UNIT VI: LISTEN & SPEAK


 Script: Culture Shock (See the video below)

A lecture: Listen to this lecture on culture shock, given by a university professor.

Well, let’s start by a brief definition of “culture shock”. We can define it as the physical and emotional discomfort one suffers when coming to live in another country or a place different from the place of origin. This term expresses the lack of direction, the feeling of not knowing what to do or how to do things in a new environment, and not knowing what is appropriate or inappropriate.

Living in a new country can be hard, but sometimes you just have to adjust to difficult situations.

Generally speaking, we could say that there are four stages to culture shock. First of all, the “discovery stage”. Uh, to the visitor, everything seems new and unusual- the food, the surroundings, the buildings. And it produces a feeling of excitement to be in the new environment- a desire to look around, to experiment, to explore the new culture. In this stage, the individual feels involved in some kind of fantastic adventure.
The second stage is the “rejection” or “resistance” stage, where the newness wears off, and the visitor sees the country from a different light, and often begins to criticize the country, the life, and the values of the people. This period of culture shock can be very difficult and lead the individual to reject or pull away from the new culture.

The third stage, we could say, is called the “immersion stage”. This is when the individual establishes a courageous connection with the new environment as he begins to realize that things are not so bad in the host culture. The things around him become more familiar. He, therefore, gains more self-confidence and usually becomes stronger because he can take care of himself in the new place. Things are still difficult, but the individual feels he can survive!

And the final stage, we could say, is the “adjustment” or “adaptation” stage when the individual adapts to conditions in the host country and becomes used to the new situation. He becomes more comfortable. He begins to feel at home and enjoy living in that foreign country. He feels very much at ease, indeed.



 Vocabulary:
 discomfortlack of physical comfort. : "The discomforts of too much sun in summer".
 adjustget used to a new situation.
 wears offgradually disappear or stop.
 pull awayTo move away or backward; withdraw.
 immersionthe action of immersing someone or something in a liquid. : "His back was still raw from immersion in the icy Atlantic Ocean". Verb: to immerse: involve yourself deeply in sth.

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