Response Paper Intercultural communication
Response Paper 1
Living in the United States, we are exposed to so many cultures. I have thought that I learn a lot about culture in this country. However, when discussing the concept of culture in class, I realize how little I actually know about it. Importantly, I have a similar response to some other students about culture, which is “I don’t have a culture”. Until I have read the first chapter of the book Intercultural Communication: Globalization and Social Justice by Kathryn Sorrell, I began to think more deeply about this concept, about my cultural identity and positionality. My view about culture became broaden when I learned about the definition of culture which is a site of shared meaning, of contested meaning, and a resource. To me, intercultural communication is a process of exploring one’s culture among different groups. Because through interaction with others from different culture, we can see the differences between our own cultural values, norms, rituals, practices, language and others’. These values, norms, rituals, practices act as national characters of a country that one comes from. Especially in this era of globalization, people do not settle at one place, they travel to different countries for business and other reasons. They bring their culture with them. I believe that with the study of intercultural communication, we can have better understanding about the difference among cultures, learn how to take advantage of the role of culture and make the world a better place to live. (Sorrells 9)
When reading the section “studying intercultural communication”, I become more aware of my cultural identity, especially my positionality. The definition of cultural identity in the book which is “our situated sense of self that is shaped by our cultural experiences and social locations”, reminds me of the differences between my own culture and those of the dominant group, American culture (Sorrell 10). When I reflect on myself, I find that my life is
Living in the United States, we are exposed to so many cultures. I have thought that I learn a lot about culture in this country. However, when discussing the concept of culture in class, I realize how little I actually know about it. Importantly, I have a similar response to some other students about culture, which is “I don’t have a culture”. Until I have read the first chapter of the book Intercultural Communication: Globalization and Social Justice by Kathryn Sorrell, I began to think more deeply about this concept, about my cultural identity and positionality. My view about culture became broaden when I learned about the definition of culture which is a site of shared meaning, of contested meaning, and a resource. To me, intercultural communication is a process of exploring one’s culture among different groups. Because through interaction with others from different culture, we can see the differences between our own cultural values, norms, rituals, practices, language and others’. These values, norms, rituals, practices act as national characters of a country that one comes from. Especially in this era of globalization, people do not settle at one place, they travel to different countries for business and other reasons. They bring their culture with them. I believe that with the study of intercultural communication, we can have better understanding about the difference among cultures, learn how to take advantage of the role of culture and make the world a better place to live. (Sorrells 9)
When reading the section “studying intercultural communication”, I become more aware of my cultural identity, especially my positionality. The definition of cultural identity in the book which is “our situated sense of self that is shaped by our cultural experiences and social locations”, reminds me of the differences between my own culture and those of the dominant group, American culture (Sorrell 10). When I reflect on myself, I find that my life is