It is interesting to think that you can learn so much from one class. This class taught me many things, about myself, and about others. I do not think that I had any idea that I would learn so much when I signed up for this class. The more I think on it, I think that this class is one in which every person in college should take. I believe that a class such as this teaches you about the people in which you are hoping to one day meet when you enter the work force. This class was important to me because it was not only educational, it was educational in a way that was fun.
I think that the most important thing that I have learned from this class is to have an open mind when it comes to others. Our country is becoming more and more diverse and by taking this class, I have learned that these new cultures will have something to share with us that may make us all better people. This class has also taught me to not be so ignorant about my own culture. I know that some people may think that white Americans run everything, but the fact is that that really is not true anymore. Americans still hold a lot of power around the world but, due to the economic trouble our country seems to be in right now, we may not seem as appealing to immigrants anymore. This idea of immigration touches upon something else I learned, the difference between immigrant, and sojourners. I used to think that they were the same thing, however now I see that I was very wrong. I think that it is important to note that we are not just carbon cut - outs of each other and it is important that people realize that. Wherever you go in life, there will be someone that is different from you, it is really up to you how you react when you are around them.
Another important thing that I learned from this class is the non-verbals of other cultures. I never would have guessed that one thing (that seems so normal to us) could be weird to someone from another culture. This is one of the fascinating things about our world.
Another interesting thing that I learned from this class is the six different dialects. I found these really interesting because I had never heard/thought about them before. The dialect that was most interesting to me was the static/dynamic dialect because it can change over time. It makes sense to me that there are certain aspects of culture that would shift over time because it is unrealistic to expect a culture to stay the same forever. With every new invention (computer, cell phones, etc.) our culture changes. Our culture now will not stay the same for our children, it will be completely different when they are around.
I believe that because of this class, I can make a plan to better the culture and neighborhood that I am living in. I also plan to not be as judgmental of people of other cultures. I would also like to help others not be as judgmental about other cultures (I know several people who could use help in this area). I know that it will take some time to grasp the steps that I will need to take to go about this, but I am sure that I can do it.
Do you believe that you will stick to your plan? Why or why not?
Friday, June 11, 2010
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Activity 11 - Intercultural Conflict
I decided I would do a intercultural conflict that is still somewhat present in our lives today. The conflict I chose is between Israel and Palestine. I think that this conflict is interesting because it is so controversial.
The Jewish people had wanted their own land for some time, they wanted to build a country that was entirely devoted to their way of life. In 1947, the United Nations partitioned off the land (which was Palestinian land) into Arab and Jewish states. The Arabs were very upset by this because it had been their land and they felt that they were being treated unfairly. The Jewish people on the other hand were very happy about this because it allowed them to have their own state. Palestine refuses to recognize Israel as a state and because of this there is constant fighting. There are problems that this area faces (scarcity of water primarily) and they refuse to help each other out. There have been four wars that have broken out as a result of this conflict. Each side of the conflict believes that they are in this conflict because of the other side.
Have you ever been part of conflict that ended like the Israel/Palestine conflict, with no side winning? If so what was it?
I think that a major conflict issue for Palestine is that the United Nations made the state partition some land off for another state without asking. I know that that would irritate me. However, for Israel, I think that a major conflict issue is that they do not have major rights over the land. For both states, they think that whatever happens can be blamed on the other state.
I think that the cultural conflict style in this conflict is quite obvious, avoiding. Neither Israel nor Palestine cares about what happens to itself or the other state as long as they get what they want when and how they want it. I think that this is most evident by the fact that four wars have broken out. I think that if the two states were trying to get along, they would care about, at least, the well - being of their own state and possibly the well - being of the other state. Our text notes that this style can result in more harmonious relationships (if both parties use this) however, I think that both parties are using this style and it is not having this effect. I do also see the dominating conflict style in this conflict. Israel received its goal at the expense of Palestine - thereby dominating over it. I think that Israel may not have completely thought that it would turn out this way when trying to start their own Jewish state.
I think that for Israel and Palestine, there is always going to be a conflict. I do not see Palestine suddenly getting over something that is this big to them, and something that has gone on for this long. I think that these two states will have to go through a lot more fighting before an actual resolution can be reached between the two.
