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Cross-Cultural Communication   Term Paper ID:27120 Click to get this paper

Essay Subject: Compares & contrasts the characteristics of communication in the Mexican-American community of the 1940s & the current African-American community.... More...

7 Pages / 1575 Words 2 sources, 5 Citations, APA Format $28.00 Return to List of Papers

Paper Abstract: Compares & contrasts the characteristics of communication in the Mexican-American community of the 1940s & the current African-American community. Paper Introduction: Cross-cultural Communication Introduction One of the interesting things about the United States is that there are so many opportunities to engage in cross-cultural communication within the country itself. The United States is less homogenous than most societies. There are a number of speech communities within its borders. This creates multiple problems, and multiple opportunities. The intent in this paper is to look at two ethnographic explorations of disparate speech communities; one, the Mexican-American community of the late 1940s and one the modern African-American speech community. It also must be understood that there are variations within these communities, too. Nonetheless, it Text of the Paper: The entire text of the paper is shown below. However, the text is somewhat scrambled. We want to give you as much information as we possibly can about our papers and essays, but we cannot give them away for free. In the text below you will find that while disordered, many of the phrases are essentially intact. From this text you will be able to get a solid sense of the writing style, the concepts addressed, and the sources used in the research paper. Again, Weber traced that back toAfrican styles and to the common experience of black with slavery anddiscrimination.Both Communities Both communities are shaped by the experience of isolation,segregation, discrimination, and separation from original speechcommunities. In general, that is the process that has been followed inAmerican society. That individual may have little interest in engaging with someone speakingnon-standard black English which would have no value for gaining socialprestige or improving mobility. For example, the individualoriented to gaining mobility in the Anglo community may wish to speak thebest, most proper, mainstream English in their interpersonal encounters.This is seen as a means of gaining social prestige and moving upward in theMexican-American community (or moving out into the Anglo community itself). Finally, Weber indicated, proverbial sayingsare the last important style in secular African-American communication. There aredifferences in the words used, the accenting or rhythms, and the emphasison imaginative and vivid language. (1994). Value could be placed onbeing able to communicate within black English, or Mexican-Americandialects or Spanglish, or in other forms of speech that add to theindividual's experience of reality. If individuals remain antagonisticand see no benefit in communicating with, or learning from, each other,they are likely to remain isolated and alienated. Within thoseneighborhoods, there is also competition between black and mainstreamculture, which can be seen as represented by the different speech patterns. This speech community was shapingfor individuals who would be in their 5 s and older at this time. The assumption has been that if all people learnstandard English that helps to bind the community as a whole. The need to be: The socio-cultural significanceof black language. Nonetheless, it might be helpful to look at some of the characteristics ofcommunication within these communities and consider some of the problemspeople within the communities might have in communicating with each other.A Mexican-American Community George Barker's focus was Tucson, Arizona in the mid-194 s. (1972). Another potential for enrichingcommunication is to encourage people to learn multiple languages, ratherthan just the language of their speech community. That individual might also judge thespeaker of black English as being socially inferior and undesirable.Opportunities The different speech styles serve their purpose. The United States is less homogenous than mostsocieties. Samovar and R.E. The acculturation process, in someinstances, had been virtually completed, while in other cases, individualshad just arrived from Mexico. Barker noted that both physical and cultural segregationcharacterized the Mexican and Mexican-American populations in Tucson. The more sacred styles of speech also use black English. This is certainly similar to the modern African-American community.In most cities, there is a high degree of physical separation between whiteand black communities, even though they mingle in many common areas.Nonetheless, neighborhoods tend to be segregated. Onthe other hand, the dozens is a secular style in which the participantsexchange verbal insults, probably related to talking trash, as inbasketball and other sports. What might be helpful in thinking about cross-cultural communicationand some of its exigencies is to imagine a Mexican-American man or woman intheir 6 s attempting to communicate with an African-American man or womanin their 2 s. Social functions of language in a Mexican-American community. Nonetheless, henoted that age-grade and social experience had an influence on culturalorientation and linguistic usage. NY: Wadsworth Publishers. In order to explain that difference, Barker theorized that linguisticdifference accorded with differences in cultural orientation. Is that the appropriate, or most useful,way to proceed? There are a number of speech communities within its borders.This creates multiple problems, and multiple opportunities. They are likely toremain solidly within their own speech communities, unwilling to attempt tobridge