An American friend has invited you to visit his family. Youve never been to an Americans home before, and youre not sure what to do. Should you take a gift? How should you dress? What time should you arrive? What should you do when you get there? Glad you asked. When youre the guest, you should just make yourself at home. Thats what hospitality is all about: making people feel at home when theyre not.
The question of whether or not to bring a gift often makes guests embarrass. Giving your host a gift is not just a social nicety in some culturesits expected. But in American culture, a guest is not obligated to bring a resent. Of course, some people do bring a small token of appreciation to their host. Appropriate gifts for general occasions might be flowers, candy orif the family has small childrentoys. If you choose not to bring a gift, dont worry. No one will even notice.
American hospitality begins at homeespecially when it involves food. Most Americans agree that good home cooking beats restaurant food any day. When invited for a meal. You might ask, Can I bring anything? Unless its a potluck, where everyone brings a dish, the host will probably respond, No, just yourself. For most informal dinners, you should wear comfortable, casual clothes. Plan to arrive on time, or else call to inform your hosts of the delay. During the dinner conversation, its customary to compliment the hostess on the wonderful meal. Of course, the biggest compliment is to eat lots of food!
When youve had plenty, you might offer to clear the table or wash the dishes. But since youre the guest, your hosts may not let you. Instead, they may invite everyone to move to the living room for dessert with tea or coffee. After an hour or so of general chit chat, its probably time to head for the door. You dont want to wear out your welcome. And above all, dont go snoopingaround the house. Its more polite to wait for the host to offer you a guided tour. But except for housewarmings, guests often dont get past the living room.
Americans usually like to have advance notice when people come to see them. Only very close friends drop by unannounced. This is especially true if the guests want to stay for a few days. Heres a good rule of thumb for house guests: Short stays are best. As one 19th century French writer put it. The first day a man is a guest, the second a burden, the third a pest. Even relatives dont usually stay for several weeks at a time. While youre staying with an American family, try to keep your living area neat and tidy. Your host family will appreciate your consideration. And they may even invite you back!
Most Americans consider themselves hospitable people. Folks in the southern United States, in particular, take pride in entertaining guests. In fact, southern hospitality has become legendary. But in all parts of America, people welcome their guests with open arms. So dont be surprised to find the welcome mat out for you. Just dont forget to wipe your feet.
1. According to the first paragraph, the main point of hospitality is __________
A. taking a gift
B. dressing well
C. being exactly on time
D. making people feeling at home
2. The word pestmeans __________
A. an annoying person
B. a tame animal kept as a companion
C. poison for killing weeds
D. chemical substance used to kill insects
3. Which of the following is TRUE according to the text?
A. Home cooking is better than the food of every restaurant.
B. A potluck is a dinner or supper where everyone takes a dish.
C. For most informal dinners in the United States, you should dress well.
D. During the dinner, the biggest compliment is to heap praise on the host.
4. According to American culture, a guest can get past the living room only _______
A. after cleaning the table or washing the dish
B. after having desert with tea or coffee
C. at a party to celebrate the removal to a new home
D. after an hour of general chit-chat
5. We can infer from the passage that ________
A. Americans are hospitable
B. Americans like presents
C. Americans like their guests to stay long
D. most Americans are not hospitable
DABCA