Historical
Examination
Donna
Crawford
COM-40164
November
7, 2012
1. Why would it be important to examine the role
of history in Intercultural Communication?
Our culture is strongly influenced by the history that we
know and our feelings about that history (Martin & Nakayama, 2011). The
various histories that involve politics, intellect, social settings, families, nationality,
and cultural groups intertwine with our various identities based on gender, sexual
orientation, ethnicity, race, and so on (Martin & Nakayama, 2008). Our history
helps us understand who we are and why others interact with us as they do as well
as our perception of others. Examining the role of history in Intercultural Communication
(IC) gives us an understanding of others, which can help break down communication
barriers. What one culture feels is an important part of their history and identity,
we may not be aware of or we may have a completely different idea about it. By examining
the role of history in IC, we can become more sensitive, empathetic, and understanding
of each others’ differences.
A personal experience in which relates to the importance of
understanding the history of certain identities is one from my former marriage.
My former mother-in-law and her mother (Grandma) are African American. Grandma
was a servant to a White man in Virginia. She was raped and became pregnant from
him and my mother-in-law was a product of this atrocity. She was resistant to accepting
me (a White woman) into her family because of the racial problems we might face.
I made the ignorant statement of how interracial couples and children are accepted
in today’s society and she should get over the past. I was not aware of her history
at the time of this statement. Once I understood her family history, I was able
to understand her resistance along with other feelings towards “the White man”.
2. What are hidden histories and how might hidden
histories affect intercultural interactions?
Cultural group histories are histories of cultural groups
within a nation that has its own history. Even though many of these histories are
hidden, they help us understand the identity of the group (Martin & Nakayama,
2011). Hidden histories are not typically included in our national history. Examples
of hidden histories provided by Martin and Nakayama (2011) include “…the expulsion
in the 1750s of many French-speaking Acadians from eastern Canada and their migration
to Louisiana and the forced removal in 1838 of the Cherokees from their former
nation to settlements in the state of Oklahoma, which resulted in the death of one-fifth
of the Cherokee population…(pg. 72).” Another hidden history was the genocide
in Rwanda between the Tutsi tribe and the Hutu, which happened between two cultures
in South Africa. This was one of the bloodiest episodes in modern African history
where “…the colonial overlords had sought to maintain their European hegemony by
favoring the main ethnic group, the Tutsi, over the other, the Hutu…(Loeb, 2004.
pg. 391)”. These are intercultural histories
that were not taught in our U.S. history classes as part of our “grand narrative”.
The ignorance of such group histories causes misunderstanding and difficulty in
intercultural communication.
In my opinion, every cultural group and family has hidden
history. The more we examine and listen to these histories the better equipped we
are to understanding why people feel how they feel and how their communication may
differ from our own. This allows us to determine what options of communication
styles will be more effective when interacting with different cultural groups and
individuals.
3. Compare and contrast family histories with national
histories.
Many different kinds of history influences our views of
and knowledge about the past, including our family histories and national histories
(Martin & Nakayama, 2011). Both of these histories help us understand why our
families live where they do and why we live and communicate in the ways we do. Family
histories and national history overlap and influence one another.
Family histories occur on a more personal level and are passed
along orally from one generation to the next (Martin & Nakayama, 2011). Many
people want to know what their ancestors experienced and what events they participated
in. Many of their family histories are deeply intertwined with ethnic and religious
histories.
Nation history consists of the learning about a nation’s great
events and figures. This gives us a shared notion of who we are, even if we do
not personally fit into the national narrative (Martin & Nakayama, 2011). We
are expected to know the particular telling of U.S. history in order to understand
the many references used in communication (Martin & Nakayama, 2011). The same
is true for other nations who have their own national narrative. For example; if
I were to study French, it would be important for me to learn about French history
to comprehend what it means to be French and how the French interact with other
nations.
4.
How is the history of gays and lesbians
relevant to intercultural communication?
As Martin and Nakayama (2011) state, “…Interest in the history
of sexuality is a fairly recent phenomenon that is beginning to challenge the ways
that we think about the past (pg. 77)”. Sexual orientation histories are often
overlooked, silenced, or ignored, which causes us to begin at zero in each
generation in the understanding of the histories of gays and lesbians. An example
of this is how many of us are not aware of the stories of the treatment of gays
and lesbians during World War II, which promoted a common history and influenced
intercultural communication among gays and lesbians in France, Germany, the Netherlands,
and other nations (Martin & Nakayama, 2011). Many of us are not aware of
how the gays and lesbians were victims of the Nazi Holocaust.
In regards to intercultural communication, it is important
to learn cultural identifiers for gays and lesbians as a way to avoid heterosexism
(DeVito, 2008). DeVito (2008) presents findings from the Task Force on Bias-Free
Language of the Association of American University Presses that help us identify
the preferred terms for gays and lesbians that have developed through their histories.
In this study, “…Homosexual refers to
both gay men and lesbians, but more often merely denotes a sexual; orientation
to members of a person’s own sex…(DeVito, 2008. Pg. 114)”. In order to effectively
communicate with these cultures, it is important to know the preferred cultural
identifiers, which include being aware of how 58 percent of homosexual women prefer
the term lesbian, but 34 percent prefer
gay, and gay is the preferred term to refer to a man who has an affectional preference
for other men (DeVito, 2008). It is also important to realize that gay and lesbian refer to a lifestyle and not simply to sexual orientations.
This lifestyle is a culture for gays and lesbians and has differences that are
relevant to intercultural communication.
5. How can we negotiate histories in interactions?
In order to negotiate histories in interactions it is important
to recognize your identities, such as a member of a racial or ethnic group, a
nationality, a socioeconomic class, etc. and to realize that these identities
have different meanings for other people (Martin & Nakayama, 2008). It is
important to recognize that communication includes people from different histories
(some known, some hidden) and that their histories play a role in their identities.
Thill and Bovee (2009) offer some suggestions on how to negotiate
histories in interactions by avoiding the negativity of ethnocentrism and the oversimplification
of stereotyping. One of the suggestions is to avoid assumptions. It is important
that you don’t assume others have the same values and beliefs as you and that
others will act the same way you do (Thill & Bovee, 2009). Another suggestion
is to avoid judgments. When people act differently, don’t conclude that their
way is invalid or inferior. The third suggestion is to acknowledge distinctions.
“Don’t ignore the differences between another person’s culture and your own (Thill
& Bovee, 2009. pg. 75)”. The goal is to accept multiple cultures on their own
terms in the form of cultural pluralism (Thill & Bovee, 2009).
References
DeVito, J. A. (2008). Messages: Building interpersonal
communication skills. (6th ed).
Boston, MA.: Allyn and Bacon.
Loeb, P. (2004). The impossible
will take a little while: A citizen’s guide to hope in a time of fear.
New York, NY.: Basic Books.
Martin, J. Nakayama, T. (2011). Experiencing intercultural communication: An introduction. (4th
ed).
New
York, NY.: McGraw-Hill.
Thill, J., Bovee, C. (2009). Excellence in business communication. (8th ed.). Upper Saddle
River, NJ.:
Prentice
Hall.
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