Verbal expressions in giving and receiving presents in english and vietnamese cultures

Nguyễn Văn Độ Năm bảo vệ: 2009 Abstract: The thesis focuses on English and Vietnamese verbal expressions used when giving and receiving presents.. More specifically, some similarities

Lê Hà Vân

Trường Đại học Ngoại Ngữ Luận văn ThS Chuyên ngành: English Linguistics; Mã số: 60 22 15

Người hướng dẫn: ASSOC PROF DR Nguyễn Văn Độ

Năm bảo vệ: 2009

Abstract: The thesis focuses on English and Vietnamese verbal expressions used when giving

and receiving presents More specifically, some similarities and differences in English and Vietnamese verbal expressions when giving and receiving presents/gifts will be given in these pages Also, tentative explanations in terms of linguistic politeness are made The data for this analysis are provided by the survey questionnaire that investigates verbal expressions used when giving and receiving presents on three occasions (birthday, wedding, and house-warming) 50 informants including 25 English native speakers and 25 Vietnamese have taken part in this investigation The findings of the study indicate that giving and receiving presents is a sensitive and delicate communicative act with many of communicating strategies employed by both groups of informants In addition, the cultural characteristics of each group also partly reveal through their utterances of giving and receiving presents

Keywords: Tiếng Anh; Tiếng Việt; Giao tiếp; Văn hoá; Quà tặng

Content:

TABLE OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

DEVELOPMENT

CHAPTER 1: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND 4

CHAPTER 3: RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS 40

ABBREVIATIONS

LIST OF TABLES AND GRAPHS

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Rationale

It can not be denied that English has been used as an international language all over the world; it is the most widely spoken language which is used in many fields such as economics, trade, tourism, diplomacy, politics, and press In Vietnam, as a result of the Open-door policy, the number of people learning English for various purposes is on the rise They study English

to communicate with people from other countries where English is used as a native, a second

or just a foreign language, to read English materials, or simply to pass the national secondary school exams

Although English has been taught in Vietnam for many years, not until recently has the focus of improving linguistic competence for learners been on syntax, on lexical and phonological components of the language Many people still believe that being good at English means being good at linguistic competence Thus, cultural factors are paid little attention to

In our modern world, however, globalization is expanding; the need for interacting and communicating across nations is indispensable Successful communication requires not only purely linguistic competence but also the knowledge of social norms, social values and relations between individuals known as communicative competence Communicative competence presupposes ability to use the language correctly and appropriately This pragmatic competence is as crucial as linguistic competence The lack of it may lead to rudeness, misinterpretation, cultural shocks, and even communication breakdown

It is clear that people who lack an awareness of socio-cultural conventions in the target language may face unwanted communication breakdown in cross-cultural interaction For example, if a Vietnamese speaker gave a native speaker of English a gift and he/she only received the response from the receiver as: “Thank you” or “Thank you so much”, the Vietnamese speaker may feel a little bit disappointed because he/she expects a more emotional

and warmer response than just saying “Thank you” Obviously, cultural differences here made the communication process unsuccessful

Hence, the knowledge about cross-cultural communication is really essential On this basis, this study is done to contribute an insight into a really fine social manner: Giving and receiving presents It helps Vietnamese learners of English to find out the best English verbal expressions which are often used when giving and receiving presents in specific situations and vice versa As the result, similarities and differences between Vietnamese and English verbal expressions in giving and receiving presents will be identified With this study, the researcher desires to seek a number of suitable and interesting verbal expressions when giving and receiving presents in English and Vietnamese in some specific circumstances for avoiding, or

at least, reducing the threat of communication breakdown in giving and receiving presents particularly in intercultural communication

1.2 Aims of the study

This study aims to:

- Find out typical models of English and Vietnamese verbal expressions used when giving and receiving presents in specific situations

- Identify the similarities and differences of English and Vietnamese verbal expressions when giving and receiving presents

- Make tentative explanations for these similarities and differences in termsof linguistic politeness

1.3 Scope of the study

As mentioned above, the study mainly focuses on English and Vietnamese verbal expressions used when giving and receiving presents on three occasions: birthday, wedding, and house-warming party Due to its small scale, only 25 Vietnamese and 25 English native speakers were involved in this study These respondents were asked to complete the questionnaires with information about their verbal expressions used in the case of giving and receiving presents in certain situations

Conclusions are based on the analysis of the data collected from the questionnaires Data obtained from questionnaires about what English native speakers and Vietnamese people might say in certain situations may not be always the same as what they actually say in the real life

Similarities and differences between the English and Vietnamese verbal expressions when giving and receiving presents are also discussed In this study, giving and receiving presents simply are understood as a nice symbol of cultural behaviors in normal life expressing deep emotion, concern, gratitude and attention to the Recipient, bringing joy to both the giver and receiver, promoting goodwill, and developing a closer relationship As the result, some tentative explanations for these similarities and differences in termsof linguistic politeness willbe given in this study

1.4 Methods of the study

In order to carry out this study with the aim of a cross-cultural research, the main method

used is the quantitative one All the comments, evaluation and conclusions in this thesis are

mainly based on:

1 Survey questionnaires;

2 Statistics, description and the analysis of the collected data

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