收禮還是不收禮

You：My mother always taught me that when somebody offers you a gift you should first refuse it before you accept it.

(My mother always taught me：這是帶有玩笑意味的表達法。人們也會這樣說“didn’t your mother ever teach you …?”)小時候，我媽媽常跟我說如果別人給你禮物你應該先拒絕然后再收下。

David：I think in the American culture, you usually directly say whether you want or don’t want something. 美國人通常直接說想要或不想要。

You：中國春節有個習俗，親戚要給小孩子壓歲錢。在家里過完年以后，我父母會帶我去走親戚。他們給我錢的時候，我要盡力拒絕，直到他們把錢塞進我的口袋。我必須這樣做，但現在我們可以大方地拿著，說“謝謝”。 In China during Spring Festival, it’s customary for relative to give younger children money. After celebrating at home, my parents used to take me to visit some of our relatives. When they offered me money, I always refused it until they shoved it into my pocket. That was the only way I could accept it. But now we can accept gifts directly and just say “thank you”.

David：So the traditions and customs are changing? 由此可見，人們的傳統習俗是在不斷變化的。

You：是的。我認為中國人在逐漸地接受西方文化。

David：How about you? Do you think it is important to learn some western customs? 你覺得了解西方的傳統文化是很重要的嗎?

You：Yes. We should learn western customs and cultures so we can establish friendships with people from different countries. 是的。我們要同世界各個民族建立友誼，我們就必須了解他們的文化。

David：You’re right. I think it’s a good thing. It’s meaningless and silly to try to understand people whose culture you do not understand.(it’s a good thing：“it’s a good thing”和“is that a good thing”都表示不太清楚對方對某事的看法。通常的回答是“yes, it’s a good thing”或“no, it’s not a good thing”。) 我也覺得是這樣的。這樣很好。畢竟跟一個你根本就不懂他的文化的人談話，是很沒意思的。