Every country and culture, whether it’s as ancient as India or as young as the Czech Republic, has a history that will greatly affect both the market and the marketer. A market that has been heavily exploited in the past by foreigners will turn a predictably skeptical eye toward any overseas company seeking new sales territory. It may even refuse products that could greatly benefit the society. Understanding that history will enable a marketer to approach the culture in a more subtle manner, and it will certainly cause an adjustment of schedule. On the other end, a culture that has been marked by independence for some time will have few fears of foreign operations and may find the subtle approach far too lackluster and slow.
Marketers may bring their own business to the process and should take care to separate themselves, at least emotionally, from their personal and cultural history. Oftentimes, this includes racial prejudices that are difficult to shake, earlier political disagreements that have never been fully settled, of old unhealed war wounds.
Let’s look at the race issue first. Companies with Caucasian marketing personnel returning to post-apartheid South Africa are generally plagued with a feeling that they owe something to the new black majority government. It’s a completely self-generated debt as the government is, in reality, overjoyed that investment has returned after the long embargo. However, this joy doesn’t prevent South Africa companies from taking advantage of counterparts’ guilt feelings when it’s time to cut a deal.
On the political front, the relationship, between Vietnam and the United States is a prime example of two sets of marketers misinterpreting each other’s history and culture when it came time to do business. Following in the wake of the bloody two-decade war that ended in 1975, the United States and Vietnam finally reopened trade in 1994. The Vietnamese assumed that American business community would heap investment on them to make up for past wrong, while the American thought they would be welcomed as the saviors of Vietnam’s floundering economy. Most of America’s marketers sent to Vietnam were small children during the war, and the conflict had little bearing on their lives. Vietnam’s decision makers on the other hand were primarily veterans of the conflict and saw it as the key element of the relationship. Neither side paid attention to the other’s view of history nor the results have been decidedly disappointing for almost everyone.
1. The passage mainly discusses that ____.
2. It is advisable for a marketer to ____.
3. According to the passage, which of the following is true?
4. The Caucasian example indicates that ____.
5. According to the passage, which of the following is NOT true?
问题1选项
A.cultural differences force companies to adjust schedule
B.marketing success and failure are much like history
C.developing countries are hostile to developed countries
D.the history of a country or culture influences the market
问题2选项
A.understand the history of a country or culture
B.exploit the market with great effort
C.keep a skeptical eye on overseas companies
D.slow down foreign operations
问题3选项
A.Marketers should be responsible for the burdens of the past.
B.Marketers should separate themselves from their personal and cultural history.
C.Marketers should disagree on racial prejudices.
D.Marketers should take care of the wounded in the war.
问题4选项
A.South Africans are plagued with a guilty feeling
B.South Africans are over-loved with the overseas investment
C.South Africans owe debts to Caucasian company
D.South African companies take advantage of their counterpart’s guilty feelings
问题5选项
A.The failure of the reopened trade between American and Vietnam should be taken as a lesson.
B.The Vietnamese take it for granted that the American business community will invest money in Vietnam to make up for past wrongs.
C.The relationship between Vietnam and the US is a good example of forgetting the past.
D.Misinterpreting history and culture leads to business failure.
第1题:D
第2题:A
第3题:B
第4题:D
第5题:C
第1题:
【选项释义】
The passage mainly discusses that ____. 文章主要讨论了____。
A. cultural differences force companies to adjust schedule A. 文化差异迫使公司调整计划
B. marketing success and failure are much like history B. 营销的成功与失败就像历史一样
