论面子观的中西差异

Face Considerations in Chinese and Western Cultures

中西方由于历史发展和思想价值观的不同,因而有着不同的面子观。在西方,Brown和Levinson提出了以面子观为中心的礼貌理论,包括面子、威胁面子的行为以及面子保全论三个概念。而在中国,面子是个体社会地位、社会价值和处世要求等的总和。比较分析中西方面子观的差异,将更有利于解释我们当今社会中的跨文化交际中的差异。

China and the western countries have different face theories due to their different historical development and cultural values. In western countries, represented by Brown and Levinson, they have put forward politeness principle centered on ＂face＂, in- eluding face, face-threatening acts and face-saving acts. While in China, face is related with traditional etiquette, which is the combi- nation of ideal requirement and personal identity. This paper attempts to compare face concepts between western countries and China, which will be beneficial for cross-cultural communication.