Sue Klopp <msk at CVNS.NET>: Dangerous Gesture

[Valeri Belianine]

David Stephan wrote:
> One of my students, a Russian made a gesture with his hand, which to a Russian
 means, > "I've had it up to HERE with this person!"  Unfortunately, to an
 American the same
> gesture means, "I'm going to cut your throat," and since he made the
> gesture with utility knife in hand, the woman immediately started
> screaming and someone called the police.

> My appeal to you TESL-L members is for information in printed form
> concerning the meaning of this gesture in Russia: the index finger is
> pointed and drawn forcefully across the throat.

i can say that the hand moved with the fingers kept in one axis, or
with a large finger withdrawn from left (from the person) side to the
right
in russian means "I am fed up with it" (be it a man, or any repeated
action).
the hand may be very close to the throat.
it may have some object in it (a pencil, e.g.)
and it may be done very abruptly and emotionally.
the gest "i shall cut your throat" is shown in the direction to the
person to whom it is addressed. and it is a very rare gest. usually
russians sya that they will _zadshit'_ (do like Oteelo did to Dezdemonna
in Shakespeares "Otello").
there are very few russians books where russian gests are described.
as for me i know none. though i am dealing with psycholinguistics for 20
years.
may be in Kano Toru and  Tatyana Akishina book on gests (Tokyo ? Moscow
? 1992?) there are some pictures. (i have only postal address of Kano
Toru in Japan).
I mean the russian is not guilty.
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       Virtually Yours,       V a l e r i       B E L I A N I N E,
prof. of Moscow State University      (Centre for International Education)
and Moscow State Linguistic University         (Dpt. of Psycholinguistics)
    Doct. thesis:  http://linguistlist.org/diss/diss-html/29678.html
Russia 117393 Moscow ul. Pilugina d.26 k.1 kv.251 tel/fax (7-095)132-36-16
        e-mail: fortuna at glas.apc.org             (Moscow)
till August 10-th e-mail: fortuna at cc.nccu.edu.tw (Taipei)
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