《英语流行话题阅读:语境识词4500》21 Features of American Campus Life (II)

　　Unit 21
Features of American Campus Life (II)
-- Limited Role of Gifts
Americans give gifts mainly to relatives and close friends. Sometimes they give gifts to people with whom they have casual but friendly relationship, such as hosts or hostesses. Gifts are not usually given to teachers or others who hold an official position. Offering gifts in these situations is sometimes interpreted as an effort, possibly improper¹, to gain favorable treatment from that person. However, if a gift is given in an appropriate manner, Americans usually accept them graciously.
Christmas is the only national gift-giving day, when most Americans give gifts. Otherwise, gifts are given on occasions that are special to the recipient² -- birthdays, graduation from high school or college, weddings, and child-births. Gifts are sometimes given when someone has a new house or is moving away. Americans give cards rather than gifts to acquaintances who are not close friends. This is especially true at Christmas, when people commonly send cards to their acquaintances and business or school colleagues.
Americans generally try to select a gift that the giver knows or supposes the recipient needs, wants, or would enjoy. The amount of money spent on the gift is something the giver can afford. Generally, people on limited budgets are not expected to spend large amounts on gifts.
Americans will unwrap a gift in the presence of the giver, and will normally express strong appreciation³ for it. This is considered polite. Obviously, many of these practices differ from typical Chinese practices. Chinese students will want bo be aware of these American customs, and, in particular, to be cautious about giving gifts to people in official positions.
-- Role of Alcohol
The quantity of "drinking" and drunkenness on American campuses is a major concern of educators and health officials. Among undergraduates, particularly younger ones, drinking with the aim of getting drunk is often a key component⁴ of social life. This is truer of males than of females, but females are not excluded. Police are kept busy during the early-morning hours when bars close, as students under the influence of alcohol leave te bars and sometimes engage in fighting or other destructive activities. Students from other countries generally seem far less interested in drinking, at least in public places. This sets up a significant barrier to socializing between American and foreign students.
-- Stratification
Whenever a large group of people occupy a particular space over a period of time, they tend to associate more with those who resemble themselves. On an American campus, one can find evidence of groupings based on several points similarity, such as age, place of origin, gender⁵, field of study, socio-economic status, religion, interests and race.

1 improper   

adj.不适当的，不合适的，不正确的，不合礼仪的

参考例句：

• Short trousers are improper at a dance.舞会上穿短裤不成体统。
• Laughing and joking are improper at a funeral.葬礼时大笑和开玩笑是不合适的。

2 recipient   

a.接受的,感受性强的 n.接受者,感受者,容器

参考例句：

• Please check that you have a valid email certificate for each recipient. 请检查是否对每个接收者都有有效的电子邮件证书。
• Colombia is the biggest U . S aid recipient in Latin America. 哥伦比亚是美国在拉丁美洲最大的援助对象。

3 appreciation   

n.评价；欣赏；感谢；领会，理解；价格上涨

参考例句：

• I would like to express my appreciation and thanks to you all.我想对你们所有人表达我的感激和谢意。
• I'll be sending them a donation in appreciation of their help.我将送给他们一笔捐款以感谢他们的帮助。

4 component   

n.组成部分，成分，元件；adj.组成的，合成的

参考例句：

• Each component is carefully checked before assembly.每个零件在装配前都经过仔细检查。
• Blade and handle are the component parts of a knife.刀身和刀柄是一把刀的组成部分。

5 gender   

n.（生理上的）性，（名词、代词等的）性

参考例句：

• French differs from English in having gender for all nouns.法语不同于英语，所有的名词都有性。
• Women are sometimes denied opportunities solely because of their gender.妇女有时仅仅因为性别而无法获得种种机会。