Discussion 4-Sara Bugler

Language is used to shape the world we know as soon as we are born. We use words to describe the world around us. Our history may change the meaning of a word as time goes by. At times we also inherit language from other cultures. With everything that goes on from war, to disasters, hunger, and even the evolution of facebook we adapt words to fit into our understanding. For instance the word Jihad is meant to be a holy or moral struggle that stresses the non-militant sense of the word, while Western cultures now assimilate it with holy war and terrorism.

Chapter 4: Communication

From reading the chapter in the textbook and the articles I have come to believe that language shapes reality from the very root of where it began. Since, we have created a language we have had history. Whether history comes from artifacts, haptics, chronemics, and other examples from the text, people have been able to put their findings into words that can be translated to practically any language. We see today how our reality is much different from the reality of the 1920's. Which is only normal because culture changes all the time. Our communication seems to be taking a turn for the unsocial. Prior to having everything at our finger tips, people had to write thank you letters not just send a typed up email. The reality has turned much more technological with all the phones and computers much of our language is being shortened to wrud (what are you doing), lol (laugh out loud), u (you), and also abbreviations like abbrev, presh, and totes. Our syntax is getting simpler and simpler everyday. As it says in our book, language changes almost every 1000 years, so who knows what the people in the future's reality of language will be.

I conclude that the way we see the world affects the language we use. A child is supposed to start hearing and taking in their first language till age 6, this period is the most crucial time for a child to grasp a language. After this period, they will most likely have the basics and schooling and reading will allow them to have a more extensive vocabulary. Whereas we see in our book Genie did not get any schooling for the first 12 years of her life. So she when she was trained to learn a language she began to take up some of it, but because she was in an attic for a portion of her life her view of the world is a lot smaller then other peoples. Therefore Genie had difficultly grasping the concept of talking in complete sentences and reading, things we often take for granted. Also in the article Shakespeare in the Bush this clearly demonstrates how since their culture has different beliefs they see the world differently and saw the play of Hamlet completely different then the person telling the story.

Communication and Language Module 4

In today's society to me the world affects the language we use. Because a lot of to today's society is influenced my television so when people hear something different from some where else they automatically assume that's how that certain part of an area acts and talks. I have experienced this first had when i moved to Greece and was the only black kid in my class. I made a lot of friends when I was down there and one thing that i especially remember is one of my close friends told my I act nothing like how they portray Black people on television. He thought that most black people where illiterate and always used slang. He was very surprised when I showed him the total opposite. An it was also a great experience for my because that was one of my moments in life where I could appreciate the saying don't judge a book my it's cover more.

Chapter 4 Assignment - Communication/Language

After reading Chapter 4 and the articles for this assignment, I’ve concluded that the way we see the world affects the language that we use. One of the most gripping and memorable examples is from Chapter 4, where it mentioned the unfortunate case of Genie - a girl who had been locked in an attic for almost 13 years. Because of the way she saw the world (being confined like a prisoner), her speech was permanently deformed and she became somewhat fearful to even speak. From this example, I think people’s concept of reality shapes the language they use, not vice versa. Because of the circumstances different people live in, the ways of speech other cultures allow or forbid, and the way children are raised, it’s quite evident that their personal views are vividly and verbally shown through their language.

I personally love the article “Shakespeare in the Bush”, because it takes the anthropologist’s base argument (people are the same everywhere) and humorously puts it in the mouth of the elders she’s telling the story to. The people understand the words she’s speaking in their language, but they interpret the story completely differently according to their own culture. So, her argument was wrong. One doesn’t have to speak the language right in order to get a story’s message across. She could speak the native language, but their way of life contradicted almost every action and theme of Hamlet. Also, some of the words like “ghost” and “scholar” are interpreted through the Tiv’s own views on bewitchment and omens, making it even more difficult for the anthropologist to explain the story.

People aren’t the same everywhere when it comes to their views on family ties, right versus wrong, and how life should be. The important thing we must all remember, however, is that this isn’t from their own choosing. Opinions and life views are based on the person’s experiences and the circumstances which have led them to believe certain things. Everyone is at a different stage of understanding what it means to be human, and this is something I think anthropologists believe most ardently in their work.

