When I was asked to write about an instance of intercultural communication in a movie, Arrival was not the first thing that came to mind. However, once I had thought about it, I could not get it out of my head, and I knew I had to write about it. The reason behind my determination was that though the parties involved in the conflict are unusual—humans versus extraterrestrial beings—, Arrival still addresses very important issues that could arise during any intercultural communication. This paper will look at the reasons behind this conflict, namely our fear of the unknown, and our tendency to rely on stereotypes and to reflect our negative traits onto the other side. While doing so, it will also briefly touch upon the communicational issues within the human community, caused by the different frameworks through which they look …show more content…
More importantly, though, it is a movie that remarks on communicational issues, conflict escalation, and resolution. There are many causes behind the communicational problems that arise in Arrival. One of these causes is humanity’s fear of the unknown—humans in Arrival fear the extraterrestrials because their motives are unknown. Another one is humans’ tendency to rely on stereotypes and project their own negative traits onto the aliens. As a result of this, they believe the Heptapod’s are hostile, and they turn hostile themselves. These issues escalate the conflict into an unwarranted war waged on the aliens. The movie goes on to show how this conflict is solved, and all it takes is a person to take on the role of a bridge between the two cultures and approach the other side with an open mind. Despite being a movie about an interaction between unlikely sides, Arrival has an important message to deliver about any intercultural communication for those who are willing to hear it: Do not let your fears dictate your actions, keep away from preconceived ideas, and keep an open
Tension and miscommunication often arise between those who speak different languages and those from different cultures. Surprisingly, the film Arrival displays an effective form of communication despite a language barrier and explores the significance and power of language in constructing reality through determining the intentions of an alien race. Twelve alien pods locate themselves in twelve different parts around the world leaving each country to take separate approaches in figuring out the aliens’ purpose on Earth. Although there were many different approaches and progressions in communicating with the seven-legged aliens, called heptapods, the question of why Louise Banks, the linguist, was the only successful person in understanding the
Hidden Figures is a film that tells the story of three African American women who played essential roles at NASA during the 1960s. Katherine, the main character, is a scientist at NASA working to do the math required to launch a rocket into space. She struggles because as an African American woman trying to get people to give her the respect she deserves. Many scenes show the hardships that she had to go through in order through a normal day. This essay will be exploring three main communication concepts found in the film:
In Star Trek’s episode, “Balance of Terror”, there are differing ideals and points of view in action for two opposing sides in an epic cat-and-mouse chase in space. The members of the USS Enterprise, who are from Earth, become aware and learn of an enemy alien ship that is destroying their outposts. The reactions of the members of the USS Enterprise exemplify a combination of theories including the ideas of both realism and liberalism. The opposing enemy that the members of the USS Enterprise came into contact with engaged in ideals and actions that most predominantly reflect those of realism. In addition, in order to understand the connections of the theories mentioned previously to the actions taken by the characters in the film, one must be aware of and fully understand the
Intercultural communication is “interaction between people whose cultural perceptions and symbol systems differ enough to influence the communication event” (Baran Beauchamp 188). When communicating across cultural lines there can be obstacles that hinder our ability to make meaning. The obstacles that effected the effective intercultural communication in this clip was stereotyping. Stereotypes serve as filters, it is a mechanism we use to sort through all the information we receive to keep what we need and throw away what we do not. For instance, if you believe that Mexicans are hard workers and you have a white man and a Mexican applying for the same position each with the same credentials, you are more likely to choose the Mexican applicant because of your generalization.
I decided to switch my artifact for the research paper from John Erick Dowdle’s No Escape (2015) to Francis Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now (1979) because I think this film is more suitable for what I want to research, which is how and why the media actively shapes Americans’ perception of historical events. I am also especially interested in the role Orientalism plays in this process. Unlike No Escape, Apocalypse Now has a lot more historical significance because it came out a few years after the Vietnam War (1955-1975) and is considered one of the most famous films about the Vietnam War. In addition to that, there is more room for debate about the significance of the film and its portrayal of Southeastern Asians.
