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英文烏龍趣談
-------------余致力
#How to avoid Chinese English:
1.Get to know the correct usage of English
2.Understand the culture and context
How to have better communication:
1.Do not have stereotypes or preconceptions
2.Do not jump to conclusions too fast
3.Respect open and diverse responses
4.Try to interpret from a “good intention perspectives”-do not assume something bad first.
5.Do not go to extremes.
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Lisa ： 大家好，歡迎收看Action English挑戰英文Lisa會客室，今天我們的特別來賓，請大家先看他的個人的小檔案。
Lisa：歡迎大家回到現場，我們今天特別為大家請到余致力余教授，你可能並不是那麼熟悉他的名字，但是我可以跟大家說，他是在學術還有英文的領域裡面，算是所謂的冷面笑匠級的人物，所以今天特別請他來跟我們聊一聊，中國學生他看到的不管在國內或者到外國留學，常常會有的一些這些錯誤，然後我們該怎樣做正確的示範，我們先請余教授出來跟大家打個招呼。
余致力：謝謝Lisa，今天很高興能夠到這個節目來，跟這個全國最有名的Lisa來這邊對談一下，那麼大家好大家好。
Lisa：謝謝余教授，我們知道，您自己也是在國外求學一段時間，後來回到國內也教學了一段時間，那麼您自己所看到的，有沒有一些在英文方面，不管是在生活上、求學上、在工作上所犯的一些錯誤，或者搞的一些笑話。
余致力：這個我想很多，就是在台灣唸英文的同學，可能在求學的過程中，特別對於口語的溝通，講這方面比較忽略。那我們常常出去有的時候，我們學的一些東西，英文當然也還不錯，但是正確的說法，不知道的時候，我們常常就直譯，直接翻譯。
Lisa：您的意思是說這個Chinglish中式的英文。
余致力：Yes, Chinese English. You know. I remember a story. It's a real story. One of our students, graduate student from Taiwan in the US. He tried to find a room.
他要找一個房子，結果就要去住。那麼那邊呢，美國常常有老太太她都是提供房子給人家住。
Lisa：對! 沒錯她們喜歡租給學生，然後供吃供住嘛，這個時候room and board。
余致力：這樣對room and board，那他有一次就去看那個老太太，跟她談完了，那麼價格也談得差不多了，他最後就要make sure the deal, three hundred a month. So I sleep you I eat you.就是我睡你的、吃你的，一個月三百塊。那這個當然very embarrassing，不過這個老太太也很幽默。
Lisa：你說國外的這些夫人。
余致力：這個老夫人就很幽默，她說
If you want to sleep with me that's fine, but you definitely couldn't eat me.
絕對不能吃我。
Lisa：那這個是我們常常犯的，留學生就是把一個英文直接就從中文思考到翻過去，那這個問題其實蠻嚴重的。
余致力：對，那在找工作也是，我記得 I remember a story.
You know, a student from Taiwan who got his degree and then found a job in Texas in Dallas, in Dallas Texas. Then the first day he went to his office and he couldn't find the 衣架.、衣架鉤子，他想hook，但是呢他就想名詞noun加er，所以就跟他們的秘書這個經理講Could I have some hookers。大家都知道hookers就不是衣架的鉤子了。你知道嗎？那公司的人就非常的surprise，所以我想很多這種可能第一個當然我們的英文，大家要多下點功夫，然後如果你真的不知道，避免直譯，我覺得這個會比較好。
Lisa：對對，我想全國的觀眾已經都領略到，我們這個余教授說笑話的能力，關於您剛講的第一個笑話，這邊也有一個；據說這個國內的某某名人，跑歐洲去旅遊，當然也是順便有公務，結果他就坐人家那個Oriental Express，就是東方特快車嘛，然後他有睡舖，因為他旅程很長，就是好幾天幾夜，後來他就找到他的位子，然後他就發現OK, this guy, you know came up with the number and he checked his boarding place and then there is a lady coming up. Who's like having you know, it's a double decker. So the lady is on the lower deck and then, the man from Taiwan got the upper deck.
因為這個男的他要睡上舖，那個女士當然是分開的，女士剛好是下面的位置，然後呢，男士就跟女的說，May I sleep upon you，這樣子也是跟這個有異曲同工之妙。
余致力：對，是是是。
Lisa：那麼余教授覺得為什麼會這樣子，好像理所當然的，把它直譯過，變成所謂的Chinese English，我想兩個問題，有一個就是，也許你的英文辭彙不夠，OK，那有很多我們知道We know the vocabulary but we don't known the correct way to express it in a sentence or you know, in a phrase, so you just put things together and then you assume that's correct. Well, that's very dangerous. You'll make a lot of mistakes. Another thing is the culture. You know, the language is basically related to culture. Now, you have to know the context, so a sentence it seems like the same in Chinese has quite different meanings you know and sometimes even in different context, it got different meanings.
