How does punctuality vary across cultures?

Time flies, or so they say. No matter where you are, humans are constantly measuring and checking time. Some of us are good at it – planning and doing things way ahead of time - while others are always trying to beat the clock and do things at the eleventh hour. And that's only if you're on time. What about if you are behind time?
时光飞逝，至少他们是这么说的。无论你在哪里，人类都在不断地测量和检查时间。我们中的一些人擅长计划和提前做事，而另一些人则总是努力赶时间，在最后一刻才做事情。而前提是你要准时。可如果你迟到了怎么办?

Tardiness can be serious. If you were one minute late for work, would you resign? It may sound extreme to many of us, but that is exactly what occurred in the UK upper chamber of parliament, the House of Lords, in January 2018. International development minister Lord Bates arrived one minute late, and, as a result, was unable to answer a scheduled question. Instead of trying to make up for lost time, as many might do, he resigned on the spot. He apologised for his discourtesy and stated that he was ashamed. His resignation, though, was not accepted by the UK prime minister.
迟到可能很严重。如果上班迟到一分钟，你会辞职吗？对我们许多人来说，这听起来可能很极端，但这正是2018年1月在英国上议院发生的事情。国际发展部长贝茨勋爵迟到了一分钟，因此无法回答预定的问题。他没有像许多人可能做的那样试图弥补失去的时间，而是当场辞职。他为自己的无礼道歉，并表示自己很惭愧。不过，英国首相并未接受他的辞呈。

So, how late is too late? Many cultures take punctuality very seriously, whereas others seem to accept lagging behind as just the normal way of things. Members of the BBC from various different cultures were asked about the concept of timekeeping in their native countries and responded with a raft of answers.
那么，多晚才算晚呢？许多文化都非常重视守时，而另一些文化则似乎认为滞后是正常的。来自不同文化背景的BBC成员被问及各自国家的守时观念，他们的回答五花八门。

BBC employees from Latin America, Rwanda and Sri Lanka said that there are more flexible attitudes to timekeeping in their cultures. In Latin America, things may happen five minutes, 20 minutes, an hour or even two after they were planned. Whereas, in Sri Lanka, lateness is a part of the daily routine. This is because of poor infrastructure and heavy traffic conditions. In Rwanda, those who attend to deadlines with rigid timekeeping are said to be ‘like a typical European'. This is in a place where it is not unusual to arrive at 11am for a meeting which started at nine.
来自拉丁美洲、卢旺达和斯里兰卡的BBC员工表示，在他们的文化中，对守时的态度更加灵活。在拉丁美洲，事情可能在计划好的5分钟、20分钟、1小时甚至2小时后发生。然而，在斯里兰卡，迟到是家常便饭。这是因为基础设施差和交通拥挤。在卢旺达，那些严格守时的人被称为“像典型的欧洲人”。在这个地方，上午11点就来参加9点开始的会议是常有的事。

On the other hand, German and Japanese employees mentioned a stricter adherence to time. In Japan, it is common to make an effort to arrive with time to spare for an appointment. Those who arrived at the stroke of nine to a meeting starting at nine a.m. would be considered late. In Germany, however, if a dinner party were to begin at eight, a person who had arrived five minutes prior, may walk around the block to ensure that they arrive at eight on the dot.
另一方面，德国和日本的员工提到了对时间的严格遵守。在日本，人们通常会努力争取在赴约前留出时间。上午九点开始的会议，如果九点才到，就会被视为迟到。但在德国，如果晚宴在八点开始，提前五分钟到达的人可能会绕着街区走一圈，以确保八点准时到达。

It seems that the answer is subjective, and what is considered acceptable is based on culture. That said, if you don't mind waiting, it might be best to attend your appointments in good time. And if the worst comes to the worst, remember the old English proverb. Better late than never.
答案似乎是主观的，而何为可接受的是基于文化的。也就是说，如果你不介意等待，最好及时赴约。如果最坏的情况发生，请记住古老的英国谚语：迟到总比不到好。

词汇表
time flies 时光飞逝
ahead of time 提前
beat the clock “战胜时间”，提前完成工作，赶时间（做某事）
at the eleventh hour 在最后一刻，在最后时刻
on time 按时，准时
behind time 迟到
tardiness 迟到，迟缓
upper chamber of parliament 议会上院
the House of Lords （英国）上议院
scheduled 已安排的
make up for lost time 弥补失去的时间
on the spot 当场，立即
discourtesy 失礼的行为，无礼
punctuality 准时性，守时
lag behind 掉队，滞后，落后
a raft of 一系列，大量
rigid timekeeping 严格的时间规定，严格守时
Latin America, Rwanda and Sri Lanka 拉丁美洲、卢旺达和斯里兰卡
deadline 截至日期，最后期限
adherence to 遵守，坚持
with time to spare 有富余时间
at the stroke of 刚好在…的时候
prior 在…之前
on the dot 准时，正好
in good time 提早，有充裕时间的
proverb 谚语，格言
better late than never 晚来总比不来强；迟做总比不做好

🌟 更多英语听力见公众号【琐简英语】，回复"1"可进【打卡交流群】