Pragmatic Failure in Sino—western Cross—cultural Communication and Implications for Improving Chinese EFL Learners’ Communication Competence

周瑜

Abstract： Due to the social and cultural differences， people from different countries would always encounter pragmatic failure in cross-cultural communication， which may lead to the breakdown of communication. In light of Thomas （1983） classification of pragmatic failure， this article firstly analyzes the types of pragmatic failure in Sinowestern cross-cultural communication and their underlying factors. Then， the article tries to explore the strategies for avoiding such pragmatic failures and improving Chinese EFL （English as a Foreign Language） learners communication competence from the perspective of English instruction. In Sino-western cross-cultural communication， there are mainly two types of pragmatic failure： pragmalinguistic failure and socio-pragmatic failure. Cultural difference and negative transfer of the mother language are the major factors for pragmatic failure. In English teaching， teachers should arouse students cross-cultural awareness， effectively combine cultural instruction with language teaching， carry out extra-curricular cross-cultural communication activities， and develop students good habit of leaning English.

Key words： pragmatic failure； cross-cultural communication； English teaching

[中图分类号]H030

[文献标识码]A

[文章编号]1006-2831（2013）02-0149-5 doi：10.3969/j.issn.1006-2831.2013.01.035

1. Introduction

With the deepening globalization and accelerating development of science and technology， people from different cultures have come into more extensive contact. Therefore， cross-cultural communication becomes an indispensable part of human life. However， the competence of cross-cultural communication entails not only linguistic competence， i.e. the knowledge of grammar and vocabulary， but also pragmatic competence， i.e. the knowledge of rules for using linguistic forms in adequate contexts. Through many years of English leaning， most Chinese students may have little problem in grammar and vocabulary， but only a small proportion of them can achieve pragmatic competence. For example， it is common to see students do excellent in all kinds of English written tests， but fail when it comes to real communication. They commit numerous mistakes which are termed “pragmatic failure”， thus “failing to achieve the desired communication effect” （何自然，1988：202）.

2. Pragmatic failure in Sinowestern cross-cultural communication

2.1 Classification of pragmatic failure

Pragmatic failure， firstly put forward by Thomas （1983： 91）， was defined as “the inability to understand what is meant by what is said.”Through empirical study， he concluded that nonnative speakers might commit pragmatic failure even when they have wonderful grammatical and lexical command of the target language.

Thomas distinguished between two types of pragmatic failure： pragmalinguistic failure and socio-pragmatic failure. Pragmalinguistic arises when the EFL learners dont express themselves in a linguistically appropriate and native-like manner. For example， Chinese EFL learners may create non-native English expressions which sound quite strange to native speakers， such as “contact the society”（接触社会）. Socio-pragmatic failure occurs when the participants fail to observe others social and cultural customs， such as values， social identity， taboos， etc. For example， declining a compliment is regarded as a virtue of modesty in China， while it may be considered offensive in western countries. Both of the two types of pragmatic failures may directly lead to serious misunderstanding and even breakdowns in cross-cultural communication and therefore should be taken into serious consideration.

2.2 Underlying factors for pragmatic failure

2.2.1 Cultural difference

Domestic researchers considered cultural difference as the primary factor leading to socio-pragmatic failure （黄次栋，1984；何自然、阎庄，1986；何自然，1997）. People from China and western countries have differences in many cultural aspects， such as religious beliefs， values， taboos， etc.

In terms of religious beliefs， China is deeply influenced by Confucianism， Taoism， and Buddhism， while US and some other western countries advocate Christianity. As for values， it is most prominently reflected in the attitudes towards privacy. In western countries where individualism is advocated， individual privacy is especially protected and respected. However， the concept of privacy is rather weak in China where collectivism is encouraged. People who have just met each other for the first time would frequently touch upon topics like age， income， marital status and family status， which is regarded to be very impolite and offensive in western culture. Whats more， with regard to taboos， people in western countries believe that 13 is an unlucky number， while in China the unlucky number is 4.

Therefore， in cross-cultural communication， some of the phenomena that we take for granted may be very strange to people from different cultures. If we always explain the verbal behavior of people from other cultures according to our own cultural standards， it will inevitably lead to unnecessary misunderstandings and even conflict.

2.2.2 Negative transfer of the mother language

Negative transfer of the mother language is the most influential reason for pragmalinguistic failure （何自然、阎庄，1986；何自然，1997）. EFL Learners transfer the linguistic pattern of their mother tongue into the target language which seems semantically and syntactically similar， but convey a rather different pragmatic force in the target language. Many of the Chinese EFL learners errors result from the negative transfer of Chinese.

Here are two typical examples. In China， we can often see in public places the sign“Please dont smoke” which actually should be corrected into “No Smoking”. This is the result of simply transferring the Chinese linguistic habit into English， leading to the confusion between “requirement” and “request”. The two versions of this sign are clearly different in both stance and attitude. Here is another example. When asked “Is this the famous tower in China？”， the Chinese EFL learners often reply with the answer “Of course”. Such answer is quite reasonable in China， because the Chinese equivalent of “of course” is used to show confirmation. However， it may seem to be quite rude to foreigners because the English phrase implies an attitude of contempt. Therefore its better to answer “Yes， I think so”.

