3. What is culture?

Culture is an extremely popular and increasingly overused term in contemporary society. Expressions such as cultural differences, cultural diversity, multiculturalism, corporate culture, cross-culture, and other variations continually appear in the popular media.

Culture has been linked to such fields as corporate management, health care, psychology, education, public relations, marketing, and advertising. We often hear about U.S. forces operating in Afghanistan with insufficient knowledge and understanding of the local culture. The pervasive use of the term culture attests to the increased awareness of the role it plays in our everyday activities. Seldom, however, are we given a definition of just what constitutes culture or exactly what culture does. This section will provide that information.

4. Explaining Culture

As with communication, the term culture has been the subject of numerous and often complex, abstract definitions. What is frequently counted as one of the earliest and easily understandable definitions of culture, and one still used today, was written in 1871 by British anthropologist Sir Edward Burnett Tylor, who said culture is “that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society” (“Sir Edward,” 2010).

Ruth Benedict offered a more succinct definition when she wrote, “What really binds men together is their culture – the ideas and the standards they have in common” (1959). A more complex explanation was provided by Clifford Geertz, who said culture was “a historically transmitted pattern of meaning embodied in symbols, a system of inherited conceptions expressed in symbolic forms by means of which men communicate, perpetuate, and develop their knowledge about and attitudes toward life” (1973). Contemporary definitions of culture commonly mention shared values, attitudes, beliefs, American, or Russian American. Cultural identity can become especially prominent during interactions between people from different cultural groups, such as a Pakistani Muslim and an Indian Hindu, who have been taught varied values, beliefs, and different sets of rules for social interaction. Thus, cultural identity can be a significant factor in the practice of intercultural communication.

REVISION: MAIN IDEA, MAIN TOPIC AND SUBTOPICS, SPECIFIC WORDS, EXPLICATION OF SPECIFIC INFORMATION

Instruction: These are revision assignments in which you should combine all skills you have employed in the preceding eight units. You will have to start with identifying the main idea, the main topic, or the main purpose of the text. Then follows the task of: matching headings with paragraphs or sections, and identifying which sections relate to certain topics. Basing on circumstantial evidence, inferences and vocabulary-in context you will have to look into specific information given in the text.

Task: Answer the following questions:

• What is the main topic of the passage?

(1) The different styles of communication.

(2) Insufficient knowledge and understanding of the culture.

(3) The union of culture and communication.

(4) Cultural identity can be a significant factor in the practice of intercultural communication.

• What is the author's attitude toward different definitions of communication?

• Where in the four sentences does the author discuss the best definition of culture?

(A) Culture is the complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom.

(B) Culture is the ideas and the standards people have in common.

(C) Culture is a historically transmitted pattern of meaning embodied in symbols, a system of inherited conceptions expressed in symbolic forms by means of which men communicate, perpetuate, and develop their knowledge about and attitudes toward life.

(D) Culture is commonly shared values, attitudes, beliefs.

Read the passage: Physical noise is separate from the communication participants and can take many forms, such as two people talking in the back of the classroom during a lecture, someone talking loudly on the subway, the sounds of traffic coming through the window of an apartment, or static on your cell phone. Noise that is inherent to the people participating in the communication episode can take a variety of forms. Suppose that during a Friday afternoon class you find yourself concentrating more on plans for a spring break trip than on the lecture. Perhaps you are in a funk after learning your car needs an expensive brake job, or are worried about a term paper due the next week. These are examples of psychological noise that can reduce your understanding of the classroom communication. Physiological noise relates to the physical well-being of the people engaged in the communication activity. Coming to class with too little sleep, dealing with a head cold, or simply feeling too hot or cold in the room will interfere with your ability to comprehend fully the classroom activity.

Which of the following can be inferred about physical noise?

(A) Both physical noise and the communication participants can take many forms.

(B) During your spring break trip you will have to learn how to repair your car brake.

(C) Psychological noise interferes with your understanding of the classroom

communication.

(D) Physiological noise is useful for the physical well-being of the people engaged in the communication activity.

Making a list of key words.

Step 1. Survey the text and make a list of headings and subheadings

A list of headings will give you some clues to help single out main points of the text.

Step 2. Skim read each paragraph

Every paragraph deals with a specific aspect of a topic. The first sentence of a paragraph may tell you what the rest of the paragraph is about. Therefore while trying to identify the main idea of a paragraph, you should read the first sentence and skim the rest of the paragraphs.

Follow the three-step strategy to make finding key words easier.

Step 1. Make sure you know what you are looking for.

Step 2. Scan each paragraph for 5-10 key words. Do not read every word.

Step 3. Select 5-10 key words for the whole text.

Use your general background knowledge and knowledge of the general context.

Your knowledge and experience about what is logical or illogical can help you guess the meaning of some words. Let us take, for instance, the second section of the text. This passage logically connects and explains how the eight major structural components interact in communication:

1. The sender – the person or group originating the message.

2. The message consists of the information the sender desires to have understood ...

3. The channel – messages, which can be verbal or nonverbal, are encoded and transmitted via a channel to the receiver.

4. The receiver(s) is the intended recipient of the message ...

Basing on these definitions you can build a logical chain: the sender – the message – the channel – the receiver. This logical chain presents the communication part of the main idea of the whole text. Add the other four components to this logical chain.

Collect specific information by pointing out groups of synonyms, semantic and thematic groups. Keep it in mind that vocabulary in context includes both single words (usually nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs). and two- or three-word phrases.

