Culture matters 8: SOURCE OF SELF-ESTEEM/ WORTH

According to the LDOCE self-esteem can be understood as “the feeling of being satisfied with your own abilities, and that you deserve to be liked or respected”. However, this is not a complete explanation, since self-esteem is not only being proud of your abilities, but even more how one uses those talents. So what is it exactly that builds our sense of self-esteem? Are there differences between America and Austria?

Once more I consulted the Peace Corps website on the American vantage point. It says- unsurprisingly- that Americans tend to build their self-esteem on the jobs they have and the money they earn. The self-worth of a person is not received “by virtue of birth, position, seniority, or longevity”, though I suppose there are exceptions. Just think of Paris Hilton, who is just famous for partying, or world’s oldest people, who are also treated with respect just for being old. In addition, I think Americans are actually not only after money, like the website claims, but merely want a job that is satisfying even if it is badly paid and laborious. At least, that is what I have learned from the book “Gig”.

Austrians also tend to judge people on what they are doing, that is, a doctor is certainly ranked higher than some Spar-employee. However, the self-esteem is also build on the friends one has, which is especially true for younger people. The more acquaintances/ friends the better! And yet, self-worth has not always to be created by oneself. In Austria, for example, the wives of doctors are also called doctor and people in higher positions surely respect others more if they, too, come from affluent families. People with a low-income, on the other hand, do not respect people more just for having more money, but tend to judge them more on the basis of their character, friends and so on.

By and large, I came to the conclusion that there are many causes for self-esteem and self-worth. It depends on your social class, on education, job etc. Being an American, however, certainly means emphazising jobs

"Spaghetti sauces" or "How Howard Moskowitz changed the food industry"

I’ve just had a look at the TED homepage Mr. Newman talked about in his blog. And while I was browsing the various themes, one special talk captured my attention- a man talking about spaghetti sauces. Considering that spaghetti are my main source of nourishment I HAD to listen to this talk named “What we can learn from spaghetti sauce”.

Malcolm Gladwell, a man with a haircut similar to Einstein’s, is a writer, who has published two best-sellers and also writes for the “New Yorker”. In this 17 minutes long monologue he talks about Howard Moskowitz, a psycho-physicist, who revolutionized food industry.

Howard Moskowitz was the first one to realize that it’s not enough to produce food in one style. There have to be many flavours of one product to please all American people. Gladwell tells how Moskowitz came to this idea, about his struggle to spread it and about his success. Gladwell says, not only did Moskowitz enriched the market with many sorts of product variations, but he also taught us three very important lessons:

• Firstly, Moskowitz claims that the consumers don’t exactly know what they want.



• Secondly, he tried to show that products aren’t better just because they are more expensive or mainstream products. People should choose the products that suit them, no matter how cheap or unpopular they are.



• And lastly, he made the food industry realize that they have to try to please the individual people and not only the majority.

Gladwell seems to be deeply impressed by Moskowitz’ doings and by the way he managed to make people happier with industrial food. In my opinion, this topic is a little too trivial to name it an "idea worth spreading", however, I loved listening to Gladwell. He obviously has excellent rhetorical skills and, in addition, is funny, too.

Have fun checking out the site!

Collocations- Studying them and looking them up

Language learners like us know that studying the translation of foreign words is not enough. As long as one does not know how to use those words, they are merely in one’s passive vocabulary. Therefore one has to study the words that go with the newly acquired term, namely the collocations. Being so important for every language learner, I’d like to devote an entry to looking up and studying collocations.

Looking up collocations:
Looking up collocations sounds easy, since we all have our monolingual dictionaries at home, which normally give a lot useful collocations to each word. If you have the LDOCE CD-ROM it’s even easier, since in the right top corner there’s the so-called phrase bank, where you can see phrases containing the word or, at the bottom of the phrase bank, you can see single words that go with the term. They are arranged in lexical categories, namely adjectives, adverbs, nouns, verbs and prepositions. If you want to see examples or an explanation for a collocation you just click on the word and the according part on the main screen will be highlighted.

Then, of course, you could use a collocation workbook, like “English Collocations in Use”. This book enables you not only to look up single words in the index, but also words that relate to a semantic field (weather, eating and drinking, work, taste and smell etc.) The beauty of this system is that when you write about, let’s say, the topic crime, the book gives you many words and collocations to the whole topic and not merely to one word.