余致力：I got another example to share with our students here. And that's very important. It's a real story again. A graduate student in the US finally finished his study dissertation so there's an oral examination. Then five professors sat there and asked him questions and then he was so nervous. You know, so he didn't pick up the question. So he asked the professor
" excuse me! I didn't follow you, so what's your problem"
. You know in Chinese what's your problem just like you know.就是你的問題是什麼。
Lisa： right!
余致力：So, well, the professor said：" Well, I have no problem, I just have a question for
you" . You know because in English " What's your
problem" implies that you are sick or you have mental problem something like that. It's not the question, not very good. That's very embarrassing. So if anyone here got a chance to study abroad, you know never ask your professor
" what's your problem" . No, no problem at all.
Lisa： All right and this applies to another issue too. You know if you talk about so-called the China issue or China question 像兩岸關係，中國問題You never say China problem and that's also the same case跟余教授聊天真是非常的開心，那麼尤其是我們知道在中文聽起來查字典，好像problem question 都是同樣一回事，其實是完全不同的應用，我們稍待一下回來之後再繼續跟余教授聊天。 |
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Lisa ：
歡迎大家回到現場，我們正跟余致力、余教授在聊天，余教授也給了很多實際的例子。常常這個所謂中式的英文或洋涇濱的英文，有些什麼應該要注意要避免的地方，請余教授再給我們一些funny example吧!
余致力：Funny example, 我想其實還有一個就是我們常常講英文，常常會說溜了嘴。那麼這個當然有的時候，其實也是很有趣。像我們有的人，像去美國買東西他說這個我們有一種巧克力，叫做wonder-bar有沒有。
Lisa：對
余致力：那我們有的學生可能到那邊就會說：Could I buy a
wonder bra?
那個這個一字之差可能就不一樣了。那個小姐當然很幽默，也會跟你講I got some, but it's not for sale, OK?那麼我想這個蠻多。不過剛才Lisa提到一個China problem. 倒是讓我想起，因為最近台灣常常在談這個問題，你是什麼人?那麼我在看那個節目，我就有一個感想。因為他們到了外國的時候，人家問你:"
你是什麼人" ，到底該怎麼回答。你知道，你要說你是Chinese呢 ，還是Taiwanese呢，還是New
Taiwanese 呢?我們現在還有新台灣人，還是說，我是在台灣的Chinese呢?那我想其實這好像都不太正確，就是在國外如果朋友問你，基本上他的question應該是phrase變成"Where are you from?" the answer, the correct answer is pretty obvious
" I'm from Taiwan" , that's all. Now if you tell someone or your friend a foreigner said Well, I'm a Taiwanese but a Chinese, too. You know, he is so confused.
Lisa： Yeah, it doesn't make much sense.
余致力：Doesn't make much sense , and he or she doesn't care at all.
Lisa： Yeah, couldn't care less.
余致力：Unless you want to make a conversation, then you answer like this. He or she will probably ask you what does that mean then you could have some small talk with him or some serious talk but that doesn't make any sense.
Lisa： Yeah, which brings me to the point, you know. You said that they ask you where you're from, that's a common question.
余致力：Yeah! It's actually not a question, like you are Chinese or Taiwanese or Japanese or Korean. No! They won't ask these kinds of questions. On one hand you know it's just not common. On the other hand, they are probably to avoid some racial tension or anything. Because when you talk about different races, there is always a potential of getting misunderstood. So they would avoid that.
Lisa： Right!
余致力：This is I think a very important issue. Well, for a lot of students or you know
that we have a lot of tourists to the US. We might not be sensitive enough to, you know, to think about the racial problem or discrimination problem, and we might make some comments very offensive. On the other hand, for some people in Taiwan , you know, or some students we are too sensitive, overreact. You know when we got some treatments, you know, we don't like. We probably will explain that as some kind of discrimination. I don't think that's good or fair and to some extend, I would say don't overreact. For example, once I went to New Orleans with my friend you know. And we went into a restaurant. And we'd been waiting for a while and just no one waited on us.
No waitress came over to ask what we wanted to order. So my friend finally got really angry. And he made a conclusion that we'd got discriminated. OK, because we are Asians, so the lady you know the waitress they ignored you, ignored us. And you know no smile, something like that. Well, I said that well probably you overreacted I told him.I said maybe the lady just, you know, got a bad day. Maybe she just broke up with her boyfriend, you know, or got beaten up by someone, something like that.
It is nothing to do with you or nothing to do with me. Don't jump into that kind of conclusion too quickly, too quickly. Yeah, and well, actually, in communication we would say that it's better to explain everything from a good intention perspective.
善意的去解釋一切, I've got a story that's very interesting.
I told my student about this. When you have a conversation with someone else,
if someone says something you are not sure what it means, you know, try to explain it from the good intention perspective.
