毕业论文（设计）A Contrastive Analysis of Body Language in Between Chineseand American CultureA Contrastive Analysis of Body Language in Between Chinese and AmericanCulture..1.Introduction.…People communicate with each other not only by verbal means,but also by nonverbal.Non-verbalcommunication mainly expresses real emotion and attitude through facial expression,gesture,eyebehavior,clothes,sound,etc.For instance,waving hand is to show farewell;offering our handwith a slight smile to others means welcome.When listening to a report,people lean against thechair,which suggests that they are not interested in the report...........22.The differences of body language in between Chinese and American culture..........................32.1 Eye.32.4 Gestures.…2.4.1 The same gestures with different meanings in the two cultures..112.4.2 Different gestures with the same meanings in the two cultures..........................1.12.4.3 Gestures with certain meanings in one culture,no equivalent in the other culture 12Postures are usually classified into three categories:stance,bent-knee position (which includessitting,squatting,and kneeling)and lying...13There are many similarities between Chinese and American people in stance and sitting position.Still,there exist differences which may confuse both parties.In China,a slouching posture is asign of poor manner on many occasions,for Chinese value proper stance and sitting position.However,Americans often fall into chairs or slouch when they stand,because being casual andfriendly is valued in America.There are also cultural differences as far as gait is concerned.Chinese people may reproach Americans for being arrogant because of their long strides.On the毕业论文（设计）other hand,Chinese people's gait may be thought as shy and timid.The differences are caused bythe simple reason that Americans need more space than Chinese do.Besides,there is anotherunderlying reason:Chinese culture stresses modesty,so it is improper to swagger.Standing witharms akimbo is common in America with neutral meaning.Such a posture may be adopted both bymen and women.Women adopt this posture to show their impatience.However,such a posture isregarded as a threat in China...13Sitting posture is a constant source of cultural misunderstandings.For example:Americans feelvery relaxed at home and in their private offices.They may sometimes sit on the carpeted floor orthe ground.This is taken as a dirty habit in China.When Chinese have to sit on the floor or theground,they invariably spread a handkerchief or a newspaper.Americans in turn would interpretthis to be a dirty habit because to them,handkerchiefs should not be used to mop the floor,norshould newspapers be littered here and there.When American teachers sit on the desk in class tocreate a light atmosphere,Chinese students are often shocked by that.Besides,an American in hisprivate office may lean far back in his chair or even put his legs up on desk when talking on thephone or to other people.To them,it is a sign of being relaxed.A male leader may put his legs upon the desk to show his amicability and friendliness.Nevertheless,such a posture is extremelyFrom these differences,we may note the values,norms,and beliefs of Chinese and American ofculture,which is reflected in the nonverbal codes.In the United States,the emphasis is uponinformality,but Chinese emphasize the good manner reflected in standing or sitting.A well-knownsaying may prove it:(we should)stand as straight as a pine and sit as upright as a bell..............153.The similarities of body language in between Chinese and American culture........................162毕业论文（设计）1.IntroductionPeople communicate with each other not only by verbal means,but also bynonverbal.Non-verbal communication mainly expresses real emotion and attitudethrough facial expression,gesture,eye behavior,clothes,sound,etc.For instance,waving hand is to show farewell;offering our hand with a slight smile to others meanswelcome.When listening to a report,people lean against the chair,which suggeststhat they are not interested in the report.All of us feel that it is more difficult to communicate with the foreigners bytelephone than to do it face to face.This is just because there is no help fromnonverbal or body language.Psychologist estimates that sixty to eighty percent of allcommunication is conducted through non-verbal communication.It's believed that theinformation delivered by a person's appearance and action is much more than that of aperson's words.Birdwhistell,an American scholar,deems that among all means ofexpressing meaning and emotion,more than sixty-five percent is finished throughfacial expression,action,gesture,posture,etc.Some studies in America indicate thatin expressing emotion and attitude,intonation and facial expression can convey morethan ninety-three percent of information while language can only deliver about sevenpercent of information.From the fingers mentioned above,we know that non-verbalcommunication plays an important role in intercultural communication.It can transmitmuch more information and emotion.Body language is a means of non-verbal3