And last but not least, you could buy a collocations dictionary, like the “Oxford Collocations Dictionary for Students of English”. Though it does not cover all the words a normal dictionary covers, it certainly gives more collocations than the LDOCE or the workbook. The words are also organized in lexical categories:

• adj
• adv.
• verb + word
• word + verb
• prep.
• phrases
• nouns + word
• word + noun

For some structures there are example sentences or notes. However, the words are not explained, that is, the learner is expected to know the words.

How to study collocations?
Both the LDOCE and the Collocations Dictionary are helpful if you have to learn new words and want to study the words that go with them. Furthermore, the Collocations Dictionary has special “study pages” with exercises. However, if you just want to learn ANY useful collocations and not collocations for particular words, I’d recommend the workbook. There are many interesting chapters, each consisting of two pages. The left page always explains the words (sometimes using pictures) and the right consists of several exercises, so you really won’t forget them.

************************************************************************************
Here is an example for looking up words:

Let's look up a word from the reduced glossary, since we have to learn those words, anyway. What about "adjacent"?

_________________________

LDOCE:

1. Dictionary phrases:
   adjacent to
2. Words used with: adjacent

• PREPOSITION:
  to
• NOUNS:
  area,
  building,
  cell,
  field,
  needle,
  room
• ADVERB:
  immediately

_________________________

OXFORD COLLOCATIONS:

adjacent adj.

• VERBS be, be situated, lie, stand The vineyards of Verzy lie adjacent to those of Verzenay.
• ADJ. directly, immediately There is a row of houses immediately adjacent to the factory.
• PREP. to The miller's house stands adjacent to the mill.
  

__________________________

ENGLISH COLLOCATIONS IN USE:

There's no entry for adjacent.

***********************************************************************************

Obviously all of those learning items can be helpful. You just have to know when to use which of those books (or the CD-ROM version of the LDOCE).

So, have fun studying!

Just do it!

Hi everybody!

Do you like sports? I for one love all sorts of sports, except running. That’s because I’m inexplicably slow and after five minutes of running I feel like vomiting. Considering all this, paradoxically, I thought it might be a good idea to take part at the “Wasserkruglauf”.

The Wasserkruglauf is a two kilometres long relay in Bad Gleichenberg (2.5 kilometres if you’re a man). Thank goodness, the route was quite flat and so I at least stood a chance to make it to the finish. I was on a team of four people- two of them are really fast runners.

I was the third one to start and so I accelerated enthusiastically, but soon (meaning after a minute or so) I realized that I could never keep up that speed. So, after about 800 kilometres that felt like an eternity, I struggled to keep on running. I was exhausted as if I took part in a marathon, but still I didn’t give up until I reached the finish line.

And what did that event teach me? Firstly, I learned that my physical condition is not too satisfactory. Secondly, I realized once again that I really don’t like running. And lastly, I will take part next year again if I get such a cool shirt again ;)



Enjoy the weekend!

Culture matters 7: CONCEPT OF FACE

A little shocked I realized today that the semester draws to the close. So let’s get on with the cultural categories, since I don’t want to deprive you of the last seven ones.

Today I’d like to discuss the concept of face. How direct are Americans/ Austrians? What if we know that such honesty will lead to arguments? Are we still that honest or do we accept a white lie in this case?

According to the Peace Corps website, Americans tend to be baffling frank with each other. They assume that one should be always straight with people, even if that causes disagreement- at least that will clear the air. Living in an individualist culture, what other people think is not so vital, since everybody can take care of himself/herself. Hence, honesty is the best policy for Americans.

In Austria honesty is officially regarded as being absolutely important. However, in practice it depends on who you are talking to. Sure, Austrians are frank with their friends and family. We tell them what we like and don’t like about them, even if that involves an argument. All the same, we are not always honest, especially when we think the truth would unnecessarily hurt the people we love. In this case we’d resort to a white lie.

And yet, Austrians tend to talk in a very roundabout way with strangers or people they don’t know well. Therefore, one sometimes has to read between the lines to find out what people try to express. For example, if a shopkeeper asks you, “May I help you?” most people think, “No! And now leave me alone and let me shop in peace!” Instead, they say, “Thanks, I’ll just have a look around.” Still, when provoked, Austrians are not that polite anymore. Just listen to an Austrian who tries to get rid of pushy promoters and you’ll know what I’m talking about.

In short, I think Austrians are honest as long as they feel they are not being rude. I just can take a guess here, since the Peace Corps website does not go into it, but Americans are probably similar. I don’t think they absolutely refuse to tell a white lie if that means not hurting someone.

