Lecture 4 (Part One),The English Character,English Characteristics (1),To other Europeans, the best known quality of the British, and in particular of the English, is reserve. A reserved person is one who does not talk very much to strangers, does not show much emotion, and seldom gets excited. It is difficult to get to know a reserved person; he never tells you anything about himself, where he lives, how many children he has & what his interests are.,Reasons for the English Reserve(1),It is believed that the English reserve has much to do with the weather in England. The meteorological conditions are special and the weather is changeable & unpredictable.,In England, it is said that one can experience 4 seasons in the course of a single day. The uncertainty about the weather has had a definite effect upon the Englishmans character. It tends to make him careful cautious & restrained. The English weather has also helped to make the Englishman adaptable.,Reasons for the English Reserve(2),Other people think that the English reserve has something to do with the fact that Britain is an island that is separated/isolated from the European Continent. The isolation has contributed to the cautious nature of the British people. They tend to be very shy, reserved and easily embarrassed. They are not outgoing. Therefore, people from other parts of the world may think them not easy to get along with.,English Characteristics (2),Closely related to English reserve is English modesty. Within their heart, the English are perhaps no less conceited than anybody else, but in their relations with others they value at least a show of modesty.,Self-praise is felt to be ill-bred. Self-depreciation is typically English, & mixed with their reserve, it often produces a sort of general air of indifference which appears to foreigners as a pose, difficult to understand & even irritating.,English Characteristics (3),The famous English sense of humor is similar. Its starting-point is self-depreciation & its great enemy is conceit. Its ideal is the ability to laugh at oneself-at ones own faults, ones own failures & embarrassments, even at ones own ideals.,The English do not laugh at a cripple or a madman, a tragedy or an honorable failure. Sympathy or admiration for artistic skill are felt to be stronger than laughter.,English Characteristics (4),Since reserve, a show of modesty & a sense of humor are part of his own nature, the typical Englishman tends to expect them in others. He secretly looks down on more excitable nations & likes to think of himself as more reliable. He distrusts exaggerated promises & shows of affection & is even more distrustful of any kind of self-praise.,English Characteristics (5),Finally sportsmanship. It is an English ideal that not all Englishmen live up to. It must be realized that sport in its modern form is almost entirely a British invention. Boxing, rugby, association football, hockey, tennis & cricket were all first organized & given rules in Britain. Rules are the essence of sport & sportsman-ship is the ability to practice a sport in obedience to its rules. In Britain they are highly valued.,Sportsmanship as an ideal is applied to life in general. One of the most elementary rules of life is never hit a man when hes down-in other words, never take advantage of a mans misfortune. (fair play, playing fair),Politeness in Britain (1),British habits of politeness are on the whole very informal. There are no complicated greetings. e.g. A simple good morning or a cheery wave of the hand across the street is quite satisfactory. Handshakes are only exchanged on a first introduction or on special occasions or as a token of agreement or congratulation.,Excuse me is used as an advance apology for troubling somebody. Sorry expresses regret for an accidental disturbance or breach of manners.,Politeness in Britain (2),Politeness towards women is less observed today than it used to be. It is still considered polite to give up ones seat to a woman who is standing, to open doors for her, to help her on & off with the coat, to help her alight from the bus, to allow her to exit from the elevators first, to carry things for her, to protect her from the traffic, & so on. The maxim Lady first is well known.,The same principle applies to old people. They are respected because they are felt to be in need of protection & support.,(Part Two) Culture of England,英国文化,Abstract,Englands greatest artistic contributions have come in the fields of theatre, literature and architecture. Although there is not an equivalent tradition in painting and sculpture, England is a treasure house of masterpieces from every age and continent thanks to its rapacious （强夺的） past.,Castles and Cathedrals,Most visitors are overwhelmed by the stately homes of the aristocracy, and Englands fine collection of castles and cathedrals. Unfortunately, this significant architectural heritage has failed to lead to anything more inspiring in th