65° - 01.07.1968, Blaðsíða 6

Observing ....
THE CHARACTERISTICS OF FOREIGNERS
In order to explain what makes a foreigner
seem so different to Icelanders in social inter-
course, it is best to examine the characteristics of
Icelanders as they are revealed through social
conversation, for it is by language that the Ice-
lander reveals or does not reveal himself.
Icelandic is usually spoken with an expression-
less face. A wide range of expression, not all
caused by shyness, appears when the speaker
switches to English or some other language, and
disappears instantly the moment he resumes Ice-
landic.
The total range of spoken Icelandic is limited,
covering only a few notes. To an ear accustomed
to English or the Romance languages, this, com-
bined with accenting only the first syllables of
words, raising the pitch of the last syllable of a
declarative sentence and lowering that of an inter-
rogative sentence gives the language a monotony.
An authoritative statement sounds hesitant and
a question sounds decisive. Unless an expletive
has only one syllable, accent robs it of much of
the force and decision expected, but then ex-
pletives are seldom used in formal conversation
because they contain emotion. Foreigners, even
Canadian Icelanders speaking Icelandic, give it
a wider tonal range which transforms the langu-
age into a more melodic one at the same time as
it marks them as foreigners.
The Icelander may fidget with his hands or, in
a rare spurt of emphasis, rap his hand on the
table when speaking, but he does not talk with
his hands. The foreigner does, though, if only
for lack of words, thereby amusing his audience
at this “childish” way of acting out his speech.
An Icelander gives expression to his narration
not by gesture or facial movements, but in the
spacing of his words and the use of well-turned
phrases, often quotations. This method of under-
statement requires cleverness, but also requires
an excellent knowledge of the language, conse-
quently the effects are often lost on the direct-
spoken foreigner.
It is also interesting to note that many Ice-
landers object to their language being spoken
with emphasis, as though emphasis indicates the
speaker’s desire to influence the listener to his
way of thinking. Expressive poetry reading has
been objected to on the grounds that it usurped
the right of the listener to decide where the poet
intended his emphasis; the poetry-reader should
not mingle his interpretation, but should be a
mouthing media of the great words and let the
listener exhibit freedom of interpretation. So here
is a demand for the expressionless, although one
might argue that an expressionful reading might
provoke more speculation of poetic intent since
it provides a focus.
A love of contrariness is another notable fea-
ture of conversation among Icelanders sparring
together. Thus, “That is a high mountain to
climb” is answered by, “Oh, it’s not so high”,
and “That’s not a very high mountain to climb”
is answered by, “It’s higher than one might
think”. Similarly, “You seem to be well off” is
answered deprecatingly by “I’m not a million-
aire”, and “You seem to be rather badly off’
evokes, “Money isn’t everything.”
Another cloaking of attitudes, which can give
the effect of pompousness as well as blandness,
is the frequent use of the double negative, a me-
thod used for understatement. Thus, “This is a
tricky problem” or “This man is a wit” become,
“This problem is not without ramifications” and,
“No one can say that the man lacks wit.”
There are also a variety of time-filling phrases
which do not commit the speaker to any opinion,
the gist of which can be summed up by the ex-
pression, “well, well”, or by the meaning, “I hear
you talking and I’m still here.” This display of
noncommittance usually impels the foreigner to
talk himself, merely to have something said, thus
proving the frequent comment that “foreigners
talk a lot.”
A sense of pride in reticence is revealed in the
attempt to avoid personal comments. Whereas he
will say, “Traffic is heavy and progress was im-
peded,” the foreigner is more likely to say, “I
was late because I got snarled up in the traffic,”
thereby apologizing, admitting the emotion of
anger, and drawing attention to himself by using
the first person — all for a trivial subject. He
has revealed himself to strangers as a person up-
set by trivia.
The use of the third rather than the first person,
even to friends, implies a measure of control of
oneself and cools the friendly foreigner, notably
Americans, who use the folksy “you” when they
mean “one.” In this respect it is well to explain
that the use of first names implies equality but
Continued on page 26.
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65 DEGREES