Lisa： Not to suspect them.
余致力：No, no, don't be paranoid. You know these people try to hurt me something like that. I've got a story. Once there were two cars in the hill, so it's a very curve hill.
Then the cars passed by each other. And the driver over there, you know, yelled "pig" you know to the someone here drives.
The other driver, the other driver, he was very angry, you know. So he turned around and yelled back "You are the pig", you know
pig is something like that very bad.
Lisa： Very bad, right, Name-calling.
余致力：he said he didn't realize he didn't know why, you know, he said something like this to me. Then when he turned around he hit a pig, pig, yeah! He realized the driver was trying to warn him. You know.
Lisa： Right!
余致力：There's a pig coming up on the road. Right! So try to explain things from the good perspective , at least you are happier.
Lisa：這個余教授在跟大家解釋的這個笑話，其實真的是很好玩喔。很多事情當然我們不要做假設，說別人一定是怎麼樣，當然也有一些狀況，的確也是怎麼樣，因為我們也看過在美國的太多的法律案件，都是勝訴的情況。就是當某種歧視被懷疑的時候。所以當然你做亞洲人或做老中，其實也不用，就是說不用客氣，如果真的有這種情況也不要手軟。但是呢，我倒是覺得余教授剛剛那個例子是相當有意義的。因為有時候就是我們可能過度地保護自己，或是說從某種角度有點自卑吧，是不是。所以在很多事情的解釋上面，容易傾向於好像別人有惡意。因為這個事情，我特別的有感受。就是我們的一位外交官，我們不要說誰，在台灣相當出名的，他曾經跟季辛吉Henry Kissinger有過照面。那麼我就最記得這個故事就是，他跟大家說季辛吉碰到他的時候，以為他英文不好。所以呢，等到他講完話以後，季辛吉就讚美他一下就是說，哇!你的英文比我的英文還好。You speak English better than I do
然後他會覺得說這是一種種族歧視，或者一種歧視。因為好像覺得說，季辛吉在說他不應該英文說得這麼好。從某種角度來解釋的話，其實這個有一點反應過度。
Just an innocent remark, really no more no less. And of course, Henry Kissinger himself comes from Eastern Europe. It's right that he doesn't speak English well
and he admits to it. 所以我覺得這件事情倒是可以做一個對照。我們先稍微休息片刻，再回來跟余教授聊天。 |
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Lisa ： 歡迎回到挑戰英文的現場。余教授說他還有好多這個寶貝笑話要告訴你，我們就不要耽誤時間，馬上請余教授說吧。
余致力：這個講到這個Don't assume，就是說有的時候先不要去預設立場，假設對方是壞人，還是怎麼樣的。這個在美國他們一直努力想要解決這個所謂種族歧視，或者說大家對黑人的stereotype的問題。我就記得我看過一個廣告，我印象很深刻，所以也跟大家分享一下。那有一個廣告，就是有一個黑人一個照片出來。然後呢，就開始有那個像跑馬燈，哪一年哪一月哪一日，什麼什麼地方的謀殺案，哪一年哪一月哪一日，什麼地方的強姦案，哪一年哪一月哪一日，什麼地方的搶劫案，哪一年哪一月哪一日，又殺了多少人的這個謀殺案，一路這樣子跑。每一個人看了都覺得這個人怎麼這麼窮兇惡極，好多案件都是他，以為都是他。但是他最後跑到最後上，以上這些案件都是由我們這位某某警官所破獲的。所以換句話說，我們會assume黑人也許就是壞人。所以那個是一個我覺得非常shock的一個廣告，那麼他會發現說臉長得很兇狠的，或者是這個他不一定是強盜，他可能是官兵，他可能是警察捉強盜的那個人，對! 他是專門捉強盜的。
Lisa：這個余教授講到這個，我也有一個感觸。我自己在讀高中的時候，其實那也不是很久以前。我印象最深的就是教我們那個就是健康教育的老師，她跟我們講了一個故事。She told us that that summer, she and kids went to Hawaii for vacation. You know back then nobody went to Hawaii. That was a time when not many people from Taiwan travel overseas, so we were envious like hell, OK! And then she was telling us, how much fun, how beautiful Hawaii is. And then she ended with the story. She said that only one thing is bad about Hawaii. You know if you go to their resort hotel, go to their swimming pool, then you know it's really bad. Because when you're having fun in the pool with the kids, you found that a black man jumped in, you know. They were so scared that they cried out by that minute, you know. And her conclusion was that she was
afraid that she would get tainted.會被染黑了，你知道嗎! 所以趕快從那個游泳池爬上來這樣。So, not long ago. I would like to believe that we don't have that kind of stereotyping in Taiwan anymore. But it's hard to tell then not long ago was that story so there, you go even for educators. Even for people who teach kids, teach children have the same kind of preconception.