Here on Earth summary- Is Peace a Dirty Word?

The topic of debate is why the word peace recently acquired such a bad reputation. The discussion is based on a report by Daniel Zwerdling, an NPR Weekend Edition commentator, who is also guest in the show. He explains that people in Fairmont, Minnesota try to support the passing of a bill that would create a Department for Peace and Non-Violence. Interestingly, a lot of people question the value of such an agency. Therefore, the moderator Jean Feraca, her guests and listeners discuss the issue of peace and try to figure out the pros and cons of such a Department.

Morton Perlmutter, emeritus professor in the School of Social Work, points out that there is no clear definition of the word “peace”. Most people would describe it saying what peace does not mean, but still they hold a strong opinion about the term. Permutter claims that the word “peace” triggers certain memories and associations in everyone of us and although those memories might be irrational we consider them to be true and trustworthy. That shows especially in the fact that much more people would support the very same Department if it had a name not containing the word “peace”.

According to Daniel Zwerdling and Morton Perlmutter, there were many highly respected people in society who supported proposals for a Peace Office, like the founding fathers. Even the Independence Declaration displays the priority peace had over war. Neil Breitbarth, the Republican leader in Fairmont, responded that the Declaration primarily meant war and was never assumed as a pro-peace statement. His claim, however, was refuted by Perlmutter, who stressed that the content of the document wasn’t meant to create war.

The opponents of a Peace Department, like Breitbarth and a listener named Bill, argue that such a department is pointless, since keeping peace is part of the State Department’s job. A new department would merely take away money from other departments and is too expensive, anyway. In addition, they point out that peace is a utopian idea, that doesn’t work in practice. There will always be war and enemies and the nation can’t stop them with a bunch of people asking for peace.

The supporters of a Peace Department, on the other hand, criticize the opponents for not having read the bill attentively enough. They say the bill highlights that the Department would only take 2 % of the budget and doesn’t do the same work as the State Department. Judi Poulson, chairwoman of the Women’s Peace Club in Fairmont, adds that such department could support the police on domestic level. She also reassures the opponents that the Department is a patriotic agency that definitely supports the American soldiers. It wouldn’t make America defenceless, but would try to seek a solution good for everybody. Accordingly, the Americans wouldn’t loose anything, but gain friends and allies they certainly need.

By and large, one got the sneaking feeling that the discussion was supposed to convince the people of the idea of a Peace Department. Otherwise there would have been the same number of opponents and supporters as guests and the moderator would have been far more neutral. There wasn’t an explicit outcome of the discussion and yet the listener understood that the supporters prevailed.

Bloggers U-Nite

Finally, Bloggers u-nite is over. Admittedly, our class didn't hear anything particularly new, since we just presented our work to the other classes. However, I'm really looking forward to their contributions. I guess our wiki will grow in no time and at the end of the semester we will have created something we can be really proud of.

Good night, blogger-mates ;)

My Big Fat Greek Wedding

I guess all of you know that movie, so I decided that -instead of a summary- I'll answer some questions from esl-notes. That's an interesting site which tries to support the learning progress by offering vocabulary, a summary and discussion questions for several DVDs. Though the vocab isn't too challenging, the questions are interesting to think about.

This movie seems to be about Greek-American culture; In fact, is it really about all kinds of ethnic Americans? How so?
The story about Toula and Ian is certainly a special one, though it’s overdrawn to some extent to make it a comedy. The story is neither complicated nor intellectually demanding, but still, I believe that the movie reveals some basic truths about the contact between any cultures.

It shows problems that might arise when different cultures meet, but also how those problems can be solved by trying to understand the other culture. The keyword in cross-cultural experiences is undoubtedly tolerance. One doesn’t have to adopt all the customs of a culture, but one should know a thing or two about them.

If you were Ian, would you have agreed to join another church in order to marry Toula?
Being not too religious myself, I am not keen on joining any church. Admittedly, I am Roman-Catholic on paper, but not because I decided to be, but because my parents baptized me when I was too young to raise objection.

However, if my boyfriend was really religious and it was so important to him or his family that we married in a church, why not do them the favour? As long as they don’t expect me to practise their religion I’m fine with that. Above all, I should somehow be able to relate to the religion, since I’m not willing to join some sect or a Church I don’t understand.

