由格雷戈· Bissky

对于通信的中国态度由许多影响塑造了。 二最重要是中国社会历史和中国社会哲学家想法， Confucius (和特别是儒教)和老挝人Tzu ( 陶Te Ching). 这些影响的整体作用是限制个性和欲望争论和逐渐灌输一个小组身分和和谐的一个欲望。 每影响下面简要地被审查。

从古老时期中国为生存密集居住了于，并且依靠了劳动强度米耕种。 合作特别是为堤堰和灌溉运河非常复杂系统的创作和维护是关键的。 为政治和地理原因人到他们的村庄，为不计其数的世代重覆的样式没有旅行和保持栓。 种植然后收获的保持的常数的周期，离开很少机会(或欲望)的实验： 一个不合格的实验将意味饥饿。

这样不变的存在意味智慧通过经验和经验来了通过年龄。 一个等级制度的社会涌现了，当年龄成为当局的来源。 完全缺席是平等所有想法，当均匀孪生对(和服从)演讲作为“更老的兄弟，弟弟”。 当局因而来自不自原因，而且优越状态： 年龄。

从“更老是好”或“旧的这个想法是权利”来了缺乏问： 在一个年轻人可能问什么依据长辈？ 为什么长辈对青年时期表示怀疑？ 个性成为了重要均匀村庄长辈由祖先文字和说法越来越少压抑。 当书面工作身体积累了多年来中国社会和通信在社会之内变得规范化。 What was right yesterday had to be right today, and would still be right tomorrow.

This rigid hierarchy based upon respect for age was already well in place by the time of Confucius. China’s greatest sage, and the greatest influence on all aspects of Chinese society, Confucius gathered all the influences of popular culture and codified them into a series of well-structured rules and laws. Beginning in the Han Dynasty (206 BC) the writings of Confucius became the state-approved philosophy, and, though endlessly interpreted and added to, remained the official philosophy at least until the fall of the Qing Dynasty in 1911.

Confucius taught the importance of following rules and of maintaining relationships, and explained the hierarchy that all fit into, explained how one should act towards others above and below in the hierarchy, and made the goal of all human behavior the maintenance of harmony. The “goodness” of an individual could not be measured by the individual but only by the group, and was decided by how the individual acted towards the group. Proper behavior towards others became the only way to achieve “goodness,” thus making harmony with others more important than individual expression or desires.

In contrast to Confucianism and its emphasis on proper behavior towards others was the Tao Te Ching (Taoism) of Lao Tzu and its emphasis on man’s finding peace with himself and within nature. A philosophy perfectly suited for hermits, Taoism taught that man can never really know anything, and should therefore not strive to understand but to accept, not try to change nature but to live in harmony with it. Indeed, the entire concept of proactive change was viewed with suspicion—change happened only by not trying to make change happen.

Both philosophical orientations shunned clear speech and (especially) argumentation. Argumentation—the asking of difficult questions in order to find the true nature of a thing or idea—is necessary for discovery, but discovery was not necessary for either of the great Chinese philosophers: for Confucius because truth depended upon age, and was thus already known; for Lao Tzu because it was impossible to really know anything. In fact, both philosophies argued against what we now call eloquence, persuasiveness or precision. As said in the Tao Te Ching: “He who knows does not talk; he who talks does not know. Keep your mouth shut.” The final chapter sums it up:

True words are not beautiful; beautiful words are not true. A good man does not argue; he who argues is not a good man . . . The Way of the Sage is to act but not to compete.

Yet the Chinese still had to communicate: messages still had to be transmitted. What developed was one of the most sophisticated and complicated ways of communicating in the world. Understanding messages involved far more than the meaning of words. Chinese communication became like highly-structured poetry: understanding messages meant considering how something was said, then the meaning of the words, then who said it, then when it was said (and many other factors). The style was very indirect, with real skill being the ability to communicate something without ever saying it, and understanding something without ever hearing it. Such indirectness made the ultimate goal of Confucian thought—maintaining harmony in human relations—easier. Understanding Chinese attitudes towards communication depends upon understanding that the goal of all communication was (and is) the desire to maintain harmony in human relations. No matter what the message, it should be given in a way that would not upset the relationship between sender and receiver.

Emphasis was on “being polite,” something we now call the desire not to lose, or cause one to lose, face. Over the years this created a deep-set fear in most Chinese of going too far or saying too much when communicating. Other people’s feelings became very important, and negative messages such as disagreement or disappointment were communicated in an indirect, save face way. Further emphasis was placed upon accepting the world around you, on obedience and a lack of questioning. No need to discover the new meant no need for precision or clarity. Over centuries a body of ritual phrases developed, and communication skill came from repeating them at the appropriate time.

Greg Bissky, www.treasuremountain.com

This is the third part of the article “Communication in Chinese Offices”. Next week we will publish part four.