Intercultural communication with the peterson family Essay

After a year of living with my brother, I moved in to live with the Peterson family in Montclair, California. Jason Peterson was a physics professor at the University of California at Berkeley while Mary Peterson was a schoolteacher. Living with the Peterson family made me grapple with the difference between American and Afghan culture. The American way of expressing affection in public and open intimate relationships at first shocked me. Afghans are very personal and private when it comes to displays of affection. Kissing your wife or girlfriend in front of others would be a serious breach of manners. The expression of affection between Jason and Mary when one of them arrived from work used to make me uncomfortable but I eventually got used to it. I still find it truly paradoxical that while Americans openly display affections, the value they accord to privacy and personal space is very high. I could not comprehend why they value privacy when in fact they could not keep intimate shows of affection in private. At first, I would often innocently intrude into the room of Jason to ask something. Or, when he was deep in thought in the living room wrestling with what looked like a work-related task, I would tactlessly start a conversation with him. In situations like those, his reaction would be one of initial shock. Sensing that my act was prompted by my desire to express belonging with the Peterson family, Jason would break into a knowing smile. I knew he could feel my embarrassment, as I did with his own embarrassment for his initial show of displeasure. Becoming aware of the discomfort I caused in those situations, I eventually resolved to keep my distance in those situations and to respect privacy according to American standards. Like most Americans, Mr. Peterson was direct and to the point when discussing matters with his wife. With me, however, he chose to make me learn American social norms through his reaction to what I did or what I was doing. I took cues from his reaction and I was certain that he simply did not want me to feel ashamed of my actuations. After a month, we got to sit down together from time to time. He started asking me about Afghanistan. Being given the chance to share with him the life and cultural practices in Afghanistan seemed to unburden me. Through our conversations, he began to understand me in a different light and I am grateful that those conversations did happen. I also began to understand and accept American culture for what it is. At first, whenever I encountered a seemingly weird American custom from the Afghan viewpoint, I would automatically and mentally scrounge for a similar custom of Afghanistan and attempt to compare them. I eventually realized that this automatic evaluation of American culture that I usually do as some sort of a reflex action is a contributory factor to my resistance to some aspects of American culture and may perhaps even be a hindrance to my assimilation of the host culture. Even if I was close to Mr. Peterson on account of our â€Å"cultural conversations,† I maintained physical and emotional distance from Mrs. Peterson. In hindsight, I also realize that such aloofness on my part did not spring from the fact I did not like her. In fact she was such a very gracious and accommodating lady that sometimes her concern embarrassed me. I still unconsciously carried with me the Afghan notion that another man’s wife or female children are off limits to others. Afghan strictures relating to the marriage bond are much more demanding than those of Americans. Perhaps I was apprehensive that Mr. Peterson would look at my attempts to communicate with his wife from an Afghan standpoint. In this case, I was on the losing end. I could have had a more profound communication level with Mrs. Peterson as I had with her husband if only I did not have such an apprehension at the back of my mind. The American concept of personal space was something that I could not comprehend at all. For Afghans, one’s family extended to almost all relatives unlike the very exclusive nuclear family of Americans. This extends to the use of gadgets and other household items. When my Afghan friends came to visit me in the residence of the Peterson family, some of my Afghan friends unconsciously behaved as though the family that I was with was Afghan. They engaged in horseplay and laughed boisterously which did not sit well with the Petersons, using their reaction as basis. I cautioned my friends who, to my relief, took my admonition seriously. When they all became very quiet on account of my warning, the atmosphere became unbearably silent. The Peterson couple sensed the sudden change of mood and in their embarrassment took pains to make me and my friends feel welcome. Such an event would not have happened if my friends and I had been conscious of the fact that the American concept of family and belonging did not extend to friends and relatives, the way the Afghan concept does.

