Exercise 7

1. I can’t decide what I want to eat tonight. I don’t feel like cooking. I’m too tired to go out. Should I just order pizza? But I have pizza almost every night. I wish there were other places that deliver food.
   
   
2. Mom: No, Billy. It’s too cold today.
   Billy: But, Mom, the water temperature is going to be warm and we’ll be indoors.
   Mom: You’re going to catch a cold when you go out.
   Billy: No, I won’t. My friends are all going and they’re waiting for me.
   Mom: Will there be an adult be there?
   Billy: Yes, Sam’s dad will be there. He’s a lifeguard.
   Mom: Ok. Don’t forget your towel.
   
   
3. I can’t believe someone would take something that doesn’t belong to them. It was parked in my own driveway. They didn’t even have my keys. How did they start the engine? I hope my insurance will take care of it.
   
   
4. Woman A: These are killing my feet, but they’re so pretty.
   Woman B: Why don’t you take them off?
   Woman A: I need something fancy and I want to look taller. Ooh. my toes feel numb. I need to take these off.
   
   Woman B: Let’s look for something nice, but a little more comfortable.
5. The heavy rain is causing big problems in the small town. People are fleeing their homes because water is coming into their houses. Cars are being swept away by the rising water. The mayor has told everyone to evacuate. Many people have lost everything.

A Conversation about Communication

Charles: Hey, Melissa. What are you doing?

Melissa: Oh, hey Charles. I’m just finishing a project for my class.

Charles: Cool. What’s it about?

Melissa: Well, have you ever thought about the way we communicate today?

Charles: Not really. What do you mean?

Melissa: It’s quite interesting. In my class, we’ve been studying forms of communication. I decided to do my project on the history of communication. Most people don’t give it a second thought, but the topic is truly remarkable.

Charles: Haven’t we always communicated the same way?

Melissa: No, we haven’t. I’ve thought about this a lot. What ways do you communicate with friends and family?

Charles: I call or text on my phone. Sometimes we communicate through social media.

Melissa: Exactly. We’ve become accustomed to this form of communication, but it’s fairly new. For example, 20 years ago, we didn’t have a lot of the social media platforms that we have now. Also, most of the early platforms don’t exist anymore. Not to mention, if we go back another 20 years, meaning 40 years ago, we didn’t have access to cell phones like we do now. Even more, those cell phones did not have access to the internet!

Charles: I haven’t thought about that a lot, but you’re right. How did people communicate before?

Melissa: The history of communication is fascinating. We can go all the way back to the early people of the world. Sure, people didn’t have electricity, internet, or phones, but they still communicated. Egyptians used hieroglyphics to communicate stories for many decades and centuries. The Mayans, Incas, and Aztecs also had their own way of communicating, such as through cave paintings and other documents we’ve found.

Charles: We’ve taken access to technology for granted.

Melissa: Yes. When was the last time you sent a handwritten letter to someone?

Charles: I’ve never sent a handwritten letter.

Melissa: Why not?

Charles: I can just send a text or an email.

Melissa: Exactly. However, 60 years ago, that was not a possibility. In order to communicate, people wrote letters to each other. They had to send those letters through the mail and wait for a response. It might seem crazy now, but that was reality back then.

Charles: Imagine how long people had to wait for their mail. Today, we can get things delivered within a day or two. Messages are instant.

Melissa: That’s a great point. The invention of the car helped communication, but most people don’t consider that. Imagine what it was like before we had cars and other automobiles? Before cars, the mail was delivered by the Pony Express. People would ride horses with bags of letters to be delivered. It must have taken weeks to get a letter.

Charles: I don’t think I could wait that long for a response. I get impatient if my parents don’t respond to me after an hour.

Melissa: Don’t take it for granted next time. Communication has come a long way. Humans started out communicating through gestures and grunts. We didn’t even have a clear language. Now, we have over 7,000 languages. We have access to people all over the world with a simple click. Before, people couldn’t communicate with each other because of the language barriers. Now, if someone doesn’t speak our language, we can simply download an app that will translate what we say into any language we need.