The Jewish people had wanted their own land for some time, they wanted to build a country that was entirely devoted to their way of life. In 1947, the United Nations partitioned off the land (which was Palestinian land) into Arab and Jewish states. The Arabs were very upset by this because it had been their land and they felt that they were being treated unfairly. The Jewish people on the other hand were very happy about this because it allowed them to have their own state. Palestine refuses to recognize Israel as a state and because of this there is constant fighting. There are problems that this area faces (scarcity of water primarily) and they refuse to help each other out. There have been four wars that have broken out as a result of this conflict. Each side of the conflict believes that they are in this conflict because of the other side.
Have you ever been part of conflict that ended like the Israel/Palestine conflict, with no side winning? If so what was it?
I think that a major conflict issue for Palestine is that the United Nations made the state partition some land off for another state without asking. I know that that would irritate me. However, for Israel, I think that a major conflict issue is that they do not have major rights over the land. For both states, they think that whatever happens can be blamed on the other state.
I think that the cultural conflict style in this conflict is quite obvious, avoiding. Neither Israel nor Palestine cares about what happens to itself or the other state as long as they get what they want when and how they want it. I think that this is most evident by the fact that four wars have broken out. I think that if the two states were trying to get along, they would care about, at least, the well - being of their own state and possibly the well - being of the other state. Our text notes that this style can result in more harmonious relationships (if both parties use this) however, I think that both parties are using this style and it is not having this effect. I do also see the dominating conflict style in this conflict. Israel received its goal at the expense of Palestine - thereby dominating over it. I think that Israel may not have completely thought that it would turn out this way when trying to start their own Jewish state.
I think that for Israel and Palestine, there is always going to be a conflict. I do not see Palestine suddenly getting over something that is this big to them, and something that has gone on for this long. I think that these two states will have to go through a lot more fighting before an actual resolution can be reached between the two.
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Activity 10 - How Does Your Culture View Relationships
1. Members of my culture tend to consider parents, step - parents, spouses, siblings, children, and pets part of their families. Anyone that is part of a person's immediate family is usually considered part of a person's family.
2. In the past in our culture, women were usually thought to be the one who stays home to care for the child(ren). However, today this has started to change, women are in the workforce today and caring for their children. The man has always been the one who goes to work and "brings home the bacon". In the past, men were not usually the one who cared for the children. What I think is really cool about the father's role today is that today it is alright for men to stay home and care for the child(ren). The child's role within the family is to go to school. Another role that is reserved for children when they grow into adults is to take care of decisions for their aging parents.
3. Most family members are encouraged to stay in the same area after they have reached adulthood. Our parents enjoy having their children around them because they like having their grandchildren around them and they would ultimately like all of us to have grandchildren.
4. In our culture, to meet people with whom you would like to become romantically involved with young people tend to go out to bars - which I think is somewhat of a taboo - who wants to be with someone who has to be drunk all the time? Young people also meet people at sporting events, through work, at online dating sites, and at school. I think that when it comes to dating, our culture has several norms. The man picks up the woman, they go out to eat followed by some type of activity - most often a movie. Most of the time today, the couple each pays for what they have. I think that a taboo for dating would be to have the man order the woman's dish - women today do not like that.
5. Marriage proposals today are somewhat different than in the past. In the past, the man would absolutely have to have the permission of the woman's father however today that is not need as much although it is still preferred (and considered a romantic gesture). Most of the time today, a woman knows that the proposal is coming and may often go with the man to help pick out her ring. When the man has decided when/where to propose, he will get down on one knee and ask her. Many people like to have an elaborate proposal in front of many people - like at a sporting event. Others, like myself, like to have an intimate proposal with just the man and woman present.