The arrival of that which is different spurs on violence. Xenophobia exposes the intolerance that humans have for others. The space ship symbolises the arrival of others from a different planet and not a
Knowing how to interact with people of other cultures has become an increasingly important issue as international communication and travel becomes more common. With more interactions between cultures, cultural misunderstandings become more common. The satirical book Fear and Trembling by Amélie Nothomb attempts to address this issue, pointing out what people often do wrong. Fear and Trembling is a story which follows Amélie, a young Belgian woman who goes to work for a Japanese company and struggles to fit in, committing many cultural faux pas along the way. Nothomb uses contrasting sentence structure between Amélie 's thoughts and her dialogue and actions to demonstrate the way that Westerners often ignore other cultures despite knowing better because they view themselves as more important.
To further explain the film portrays racism through the aliens. This is demonstrated in the beginning of the film when the audience is introduced to the word “prawn” which is revealed to be a term that
‘A Time to Kill’ is a movie that depicts the racial tensions between the white and black Americans in the past. The movie revolves around the life of Jake Brigance, a lawyer, and Carl Lee Hailey, as he struggles with the law and racism after seeking justice for his raped 10-year old daughter. As Carl Lee approaches Brigance for help with his case, they both face the challenge of blurring the lines between the white and black Americans and helping Carl Lee escape the long arms of the law. In the movie, racism, negligence of one side of the story, and objectivity are applied.
“Learning about stereotypes, ethnocentrism, discrimination, and acculturation in the abstract can be flat and uninspiring. But if we experience intercultural contact with our own eyes and ears, we begin to understand it” (Summerfield, 1993). In other words, in order to expand knowledge about different cultural backgrounds, it is useful to have firsthand experiences. Films are enormous cultural treasures for us to have visual and auditory experiences and facilitate intercultural learning. “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” (2002) is a ideal film to obtain knowledge of a lot in term of intercultural communication, in particularly, individualism/collectivism, communication style and power distance.
“Avatar,” a rich, suspenseful, marvellous three hour film encompasses an enticing story comprised of many key concepts from within our textbook. Through this film analysis of the film “Avatar,” one can inform themselves about the many key concepts within our textbook and how they correlate with the film; these key concepts discussed within this film analysis and demonstrated throughout the film include: self-disclosure, managing emotions, cultural differences in relationships, family rituals, and interpersonal conflict. Through this film, it was revealed that one can create an interpersonal relationship by following the key concepts of communication found within our textbook, regardless of vast cultural differences. After the homicide of his brother, Jake Sully, a paraplegic war veteran and ex-Marine was appointed the position of fulfilling his brother’s pivotal role in
The film, Crash, emphasizes the differences of cultures and classes. It focuses on the reality that we are all individuals and that adaptation of the human condition is hopeless. That the need to compete and the desire to win are more important than the justification for human decency. The tension of social and racial tension throughout this film I believe widens the chasm of discussion. I believe this because this film can be interpreted differently by individuals.
China and The United States are the two most powerful countries in the world where people dream of coming to seek for opportunity. However, it will be a very different experience when you involve in the cultures of these two countries. One fundamental principle that you need to bear in mind is that: American and Chinese cultures are polar opposites. The film named Rush Hour (1998) is one striking example that reflects different practices, point of view, thoughts, and ways of communication. Also, it is an inspiring and thought-provoking film that helps to develop intercultural communication and experience.
Anthropologist Edward T. Hall’s theory of high- and low-context culture helps us better understand the powerful effect culture has on communication. A key factor in his theory is context. This relates to the framework, background, and surrounding circumstances in which communication or an event takes place. The following highlights the problems facing low-context Americans when they interact with people from high-context cultures such as Japan in the movie ‘The Last Samurai’.
Cultural identity plays a very vital role in cross cultural communication, people from a particular culture communicate with partners and employees from many different cultures and in this situation every individual strives to keep their cultural and individual identity. According to Gardiner and Kosmitzki, identity is defined as “a person 's self-definition as a separate and distinct individual, including behaviours, beliefs, and attitudes” (Gardiner & Kosmitzki, 2008, p. 154). Also, Ting-Toomey defines identity as a "reflective self-conception or self-image that we each derive from our family, gender, cultural, ethnic, and individual socialization process"( Ting-Toomey, 2005). Both definitions bring out the generalisation of cultural identity