文化差異看世界
無限播客
作者：By Rachel Martin
Rachel Martin （Host）： We just heard about one man’s longing for a little Germanic order amid the crowded and chaotic streets of Istanbul because， let’s be honest， the Germans are really good at order. I spent a year there reporting for NPR， and I can tell you from personal experience it is also a place where people are very conscious about personal space. On the subway， on the sidewalk， Germans are aware of how much space separates them from the nearest person. And while， of course， there are always exceptions， I’d say on the whole they prefer more space rather than less. It’s something we all think about. Sometimes it’s subconscious. How much physical space do we need around us？ One place where this tension is readily apparent： the elevator.（Soundbite of Ding）
Elevator voice： Going up.
Martin： Is there any less desirable public space than an elevator？ I mean， you get in， no one talks to you， everyone 1）averts their eyes， you 2）shuffle your feet， you try to create as much space between you and the other person as possible. People are forced to 3）intrude on each other’s personal space in an elevator. Or what about an ATM？ I mean， how close should stand to the person withdrawing cash without creeping them out？ Jerry Seinfeld once devoted an entire episode of his old TV show to personal space， and along the way he gave us a new term， the close-talker.
（Soundbite of TV show， “Seinfeld”）
Jerry Seinfeld： （as Jerry） Yeah？
Julia Louis-Dreyfus： （as Elaine） It’s us.
Seinfeld： （as Jerry） Come on up. It’s Elaine. You don’t have a problem with her， do you？
Unidentified woman： We adore Elaine.
Seinfeld： She wants to say hi. She’s with her new boyfriend.
Unidentified woman： What’s he like？
Seinfeld： He’s nice. Bit of a close talker.
Unidentified woman： A what？
Seinfeld： You’ll see.
Martin： Kathryn Sorrells studies personal space and people’s perception of it across cultures. She’s a professor at California State University-Northridge. And she says how close you stand depends on where you’re from.
Kathryn Sorrells： Cultural space tells us a lot. It tells us about the nature of the relationship， and people are constantly reading those things even if they are not aware of it. So， I think one thing that defines it is you’re in it and you have a feel for it and you can make sense of it. When you’re outside of it， you’re not able to define it. You’re not able to understand it and you often misinterpret it. And it has to do with kind of deep things like trust.
Martin： We thought we’d get the view on personal space from two very different parts of the world. We start with NPR’s Lourdes Garcia-Navarro in Sao Paolo， Brazil.
Lourdes Garcia-Navarro： So， I’m in Sao Paulo’s Metro system. This is a city of 20 million people. It’s one of the largest cities in the world. Some people take three hours every day just to get to work， going from one side of the city to another. But one thing you will notice when you ride the public transport systems here is that it does feel very， very different than it does in the United States—very Brazilian.
Paula Moura： I’ve been to other countries and nobody touches each other. It seems there is space for everybody. Personal space is bigger in other countries. Here it’s not.
Garcia-Navarro： Paula Moura works with NPR in Brazil. She says Brazil is just a lot more touchy-feely.
Moura： If I want to go to another 4）wagon， I say， “oh， excuse me”， and touch the person.
Garcia-Navarro： 5）PDAs？ Not a problem either.
Moura： I can see people are kissing each other at the Metro and they don’t worry about other people seeing them.
Garcia-Navarro： In most countries in the world people are on the Metro and they’re staring at their feet or they’ve got their headphones on and they’re in their own little world. And here people are very engaged. They’re talking to one another， they’re interacting. It’s a much livelier scene than in other cities.
（Soundbite of chatter）
Garcia-Navarro： Another surprising aspect to life here： There is a lot of respect for the elderly and mothers with children. At the supermarket， at the cinema， at government offices， they have special lines that give these people priority. Family is important here. Even though， because of the high cost of living， they tend to be small， families are 6）close-knit. Everyone gathers on a Sunday for lunch but they often visit during the week as well. And that sense of caring translates into how people treat others in public spaces. As I’m standing on the Metro， I see a young woman offer her seat to an older one with a smile.