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Marlee Neumann - How can people from different cultures get along?

     People from different cultures can get along by using an empathetic approach. As stated in the textbook Intercultural Communication in Contexts, “...To achieve empathy across cultural boundaries, people must forge strong relationships and strive for the creation of shared meaning in their interpersonal encounters,” (7th ed, Martin & Nakayama, 485). The text also describes empathy as the ability to “walk in another person’s shoes,” (484). When someone from one culture imagines a day in the life of someone from another, they reach an emotional understanding with them which in turn helps them get along with each other.

     In the 2010 documentary film My So-Called Enemy (https://mysocalledenemy.com/), a group of young Israeli and Palestinian women enter a program to live together for 10 days. Because of the conflict between their cultures, some of the girls do not initially get along. For example, Gal (Israeli) and Hanin (Palestinian Israeli) could not find common ground on their opposing views; this led to anger and frustration between the two. During their first discussion Hanin says to Gal, “I think there’s a lot of empty places in the world, you could live there.” This comment upsets Gal, as Israel is where her home and family is. The conversation then escalates as they go back and forth without actually listening to each other.

     Gal tries to make Hanin see that she did not cause the conflict herself and that she strives to create peace between Israelis and Palestinians. Hanin is set in her beliefs that Israelis are collectively to blame for the conflict and that they should face consequences. If they each used the opportunity to feel empathy toward each other’s situations, there is a better chance they could have gotten along. If Gal was able to really see the daily struggles that Hanin faced as a Palestinian, and if Hanin was able to see that Gal was a loving girl like herself, they could see each other in a better light. They could have gotten to know each other better during the program or possibly visited one another when they returned home to physically witness their daily lives; this would be “walking in each other’s shoes.” Taking an empathetic approach can help people see those from different cultures in a more humane way and help them get along.

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Marlee Neumann - Why do people from different cultures misunderstand each other?

     People from different cultures tend to misunderstand each other when they move to a different country but refrain from adapting to the culture they moved into. It is common for anyone to practice the culture they were born into throughout their lives, however if they resist the new culture they become a part of, they will often misunderstand the people of that culture. For example, in Joan Mandell’s documentary film Tales from Arab Detroit, one Arab man struggles to understand his teenage daughter who was raised in America. His daughter is proud of being Arab, but lives like an American teenager, going to high school football games and hanging out with friends.

     In the film, the man states that he does not want his daughter to become a “7-Eleven girl,” describing them as young Arab-American girls who hang out in 7-Eleven parking lots. His daughter insisted that she was not a “7-Eleven girl,” and felt like she had to prove herself to be a nice girl to her father. The textbook Intercultural Communications in Contexts describes some challenges of intercultural relationships. “...Stereotypes are a way of categorizing and processing information but are detrimental when they are negative and held rigidly” (Martin & Nakayama, 399). Stereotyping is a way for this Arab man to categorize the young Arabs growing up in America, but this leads to misunderstanding between him and people like his daughter.

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Marlee Neumann - Why do people from different cultures misunderstand each other?

     People from different cultures tend to misunderstand each other because of the different communication styles and cultural norms that they are used to. These different aspects of culture can be categorized as individualism or collectivism. The textbook Intercultural Communication in Contexts states, “For example, people who value individualism tend also to favor direct forms of communication and to support overt forms of conflict resolution. People in collectivistic societies may employ less direct communication and more avoidance-style conflict resolution,” (Martin and Nakayama, 100). These different ways of communicating can create a barrier between people of different cultures that leads to misunderstanding.

     Further, because of its individualistic society, people who work in the U.S. are not expected to change work habits because of family situations. This is something that people from collectivistic societies, who are able to prioritize family over work, have a hard time understanding. In a 2018 article titled 11 American Work Habits People in Other Countries Avoid at All Costs, Mark Abadi discusses how work environments in the U.S. differs from other countries. One example is the lack of paid leave for new parents in the U.S. compared to Finland where both mothers and fathers are guaranteed several weeks of paid leave. The collectivistic style of Finland normalizes a balance between family and work life, something that America does not always normalize, which creates a misunderstanding between the two cultures.

https://www.businessinsider.com/unhealthy-american-work-habits-2017-11

Martin, Judith N., and Thomas K. Nakayama. Intercultural Communication in Contexts. 7th ed., page 100

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How does identity play a role in how people organize around a cause? - Marlee Neumann

     In the photograph above, a woman is speaking to a crowd of protesters in Sudan who are fighting for “the women’s revolution” that is currently happening there. They are protesting childhood marriage (which is currently legal in Sudan) and the strict government regulations placed on Sudanese women based on how they dress and appear in public. But the fight is not easy; because of their identity, they face great risks when organizing their protests.

     According to an article from the Global Fund for Women website, Sudanese women who protest for their rights face rape, sexual violence, and even death from the military. “Many women said they would rather die in the streets than go home to more repression...” said one women’s rights activist. The cultural identity of these women affects how they are able to organize for their cause, as opposed to other cultures. For example, women who protest for their rights in America may face hateful comments or threats but not typically violence or death, making it (probably) more accessible to protest compared to women in Sudan.

     The Intercultural Communication in Contexts textbook states, “As culture changes, so does the notion of what we idealize as masculine or feminine” (Martin, 184). Although the current identity of Sudanese women makes it difficult for them to organize for their cause, if they persist, they could potentially change the way they are perceived in their culture.

https://www.globalfundforwomen.org/sudan-womens-revolution-fighting-for-freedom/

Martin, Judith. “Chapter 5: Identity and Intercultural Communication.” Intercultural Communication in Contexts, 7th ed., p. 184.

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Identity Map: Marlee Neumann

1. Film

Film is my main passion in life. I love to watch movies, write about them, study the history of film, and idolize those in the industry. I hope to pursue a career in the film industry myself some day, I just don’t know what exactly yet.

2. Advocate for Equality

I find it important to stay educated on the social injustices of the world and advocate for equality. This includes fighting for women’s rights, black lives, the LGBTQ+ community, and so much more. I believe in speaking out rather than staying silent about these issues, even when they do not directly affect me.

3. Large Family

I live with 9 other people, and that does not even cover all of my family members. We are all close and I prioritize spending time with them.