Local Beaches Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Local Beaches - Essay Example Years later when I got married, my husband, who is from Virginia Beach, introduced me to the region where he grew up. I discovered that Virginia is a conservative state. The Virginia Beach area has a large military the  presence, and conservative family values such as the ‘proper’ role of women in the home and church attendance are dominant. Virginia Beach, which is 35 miles of waterfront property, has three different beaches within the city. They are the Chesapeake Bay of the  Virginia, Virginia Beach Resort area and Sandbridge. By comparing the beaches of my childhood with the beaches of my husband’s childhood, I was able to get a better sense of place and the type of people who might enjoy each location. The beaches of Virginia all have their own distinct personality. The section of Virginia Beach called the Chesapeake Bay area is for the person who is looking for tranquility and a more relaxed atmosphere. It is calmer, quieter and more laid back than many of the party beaches you see on TV. The traditional beach activities such as swimming, building sand castles, strolling along the beach and playing volleyball or throwing a football around are all a part of this scene. The Virginia Beach Resort area consists of a three mile concrete boardwalk. It has hotels, a few outdoor cafes and novelty shops. In addition, on the boardwalk there are roller-bladers, bikers, live music and street performers. There are many special events held here throughout the whole year.

Culture and public policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Culture and public policy - Essay Example rld, Russia and western powers, India and China have strengthen the claim of Samuel Huntington about a clash of civilizations in today’s world (Neumayer & Plà ¼mper 2009, p. 712). On the basis of scholarly research and available data, the paper will prove the existence of clash of civilizations in today’s world. In order to prove the thesis, the paper will analyze the Huntington’s theory of clash of civilizations. Also, by analyzing the religious and political aspects, paper will show that the catastrophe of civilization conflicts is mainly based on the political factors like, the US’ excessive dominance, emerging multipolar power system and religious factors like, Islamic radicalism, Islamophobia etc. Samuel Huntington’s book, The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order, triggered widespread debate in the field of political and public affairs. Also, the Huntington’s article about the clash of civilizations, which was written in 1993 in Foreign Affairs, raised massive controversy than any other article that was published in Foreign Affairs since the 1950s (Chiozza 2002, p. 711). Consequently, Samuel Huntington is considered as the most critical and thought-provoking author in the field of global affairs in last few decades (Chiozza 2002, p. 712). According to the Huntington’s point of view, interstate relationships in the post-Cold War era will be mainly influenced by the factors of civilizations. As the nation remains the main actor on a global level, its interests, behaviour, and integrity will be based on its civilizational background (Huntington 1993). In other words, potential corporations and conflicts will exist within civilizations is th e major speculation of Huntington about the future of global politics. Huntington claimed that in the new world, the most lethal, dangerous, and extensive conflicts won’t be between economic or social classes, but between people from different cultural backgrounds. According to the

On the Chesapeake Colonists Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

On the Chesapeake Colonists - Essay Example On the Chesapeake Colonists On an angle, this could be true, considering the English colonists were not as experienced as their Spanish counterparts. They were just beginning their conquest to the New World years after hearing about the success of the Spanish government in sending colonizers to the famed nation rich in gold. They are so ignorant they sent very few people on such an important mission who have been exposed to atrocities and calamities. They probably have not been prepared physically, emotionally and socially. Their inspiration for the trip was the famous stories of the successes of their Spanish brothers so that they probably were just driven by the thought that what their neighbor was able to do, they could also succeed in. They knew pretty well the possible harsh relations they can get from the earlier colonists of other American soils so they prepared themselves for attacks from them. However, they did not seem to have been well-prepared for the attack of the Indians who claimed the lives of a part of the company. In addition, the ills brought about by diseases rampant during that time that killed most of the small company shows how unprepared they are for what should have been expected and prepared for. Such circumstances are pointed out to show the ignorance of the English settlers. Coming from one of the most civilized nations during that time, the English colonists are well-informed about the latest technological discoveries, modern inventions that made life easier and other information that shaped the English civilization.

