ielts speaking Part 2 and 3 about When You Had To Be Polite

I cannot tell for sure but that’s usually the case, especially with some of the youngsters nowadays, they even show more respect to others than their own parents, which seems like an act of hypocrisy to me. Fortunately, those are just minority in the society full of decent people. Sometimes, you may have a feeling that people behave to strangers in more polite manners than their own people, which can be because they don’t want to be misunderstood or cast judgment on easily if they act carelessly during their short interaction.

Compared to the old times, I believe our ancestors were far more considerate in terms of social etiquettes and customs. Although we still have our set of rules and taboos about how to interact and behave in proper manners, the sophistication of such behaviors has been drastically simplified. For instance, in the past, when greeting someone, particularly the other gender, people used to bend their knees and bow their heads, which has been replaced by a friendly handshake or swift greeting kisses on both cheeks in modern culture.

Being acknowledged and respected is one of the most basic needs of human nature. People want to feel that they matter and so do their opinions, which is why to build and maintain a healthy relationship, you have to show them respect. Respect can be understood simply as politeness. Acknowledge their presence by saying “hello”, express your gratitude by saying “thank you” are some of the smallest deeds anybody can do to communicate their appreciation.

Just like other parts of the world, we practice some standard manners to show courtesy. When first encounter someone, we do proper introduction as well as handshake to catch each other’s name and go on with our conversation. During our exchange, we try to maintain eye-contact and pay undivided attention to the other person to let them now they’re being heard. And most importantly, we keep a genuine smile lingering on our faces to make people feel welcomed and relaxed, otherwise, things might get awkward.

People living in different parts of the country usually act accordingly to their local customs and their concept of politeness, as a result, varies, too. Those who live in rural areas tend to be more friendly, outspoken and straightforward, which is why they often find themselves in awkward situations when conversing with city people. If anyone who isn’t familiar with their relatively explicit style of talking, he will probably think they’re impolite but they just do it out of good will. In contrast, urban residents always weight their words before speaking to avoid conflicts and misunderstandings.

To my mind, when someone is acting impolitely, it’s best that we should remind them of their misbehavior so that they have time to modify it in a timely manner. If they refuse to listen to our constructive advice, we can raise our voice to show our disagreement or even teach them some moral lessons at that moment. Having said this, it would be a nightmare if adults misbehave, in which cases, I guess it would be most reasonable to stay away from them, or (ask the favor of the elderly so as to help them rectify their bad code of conduct.

I’m of the opinion that it depends on the age groups. As for children or teenagers, disobeying their parents or not listening to constructive advice from surrounding people can be seen as a misbehavior. All I’m saying is that their ego is too big and so reluctant to correct their way of behaving in public places. One instance is that a teenager refuses to refrain from smoking in parks, even if told by adults or older people around. As for the adults, some tend to lack education, and this is hard to expect any polite acts from them. Such people can resort to swearwords, spit in the streets recklessly which often causes a big nuisance to others.

I suppose there’s little doubt about that. Every part of the world has its own culture and unique way to express their respect and politeness towards others. I’ve recently run through an article about how people in Japan treat their senior citizens. The picture of an old lady standing in a subway while other young men sitting nearby caught me by surprise. It was only after reading the article did I understand that Japanese elders would get offended if the youngsters give them their seats because it makes them feel older and useless. However, if any adolescence in my country do the same, he will be considered disrespectful or uneducated.