answer Key:
2. Complete the following table using information form the passage.
CAUSE RESULT
1. The need for the labour of the very young.
2.
New health hazards appeared.
3. Honey was very difficult to obtain.
4. Some people were able to obtain more land than others.
5.
Certain people have wealth and power not because of their abilities.
Answer Key:
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