6. Weddings in my culture are very beautiful. The wedding begins with the groom meeting the pastor at the alter. If the mother of the bride is not walking with her daughter down the aisle, she will be escorted at this time by a groomsman. Next the bridesmaids and groomsmen walk down the aisle followed by the ring bearer and flower girl. Next the organ music announces to the congregation that they should stand because the bride will be coming. The bride is escorted down the aisle by her father (and sometimes her mother). The pastor asks "who gives this woman in holy matrimony?" and her father answers "her mother and I do". Then her father gives the hand that he was holding (the bride's right) to the groom. The bride proceeds to hand her bouquet to her maid of honor. Then the pastor begins with "dearly beloved...". During the ceremony, the pastor will ask the bride and groom to say their vows - which can either be original vows that they each wrote or typical vows that come from the church - after which the pastor will ask for the rings - which are supplied by the best man. The pastor will ask the couple to repeat after him and then place the ring on the others ring finger. After they have each done so, the pastor will say "by the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife, you may kiss the bride". The married couple then walks down the aisle. After the wedding there is a reception - which can go all night - and is basically like a party. After this, the couple leaves for their honeymoon.
7. Our culture views divorce as something that happens. Divorce is becoming more and more popular today and because of this, it seems that our culture is becoming more willing to accept it.
8. In the past, if divorce happened, the mother most often received full custody of the children where there fathers could visit them on the weekends. I think that this is still the most popular form of custody worked out among divorced couples with children. Couples who do not have children have different rights, if divorce happens, the entirety of that couple's relationship will be divided up among the court system. If the couple comes to some agreement however, then the divorce proceedings go much smoother. However, each partner has a right to whatever the couple accrued during their time together.
9. I think that our culture is coming to terms more with homosexuality. In the past, we were somewhat like the military - don't ask, don't tell. Now, it seems that people realize that it is a part of them and that they should not feel ashamed to hide it. I also believe that there is a very big problem with homosexuality depending on your religious beliefs. I think that the idea of homosexuality still frightens people because they do not like the idea of one woman with another/one man with another. I think that the generally feeling of our culture now is that we are alright with it, we just do not want to hear about what happens behind closed doors.
10. I think that this culture has very similar views as me on gender roles. Most women where I live have children and are employed, one woman a couple houses down from me is a doctor. I think that gender roles do not seem to have a big affect in my culture.
Questions:
1. What did you find most interesting when examining your culture?
2. Were you surprised by anything when examining your culture?
2. In the past in our culture, women were usually thought to be the one who stays home to care for the child(ren). However, today this has started to change, women are in the workforce today and caring for their children. The man has always been the one who goes to work and "brings home the bacon". In the past, men were not usually the one who cared for the children. What I think is really cool about the father's role today is that today it is alright for men to stay home and care for the child(ren). The child's role within the family is to go to school. Another role that is reserved for children when they grow into adults is to take care of decisions for their aging parents.
3. Most family members are encouraged to stay in the same area after they have reached adulthood. Our parents enjoy having their children around them because they like having their grandchildren around them and they would ultimately like all of us to have grandchildren.
4. In our culture, to meet people with whom you would like to become romantically involved with young people tend to go out to bars - which I think is somewhat of a taboo - who wants to be with someone who has to be drunk all the time? Young people also meet people at sporting events, through work, at online dating sites, and at school. I think that when it comes to dating, our culture has several norms. The man picks up the woman, they go out to eat followed by some type of activity - most often a movie. Most of the time today, the couple each pays for what they have. I think that a taboo for dating would be to have the man order the woman's dish - women today do not like that.
5. Marriage proposals today are somewhat different than in the past. In the past, the man would absolutely have to have the permission of the woman's father however today that is not need as much although it is still preferred (and considered a romantic gesture). Most of the time today, a woman knows that the proposal is coming and may often go with the man to help pick out her ring. When the man has decided when/where to propose, he will get down on one knee and ask her. Many people like to have an elaborate proposal in front of many people - like at a sporting event. Others, like myself, like to have an intimate proposal with just the man and woman present.