余致力：Stereotype,! Well, this will hurt your communication with people like this.
I mean when you have this stereotype, there is no way you could have. You know carrying an in-depth conversation and you couldn't make friends, you know in different cultures in different colors. I mean I think they try to respect diversity is something we need to learn when we move into a global society. Especially at the time when people are talking about bio-diverisity. They don't even get
alone, you know, among different races
Lisa：那麼余教授在還有哪一些，就是比方說，您在國外的期間，有沒有真的為了這些種族的問題，或是其他的問題，語言的隔閡，跟別人吵架。或者說，碰到那種比較粗魯的人，或您自己，或者別人的一些經驗。有這樣的一個情況，然後怎麼處理的?
余致力：我個人吵架倒是沒有，其實我不管在國外在國內吵架機會不太多。我一個妹妹就跟我說，你這個不太會吵架的樣子。這個沒有這種訓練，沒有這個技能。那至於有一些我相信，of course， 我們剛剛講了很多，當然是希望我們從比較正面的來看。但是這不排除，其實還是有一些人，事實上會有一些這樣的一個問題，這樣的discrimination。我記得當我在唸書的時候，我們有一次有一門課修完之後，這個我們班上有將近20位學生，那裡面有八九位都是東方的學生
，那就通通都當掉。那這個當然就有爭議，就是說這是coincidence，還有說這真的有一點discrimination。
Lisa： right!
余致力：那這個當然，這些同學也很生氣啦，不過有的時候，這個蠻難去區分蠻難去區分。那至於說其他，有沒有一些很生氣的例子，大概我這個人心情比較平靜，所以也比較好，比較這個容易相處，倒也沒有什麼這種跟人家吵架的例子。
Lisa： right!
余致力：你有沒有?
Lisa：這個我們倒有一個朋友，就是您剛講的就是說，就是懷疑因為種族，或者是因為膚色的問題被歧視，And this friend of mine turned the thing, turned the table around. You know, the guy just told the dean, you know, I'm suspicious of this so-called racial discrimination.
I put up so much effort you know, it's only right for me to graduate this year. Not to delay my graduation another year. So, you know you can think about this, if you are not sure about the grade you gave me, you can always do something about it.當然當他這樣講的時候，他們就已經深切了解他的意思了。那與其是說，就讓他跑到那個教育局教育單位去告一狀，或者是去找更高的主管，那麼去理論所謂的這個racial discrimination。他們就決定了，就是後來就更改了他的分數，然後讓他不是提前畢業。他其實要求的是一個很正當的，就是在有效的期間之內回到台灣，因為畢業，然後拿到學位回來教書這樣子。So I think this is a case whereas you really suspect something, and you talk to them. You need to take an action, take an action go to them to see if there is something to be done with it.那麼其實如果說他們比方有兩種可能，一種就是心虛，可能的確有這種這個情況我們其實也常常聽到，學生在國外被刁難。不要說國外，連國內都會，國內也有對不對?
那麼On the other hand, 如果說他們其實-其實給這個學位的時候也到了，Why not?
是 right.
余致力：我是覺得這裡喔，我倒有一個感覺，就是當然這位朋友，take a very radical action and got payoff. He got it. Right, I mean you have to stand up for yourself. You have to know your right and then when it is necessary, you know stand up for yourself. OK! I hate to see some people, you know be very nice and too nice, then do nothing. In Taiwan we have a
phrase" 軟土深掘" ，你一直都是一直的很懦弱很怯懦，就一直被人家欺壓，那其實我們發現，我個人覺得，有很多人是這樣。他會一直忍，一直忍。像我們看連續劇，那些媳婦都是這樣，一直忍一直忍。各種不合理的事情她一直忍，然後到最後忍不住爆發了。就把先生也殺了，公婆也殺了，所有都殺了。我說In between there are a lot of alternatives right. OK! So don't do you know, don't go to extremes.
Lisa： Yeah don't go to extremes.
余致力：And I like to suggest you know whenever you think you are right and you need to argue for your rights or you know or disagree with someone with authority that you disagree your professor or someone like that. Try to use the nice phrase, for example. I give you some examples. I think about it.
Lisa：這個余教授大小抄，大小抄都有。
余致力：You know, I remember one of my professors, when he made a different point or argued with his colleagues, he always began with all due respect with due respect.
This is a good phrase to get started with and then you could say but I disagree with you on this or on that, I think that's better. Yeah, but when you disagree, be specific and be very clear about it.
Lisa：今天跟這個余教授聊天，非常愉快。而且余教授在他個人的求學，或者是教學的經驗裡面，提供了大家不少的這個實際有的例子。那麼不要忘了語言是一個非常好的工具，不管是為了自己爭取權益，或者是說保障別人的權益了這個語言都是蠻必要的一項工具，今天謝謝余教授，那麼我們下次見!
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