the gap between them. Barker lived right in the middle of thebarrio in the Spanish-speaking community, using three different kinds oflanguage (1) standard Mexican Spanish, (2) the Sonoran dialect, and (3) thesouthern Arizona dialect. This also, of course, adds generational differences (andcould include gender and class differences), but those are not the focus ofthis analysis. In both communities, social mobility and social prestige in the widercommunity is gained through use of standard English. Barkerchose that city because it had a large group of Mexican-Americans who wereassimilated to varying degrees. For example, with anolder Mexican-American man oriented toward Mexico, receiving his prestigefrom the Mexican-American community and with little interest in the cultureof the United States and a younger African-American woman used to rappingand the dozens as common parlance in street talk, there seems to be littlecommonality in speech community, even if both speak English. What are other possibilities? How could they bridge the gap between them without having to resort tomainstream or standard English? Again, the focus is on creativity and playingto an audience of some sort. There are also specific styles in black English. Weber talked about some of the characteristics of black Englishnoting, among other things, that it tends to be centered by imaginative andvivid speech. What are the opportunities here? Tucson, AZ: The University of Arizona Press. The valuing in black English of theuse of language could be extended to incorporating other dialects intoone's speech, or capacity for speech. This is different from the Mexican-American community which only seems to offer social prestige through totalcultural orientation, rather than speech.Contrasts in Styles In some instances, there may be almost no desire to communicate, andvery little common ground from which to communicate. His field experience was extensive andexhaustive, providing a good look at the speech community of that time,with all its variations (Barker, 1972). Running it down, Weber noted,is a form of rapping that involves minute description of a situation. References Barker, G.C. She indicated that black English does not represent failureor pathology in African-American culture, but a unique experience and agift of imaginative language that could be appreciated by the largerculture. There also appears to be a generationalcomponent, although that is not Barker's focus either. In L.A. The continued use of Spanish, orbilingual speech communities also serve to bind the community together andcreates a sense of pride in the individuals. Cross-cultural CommunicationIntroduction One of the interesting things about the United States is that thereare so many opportunities to engage in cross-cultural communication withinthe country itself. Black English bindsthe community together, serves to represent common experience, and allowsfor a sense of uniqueness and power. However, as Weber (1994) noted, there is value in these uniquecommunities. Black speech, according to her, is rhythmic, like Africanlanguages, accented, dynamic, and collaborative (Weber, 1994). Porter (Eds.) Interculturalcommunication: A reader. Weber, S.N. One of the morecommon contemporary styles is rapping, which is a rhythmic, and oftensexual, means of communicating and relating. For example, henoticed that there were differences between individuals in the same family,that there were four main types of communicators, and that each of them wasdistinguished by both language usage and social experience. There might be other cultural clashes. Therewere instances, though, in which younger people were oriented mostimmediately toward their Mexican-American peers in the neighborhood.The African-American Community Shirley Weber's (1994) look at the African-American speech communityis a much briefer account, but it also considers the socio-culturalsignificance of black language and choices. It alsomust be understood that there are variations within these communities, too. In otherwords, the individual most oriented toward Mexico was most likely tocontinue to speak Spanish, to speak English with an accent, and to preferSpanish to English and relationships with other Mexicans or Mexican-Americans (Barker, 1947). Thus, younger people tended to be moreoriented toward English and American society than their parents. Inaddition, he noted that there was ongoing competition between mainstreamU.S. According to her, blacklanguage, or black English, is a historical representation of theadaptation of African people to the culture of the United States under theconditions of slavery and discrimination. In the same way, Barker's bilingual speakers could be valued,rather than culturally isolated. The intent in this paper is to look at two ethnographic explorationsof disparate speech communities; one, the Mexican-American community of thelate 194 s and one the modern African-American speech community. It is a combination of languageand style, according to her, that has its foundations in Africanphilosophies about language and communication. However, prestigewithin the African-American community may, at some levels, be gained byfacility with non-standard speech. He concludedthat differences in linguistic behavior were congruent with theindividual's system of interpersonal relations. culture and Mexican culture at different levels of the community. This is a value that would behelpful to extend to the Anglo community as well. Certainlythis seems logical since language serves that purpose in the African-American community and the Mexican-American community. Barker was not only concerned with looking at speech patterns, he wasinterested in explaining their origin and maintenance. If this paper is not what you are looking for, you can search again: Search for: or Click here to request an essay written just for you.