【正文】 s death, resulting in the eviction of her family from their home, precipitates Tess39。 Americans belittle “emotional” and “subjective” evaluations in favor of “rational” and “objective” assessments. Americans try to avoid being “too sentimental” in making their decisions. They judge every situation “on its own merits.” 美國人鄙視主觀感性，偏愛理性客觀。如果在你的國家人們用間接委婉的方式來傳達壞消息或負面評價，美國人的直率簡直會令習(xí)慣隱喻的你大驚失色！ They are likely to be pletely honest in delivering their negative evaluations. If you e from a society that uses the indirect manner of conveying bad news or unplimentary evaluations, you will be shocked at Americans? bluntness. 29. If you e from a country where saving face is important, be assured that Americans are not trying to make you lose face with their directness. It is important to realize that an American would not, in such case, lose face. 29. 如果你認為“要面子”很重要，那么請相信美國人的直率并不是存心讓你大丟面子。 ? 20. The workaholic syndrome, in turn, causes Americans to identify themselves wholly with their professions. The first question one American will ask another American when meeting for the first time is related to his or her work: “Where do you work?” or “Who (what pany) are you with?” 20. 相應(yīng)地，這種對工作的狂熱使美國人完全把自己和職業(yè)劃上等號。 They may, and do, join groups — in fact many groups — but somehow believe they?re just a little different, just a little unique, just a little special, from other members of the same group. And they tend to leave groups as easily as they enter them. 他們的確會加入一個群體（亦或許多群體），但他們相信他們與眾不同、獨一無二，與其他團體成員總有區(qū)別。 Equality 12. Equality is, for Americans, one of their most cherished values. This concept is so important for Americans that they have even given it a religious basis. They say all people have been “created equal.” Most Americans believe that God views all humans alike without regard to intelligence, physical condition or economic status. 平等 12. 平等是美國人最珍視的價值理念之一，美國人也因此而賦予這一理念以宗教基礎(chǔ)。因此，僅僅熟悉這些價值觀是不夠的，還必須盡可能做到不因自身經(jīng)歷和文化身份而對這些價值觀有負面和貶損的看法。?Text A ?The Values Americans Live By ? A culture can be viewed as a collection of values that go together to shape the way a group of people perceive and relate to the world around them. As people grow up, they learn certain values, which will influence and shape their way of life. How does American culture differ from others? The way to address this question is to consider the values Americans live by. ? “Values” are ideas about what is right and wrong, desirable and undesirable, normal and abnormal, proper and improper. Most people who grow up in a particular culture share certain values. These values overlap and support each other。 ? Personal Control over the Environment ? 6. Americans no longer believe in the power of Fate, and they have e to look at people who do as being backward, primitive, or hopelessly naive. To be called “fatalistic” is one of the worst criticisms one can receive in the American context。他們說人“生來平等”。而且他們可以隨時加入或退出某個團體。在美國，見面問到的第一個問題一般都與工作有關(guān)：“在哪里發(fā)財？”或者“在哪個單位上班？” ?21. And when such a person finally goes on vacation, even the vacation will be carefully planned, very busy and active. 21. 這種人如果去度假，他們會提前做出假期周密計劃，使假期過得緊湊而有趣。而且你要明白美國人也不會因此而丟面子。美國人在做決定時絕對不會感情用事。s doom, and as a last desperate reparation to her helpless mother and sisters she yields, with a fatalistic calm, to the inevitable. 最后 ,父親去世 ,全家人被逐出家門 ,這件事終于決定了苔絲的命運。 fatality天數(shù)，命中注定 Finally her father39。 Management and economics are much more popular in the United States than philosophy or anthropology, and law and medicine more valued than the arts. 管理和經(jīng)濟學(xué)在美國比哲學(xué)和人類學(xué)更受歡迎，同樣法律和醫(yī)學(xué)比藝術(shù)更受重視。 Directness, Openness and Honesty 28. Many other countries have developed subtle, sometimes highly ritualistic, ways of informing other people of unpleasant information. Americans, however, have always preferred the first approach. 他們在表達自己的負面看法時絕對誠實。因此，晚上下班后或周末不上班他們會感到不自在。他們抗拒擔任任何同質(zhì)組織的典型代表。如果實在無法準時到達，應(yīng)事先打個電話告訴不得不久等你的人你將遲到半小時或怎樣。 In fact, all of these American values are judged by many of the world?s citizens as negative and undesirable. Therefore, it is not enough simply to familiarize yourself with these values. You must also, so far as possible, consider them without the negative or derogatory connotation that they might have for you, based on your own experience and cultural identity. 事實上 ,許多外國人認為美國人的這些價值觀是消極和不受歡迎的。 they fit together. Dr. L. Robert Kohls has developed a list of 13 monly held values which help explain why Americans act as they do. ? Background Information ? Prereading Questions ? Text A The Values Americans Live ? Vocabulary ? Exercises Contents 1. Information about the author 2. Information about Cultural Identity 3. Information about the Declaration of Independence Background Information ?Text Explanation amp。 to an American, it means one is superstitious and lazy, unwilling to take any initiative in bringing about improvement. 對環(huán)境的自我把握 6. 美國人不再相信命運的力量，那些相信此道的人被認為是落后、原始和極其幼稚的。大多數(shù)美國人相信上帝會平等地看待每一個人，而不考慮其智力、體力或經(jīng)濟方面的差異 。 16. Privacy, the ultimate result of individualism is perhaps even more difficult for the foreigner to prehend. The word “privacy” does not even exist in many languages. If it does, it is likely to have a strongly negative connotation, suggesting loneliness or isolation from the group. 16. 外國人也許更難理解個人主義的終極產(chǎn)物 —隱私。 ? 22. America may be one of the few countries in the world where it seems reasonable to speak about the “dig