Communication

The way that I view the relationship between reality and language is that, the way we view our reality often determines how we use our language. Good example are the wanna be gangsters in today's world. They view themselves as "bad ass" so they talk they way they view as bad asses. You also have the people who are very lazy in everything they do and they view the world in a quote, "why should I have to put so much effort into it." That's where you get these lazy slurs like "ain't." One more good example is with many countries that have been invaded for centuries. Iraq is a good example, an Arab nation that has been invaded many times over hundreds of years when they speak their native language, it sounds angry. They may not be angry but it often sounds that. I feel I can say this from first hand listening to the people in Iraq speak to each other or call out to each other. The history or traits of the society affect their reality and in the end determines how they use their language.

Key Informants

In your posts last week, many of mentioned a few key components of a productive relationship between an anthropologist and their key informants.  An important part of participant-observation is finding people who are willing to work with you, to help you interpret what you are observing and to tell you about aspects of the culture that you may not have an opportunity to observe.  Here are the primary concerns in identifying potential key informants.

Knowledge of the Culture

We tend to gravitate to people we like, but those that we like best may not make the best informants.  This is a trap that anthropologists have to work hard to avoid.  Informants are colleagues who may become friends, but should not necessarily start out as friends.  How do you know who is most knowledgeable, trustworthy and accurate?   One method anthropologists use to select informants is the “cultural consensus model.”  Those things that most informants agree on are probably cultural.  By asking a sample of informants the same questions about a particular cultural domain, you can establish things that appear to be cultural.  Those informants that give answers that closely match the cultural consensus are likely the most knowledgeable in that cultural domain.  Many anthropologists have found that those informants who are the most knowledgeable are not “typical” individuals.  Good informants are often somewhat marginal.   It is important to find knowledgeable informants, but also informants who are willing to work with you.  Marginal individuals are often more willing to work with the anthropologist.  However, this may cause some problems too.  A few of you mentioned ‘favoritism’ in your posts.  There is a saying about being known by the company you keep.  It is important for the anthropologist not to be seen as being too closely associated with any individual or group within the society.  Therefore, anthropologists will usually identify a few key informants that represent various groups within the society.  This provides them with a check on the information provided by any one informant, and it keeps them from being seen as too close to any one individual or group.

Trust

Trust is another important component of an anthropologist’s relationship with informants.  The informant must feel comfortable talking openly.  That requires that they know the anthropologist will not share the details of their conversations with others in the community.  Developing this kind of trust can take quite a long time, even years.  Anthropologists who return again and again to the same group often develop very close relationships with their informants. 

Respect

Many of you mentioned respect in your posts.  Respect is important generally in anthropological research.  To effectively carry out a study based on participant-observation, anthropologists must respect for the culture.  That means adopting, as much as possible, the ways of the group.  Two of the articles you read earlier (Lee and Chagnon) demonstrate just how difficult this can be when the culture being studied is so different from that of the anthropologist.

Remember that the Chapter 4 quiz is due by Sunday.

Communication - Becca Libby

Obviously language and communication is one of culture's most important aspects. Language plays a part in absolutely every part of human life, weather it is spoken language, body language, or just a glance from one person to another. I loved reading about the Apache Indians who spend much of their time in silence before they decide to speak to one another. I suppose it is so amazing because people in my own culture (and probably most of yours) tend think that speaking to one another constantly is absolutely necessary. Our culture is obsessed with it communication, mostly for the wrong reasons, but none the less it has become one of the biggest aspects of everyday life in America. Language shapes the way we think, act, and reason. I believe language shapes our world, just as much as the world we live in shapes our language. My father had (and still has) terrible road rage, I remember when I was a kid riding in the car with him hearing him freak out when someone would cut him off, or make a turn too slow. Well guess what, I do the exact same thing. I'm not sure if that is communication or not, but it's a part of his language that became a part of my language. It helped shape the way drive, and so in part, the way I live. Little things around us that we don't even think about seep into our being and become a part of the way we communicate with others. Chances are, no one taught you how to flirt, (which is a form of communication) it came to you through communication in culture. You learned because you observed and listened. This is the case with almost everything in our lives. Without this cultural communication we would be lost, we would not know what to say or when to say it.
Even though I personally believe my culture's obsession with communication is excessive, I am a part of it, because without it I become an outcast in my own world. I communicate well in my culture because I know what to expect and people know what to expect from me. That is why adjusting to the language and communication of another culture is so hard, different things are expected. Things can go terribly wrong if you're not careful.