Cross Cultural misunderstandings

 British Slang

About two years ago, I visited my English friend, and that was also my first meeting with him in Surabaya. So, he generously invited me to his house, and explained me many things about his culture; such as British lifestyle, media, and foods. Frankly, I did not really catch most of his words, due to his funny accent. As a general fact that British speak faster than anyone else, and things would get even worse, whenever they start murmuring their slangs. For one thing, my friend was really busy taking over the kitchen all by himself, I did offer him my help, at first, and yet he insisted me to wait. Suddenly, his phone rang, and he asked me to hang on the phone; as he said, “hang on the dog and bone, please!” I was so confused for I have never heard such idioms before, then I asked him if he would like me to hang on the phone, but, the only response that I heard was, “just hang on the bone; I’ll take on the dog, later”. Because he asked me so, I hurried to his back yard and looked for his dog, carefully took the bone from it, then I rushed back to the kitchen and informed him that I have successfully grabbed the bone from his dog, as I said “Well, here’s the bone, sir, but I’m afraid that I can’t get you the dog. By the way, your phone is still ringing, mate”. After two minutes of stillness, he burst into laugh, as he said, “Bloody hell! I meant the phone, not this silly bone”. I was quite embarrassed at that time, yet he kindly explained me another British common slangs; namely “dog and bone” (phone) and “apple and stairs” (stairs). As an addition, in the United Kingdom, especially in Yorkshire and East-end of London, people are accustomed to use British slangs (Cockney’s slang) in their daily conversation. In fact, there are about 8.000 different slangs, and each of them has its own function and degree. For instance, British slangs, like “apple and stairs”, “dog and bone”, “Bush’s puddle” (means people’s call for Camilla Bowles Parker, widow), and so on are usually addressed to young people (age between- 12-22 year-old). Those slangs are specially functioned to classify objects by their shape. The spread can be shown by phrases that relate to people or places only well-known in a particular country, or ones where the rhyme depends on a regional or national accent. Another slangs, such as; “bloody hell”, “Bloody Nora”, and “off you go.., have no limitation on the degree, and are famously known as “cursing and teasing” slangs. Furthermore, rhyming slang has the effect of obscuring the meaning of what is said from outsiders. It is not clear whether this is intentional, to hide one's meaning from the law, or to exclude outsiders, or whether it is just a form of group bonding. The way rhyming slang works does tend to exclude those not 'in the know', as the substitution of one word for another often relies on reference to a key phrase, which, for the slang to be understood, must be known jointly by those communicating. For example, to get from 'Hamsteads' to 'teeth', one must be aware of Hampstead Heath. The earliest example of rhyming slang that we can find is in the English writer Edward Jerringham Wakefield's, Adventures in New Zealand, 1845, in which he includes an account of the journey from the UK to the Southern Hemisphere:"The profound contempt which the whaler expresses for the 'lubber of a jimmy-grant', as he calls the emigrant." Not only England, the use of rhyming slang has also spread to many English-speaking countries; namely Australia, the United States and Canada. All in all, with all this long explanation, I promise to myself that I would never get tricked, by next time I speak with him again. 

Taiwanese Mystical Mindset

About two months ago, my mother was invited by one of her friends, whom married a Taiwanese, to her husband’s birthday party. Her husband, An Wei is a successful entrepreneur in Singapore. Moreover, he spends most of his time working at his office, indeed, he is a workaholic. Knowing this fact, my mother decided to give a set of office stationeries; specifically, pen, notes, stapler and scissor as the birthday gift. But, instead of wrapping them in a “gift paper”, she put everything in a basket, and intended to give it as an opened gift. When An Wei received the gift, he looked a bit surprised, as he gave a sharp glance at my mother. Indeed, she knew nothing about such glance, then she hurried back to her friend and asked her, whether her husband was upset or just teasing her. Things were getting worse, when my mother saw An Wei ignoring her present. She was so upset, that she approached him, then she directly asked what seemed to trouble him. He did not say anything, then walked away. His wife, then told my mother that one of the items in the gift; namely scissor, which she had given him, simbolizes “unluckiness” for most of Taiwanese. After learning all this, my mother was so embarassed, then hurried back to An Wei, as she apoligized for her not knowingness. All in all, every sharp-pointed things; such as knives, paper cut, and scissors are considered as demon’s tools and the source of unluckiness, sickness and worst of all, death. According to Taiwanese belief, giving such things as a gift, can shorten their life, and most importantly, these will bring them bad luck on each of their life’s aspects. In short, they should not use or give any sharp-pointed things on special occassions; such as birthday, wedding, opening ceremony, graduation, engangement and family gathering. As a result, they will soon refuse  it, worst of all, they will always think bad of “the giver”. No one can predict the origin of this mystical mindset.  Still, the rumor began during the reign of Chin Dynasty in China, because long ago, Taiwan was a part of this great country. It is said that Shi Huang-Ti (259 BC – 210 BC), the greatest emperor of that time, suffered from a strange disease, when one of his advisors gave him a pair of scissors on his birhtday. And yet, this rumor is still remained alive, among the Taiwanese people in this modern days. 

 sources : cockney-rhyming-slang.com, personal refferences 

Christina 11410013