普通高中课程标准实验教科书 英语必修4 Unit 4 Body language-Us

 Body language is one of the most powerful means of communication, often even more powerful than spoken language. People around the world show all kinds of feelings, wishes and attitudes that they might never speak aloud. It is possible to "read" others around us, even if they do not intend for us to catch their unspoken communication. Of course, body language can be misread, but many gestures and actions are universal.

       The most universal facial expression is, of course, the smile – its function is to show happiness and put people at ease¹. It does not always mean that we are truly happy, however. Smiles around the world can be false, hiding other feelings like anger, fear or worry. There are unhappy smiles, such as when someone "loses face" and smiles to hide it. However, the general purpose of smiling is to show good feelings.

       From the time we are babies, we show unhappiness or anger by frowning². In most places around the world, frowning and turning one's back to someone shows anger. Making a fist and shaking it almost always means that someone is angry and threatening another person.

       There are many ways around the world to show agreement, but nodding the head up and down is used for agreement, almost worldwide. Most people also understand that shaking the head from side to side means disagreement or refusal³.

       How about showing that I am bored? Looking away from people or yawning⁴ will, in most cases, make me appear to be uninterested. However, if I turn toward⁵ and look at someone or something, people from almost every culture will think that I am interested. If I roll my eyes and turn my head away, I most likely do not believe what I am hearing or do not like it.

       Being respectful⁶ to people is subjective⁷, based on each culture, but in general it is probably not a good idea to give a hug to a boss or teacher. In almost every culture, it is not usually good to stand too close to someone of a higher rank. Standing⁸ at a little distance with open hands will show that I am willing to listen.

        With so many cultural differences between people, it is great to have some similarities in body language. We can often be wrong about each other, so it is an amazing thing that we understand each other as well as we do!

1 ease   

n. 安乐,安逸,悠闲; v. 使...安乐,使...安心,减轻,放松

参考例句：

• His mind was at ease and he felt confident in the future. 他心情舒畅,对前途很有信心。
• You should ease up on the child and stop scolding her. 你应该对那个孩子宽松些,不要再骂她了。

2 frowning   

n. 皱眉, 不悦 v. 皱眉头, 不同意

参考例句：

• What are you frowning at me for? 你为什么朝我皱眉头？
• Why are you frowning at me? 你为什么对我皱眉头？

3 refusal   

n.拒绝

参考例句：

• He persisted in his refusal to pay the money.他坚持拒绝付钱。
• Our offer was met with a firm refusal.我们的报价被坚决拒绝。

4 yawning   

n.打呵欠adj.张着大嘴的，打哈欠的v.打呵欠( yawn的现在分词 )；张开，裂开

参考例句：

• Yawning is often contagious. 打哈欠常易于感染。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• I felt so sleepy I couldn' t stop yawning. 我感到很困，止不住地打呵欠。 来自辞典例句

5 toward   

prep.对于，关于，接近，将近，向，朝

参考例句：

• Suddenly I saw a tall figure approaching toward the policeman.突然间我看到一个高大的身影朝警察靠近。
• Upon seeing her,I smiled and ran toward her. 看到她我笑了，并跑了过去。

6 respectful   

adj.恭敬的，对...表示尊敬的

参考例句：

• He is respectful to his elders.他对长辈很尊敬。
• She received guests with a respectful attitude.她恭恭敬敬地接待了客人。

7 subjective   

a.主观(上)的，个人的

参考例句：

• The way they interpreted their past was highly subjective. 他们解释其过去的方式太主观。
• A literary critic should not be too subjective in his approach. 文学评论家的看法不应太主观。

8 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。