Cross-cultural asymmetry in the term of “personal space” in China and Great Britain (by the example of Guo Xiaolu’s novel “A concise Chinese-English dictionary for lovers”)
https://doi.org/10.28995/2686-7249-2025-11-452-461
Abstract
The relevance of the work is related to the need of creating conditions for safe cross-cultural communication by reducing conflicts, often caused by a lack of cultural understanding of the interlocutor. The object of the study is the cross-cultural asymmetry of “personal space”, which is important for understanding physical and emotional boundaries in dialogue. The article considers the features of the percepting the personal space in China and the UK. An analysis of the artwork by the Chinese-British writer Guo Xiaolu illustrates the differences. In conclusion, the importance of taking into account cultural specifics when learning languages for effective communication is emphasized.
About the Authors
M. G. Merkulova
Moscow City University
Россия
Россия
Maiya G. Merkulova, Dr. of Sci. (Philology), associate professor
5B, Maly Kazenny Line, Moscow, 105064
Yu. A. Kurganova
Moscow City University
Россия
Россия
Yulia A. Kurganova, postgraduate student
5B, Maly Kazenny Line, Moscow, 105064
References
1. Guo, J. (2022), “A critical analysis of the cultural differences of foreign employees working in China. A case study of the UK”, Cultural Arts Research and Development, no. 2, pp. 34–56.
2. Jing, Lv. (2017), “Differences between American and Chinese concepts of space”, Advances in Social Science, Education and Humanities Research, no. 156, pp. 167-169.
3. Khabibullaeva, N.Z. (2019), “The concept of ‘personal space’ in English and Kyrgyz linguocultures”, Aktual’nye issledovaniya, no. 2, pp. 21–25.
4. Ollier-Malaterre, A. (2008), “Privacy in China. Legal culture, literacy, and imaginaries”, European data protection law review, vol. 9, no. 4, pp. 389–392.
5. Omel’yanenko, T.N. (2018), “On intercultural asymmetry and cultural universals in intercultural communication”, in Yazyk. Kul’tura. Perevod. Kommunikatsiya [Language. Culture. Translation. Communication], Dobrosvet, Moscow, Russia, pp. 79–82.
6. Plakhotnyuk, L.A. (2014), “Asymmetry as a phenomenon of intercultural communication”, in Zabuga, V.F., ed., Ekonomika i upravlenie v sovremennykh usloviyakh: Mezhdunarodnaya (zaochnaya) nauchno-prakticheskaya konferentsiya [Economics and management in modern conditions. International (correspondence) Scientific and Practical Conference], Sibirskii institut biznesa, upravleniya i psikhologii, Krasnoyarsk, Russia, pp. 272–276.
7. Ryabko, E.I. (2019), “Interlingual and intercultural asymmetry in literary translation”, in Gushchina, I.N., ed., Aktual’nye problemy vostokovedeniya [Current issues of Oriental studies], Izdatel’stvo Tikhookeanskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta, Khabarovsk, Russia, pp. 347–352.
8. Ryabtseva, N.K. (2020), “Asymmetry of intercultural communication and issues of authenticity”, Nauchnyi dialog, no. 4, pp. 130–150.
9. Sannikova, O.A. (2018), “The concept of personal space and its influence on the teacher-student relationship in China and Great Britain”, Sovremennoe pedagogicheskoe obrazovanie, no. 2, pp. 32–35.
Review
For citations:
Merkulova M.G., Kurganova Yu.A. Cross-cultural asymmetry in the term of “personal space” in China and Great Britain (by the example of Guo Xiaolu’s novel “A concise Chinese-English dictionary for lovers”). RSUH/RGGU Bulletin: “Literary Teory. Linguistics. Cultural Studies”, Series. 2025;(11(2)):452-461. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.28995/2686-7249-2025-11-452-461
Views:
10
JATS XML
Email this article 