final self evalution

Cultural Interview and Active Listening Assignment

Part 1

I am from Chinese culture and I have a passion for learning about other people’s cultures. I have been trying to travel across many parts of the country and some I have learned about them in movies and literature. All this was in an attempt to learn about the people’s culture, some of my classmates are from cultures that are so diverse and I had desired to learn more about. This has been because of the different stereotypes I have heard about that culture. When the different cultures are discussed in an American context it made me curious to learn about extreme diversity.

This time I have tried to figure out the ways I can get more information about one of my classmate’s cultures. He is from Indian and it has over a billion people who occupy over 1,200,000 square miles. This does not look realistic as it means the population in India is confined in a small country’s box. I interviewed one of my Indian classmates called khan. I wanted to learn more about their culture where he grew up and I started getting more information about their culture.

The reason why I choose him because of the amazing nature of the country, their strong society and the ways in which western society recognizes them. Indian can also be broken down into three separate groups which are Punjabis, the Hindus, and the Rajputh. This is what made them be divided into the cultural identity and they blend together according to western eyes. This cultural identity helps to divide them into India. This can be in the ways in which they wear their clothes as well as how they act and above all the ways in which they worship in their religion.

It is very common to associate with the Indian and their culture, the Indian is associated with Hinduism which is the most prominent in the country above all the others that we know. However, Hinduism is not the only religion in Indian, all the other groups are supposed to be recognized since they are part of the cultural identity in Indian. The culture of the Indian is well recognized in the rest of the world. According to the khan, Hindus is the most identified in the country. Every worship is in Indian is related to a certain god that they worship. The religion makes the animals to be respected since they are sacred animal and are reincarnation by the human being.

When khan was explaining, the cow is termed as the most sacred animal though according to him he was also not very sure why it is considered as a most sacred animal in the Indian culture. Animals in Indian are allowed to roam in the freeways they like and they are not supposed to be hurt. Other than the Indian, there are other neighboring who are like the Pundits, the monks who are known for them wearing orange and the different ways that they carry out their lifestyle. The men in Indian are known for the ways in which they conduct some crazy rituals in the country.

These practices are different from what we in china do our rituals and practice cultural practices. The ways of worship as well as the ways in which they practice their religion and the worship rituals. The way the Indians practice their marriage is closely related to the Chinese culture and it has been seen to have many similarities. Many celebrations and more festivals. Some of the major festivals that are celebrated in Indian are like:

· Holi

· Diwali

· Rakshabandan, and

· Eed.

The other ways in which the Indian culture compared with the marriage parties that are accompanied by the marriage. Some of the parties that are involved are used to fixing women's hair, and make-up and many more. In essence which has been related to the Chinese culture type where women are allowed to make their hair and makeup when there are celebrations. When we compare the Indian culture with Chinese culture, the ways in which the bride arrives are the wedding in a horse and wearing a veil that has a shingle that covers their face.

Before the interview, I had to first conduct research about the interview for a while about the Indian culture through doing some internet research. This helped me to gather some information that I needed to be clarified about the culture in Indian. Since it was on a weekend, I asked khan we can meet in one of the restaurants in town and we scheduled it to happen from 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm on Friday. This was the time when we were free from the assignment and classwork. This was a good time since it has been a long exam week and we needed to have some time to relax and I was positive he will give me the right information that I needed.

The venue we agreed to meet was ideal since the restaurant was very quiet and I could use my recoding app to be able to record all the information from him. I had enough insights about the Indian culture and therefore I was not afraid that he may not be able to respond to all my questions. He was able to explain some of the detail since he lived in Indian before he moved to America. I was very anxious and I was ready, having connected all the audio recording devices and I was with my not book to write down the prompted questions.

It was hard to ask a question since I knew very little about the culture except what I read on the internet. Asking and listening to the answers to the question I asked was challenging, but I had to come up with ways to curb that, I could ask some background questions that I knew the answers so that I can internalize the answer as I prepare the next question. I was anxious to know but not so excited since I had little information with me, the issue that I found myself with was that I found myself listening and thinking harder than I did habitually. From the other side, khan looked composed through he looked as if he was hiding some information that looked confidential about the culture or the information he never wanted to open up about.

Part 2

From the interview that I conducted with khan, there is a lot that I have learned about the Indian culture and their identity. As a visitor in their culture I have learned to appreciate the other people’s culture since it’s what makes them proud. More so, I have learned to be able to appreciate other people's culture since some are what they view as their heritage. Culture is obviously affiliated with other people's ways of life yet the person I was interviewing never lived in India where he was born. Form the interview, khan is closely attached to his culture and all his related are all from Indian and hence he identifies with the Indians culturally.

Khan is from Indian and most of my questions about the Indian culture were all answered in the interview. I have learned that the Hindus society, Punjab is well known to be a bit more radical as well as intense. Their gods are their war heroes and this is what makes the Punjabis carry some knives as well as machetes all the time they are around. They are carried and they can take them out whenever there is a conflict and they need to be used.

The traditional Punjabis do not their hair or even shave it and they are mostly in turbans which are supposed to be won throughout life until one dies. I have also learned other activities about the Indian unique celebrations with the Hindus and Punjabis. They have dances and that is what sets them apart from the other Indian culture. The other thing that I found very fascinating about Indian culture is the rajputh. This is the group in Indian that tends to be closer to the desert position in Indian. Their heritage is very royal and most of the statute is used to portray their royalty in gods.