Essay about the arguments made by Charles Krauthammer

About the arguments made by Charles Krauthammer - Essay Example Eventually, whether or not the student agree with Krauthammer’s argument will be explained. With regards to the issue on ‘torture’, Charles Krauthammer argues that utilitarianism behind torturing a person highly depends on the situation. For instance, torturing a person for no reason at all can be considered as something that is wrong or immoral. However, given that the situation is to choose between torturing a terrorist person who intentionally implanted a bomb with the purpose of killing thousands of people, Krauthammer argued that torturing the terrorist is the best thing to do in order to save the lives of the majority who are innocent individuals. For this reason, he concludes that â€Å"torture is not always impermissible† (Shelly). Upon evaluating and equally judging the overall welfare of the people who are directly involved or affected with the action of whether or not to legally accept the act of torturing a terrorist person who has implanted a bomb, I agree with Krauthammer’s argument on the issue of torture in the sense that it would be best to torture one person who has a negative intention to hurt thousands of people by implanting a bomb than to let go of the bad person in exchange of losing thousands of life. Upon weighing pleasure and pain of allowing the implanted bomb to explode and kill thousands of people with the pleasure and pain of torturing the terrorist who implanted the bomb, the amount of pain will be so much greater than the pain that will result out of torturing the terrorist man who implanted the bomb. When we talk about utility, we are actually referring to an act which could result to ‘greatest happiness’. Based on the greatest happiness principle, it is right to do action that will promote happiness as a consequence of the act and wrong if the action could cause unhappiness (The University of Adelaide Library). Happiness means people should enjoy the benefit of having

Persuasive speech Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Persuasive speech - Essay Example More and more car accidents are declared to be cell phone related, worldwide. According to Vogel (2007), horrific dangers associated with text driving equal those associated with drink driving, in terms of inhibiting a person’s driving abilities. This is more commonly observed in teen drivers, among whom text driving is on a mind-blowing rise despite the continuous efforts of increasing awareness about this issue. This is a deplorable fact that only a minimal percentage of young adults consider text driving potentially capable of distraction leading to awful traffic problems. It is this defiant attitude that is an obstruction in the way of ensuring responsible driving. According to the National Traffic Safety Administration report (cited in Vogel, 2007), distracted drivers account for almost 80% of all crashes and 65% of near-crashes in the United States, only. The question is, when the public, especially youth, will finally open their eyes to the drastic effects of texting wh ile driving? Is the use of cell phone while driving in heavy traffic so important that one can feasibly ignore one’s own safety in addition to ruining the safety chances of other people’s lives? I cannot imagine anyone saying yes to the unjustified use of cell phones while in the midst of traffic, if the consequences of this action are seriously scrutinized. Car crashes due to calling and texting amidst traffic cannot be accurately evaluated or numbered, but this is a general consensus that cell phone use definitely leads to distraction which is the leading cause of car accidents. According to 2008 statistical data regarding the use of cell phones while driving, at any given moment, over 800,000 Americans were texting, making calls, or using a handheld cell phone while driving during the daytime. (cited in Edgar Synder and & Associates, 2010). Research studies of Strayer (cited in Cruz et al., 2009) show that most drivers tend to stare

Animal Use in Medical Research Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Animal Use in Medical Research - Essay Example However, the use of animals in medical research has long been a bitter debate. On one hand, use of animals is considered unethical for the benefit of the human. In contrast, if the use of animals is curbed altogether, it would lead to disruption of the understanding of health diseases, which would influence the newly developed medical treatments. This essay presents two different perspectives of medical researchers and ethics related to the use of animals on whether the animals should be used in the medical research or not. Finally, the essay ends with favoring the perspective which is most convincing. The perspective of Medical Researchers Use of animals in the medical research plays a vital role in the advancement of the medical sector. Since ages, man has been depending on animals for his survival. All over the world, people are leading a better quality of life due to the development of new medical treatments and medicines. This is made possible only by the research on animals. Me dical research includes acquirement of new knowledge and using animals for testing chemicals and compounds for ensuring safety and guarantee. According to them, no new medicine or drug can be introduced in the market or to the patients, until and unless it is tested on an animal. The new drug, medicine or treatment all over the world is confirmed effective on the basis of the tests done on animals. The techniques of transplantation of organ and open heart surgery are being supported by the surgery on animals.