3. Implications for Improving Chinese EFL Learners Communication Competence

For quite a long time， English teaching in China attaches too much importance to vocabulary and grammar， but neglects the need to foster students pragmatic competence for cross-cultural communication. Many teachers， with the only goal of pursuing high scores， follow the beaten track in teaching， resulting in students great excellence in linguistic knowledge， but an extreme lack of pragmatic competence. Chinese EFL learnerscommunication competence as a whole is quite poor. Therefore， taking effective measures to avoid pragmatic failure plays a role that can not be underestimated in order to achieve successful cross-cultural communication.

3.1 To arouse students cross-cultural awareness

Cross-cultural awareness means the sensitivity to the impact of cultural difference on language use and communication. In English teaching， teachers should guide the students to realize that any language is a cultural phenomenon. Not only do Chinese and English differ in linguistic forms， but they also serve different pragmatic functions. Therefore， its better for students to get a good mastery of the cultures of English-speaking countries， rather than simply apply the pragmatic rules of our mother tongue into English communication.

However， to get a better command of foreign cultures doesnt mean that our native culture can be ignored and even belittled. At present， neglecting native culture seems to be a malpractice. Many Chinese EFL learners fail to introduce Chinese culture to foreign friends appropriately because they only have a surface knowledge of our native culture， which seems to be ridiculous and sarcastic.

In a word， in English teaching， teachers should foster students awareness of crosscultural differences， and meanwhile encourage them to appreciate our native culture.

3.2 To combine cultural instruction with language teaching

Only to raise EFL learners cross-cultural awareness is not enough. More importantly， culture should be taught in combination with language knowledge so as to reduce and avoid pragmatic failure. Teachers should make students notice both cultural similarities and differences， with the focus on cultural differences. For example， when teaching the English expression “rest room”， teachers can not only give students its Chinese translation. Instead， they should make a comparison between the English expression “rest room” and the Chinese expression “xiu xi shi”. These two expressions are of the same literal meaning， but have quite different underlying meanings. A“rest room” is a room in theatre or department equipped with toilets and wash basins， while“xiu xi shi” is a room for people to have a rest. Here is another example. When coming across“dinner” in an English passage， the teachers had better explain to the students that dinner in English-speaking countries usually refer to a formal meal or banquet held at supper time.

In addition， teachers should also lay emphasis on the instruction of idioms and proverbs that involve specific cultural information of their own. Here we take the expression “pig” which can reflect the difference between English and Chinese customs for example. In Chinese culture， “pig” is considered to be the embodiment of stupidity and laziness， as in the expressions “foolish pig”， “sleep like a pig” and so on. In English， although “pig” also has some kind of derogatory connotation， they obviously do not have such strong emotional color as in Chinese， e.g.， “foolish pig” is translated into “stupid” and “Till pigs can fly”implies that miracles might happen.

As can be seen， differences between English and Chinese are quite obvious. Therefore， introducing cultural instruction into language teaching will stimulate studentsinterests in learning and improve their learning efficiency. Only with an in-depth understanding of the culture of the English-speaking countries can students get rid of pragmatic failure and grasp the real connotation of English idioms， proverbs， maxims， allusions and anecdotes thoroughly.

3.3 To carry out extra-curricular crosscultural communication activities

Cross-cultural communication competence is not simply the total sum of language skills and cultural knowledge， but the result of many practices. Appropriate， reasonable and orderly extra-curricular activities， as the main supplement for classroom instruction， are beneficial for avoiding pragmatic failure and developing students communicative competence. A large number of researches have shown that internalization plays a decisive role in the process of learning. So if the learners dont have opportunities to internalize the socio-cultural knowledge they have already memorized in specific communication activities timely， their communication competence can not be improved.

Therefore， teachers should design various communication activities， such as role play， scene performance， debate， English Corner， English speech contest， etc.， to help students improve their communicative competence by using English in appropriate contexts with native-like manner.

3.4 To develop students good habit of learning English

Despite of the importance of teachersdirect instruction， students communication competence can only be achieved by themselves. Therefore， to develop studentsgood habit of leaning English is of vital importance. Firstly of all， train students to find out the cultural background of whatever they have learned and make a comparison with the Chinese culture. Secondly， encourage students to use pragmatic rules in their daily life to make polite salutation， greeting， farewell， thanks， apology， compliment， refusal， request， etc. Thirdly， encourage students to watch original English films， read original English books and newspapers， listen to English radios and visit English websites. And if possible， encourage them to carry out online chatting with foreign friends. All these can provide students with a native atmosphere for English learning and can help get rid of the negative transfer of the mother tongue. Finally， encourage students to participate in more cross-cultural communication activities， such as English Corner， English lectures and English debate， and to seek every opportunity to interact with foreigners. Such practices can help students overcome anxiety and nervousness communication， develop native-like expression， and finally achieve success in cross-cultural communication.

4. Conclusion

In a word， language and culture are mutually permeated， influenced and closely intertwined （戴炜栋、何兆熊，2002）. Any language has its own cultural connotation. It should be recognized that the major purpose of English teaching is to develop students crosscultural communication competence. Therefore， English teaching should not only lay emphasis on linguistic knowledge such as vocabulary and grammar， but should also attach importance to cultural instruction. Besides the strategies that can be taken from the perspective of English teachers， other parties in the educational circle should also shoulder their responsibilities. For example， it is high time for editorial committee of textbooks and other supplementary materials to select qualified texts from native speaker discourses.

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