Discussing cultural differences: Emphasis on group harmony
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Key Phrases
集體和諧
jí tǐ hé xié
Collective harmony
個人意見
gè rén yì jiàn
Personal opinions
避免直接衝突
bì miǎn zhí jiē chōng tū
Avoid direct conflict
Skills You'll Learn
Understanding differences
了解差異
liǎo jiě chà yì
Strive to maintain team harmony
努力維持團隊和諧
nǔ lì wéi chí tuán duì hé xié
Find a solution
找到解決方案
zhǎo dào jiě jué fāng àn
Lesson Roleplay
Imagine engaging in a conversation with a Taiwanese local about the concept of collective harmony. This person explains how maintaining harmony is crucial in Taiwanese society and contrasts it with Western emphasis on individualism. The dialogue further explores how these cultural values manifest in the workplace and what happens when there are differences of opinion.
在台灣，你們怎麼看待集體和諧？
zài tái wān nǐ men zěn me kàn dài jí tǐ hé xié
How do you view collective harmony in Taiwan?
集體和諧對我們來說非常重要。大家都努力維持和諧。
jí tǐ hé xié duì wǒ men lái shuō fēi cháng zhòng yào dà jiā dōu nǔ lì wéi chí hé xié
Collective harmony is very important to us. Everyone strives to maintain it.
這跟西方國家有什麼不同嗎？
zhè gēn xī fāng guó jiā yǒu shén me bù tóng ma
How is this different from Western countries?
是的，西方更注重個人主義。個人意見通常很重要。
shì de xī fāng gèng zhù zhòng gè rén zhǔ yì gè rén yì jiàn tōng cháng hěn zhòng yào
Yes, in the West, there's more emphasis on individualism. Personal opinions are usually very important.
那在工作場合呢？
nà zài gōng zuò chǎng hé ne
What about in the workplace?
Lesson Vocabulary & Phrases
台灣
tái wān
Taiwan
你
nǐ
You
怎麼
zěn me
How
💬 [怎麼] often means more than just "how." Before a verb like [看待], it asks for someone's way of thinking: [你怎麼想？] means "What do you think?" not just "How do you think?"
See breakdown →看待
kàn dài
View
💬 [看待] is a useful verb for "view" or "regard," often used for opinions about issues or people. You can swap in the thing being judged: [你怎麼看待這個問題？] or [大家怎麼看待他？]
See breakdown →你怎麼看待
nǐ zěn me kàn dài
How do you view
💬 [你怎麼 + verb] is a very common pattern for asking someone's view or approach: [你怎麼看待] "how do you view...," [你怎麼想] "what do you think?" Add the topic after it.
See breakdown →集體
jí tǐ
Collective
和諧
hé xié
Harmony
集體和諧
jí tǐ hé xié
Collective harmony
非常重要
fēi cháng zhòng yào
Very important
💬 Adjectives can be the whole statement in Chinese, so [非常重要] works by itself for "very important" without any extra word for "is." You can reuse it with other adjectives too: [非常常見] "very common," [非常有趣] "very interesting."
See breakdown →Learn this vocabulary list the easy way
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