The other thing that captured my attention was the fact they are known for their “manly man” as well as their moustache. The women are used to wearing flashier clothes as well as seen in the desert sun where they wear them. This group which is located in Indian is said to be more traditional when it comes to customers and in terms of respect. I have also learned some new things about the Indian culture in that, their family is closer than most other culture families. They are more family-oriented, the father and the son work out together outside the family while on the other hand, and the mother and the daughter handle the housework together.

In all the cases the men always demand respect from the women in all cases, in some cases the women are required to stand up and even turn away while the father is entering the house. Punjabis are more relaxed than the rajpuths, and on top of that the women are expected to respect the men in society. The men are the ones who are expected to be the “man of the house” as they are the ones who possess the highest authority. The other aspect that I learned about the Indians is the classes of the society, the Hindu practice, and the caste system. The caste was not supported by many of the people in Indian but the impact is still apparent.

The people in Indian are classified into groups and classes:

· Higher class

· Middle class and

· Lower classes.

Those that are in the higher class are the business owners and the involved politicians as well as the celebrities and many more. The higher class are the ones who hire the lower classes people. The middle class is the people who are the store owners and they interact with the higher class people in the community. The middle-class man is always well dressed and they have a level of connection with the higher class people. When we look at the caste system. It is critical to look at the status of their clothes since clothes are very important in Indian culture.

I have learned so much about myself as a communicator in the intercultural context. I have realized I am a good communicator of all time. I could pay attention to all the details that are being communicated and what I have learned from khan as well as appreciating them as well. Despite the fact that some of the practiced in the Indians varied greatly with our Chinese culture I could not stand and oppose or feel their practices are wrong I stood up and appreciated their culture anyway.

The main challenge that I faced was the fact that after the interview I felt as if I was pressed and I felt so deep about the whole case. I was also very nervous just because I was asking so may question which I never intended to ask in the first place. I wanted to explore very many areas of Indian culture just at once. This was challenging to me since one would doubt me I was spying. The other factor that made me feel khan was embarrassed just by the fact that the Indian has the Muslims who are associated with international terrorism.

Just by the fact that I knew very little about the Indian culture, giving full attention without interrupting the answers that khan gave helped to get the well-composed answers from him. That listening skill helped me to get complete answer that is enthusiastic. If I could have interrupted the answers he was given I would have messed with the accuracy of the answer that would also have come out incomplete. However, I was not able to listen keenly in areas where the interviewee was unable to control his feeling about the cases that are so emotional. This was not a very good listening skill but I had to cope up with.

In general, khan’s worldview is culture is the things that hold people together and it what connects them together no matter what happens. The different cultural practices help to hold the people together as some culture serves as sign of national unity. Khan was open and wanted other people to learn about their Indian culture which he termed to be welcoming as he also states it should be that way for all the other cultures across the world to accommodate each other.

Interview entails many communication styles, just by the fact that was able to use different communication styles. I was challenging just by the fact that khan was my friend I could not connect the unique verbal and the nonverbal styles that he was using probably because I am used to him as a friend. Basically, I am not curious to finish this particular assignment just because it is my area of interest and I would wish to continue more and more questions about the Indian culture to learn the way they handle their traditions.

Part 3

There are many things that I have learned from the community and the culture of the Indians which all helped me to get a deeper picture of the other community culture in general. I think the first thing that I learned in the course of my communication is I was tensed since I created an atmosphere that looked so professional in a way that one could think I am getting personal. The way I was communicating with the interviewee one would think I am just asking them from a friendly point of view.

Because the venue that we chose was ideal and quite, it was not an issue to hear each other and hence we could just whisper to each other and still get what each other was saying. We did not have to speak so loudly. In the whole process of the interview I was able to collect as much information about the Indian culture and leaned some of the common mistakes that I commit in my communications. Therefore, the interview changed my false approach to conducting interview for some time I lost the points that I wanted to address and never got the chance to ask again.

I had prepared enough questions for the interview and that made me to be ready to ask questions from any angle and that improved me, it confined me from asking an open-minded question which I was not ready for. This helped me to learn to be flexible in my communication as well as being open to anything that came across. I would get the response if I connected one question to the other. As long as I stayed neutral in the topic we are discussing khan was willing to open up so much information to at any time.

One thing that I wished I had done better was in the way I structured my interview question and if I could have gathered more confidence to allow me embraced the other community’s culture with confidence and not feel connected to for any reason. This affected me when khan shared something which was so emotional to me. I would have changed my worldwide view the Indian culture view as well as the other culture we have not discussed in this paper.

The experience has helped me to appreciate the openness and empathy that we have as humans from different cultural backgrounds with different cultural practices. When we become more open to each other culture, then we can be able to create an intercultural relationship that will help us to understand and appreciate each other at a deeper level. In the end analysis I can conclude that being respectful about the other people's culture is useful to form lasting relationships as well as understanding the worldview of the people in India would foster willingness and the need to become part of the culture in future. This is not only among the Indians but also the other culture across the world.