6. Weddings in my culture are very beautiful. The wedding begins with the groom meeting the pastor at the alter. If the mother of the bride is not walking with her daughter down the aisle, she will be escorted at this time by a groomsman. Next the bridesmaids and groomsmen walk down the aisle followed by the ring bearer and flower girl. Next the organ music announces to the congregation that they should stand because the bride will be coming. The bride is escorted down the aisle by her father (and sometimes her mother). The pastor asks "who gives this woman in holy matrimony?" and her father answers "her mother and I do". Then her father gives the hand that he was holding (the bride's right) to the groom. The bride proceeds to hand her bouquet to her maid of honor. Then the pastor begins with "dearly beloved...". During the ceremony, the pastor will ask the bride and groom to say their vows - which can either be original vows that they each wrote or typical vows that come from the church - after which the pastor will ask for the rings - which are supplied by the best man. The pastor will ask the couple to repeat after him and then place the ring on the others ring finger. After they have each done so, the pastor will say "by the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife, you may kiss the bride". The married couple then walks down the aisle. After the wedding there is a reception - which can go all night - and is basically like a party. After this, the couple leaves for their honeymoon.
7. Our culture views divorce as something that happens. Divorce is becoming more and more popular today and because of this, it seems that our culture is becoming more willing to accept it.
8. In the past, if divorce happened, the mother most often received full custody of the children where there fathers could visit them on the weekends. I think that this is still the most popular form of custody worked out among divorced couples with children. Couples who do not have children have different rights, if divorce happens, the entirety of that couple's relationship will be divided up among the court system. If the couple comes to some agreement however, then the divorce proceedings go much smoother. However, each partner has a right to whatever the couple accrued during their time together.
9. I think that our culture is coming to terms more with homosexuality. In the past, we were somewhat like the military - don't ask, don't tell. Now, it seems that people realize that it is a part of them and that they should not feel ashamed to hide it. I also believe that there is a very big problem with homosexuality depending on your religious beliefs. I think that the idea of homosexuality still frightens people because they do not like the idea of one woman with another/one man with another. I think that the generally feeling of our culture now is that we are alright with it, we just do not want to hear about what happens behind closed doors.
10. I think that this culture has very similar views as me on gender roles. Most women where I live have children and are employed, one woman a couple houses down from me is a doctor. I think that gender roles do not seem to have a big affect in my culture.
Questions:
1. What did you find most interesting when examining your culture?
2. Were you surprised by anything when examining your culture?
Activity 9 - Television
A show that I usually watch is The Office. The episode that I watched is entitled "the injury". There are several characters on this show because it takes place in the office of the Dunder Mifflin Paper Co. I think that this episode is hilarious because it shows a side of Dwight that the audience is not used to seeing - a normal side. The episode starts out with Michael Scott (the regional manager of Dunder Mifflin) calling in asking Pam (the receptionist) to come pick him up. He has burned his foot on a George Foreman grill and needs someone to drive him into work. Dwight - who longs to be just like Michael - overhears and tells yells that he is coming. On Dwight's way out of the parking lot, he drives into a pole. As it turns out, Dwight has a concussion. We do not find out that Dwight has a concussion until the middle of the episode after Michael brings in Billy (a disabled man) to talk to the office employees about how to react around a disabled person. Michael has brought Billy in because no one will listen to him that he is disabled. It is Billy that tells Jim that he thinks Dwight has a concussion. Once the people in the office realize this, they understand why Dwight has been acting so unusual (what would be considered normal to the rest of us) all day.
This episode of The Office, is trying to teach us that being disabled still means that you are an American. Michael begins his presentation about disabled people by putting up pictures of famous people that are disabled. Everyone of these people we consider an American despite their handicap and Michael is trying to get everyone to see him not his burnt foot (all he really wants is to have some fuss made over him). Throughout the season, Michael also makes reference to the fact that other members of the office must have had a hard life based upon their physical handicaps - Stanley is an African American, Oscar is Mexican, and Kevin is overweight. Michael does not get the big picture most of the time. The Office also shows the American quality of being a successful businessperson. The company tries to sell paper to people and whoever gets the most sales for that year receives a certificate, much like real life. This is a perfect example of what many American companies do - sales. The show shows that Americans are funny and sometimes stupid. In the case of Angela, they can also be judgmental and mean. In The Office, American's hang out with fellow Americans that have similar interests are that they have feelings for. The most notable example of this in the entire show is that of Jim and Pam. From the first episode, Jim has had feelings for Pam (Pam is engaged to Roy - who is a real jerk), Pam does not really realize that Jim has feelings for her, she just thinks that he is a nice guy. This show tells us that Americans live on the East coast. This means any person that is unfamiliar with the United States would believe that any smart, successful, funny person would live on the East Coast. I think that it would also tell people unfamiliar with the United States that when it comes to people with disabilities, that the U.S. is not very sympathetic.