Charles: I’m glad I’m alive during this time. I don’t know what I’d do without the internet or my phone.

Melissa: A lot of people feel that way.

Information on Cultural Communication

Every culture has its differences. People often focus on the differences in food, education, and family relationships. However, an interesting topic that doesn’t get a lot of attention is the differences in communication.

Communication is an essential part of life in any culture. However, the differences in how each culture communicates is extraordinary. When you live in an area with high diversity, it becomes critical to know and understand these differences. North American, or specifically, the culture in the US, is very different than other cultures in different parts of the world. This can be seen in the different forms of communication.

When you are in North America, or the USA, you will see that people tend to smile often, even if they don’t have a reason to smile. In advertising, people are always smiling because it shows feelings of joy. On the street, a person smiling often means that they are friendly and approachable. However, Americans don’t often make physical contact with the people they meet, unless they are really close friends or family members. The most physical contact you can expect is a handshake.

In contrast, Europeans might smile less often than Americans. In many countries in Europe, smiling for no reason is seen as foolish. Most Europeans prefer to have a neutral facial expression. This can come across as uninviting to other cultures. On the contrary, a lot of countries in Europe, like Spain and France, are known to have a physical quality to their forms of communication. A soft kiss on the cheek or an embrace is normal even with strangers you meet for the first time. This tradition can also be seen in South American countries and cultures. Greeting people with a kiss on the cheek is normal and expected among family, friends, and even strangers.

Another culture that differs in this form of communication is Asia. In a lot of Asian cultures, it is typical to avoid any form of physical contact and any form of facial expressions in business meetings. It is more appropriate to bow than it is to shake hands.

Another difference in communication culture is eye contact. This is a form of nonverbal communication. In North America, eye contact is seen as showing confidence and authority. However, in parts of Asia and even in the Middle East, this can be seen as rude or challenging authority. This is particularly true for women making eye contact with someone of the opposite sex. It would be seen as rude or disrespectful. However, in the USA, refusing eye contact would be seen as rude or disrespectful.

Even the way we speak can be different. For example, Americans can be very direct with what they say when saying something good. So, if your project was excellent, an American might say, “That was an excellent project.” However, if there is something negative to say, Americans become indirect with their words. The “compliment sandwich” is a familiar term amongst Americans. This is when you say something positive, followed by the negative or critique, and end with something positive again. If your project wasn’t great, they might say, “You had some great pictures in your presentation, but your structure wasn’t clear, and your message got lost. But I really liked how you tried to connect with the audience a lot.” This way, the bad doesn’t seem hurtful.

Europeans, especially the British, have a different way of expressing their negative opinions. They can be just as direct with both the positive and negative feedback. A British person might tell you, “The project was rather confusing.” They use the word “rather” to make it seem less offensive, but they aren’t going to compliment you before giving their critique.

The communication culture in India is all about indirect and polite communication. In a business meeting, it is normal for the manager to speak first or answer a question first before any other workers. The manager can give permission for someone else to speak first, but it is unacceptable that they would speak before being given permission. Even the word “no” is seen as too offensive, so most people will disagree in a more indirect way. They might tell you, “Maybe” instead of a direct “no.” Some people might even choose to stay silent rather than directly disagree.

It’s not always easy to understand the cultural differences, but they are important. People communicate differently, and it is our job to realize that different cultures communicate in different ways. If we don’t, we risk offending or being offended by something that was not meant to be offensive.

Exercise 22

1. I’d like a table for two.
2. What are you doing?
3. I can meet you at 5:00.
4. She likes him.
5. What should we eat for dinner?
6. How can this be?
7. I like peanut butter and jelly
8. You need to do this today?
9. She and I are friends.
10. What did he want?