| As the global village continues to
shrink and cultures collide, it is essential for all of us to become more
sensitive, more aware of, and more observant to the body language
(motions/gestures) that surround us each day. And as many of us cross over
cultural borders, it would be fitting for us to respect, learn, and understand
more about the effective and powerful "silent language" of gestures. Without
gestures, our world would be static and colorless. The social anthropologists,
Edward T. Hall claims 60 percent of all our communication is nonverbal. In that
case, how can we possibly communicate with one another without
gestures? The world is a giddy montage (蒙太奇) of vivid gestures—the ones used by traffic police, street vendors, expressway drivers, teachers, children on playground and athletes with their exuberant (热情洋溢的) hugging, clenched fists and "high fives". People all over the world use their hands, heads, and bodies to communicate expressively. Gestures and body language communicate as effectively as words—maybe even more effectively. We use gestures daily, almost instinctively, from beckoning to a waiter, or punctuating a business presentation with visual signals to airport ground attendants guiding an airline pilot into the jet-way or a parent using a whole dictionary of gestures to teach a child. Gestures are woven into our social lives. The "vocabulary" of gestures can be at once informative and entertaining…but also dangerous. Gestures can be menacing, warm, instructive, or even sensuous. Bear in mind that some gestures are in general use, but there may always be exceptions. In recent years, Western and contemporary values and ideas have become more popular and have either influenced, altered, and even replaced, some of the more traditional gestures. Understanding human behavior is tricky stuff. No two people behave in precisely the same way. Nor do people from the same culture all perform exactly the same gestures and body language uniformly. For almost any gestures there will probably be a minority within a given nationality who might say, "Well, some might attach that meaning to it, but to me it means…" and then they will provide a different interpretation. In the world of gestures, the best single piece of advice is to remember the two A's—"ask" and be "aware". If you see a motion or gesture that is new or confusing, ask a local person what it signifies. Then, be aware of the many body signs and customs around you. |