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Directness of your country or your TL

  Tags: Native Speakers
 Language Learning Forum : General discussion Post Reply
49 messages over 7 pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7  Next >>
vonPeterhof
Tetraglot
Senior Member
Russian FederationRegistered users can see my Skype Name
Joined 4774 days ago
715 posts - 1527 votes 
Speaks: Russian*, EnglishC2, Japanese, German
Studies: Kazakh, Korean, Norwegian, Turkish

 
 Message 33 of 49
26 June 2012 at 7:21pm | IP Logged 
QiuJP wrote:
Марк wrote:
When translated directly from one language to another a polite phrase can
become
extremely rude. For example, Девушка! Вы не знаете, где...? is perfectly polite, while
Girl! Don't you know where...? is just an insult.


I cam't imagine how a Japanese or Korean lady would react if I do it the "Russian"
style... (although I likes it)
Actually, the direct translation of that phrase wouldn't sound as rude in Japanese as it does in English. Sure, addressing her as 少女 or 乙女 wouldn't be very polite, but the second sentence uses the V-form of the pronoun and the verb conjugation, as well as a negative question. This is essentially equivalent to asking (noun clause)はどこで(verb clause)か、分かりませんか？ in Japanese. In both languages the verb's conjugation and the negative make the question more polite. Contrast that with English, which has lost the T-V distinction and doesn't have different verb conjugations for politeness levels, and where making the question negative (at least in this form) actually makes it sound rude instead of polite.

Edited by vonPeterhof on 26 June 2012 at 7:29pm
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espejismo
Diglot
Senior Member
Russian Federation
Joined 5053 days ago
498 posts - 905 votes 
Speaks: Russian*, English
Studies: Spanish, Greek, Azerbaijani

 
 Message 34 of 49
26 June 2012 at 7:38pm | IP Logged 
Марк wrote:
When translated directly from one language to another a polite phrase can become
extremely rude. For example, Девушка! Вы не знаете, где...? is perfectly polite, while
Girl! Don't you know where...? is just an insult.


What about statements and queries that begin with "Женщина ..."? Somehow they always end up sounding rude, at least to my ears. I associate it with "Дамочка" and the like...

Edited by espejismo on 26 June 2012 at 7:44pm
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Марк
Senior Member
Russian Federation
Joined 5058 days ago
2096 posts - 2972 votes 
Speaks: Russian*

 
 Message 35 of 49
26 June 2012 at 7:53pm | IP Logged 
Женщина is considered ruder in Russian.
1 person has voted this message useful



Josquin
Heptaglot
Senior Member
Germany
Joined 4846 days ago
2266 posts - 3992 votes 
Speaks: German*, English, French, Latin, Italian, Russian, Swedish
Studies: Japanese, Irish, Portuguese, Persian

 
 Message 36 of 49
27 June 2012 at 2:00pm | IP Logged 
COF wrote:
Most British people, on forums at least are often rude, opinioned and have an air of arrogance and self righteousness.

The same could be said about certain people from the US. [SARCASM]Not thinking of anybody in particular...[/SARCASM]

Edited by Josquin on 27 June 2012 at 2:36pm
5 persons have voted this message useful



Ogrim
Heptaglot
Senior Member
France
Joined 4641 days ago
991 posts - 1896 votes 
Speaks: Norwegian*, English, Spanish, French, Romansh, German, Italian
Studies: Russian, Catalan, Latin, Greek, Romanian

 
 Message 37 of 49
27 June 2012 at 3:50pm | IP Logged 
garyb wrote:
I find the directness of French, Spanish and Italian people quite refreshing compared
to English speakers who often beat around the bush. I wouldn't say they are any more or
less rude; rudeness and politeness is quite a different issue although I realise
there's overlap as a direct statement or question may seem rude. I find that if, say, a
French person wants to know something about you, even if it's fairly personal, they'll
just ask straight away, which can seem abrupt and direct but actually makes it easier
for you to share and connect with each other, whereas with Anglophones (Scottish,
English, American, whatever) I often get the feeling that they're avoiding asking
certain questions in the early stages of a relationship even though they're curious
which can make it harder to get beyond polite small-talk.


I live in France and I wouldn't say that the French are always direct. It all depends on the topic. My experience is that they can be very direct about things like your looks, if you dress well, if they like the scent of your perfume or not. Similarly, questions about your political views or what your hobbies are can be direct. However, there are certain topics, like money, where it would be very rude to ask a direct question. The French will never ask someone how much they earn or how big their mortgage is. This I believe is a big difference compared to the British. In London I heard people discuss money all the time. (Rents, school fees, bonuses, you name it.)
1 person has voted this message useful



COF
Senior Member
United States
Joined 5833 days ago
262 posts - 354 votes 
Speaks: English*

 
 Message 38 of 49
27 June 2012 at 6:17pm | IP Logged 
Ogrim wrote:
However, there are certain topics, like money, where it would be very rude to ask a direct question. The French will never ask someone how much they earn or how big their mortgage is. This I believe is a big difference compared to the British. In London I heard people discuss money all the time. (Rents, school fees, bonuses, you name it.)


You say it as if all British people are high flying bankers who earn huge bonuses every year and have nothing else to talk about but money.

Your perception of the UK and the wealth of the majority of its population is WAY OFF.

Who actually discusses bonuses all the time? Only top bankers in the UK get bonuses, and they make up 1% of the UK population at most, if not less than that.

I just find it implausable that you heard people discussing bonuses all the time in London. It's not as if everyone in London is a banker, unless you spent your time in the cafeteria of a big bank or something?

Edited by COF on 27 June 2012 at 6:20pm
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Josquin
Heptaglot
Senior Member
Germany
Joined 4846 days ago
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Speaks: German*, English, French, Latin, Italian, Russian, Swedish
Studies: Japanese, Irish, Portuguese, Persian

 
 Message 39 of 49
27 June 2012 at 6:29pm | IP Logged 
COF wrote:
You say it as if all British people are high flying bankers who earn huge bonuses every year and have nothing else to talk about but money.

Your perception of the UK and the wealth of the majority of its population is WAY OFF.

Who actually discusses bonuses all the time? Only top bankers in the UK get bonuses, and they make up 1% of the UK population at most, if not less than that.

I just find it implausable that you heard people discussing bonuses all the time in London. It's not as if everyone in London is a banker, unless you spent your time in the cafeteria of a big bank or something?

And this post has just been reported...
2 persons have voted this message useful



COF
Senior Member
United States
Joined 5833 days ago
262 posts - 354 votes 
Speaks: English*

 
 Message 40 of 49
27 June 2012 at 6:31pm | IP Logged 
Josquin wrote:

And this post has just been reported...


For what? Refuting his clearly inaccurate observation that all British people are obsessed with money?


1 person has voted this message useful



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