• It is claimed in paragraph 1 that the definition communication is the management of messages with the objective of creating meaning is “somewhat broad”. Why is it broad?

• Find a synonym for the words spreading widely throughout an area or a group of people in paragraph 3.

• Find a synonym for the word certify in paragraph 3.

• Skim read each paragraph and collect a word nest for the noun culture and a thematic group of expressions with the word culture.

What is the referent word for the word combination This type of distraction in the paragraph below?

“People who use another language will often have an accent or might misuse a word or phrase, which can adversely influence the receiver’s understanding of the message. This type of distraction, referred to as semantic noise, also encompasses jargon, slang, and specialized professional terminology.”

Section 2. Grammar workout

Missing conjunctions

Conjunctions are connecting words; they join parts of a sentence. Coordinate conjunctions are used to join equal sentence parts: single words, phrases, and indepen­dent clauses. When two full clauses are joined, they are usually separated by a comma. The coordinate conjunctions you will most often see are listed in below.

And (addition), or (choice, possibility), but (contrast), nor (opposition)

• Hereford cows are brown and white.

• He washed his car and cleaned up the garage.

• This plant can be grown in a house or in a garden. Her action was very brave or very foolish.

• Charlie brought his wallet but forgot his checkbook. The book discussed some interesting ideas but it wasn't very well written.

• He's never taken a class in sociology, nor does he intend to. 1 didn't have breakfast nor lunch.

(The conjunction so is used to join only clauses—not single words or phrases.)

Conjunctive adverbs (moreover, therefore, however, nevertheless, and so on) are also used to join clauses: It was a bright day, so she put on her sunglasses. (negation effect)

Correlative conjunctions are two-part conjunctions. Like coordinate conjunctions, they are used to join clauses, phrases, and words:

Both…and, not only…but also (addition) Both wolves and coyotes are members of the dog family. Dominic studied not only mathematics but also computer science.

Either…or (choice, possibility), neither…nor (negation) We need either a nail nor a screw to hang up this picture. Neither the television nor the stereo had been turned off.

Errors with correlative conjunctions

Correlative conjunctions are two-part adjectives. Errors usually involve an incorrect combination of their parts, such as neither ... or or not only . . . and. Anytime you see a sentence containing correlative conjunctions you should be on the lookout for this type of error. This is an easy error to spot!

Another error is the use of both . . . and to join three elements. E.g.: The air that surrounds the plant is both odorless, colorless, and invisible. Both…and can be used to join two elements. In this sentence the word both must be eliminated.

Identify errors involving conjunctions. If the underlined form is correct, mark the sentence C. If the underlined form is incorrect, mark the sentence I, and write a correction for the underlined form at the end of the sentence.

• Model airplanes can be guided both by control wires or by radio transmitters.

• Information in a computer can be lost because it is no longer stored or because it is stored but cannot be retrieved.

• Martin Luther was not only a religious leader and also a social reformer.

• Although fish can hear, they have neither external ears or eardrums.

• In all animals, whether simple and complex, enzymes aid in the digestion of food.

• The two most common methods florists use to tint flowers are the spray method or the absorption method.

• Beekeepers can sell either the honey and the beeswax that their bees produce.

• The alloys brass and bronze both contain copper as their principle metals.

• The human brain is often compared to a computer, and such an analogy can be misleading.

• Rust both corrodes the surface of metal but also weakens its structure.

Choose the correct conjunction

Some people are smart in music, (and/or/but/nor) they are not so smart in mathematics, (and/or/but/nor) are they smart in computer science.

Many people cannot fix their cars (however/or/so/nor) they have to ask car repair workers.

(However/Or/So/Nor) car mechanics cannot teach languages, (however/or/so/nor) can they bake bread.

John can memorize everything in a book, (moreover/therefore/however/nevertheless) he can be a good student.(But/ Or/So/Nor) he is not.

Everybody was exhausted after a day-long walking tour, (moreover/therefore/nor/nevertheless) no one wanted to go to bed.

When you realize what you’re good at, you can figure out the best way to study, (moreover/therefore/however/nevertheless) you can help others to study.

Unit 1-10. HOW TO TEACH MULTICULTURAL COMMUNICATION

Section 1. Guidelines for cross-cultural communication

Intercultural understanding is both an approach and an outcome of the learning process. It promotes critical sensitivity to cultural differences among peoples within nations as well as across nations. This approach promotes equal value in all human life and serves for preparation for membership in a diverse and pluralistic global community. Students are encouraged to develop the knowledge and skills required to negotiate and flourish in a diverse, transnational environment and to continue their engagement in critical analysis of cultural relationships both across and within nations. They are to achieve goals that promote intercultural understanding:

· Disposition towards lifelong learning that includes a critical engagement with cultures.

· Recognition and value for one’s own cultures as well as the cultures of others.

· Knowledge of cultural differences among peoples within nations as well as across nations.

· Development of global citizens and preparation for active membership in a diverse and pluralistic global community.

· Development of skills to negotiate and flourish in a culturally diverse environment.

Text 1-10. HOW TO TEACH MULTICULTURAL COMMUNICATION

(After B. Saint-Jacques’ Worldview in Intercultural Communication. A Religio-Cosmological Approach. In L. Samovar, R. Porter, E. McDaniel, (Eds.), Intercultural Communication. A Reader)