C. developing countries are hostile to developed countries C. 发展中国家对发达国家怀有敌意
D. the history of a country or culture influences the market D. 一个国家的历史或文化影响着市场
【考查点】主旨大意题
【解题思路】本文开头主旨句提到：Every country and culture, whether it’s as ancient as India or as young as the Czech Republic, has a history that will greatly affect both the market and the marketer.（每个国家和文化，无论是像印度一样古老还是像捷克共和国一样年轻，都有一段对市场和营销人员有巨大影响的历史。）并且文中列举了两个例子来论证一个国家的文化或历史会影响市场，故D项正确。
【干扰项排除】
A选项是文章提到的细节，不能用于总结全文；
B选项不是文章讨论的内容，不能用于总结全文；
C选项概括不够，不能用于总结全文。
第2题:
【选项释义】
It is advisable for a marketer to ____. 建议营销人员____。
A. understand the history of a country or culture A. 了解一个国家的历史或文化
B. exploit the market with great effort B. 努力开拓市场
C. keep a skeptical eye on overseas companies C. 对海外公司保持怀疑的态度
D. slow down foreign operations D. 放缓海外业务
【考查点】事实细节题
【解题思路】第一段提到：Understanding that history will enable a marketer to approach the culture in a more subtle manner, and it will certainly cause an adjustment of schedule.（了解历史可以使营销人员以一种更微妙的方式接近文化，这肯定会导致对计划的调整。）可知商人了解一个国家的文化或历史很重要。故A项正确。
【干扰项排除】
B选项，根据A market that has been heavily exploited in the past by foreigners will turn a predictably skeptical eye toward any overseas company seeking new sales territory.（一个过去被外国人大量开发的市场，对任何寻求新销售领域的海外公司都会以怀疑的眼光看待。）可知努力开拓市场是不被建议的，B选项属于反向干扰；
C选项提到的是被外国人大量开发的市场的行为，而不是对营销人员的建议，属于张冠李戴；
D选项，文中提到：On the other end, a culture that has been marked by independence for some time will have few fears of foreign operations and may find the subtle approach far too lackluster and slow.（另一方面，在一段时间内以独立为标志的文化中，很少会担心外国业务，可能会发现这种微妙的方式太过平淡和缓慢。）国外业务存在的问题就是太过缓慢，所以不应该建议再放慢国外业务的进度，属于曲解原文。
第3题:
【选项释义】
According to the passage, which of the following is true? 根据短文，下列哪项是正确的？
A. Marketers should be responsible for the burdens of the past. A. 营销人员应该对过去的重担负责。
B. Marketers should separate themselves from their personal and cultural history. B. 营销人员应该把自己与他们的个人的和文化的历史分开。
C. Marketers should disagree on racial prejudices. C. 营销人员应该对种族偏见持不同意见。
D. Marketers should take care of the wounded in the war. D. 商人应该照顾战争中的伤员。
【考查点】事实细节题
【解题思路】第二段提到：Marketers may bring their own business to the process and should take care to separate themselves, at least emotionally, from their personal and cultural history.（营销人员可能会把他们自己的业务带入到这个过程中，他们应该注意把自己与他们的个人和文化历史分开，至少在情感上是这样。）可知B项正确。
【干扰项排除】
A、C选项根据解析可知，营销人员应把个人和历史分开，这意味着他们不需要为过去历史的重任负责，也应该摆脱种族偏见，属于曲解原文；
D选项在文中没有提及，属于无中生有。
第4题:
【选项释义】
The Caucasian example indicates that ____. 白人的例子表明____。
A. South Africans are plagued with a guilty feeling A. 南非人被一种罪恶感所困扰
B. South Africans are over-loved with the overseas investment B. 南非人被海外投资过度青睐
C. South Africans owe debts to Caucasian company C. 南非人欠白人公司的债
D. South African companies take advantage of their counterpart’s guilty feelings D. 南非公司利用了对手的内疚情绪
【考查点】推理判断题
【解题思路】第三段提到：However, this joy doesn’t prevent South Africa companies from taking advantage of counterparts’ guilt feelings when it’s time to cut a deal.（然而，这种喜悦并不能阻止南非公司在谈判时利用对手的内疚感。）可知D项正确。
【干扰项排除】
A选项根据解析可知有罪恶感的是白人公司，属于张冠李戴；
B选项在文中没有提及，属于无中生有；
C选项根据：It’s a completely self-generated debt as the government is, in reality, overjoyed that investment has returned after the long embargo.（这完全是一种自我产生的债务，因为政府实际上对长期禁运后的投资恢复非常高兴。）可知属于曲解原文。
第5题:
【选项释义】
According to the passage, which of the following is NOT true? 根据短文，下列哪项是不正确的？
A. The failure of the reopened trade between American and Vietnam should be taken as a lesson. A. 美国和越南之间重新开放贸易的失败应该被当作一个教训。
B. The Vietnamese take it for granted that the American business community will invest money in Vietnam to make up for past wrongs. B. 越南人想当然地认为美国商界会在越南投资以弥补过去的错误。
C. The relationship between Vietnam and the US is a good example of forgetting the past. C. 越南和美国之间的关系是一个忘记过去的好例子。
D. Misinterpreting history and culture leads to business failure. D. 对历史和文化的误解导致了企业的失败。
【考查点】事实细节题
【解题思路】C项与原文不符，越南和美国的关系是由于双方商人对于对方的历史和文化的误解，故答案C为正确答案。
【干扰项排除】
A、B、D选项根据最后一段：On the political front, the relationship, between Vietnam and the United States is a prime example of two sets of marketers misinterpreting each other’s history and culture when it came time to do business.（在政治方面，越南和美国之间的关系就是一个典型的例子，两国商人在做生意的时候会误解对方的历史和文化。）以及The Vietnamese assumed that American business community would heap investment on them to make up for past wrong…（越南人认为美国商界会向他们大量投资，以弥补过去的错误……）可知均正确，故排除。
