Unit ThreeDinner Party Unit Objectives (单元目标)After reading this unit, you should understand the importance and guidelines of active listening. find ways to improve your interpreting skills and performance. master the basic words and expressions about dinner party. know some cultural background knowledge about dinner party.PreparingI. Interpreting Skills (口译技能) Read the following presentation about active listening and try to understand the guidelines for active listening. Then complete the following task:1.Listen to the passage, “Restaurant Etiquette” and answer the following questions:1)What is the main idea of the speech?2)At American restaurants, what are you usually served before you order?3)Why do some customers ask for a “doggie bag”? 4)Does every state make its own laws about the sale of alcohol in America?5)How much tip is usually expected in American restaurants?2.Listen to the passage again and try to catch the key words and details, then retell the story in your own words.Decoding Training (I): Active Listening（积极听入）Decoding in Interpreters Training Interpreting is a decoding-memorizing-encoding (解码-记忆-编码) process. Decoding is the first step interpreting. To reconstruct ideas clearly and effectively, interpreters must first of all understand them correctly. An interpreter needs acute listening and understanding. If interpreters Decoding Effort fails, the other efforts become meaningless, so does the whole interpreting process. In the context of interpreting, an interpreter should be aware that “to hear” is not merely to know all the words that are being spoken, but to grasp the main ideas of the original speech, for it is meaning that is to be interpreted, not the words. The pure understanding of words alone is not sufficient for interpreters to reconstruct ideas effectively. Interpreters must be able to seize meaning when they listen to the speaker, and they must therefore listen actively.Three Guidelines for Active ListeningBoth CI and SI require concentrated listening or active listening instead of ordinary listening, which means that the interpreter avoids all distractions, concentrating on the job at hand. To listen actively, the interpreters brain must be active. It must perceive the sounds correctly and constantly focus on the information conveyed by the sounds. In order to maintain active listening, interpreters are suggested to follow the following three guidelines（原则）. 1. Listen to the Meanings instead of WordsWhat the speaker tries to convey（传达） and what the listener is interested in is not the words but the message. To render the speakers idea is interpreters top priority（首要任务）. Therefore, interpreters are expected to follow the speaker closely and catch the idea while listening. 2. Listen for both Content and AttitudeThe total meaning of message consists of both idea and feeling. The speakers choose their own sentence structures and speak in their own tone to express their idea. The same sentence may mean differently by different speakers or by the same speaker who speak in different tones. Interpreters, therefore, shall consider both the content（内容）and the speakers attitude（态度）.3. Listen with Ears, Eyes and HeartInterpreting is a highly demanding profession. Listening is the first step in interpreting. Interpreters decoding decides whether or not the speakers message can be correctly transferred. Interpreters shall listen with undivided attention and with the intention to receive the intended message. What they shall resort to is not simply their ears, but also their eyes and heart.Three Methods to Listen ActivelyTo understand more accurately the speakers intended message, interpreters must pay constant and careful attention. To improve the efficiency of active listening, interpreters often utilize（利用）several methods to help them focus on listening and collecting information. Following are some suggested methods for active listening.1. Sit or Stand Comfortably UprightIn the course of interpreting, interpreters usually have to sit or stand beside the speaker, or sit in the booth（口译箱）. Interpreters sitting or standing posture will surely exert an impact on their listening. In order to keep alert and limit distractions（分心）, it is advisable that interpreters first of all make sure they are in a comfortable position.2. Observe the Speakers Body LanguageAs we all know, people speak in both verbal language and body language（身体语言）. The speakers message shall be understood on the basis of his choice of words and his body language. Speakers body language like gestures（手势）, eye contact（眼神）and facial expressions（表情）sometimes gives hints（暗示）and tells the true story. Speakers facial expressions may tell the listener what he really mean. 3. Try to Visualize the WordsVisualization（视觉化） is a tactic of conceiving ideas in the mind through pictures or images. By visuali