What/if anything did your show teach you about the way we view Americans? Would you agree with that?
Would you agree with what the Office is showing us in this episode, that the United States is unsympathetic to people with disabilities? Why or why not?
This episode of The Office, is trying to teach us that being disabled still means that you are an American. Michael begins his presentation about disabled people by putting up pictures of famous people that are disabled. Everyone of these people we consider an American despite their handicap and Michael is trying to get everyone to see him not his burnt foot (all he really wants is to have some fuss made over him). Throughout the season, Michael also makes reference to the fact that other members of the office must have had a hard life based upon their physical handicaps - Stanley is an African American, Oscar is Mexican, and Kevin is overweight. Michael does not get the big picture most of the time. The Office also shows the American quality of being a successful businessperson. The company tries to sell paper to people and whoever gets the most sales for that year receives a certificate, much like real life. This is a perfect example of what many American companies do - sales. The show shows that Americans are funny and sometimes stupid. In the case of Angela, they can also be judgmental and mean. In The Office, American's hang out with fellow Americans that have similar interests are that they have feelings for. The most notable example of this in the entire show is that of Jim and Pam. From the first episode, Jim has had feelings for Pam (Pam is engaged to Roy - who is a real jerk), Pam does not really realize that Jim has feelings for her, she just thinks that he is a nice guy. This show tells us that Americans live on the East coast. This means any person that is unfamiliar with the United States would believe that any smart, successful, funny person would live on the East Coast. I think that it would also tell people unfamiliar with the United States that when it comes to people with disabilities, that the U.S. is not very sympathetic.
What/if anything did your show teach you about the way we view Americans? Would you agree with that?
Would you agree with what the Office is showing us in this episode, that the United States is unsympathetic to people with disabilities? Why or why not?
Friday, June 4, 2010
Activity 8 - Transition
A transition that I experienced in my life that had a huge affect on my was when my family moved to a new home. My family is not that large - four people - yet we were outgrowing our home. I was ten when my parents told my brother and I that we were moving to a new house. Sometimes children are excited to move to a new home however my brother and I were not, in fact we were scared. Everything that we knew was was right around our home - our school, friends, baby sitters, and the park. Even though I was old enough to understand why we were moving to a new house but I was still not alright with it.
When we moved, my brother and I had a very hard time transitioning once we moved to the new house - my brother a harder time than me. Our new house was a lot bigger than our old house, I felt that it was too big. I spent the first seven months sleeping in a sleeping bag on the floor of my parents room because I was afraid to sleep alone in my own room. After that my brother slept in a sleeping bag on the floor of my room so that neither one of us was alone.
I'm not sure why the transition to our new house was so hard for me. I think that because I had to start a new school and make new friends I was completely out of my element. After this experience I had to learn to become a lot more brave. As a result of this I still have a hard time being in my house by myself. I think that is because it is an old house that makes noise and I am still not completely alright with the house.
Whatever transition you went through have you completely come to grips with the outcome of that transition?
What things helped you get over that transition?
When we moved, my brother and I had a very hard time transitioning once we moved to the new house - my brother a harder time than me. Our new house was a lot bigger than our old house, I felt that it was too big. I spent the first seven months sleeping in a sleeping bag on the floor of my parents room because I was afraid to sleep alone in my own room. After that my brother slept in a sleeping bag on the floor of my room so that neither one of us was alone.
I'm not sure why the transition to our new house was so hard for me. I think that because I had to start a new school and make new friends I was completely out of my element. After this experience I had to learn to become a lot more brave. As a result of this I still have a hard time being in my house by myself. I think that is because it is an old house that makes noise and I am still not completely alright with the house.
Whatever transition you went through have you completely come to grips with the outcome of that transition?
What things helped you get over that transition?
