老外的 “ 禁區 ”

You ：In China, it’s common to ask people their age and salary but when we talk to foreigners, we try not to ask those questions. 中國人之間可以打聽別人的年齡和收入，但我們和外國人交談的時候，就要盡量不問這些問題。

David ： Why? 為什么?

You ：When I was young I was told it was impolite to ask westerners about their age and salary. So now I keep that in mind when I first meet foreigners. 小時候就有人告訴我向西方人打聽他們的年齡和工資是不禮貌的。因此當我和外國人初次見面的時候，我都會牢記這個原則。

David ： It’s true. Don’t talk about age or salary. But in Chinese culture, it’s OK to ask. It wouldn’t be impolite to ask. People might just think this kind of question is a sign of one’s interest in someone else. 對，我們不談年齡和收入。但在中國文化中，是可以問這些問題的。如果你向別人打聽這些，不算不禮貌。人們會認為你對別人的事比較感興趣。

You ：You can even ask girls in China about their age. Besides I also heard that in western countries it is impolite to ask someone about his or her marital status. Am I right? 正是這樣。連女孩子的年齡也能問。在西方，打聽有關別人的婚姻狀況也是非常不禮貌的。是嗎?

David ： You’re right. In addition, questions about religious beliefs are also considered taboo for westerners. The taboo is related to our need for privacy, something that westerners take very seriously. 確實是這樣的。也有些西方人很忌諱別人打聽他們的宗教信仰，這些忌諱都與西方的隱私問題有關，所以他們非常重視。

You ：這可能是東西方文化差異之一吧。