📘 Part 3: Neighbours

This episode's vocabulary

Keep an eye on something/someone (idiom) - to watch or take care of something or someone.

To strike up sth. (phrasal verb) - to start a relationship or conversation with someone.

Distant (adj.) - far away.

Insular (adj.) - interested only in your own country or group and not willing to accept different or foreign ideas.

By and large (idiom) - when everything about a situation is considered together.

Familiarity (noun) - a good knowledge of something, or the fact that you know it so well.

Unavoidable (adj.) - impossible to avoid.

Bump into someone (phrasal verb) - to meet someone you know when you have not planned to meet them.

To embrace (verb) - to accept something enthusiastically.

With open arms (idiom) - in a very friendly way.

To dictate (verb) - to give orders, or tell someone exactly what they must do, with total authority.

Proximity (noun) - the state of being near in space or time.

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Questions and Answers

M: Do you think it's important to have a good relationship with neighbours?

R: Well, it's probably a good idea to have a good relationship with everyone, isn't it? In the case of neighbours, you have a shared space to manage together, or at least be respectful of. And it's just nicer when people get along, isn't it?

M: Is it beneficial to get along with neighbours?

R: Well, it certainly helps when you go on holiday and need someone to look after things or keep an eye on them. Even if you don't need someone to do that, it's a good chance to make friends. Some people even marry their neighbours.

M: How can people improve their relationship with neighbours?

R: We already spoke about being respectful and polite, but aside from that, maybe taking the time to strike up conversations and help out when you can. Lots of people watch out for each other. Being community-minded, in a nutshell, I suppose. That would be quite helpful.

M: Do you think people's relationships with their neighbours today are the same as they were in the past?

R: Well, they might be a little bit more distant, since we live in a modern society with a well-developed infrastructure and places are reasonably well supplied. So there's less of a need to rely on people nearby. Aside from that, I suppose people are more insular these days, so that might contribute to some distance as well. But by and large, people still seem to rub along quite nicely.

M: And do you think this will change in the future? People will get closer or more distant?

R: I want to believe that people will become closer. But I can see in the immediate future a lot of social problems as a result of this.

M: Do you think people are familiar with their neighbours?

R: Well, there are levels of familiarity. You can at least recognise your neighbours when they're out and about. That's almost unavoidable. As for anything beyond that, I have no idea. I'd like to think they do, because we live in a society.

M: And why don't some people know their neighbours at all?

R: Well, if you live in a block of flats then you might not be very likely to bump into them. Similarly, you might have a fairly exclusive community or culture. That means when new people move in, they're not welcomed or embraced with open arms.

M: What factors help neighbours to have good relationships with each other?

R: Having a shared culture or a set of values is a good place to start, since that usually dictates how you interact with each other and how well you can work and live in close proximity. Outside of that, having shared interests and continuing dialogue usually keeps things going.

M: What could be the reasons for arguments among neighbours?

R: Conflict over land or shared land is one big one because of course you have to decide who's going to manage it properly and being respectful, full of a shared space in general. So for example, if you're playing loud music that other people can hear in their own homes, that's not being respectful of the shared space that you have together.

M: What makes a neighbourhood a good one to live in?

R: I always think a sense of community is the thing that really makes the difference. It means people can feel at home and understand each other better. Ideally, people who live there should have some sort of investment in or have grown up in the area. So they value it and they want to help maintain it. Without that, it seems likely that it would cause problems in terms of people even enjoying themselves or even wanting to be around each other.

M: Thank you for your answers!

R: Yay!

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