Activity 7 - Nonverbal Activities
I thought this "experiment" was really fun! I've taken Jen's nonverbal class so I kind of thought that our activity would be something like this. I thought that it was going to be really hard to mess with people that I new, but it really was not that hard. Many of the people that I messed with had no idea what I was doing until after I debriefed them. After I told them that it was for a class and that I was not just a weirdo they were a little bit more understanding.
I started by doing the "Back Me Up" activity. I really thought that I could do this to several people to get the response I wanted. I ended up doing this activity at work. with my boss. I thought that it would be really funny to do this with my boss because I knew that he would have no idea what I was doing - so he would be the perfect person. That's what I thought, but he was actually not the perfect person. When we were having a conversation at work, I turned myself so that his back was to the wall. Then I proceeded to inch closer to him while we were talking. Every time I moved closer, he moved back toward the wall. I did not have to move to many times before he gave me a look - a look that was asking me "what the heck are you doing?" Once he gave me this look, I had to tell him what I was doing. After I told him this, he understood and thought that it was funny.
I did the first eye contact activity first. My cousin is visiting my family this week so he knows that I am not weird. When we started our conversation, I began using eye contact in a completely normal way. I thought I was, but I am a person who naturally uses eye contact a lot. At first he did not even notice that I was doing this but after a while he started to try and avoid my gaze. I kept moving so that he would continue to notice that I was trying to keep eye contact with him. Soon, he started to look at me as if I was doing something wrong. I had to debrief him then and tell him that I was doing this for school. He did not find it as weird then.
The last activity I also did while I was at work with one of my guy friends because I wanted to see if a guy would pay attention to something like this. When the conversation began, I used eye contact. I quickly started looking around and at the floor so that I was not looking at him. I was surprised at how quickly he caught on that I was not keeping eye contact. It did not even take him two minutes. He wanted to know what I was doing because as I said before I usually keep eye contact with the person with whom I am talking to. First he asked me if I was feeling alright. I told him I was and he then proceeded to ask me if why I was avoiding him. I had to debrief him after that because I knew he was confused.
I thought these activities were really interesting because people really had know idea what I was doing. I thought it was fun to see their reactions before I explained what I was doing and also fun to see their reactions after I explained.
What was the outcome of your "experiments?
Did you find that people were alright with the activities that you were doing to them.
How did they react after you debriefed them?
I started by doing the "Back Me Up" activity. I really thought that I could do this to several people to get the response I wanted. I ended up doing this activity at work. with my boss. I thought that it would be really funny to do this with my boss because I knew that he would have no idea what I was doing - so he would be the perfect person. That's what I thought, but he was actually not the perfect person. When we were having a conversation at work, I turned myself so that his back was to the wall. Then I proceeded to inch closer to him while we were talking. Every time I moved closer, he moved back toward the wall. I did not have to move to many times before he gave me a look - a look that was asking me "what the heck are you doing?" Once he gave me this look, I had to tell him what I was doing. After I told him this, he understood and thought that it was funny.
I did the first eye contact activity first. My cousin is visiting my family this week so he knows that I am not weird. When we started our conversation, I began using eye contact in a completely normal way. I thought I was, but I am a person who naturally uses eye contact a lot. At first he did not even notice that I was doing this but after a while he started to try and avoid my gaze. I kept moving so that he would continue to notice that I was trying to keep eye contact with him. Soon, he started to look at me as if I was doing something wrong. I had to debrief him then and tell him that I was doing this for school. He did not find it as weird then.
The last activity I also did while I was at work with one of my guy friends because I wanted to see if a guy would pay attention to something like this. When the conversation began, I used eye contact. I quickly started looking around and at the floor so that I was not looking at him. I was surprised at how quickly he caught on that I was not keeping eye contact. It did not even take him two minutes. He wanted to know what I was doing because as I said before I usually keep eye contact with the person with whom I am talking to. First he asked me if I was feeling alright. I told him I was and he then proceeded to ask me if why I was avoiding him. I had to debrief him after that because I knew he was confused.
I thought these activities were really interesting because people really had know idea what I was doing. I thought it was fun to see their reactions before I explained what I was doing and also fun to see their reactions after I explained.
What was the outcome of your "experiments?
Did you find that people were alright with the activities that you were doing to them.
How did they react after you debriefed them?
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