I found this assignment to be a lot harder than i expected, it was really difficult to converse with my brother since i was not able to speak. I was using hand gestures and grunting noises just agreeing or disagreeing with what we were talking about. it kind 0f helped that my brother knew from the get go that he would have to do all the talking. i would use body movement to communicate with him by either shrugging or nodding my head. Just by him asking me all the questions it was made a lot easier for us to talk, it wasn't so complex just more of him asking me simple questions where it didn't require me to do much but just say yes or no by my body movement and head movement. My brother was definitely in control of the conversation.
i would definitely say that the culture who uses symbolic language would have an advantage over a primitive culture that did not have a symbolic language. Just as i talked about my brother having a difficult time trying to communicate with me, since i didn't really have much i could say with only noises and body movement. i would have to say sign language in general because even tho it is still considered to be a symbolic language it would still be hard to try and communicate with someone who was deaf or hearing impaired. just by the fact that if you don't know sign language how will you get through to that person? with that person knowing they would probably try and figure out a different alternative to try and communicate with that person. luckily for me i am bilingual and know sign language because of my cousin who is deaf i think i would have a harder time trying to communicate with someone who spoke a different language other than the ones i already know.
Part II
yes i definitely couldn't last 15 minutes only using symbolic language just by the fact that i couldn't change my tone of voice depending on what mood i was in whether i was happy, sad, angry. i felt like a zombie just dead or a machine either or. it felt weird talking and not being able to use my hands or make any facial expressions. i think after a certain period my partner began talking the same way as i was without even realizing it since i figured it was because of the tone i was using i didn't raise my voice nor did i whisper i think they thought i was trying to have a serious conversation by it.
All in all i think this experiment has shown how important it is to communicate with hand gesture facial expression tone of voice. these all kind of set the mood on what kind of conversation you want to have either a serious one, a sad one, a meaningful one. i think by that alone it makes you sound more convincing. You really don't realize how much you use it until you can no longer use it anymore. I think body language is the most important part in communication you can tell a lot by body language their facial expression or way they stand tell you a lot of what mood they are in. so if a blind person where to try and talk with you they would probably end up taking what you say the wrong way since they can't see you.
Very good discussion and description of Part A. Yes, a situation where a deaf person is trying to communicate with those who speak is a good example of this situation. How do those who speak tend to treat or speak to those who don't speak in a "normal" pattern?
ReplyDeleteIt is interesting that you partner started speaking in a monotone in Part B, but how else did he respond? Did he have trouble understanding you? Show frustration? Boredom? The partner's response to this part of the experiment is usually the most enlightening part and tells you a lot of how important body language is to communication. This could have been explored further.
Yes, non-spoken language contributes meaning and clarification, but it also allows people to verify what you are saying, kind of like a lie-detector. If your body language doesn't match the words you are saying, this tells the person that you aren't telling the truth and perhaps can't be trusted. Why would this be beneficial in an adaptive sense?
Yes, a blind person would have difficulty reading body language, though they can read vocal intonation. Those in the autism spectrum also have difficulty.
Can you think of a situation where it would be better to ignore body language? When might body language mislead you? Do all cultures use the same system of body language?
yes my partner was having hard time trying to figure out why i was speaking that way she kept asking me what was wrong and i simply said nothing in the same voice and got a little frustrated because she thought i was bothered by something. until she eventually gave in and just started speaking the same as me i guess?
ReplyDeletei don't know of a situation where i could ignore body language? maybe through the phone or text messages? even on this blog post? not sure really.. i think all cultures use the same system of body language
Thank you for the response,
ReplyDeleteOh, no, all cultures do NOT use the same system of body language. Just like languages and cultural practices differ across cultures, so does body language. This is likely the partial source of the "ugly American" syndrome, with American tourists not only offending with their own unique body language but misinterpreting the native body language and reacting negatively as a result.