I have enjoyed the reading and discussions in class over the past few weeks about the culture, power, and perception that comes from language, especially English. This has been a topic that has been in the back of my mind since I came home from France in the summer of 2013. The readings have been very good at bringing up thought-provoking issues such as "why Asian students do not speak up in class." The competing cultural values of modesty in many Eastern cultures juxtaposed against the "look at me" Western, especially US, culture all in a context of language, provides for a multidimensional complex situation. The article presented the view that discomfort with the language was the most significant reason for why Asian students do not speak up in class. As we talked about during our class discussion, English ability is often equated to intelligence because of the dominant position in society of English-speaking countries. I think that the unfamiliarity with the spoken language is definitely a factor, but I think it is impossible to separate culture from parts of oneself completely. Culture will always be at play in a situation because it is embedded in everything around us.
From my conversation circle, the most committed member of my group and myself have had some very in-depth conversations. One of the most interesting was a conversation that highlighted the human connections between us despite our cultural differences. She was explaining to me how her and her friends from home are struggling with the age old question "what am I going to do with my life." While there were significantly different factors influencing our decisions, there was still the common human need to have purpose in life. Looking forward to more moments that will help facilitate working together across our differences.
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