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发表于 2005-8-14 14:02:52
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Issue208 The way people look, dress, and act reveals their attitudes and interests. You can tell much about a society's ideas and values by observing the appearance and behavior of its people.
The speaker asserts that from the appearance and behavior of its people one can tell much about a society's ideas and values. As far as I am concerned, it is wise to say under some circustances members of a society can represent the society, however, it is absurd to state that one can tell much about the ideas and values of the society, as discussed below.
It should be admitted that as all the members in the society are in a more or less the same circustances, the appearance and behavior of them can represent the society to some extent. After all, the society is a unity which made up by the members of it, therefore every one in it is a factor to express the socity. To illustrate this point clearly, we can see some nations. When an English man give his seat to a woman, we can see the gentleman in English; When an American man give 999 roses to his girlfriend, we can see the romantic of American. The members' behavior represent some character of the nation. Consequently, from the behavior we indeed can know something about the society.
Nevertheless, can one tell much about a society's ideas and values by observing the appearance and behavior of its people? I do not think so. There are two point of view to support my contention with the speaker. In the first place, whether an individual can tell the nation or not is problematic. In modern times, the society became more and more complex, all the members in the society diversity in many realms. Every one has his own value about the world and money. For instance, to get money, one may be put into prison, and another one such as Bill Gates has contribute much to the nation. Query who should be taken into consider to access the society. Both of them are members of the society, and just becauce individual value, they turn to such different way, we can not conserve one while exclusive the other. In short, as diversity of the members exist, to tell much about a society is a difficult job.
In the second place, does appearance can represent the values and ideas? Under most circumstances, appearance is not reflect the values and ideas thoroughly. One can not tell much about a society unless he do a deeply research of the nation's history and culture. To illustrate this point clearly, one need look no further than China, a famous country with a long history. Only see the behavior of the people, one can not know why they see the moon in August 15th or any other custom of this nation, and can not know the deriviation of these culture. Clealy, one can not know the ideas and values only by appearance of Chinese, and it is also effective in other nations. In other words, to understand the ideas and values of a nation, one should know the history and culture of the society.
To sum up, due to the reasons mentioned above, we may safely draw the conclusion that although members of a nation can represent the society to some extent, we can not tell much of the ideas and values only by appearance. To understand a nation, one should not only research in the members of the nation, but also the history and culture of the nation. |
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