英语畅谈中国文化50主题 25

　　25 Table Manners
A: A westerner said to his Chinese friend. Chinese people slurp¹ when drinking soup. It’s disgusting . the Chinese friend replied , westerners make a lot of noise licking their fingers when eating. It’s even worse.
B: everyone has his own habits, but these habits are not very good. The noise often spoils other people’s appetite.
A: I attended a course on table manners while I was in the United states. Some of the things we learnt included how to place the napkin and utensils² and how to pass the bread. Before each course, the teacher would ask if we wanted to learn the continental³ European way or the American way. We always said “American way.” it’s amazing that everyone is so used to their own table manners. What is the Chinese way?
B: the westerners use knives and forks to eat so it is complicated. The Chinese use a pair of chopsticks and eat out of the same plate. I assume it is less complicated,right?
A: not really. I did some research about Chinese table manners. The important rule is to remain silent while eating. Of couse, this refers to family meals only. Not talking over meals is supposed to be good for the health. It is impolite if people do not talk to each other during a social party. The table arrangements and serving order for a social party are equally complicated. Each dish should be placed in the correct position. When fish is served, the tail should be pointing at the guest because tail meat is supposed to be tasty. If it is in winter, the stomach should face the right-hand side of the guest because that portion of the fish is very rich in winter. Each dish should be commenced by the eldest⁴ person who is seated at the head of the table. The diners should sit close to the table so food won’t drop on their cloths. Not noise should be made when chewing. No one should move food back to the communal⁵ plate even if he doesn’t like it. One should drink soup slowly and is not supposed to make a lot of noise. All these table manners are very similar to western habits.
B: it seems that people share the same basic sense of etiquette⁶ regardless of their background. Apart from the different tools used for eating we seem to follow the same principles. We do not let inappropriate manners spoil other people’s appetite.
Westerners like to say, bon appetite before meals which is one way to suggest mind your table manners. Is there such an expression in Chinese?
A：yes. We say eat well and drink well.

1 slurp   

n.啜食；vt.饮食出声

参考例句：

• You may not slurp your soup.喝汤不可发出声音。
• Do you always slurp when a milkshake?你总是这样啧啧喝牛奶吗？

2 utensils   

器具，用具，器皿( utensil的名词复数 )； 器物

参考例句：

• Formerly most of our household utensils were made of brass. 以前我们家庭用的器皿多数是用黄铜做的。
• Some utensils were in a state of decay when they were unearthed. 有些器皿在出土时已经残破。

3 continental   

adj.大陆的，大陆性的，欧洲大陆的

参考例句：

• A continental climate is different from an insular one.大陆性气候不同于岛屿气候。
• The most ancient parts of the continental crust are 4000 million years old.大陆地壳最古老的部分有40亿年历史。

4 eldest   

adj.最年长的，最年老的

参考例句：

• The King's eldest son is the heir to the throne.国王的长子是王位的继承人。
• The castle and the land are entailed on the eldest son.城堡和土地限定由长子继承。

5 communal   

adj.公有的，公共的，公社的，公社制的

参考例句：

• There was a communal toilet on the landing for the four flats.在楼梯平台上有一处公共卫生间供4套公寓使用。
• The toilets and other communal facilities were in a shocking state.厕所及其他公共设施的状况极其糟糕。

6 etiquette   

n.礼仪，礼节；规矩

参考例句：

• The rules of etiquette are not so strict nowadays.如今的礼仪规则已不那么严格了。
• According to etiquette,you should stand up to meet a guest.按照礼节你应该站起来接待客人。