Abstract

With increased globalization and the rapid advance of science and technology, the contact between the cultures in different regions and cross-cultural communication become more frequent. While during the process of learning English, most Chinese students can’t successfully communicate with native English speakers though they have a good knowledge of grammar. Facing this problem, we need to pay more attention to the students’ mastery of the target language culture, and what’s more, it also includes the learners’ understood of the differences between the native language and the target language, so that learners can improve the communicative ability. This paper firstly states the reasons of studying this topic, then describes the pragmatic failure happening in addressing, complement, request, inviting and apology and analyzes the causes of cross-cultural communication failure from the following aspects, such as cultural values, mode of thinking, inadequate knowledge of the target language and its actual use and cultural negative transfer. Finally this paper proposes some methods of avoiding cross-cultural communication failure. 

Key words: cross-cultural communication, pragmatic failure, target language 

CONTENTS

Abstract

摘要

Ⅰ. Introduction-1

Ⅱ. Cross-culture Communication & Pragmatic Failure-1

2.1 Cross-cultural communication-1

2.2 Pragmatic failure-2

2.2.1 Pragmalinguistic failure-3

2.2.2 Sociopragmatic failure-4

Ⅲ. The Aspects in Which the Pragmatic Failure Happens-5

3.1 Addressing-5

3.2 Compliment-5

3.3 Request-6

3.4 Inviting-6

3.5 Apology-7

Ⅳ. The Causes of Cross-cultural Communication Pragmatic Failure-8

4.1 Cultural values-8

4.2 Mode of thinking-9

4.3 Inadequate knowledge of the target language and its actual use-10

4.4 Cultural negative transfer-10

Ⅴ. The Strategies to Avoid Pragmatic Failures in Cross-cultural Communication-11

5.1 Cultivation of pragmatic competence-11

5.2 Enhance cross-cultural communicative competence-12

Ⅵ. Conclusion-12

Reference.14