Has the United States largely succeeded in creating a great “melting pot” (in which people from all cultures have blended together), or is it more like a “salad bowl” (in which people from different cultures stick to their own groups)?
Personally, I think Americans aren’t the product of a melting pot culture anymore. In former days, people tried more eagerly to adapt to the new culture. That’s because they had turned their back on their old home countries and the values there.

Nowadays, however, American culture is an own culture just like British, Greek, Russian etc. As a result it’s criticized and praised just like any other culture. The ones who love the American culture will try to adopt American behaviour and values, whereas there are also people who prefer sticking to their own culture.

Accordingly, America is both a melting pot (for those who love American culture) and a salad bowl (for the ones who like America, but prefer to stick to their own culture).

Did you like this movie? Why or why not?
I really love that movie. I’ve already watched it three times and I dare to predict that it wasn’t the last time. It’s hilarious, especially the granny, who always runs about cursing out the Turks. (Don't get me wrong, I don't have anything against Turks, but still, the granny always cracks me up!)

Not on the Label

Ever thought about what goes into your food? No matter if it’s chicken, bread, salad etc, there are always substances in it you probably prefer not to know about. However, ignoring the facts won’t change the horrible situation. In “Not on the Label” Felicity Lawrence provides an insight into food production, the worker’s lives and gives tips what to do about it.

For instance, she writes about that nicely bagged salad leaves a lot of people buy. It’s much more comfortable than buying a whole head of lettuce, which means you also have to wash and cut it yourself. For that reasons there are low-paid workers who do the chore for us. They separate the leaves, wash them in chlorine and lastly bag them. While natural salad wilts after few days, the MAP (modified atmosphere packaging) system makes the leaves look fresh much longer. That is, they only look fresh, though it’s as worthless as the drooping natural salad.

In addition, she tells about her discussions with the workers, who are incredibly poor. Many of them are even illegal workers, but legal ones would be too expensive, so that big supermarket chains wouldn’t buy the products anymore.

“Not on the Label” certainly makes you think about the quality you get for your money and how a little higher price could improve the life of many workers. So if you’re into critical thinking -and especially if you’re not- read this book!

Culture matters 6: CONCEPT OF SUFFERING AND MISFORTUNE

Today it’s dark and unfriendly outside. The chilly, rainy weather doesn’t make one especially cheerful, so why not writing about a topic that fits the weather? Let’s talk about the different opinions of Americans and Austrians when it comes to suffering and misfortune.

In America, people feel sorry for someone who is suffering and so they’d do everything to cheer this person up. That is, they’d only help as long as the depressed person tries to do something against their mood. If they keep moaning without getting active Americans would feel it’s their own fault. They could at least take a pill or see a psychiatrist, couldn’t they?

Austrians are similar concerning the cheer-up part. The difference is, in my opinion, that Austrians have more tolerance for complaints, since they love complaining themselves. Admittedly, at some point we are close to the end of our rope as well, but still we’d never advice someone to go to see a mental doctor. Backward as that may be, most Austrians assume that only absolute nutters would go to see a psychiatrist.

Here again, we can see that Americans are more active when gets to solving problems, whereas Austrians are more the passive one’s. Yeah, that’s our dear serene Austria, where people are strong enough to shrug problems off ;)

Still, I agree with the Austrian attitude that doctors can't cure everything. Moreover, isn't it everybody' s right to moan from time to time (especially when the weather is as lousy as today)? Phony happiness doesn't solve any problems!

No abortion in Ireland

I’ve just read the BBC article “Irish teen in court abortion plea”. It’s about a seventeen year old girl (she wants to stay anonymous), who’s in the fourth month of her pregnancy.

The teenager decided to have the abortion, because her fetus has anencephaly which leads to the baby’s death soon after birth. The pro-choice campaigners support this decision, saying it’s a cruel thing to let her have the baby just to see it die.

However, abortion is illegal in Ireland as long as the mother’s health isn’t endangered. Since that’s not the case, the girl has no chance to end the pregnancy in Ireland. Still, it would be possible for her to go to the UK, where abortion was legalized in 1967.

In my opinion, it’s unreasonable to make her giving birth to a baby that has no chance to live. Isn’t it hard enough for a girl to find out that your baby is terminal sick? And isn’t it the point of laws to make life easier and more comfortable? I really can’t understand the decision of the Irish Court.

Initially I wanted to find photos of babies with anencephaly and add them. Well, believe me, you don't want to see such photos. I don't think I've ever seen such horrible and touching pictures and after looking at them I understand the girl's wish even more. Tip: Don't google for abortion either!!!