A Study On Non-English Major Graduates' Ability To Express Chinese Culture In English

Since the 1980s, the status and significance of culture in language teaching and learning has been gradually recognized and valued in the world of foreign language teaching. Many systematic researches have been conducted studying the teaching and learning of foreign culture. Due to the fast development of science and technology, the world has become a global village. English has become the international language and the tool for people to communicate and transmit native culture to the world in the intercultural communication. Therefore, culture teaching in FLT should cover both target culture and home culture to accomplish an equal and two-way intercultural communication in which the learners can not only talk about foreign culture but introduce their home culture through English to other people.And nowadays, China is playing a more important role in the international community, and Chinese culture has a more significant impact on world culture. More and more foreign people come to China to learn the Chinese language and culture, and Confucius Institutes aiming to teach the Chinese and its culture appear in more than 80 countries and areas all over the world. There appears a craze for Chinese and its culture. However, there also appears another phenomenon called Chinese Culture Aphasia by Cong Cong (2000), which means many Chinese English learners cannot express Chinese culture in English in the real intercultural communication. As is known, intercultural communication is an equal and two-way exchange of different cultures, which determines that English expressions of the Chinese culture should also be taught and learned. Only in this way, can a real and effective cross-cultural communication and the spread of Chinese culture in the world will be achieved.This thesis takes non-English-major graduates (NEMGs) as research subject, and their ability to express Chinese culture in English as research topic. One test about Chinese culture's English expression and two questionnaires on their attitudes toward Chinese culture teaching and learning have been conducted among 180 NEMGs and 30 graduate English teachers. The results indicate that NEMGs'ability of expressing Chinese culture in English is rather poor though both the students and their teachers show positive attitudes and strong passion for learning Chinese culture in English shown by the questionnaires. The reasons are: students'poor knowledge of Chinese culture, lack of learning resources on Chinese culture in English, ignorance of Chinese culture teaching in FLT, and the teachers'inadequate knowledge of Chinese culture and direct intercultural communication experience. The author proposes some suggestions on the culture teaching of NEMGs in accordance with the reasons mentioned above.