Language Blog

Part 1: After engaging in a 15 minute conversation not being allowed to use any version of a symbolic language I discovered many things…

         1.   Did I find this experiment difficult or easy?

I found this experiment incredible difficult! I was basically one hundred percent unable to get anything across during my attempt to communicate. Not being able to use verbal language was close to impossible. Yes, I could point and use very minimal hand motions but it was a bit frustrating not being able to be understood and wanting to answer my partner’s (my mom’s) questions and make her understand me in return.

         2.   What were the impressions of partners in the conversation? Did they alter their way of communicating with me because of my absence of symbolic communication?

I’m going to admit there was much frustration but we actually ended up laughing about it most of the time. My mom told me I basically looked like a “baboon” ( those were her exact words…) and we couldn’t stop laughing at my attempts to tell her what I wanted to eat in the kitchen and how I wanted her to make it for me. She was not using very much speech back to me since she knew it wouldn’t really do anything since I was unable to communicate back in response using verbal speech. She felt like she had to slow down her mode of communication as if I did not understand because in fact, I did not understand at all and neither did she when I was trying to work with her.

`       3.   Imagine that me and my partners in the conversation represent two different cultures meeting for the first time. Which culture has the advantage in communicating complex ideas? What attitudes might the speaking culture have toward the culture that does not use symbolic language? Identify individuals in our culture that have difficulty communicating with spoken language and explore how that affects how those who do speak interact with those individuals?

If my mom and I were from two different cultures in this situation, I think that she would have the advantage because she was able to use symbolic language and I was unable. Even if both of us were able to speak the same language, she would still have the advantage. I do believe though that if we were to do this for a longer period and truly be in the situation of having no way of communication and not make-believe, then I would slowly start to understand and pick up on the symbolic language she was using. I think that the speaking culture is more likely to have impatience and bad attitudes thinking they communicate better and are more intellectual toward the one that cannot use symbolic language. Nowadays, there is a large range of people that cannot communicate like the rest of us. There are those that have the loss of hearing and are deaf, those that cannot see and are blind, those that have mental disabilities and handicaps and have difficulty with intellect, those with learning disabilities, and people with damaged vocal chords and loss of voice, etc. I think it is so difficult for every single individual that suffers with these disabilities and cannot imagine how hard it must be for them to live their everyday lives. What is neat is that those who are normal and have the ability to hear and see while communicating effectively have the resources to help those that cannot. Sometimes it’s sad to see “normal” people treat these people with communication disabilities differently and sometimes rudely and impatiently… I tend to get upset when I see it. But after going through this experiment I kind of understand why it can be frustrating, although that is no excuse to make it known to another who is not privileged with the gift of communication.

Part 2: After spending 15 minutes communicating without physical embellishments, I found that this was pretty much impossible.

1.     Was I able to last for the full 15 minutes of using only speech for communicating? What made this experiment difficult for me?

I was hardly about to last the full 15 minutes, in fact I cut it about a minute short since I could hardly take it. The most difficult part was not  necessarily being able to vocalize my communication but it was the hardest to not be able to use hand motions or body movements. I felt so uncomfortable and helpless trying to communicate.

2.     How was my mom in this part of the experiment affected by my communication limitations?

My mom was very inclined the first few minutes – I believe she liked the challenge and believed it was fun at the beginning kind of like a game getting to figure out the end goal of what I was trying to say…but about 7 minutes into it, she grew rather annoyed and frustrated since she was completely unable to get anything out of what I was trying to tell her. She got bored pretty quickly and had to “suffer” through the rest of the 15 minutes.

3.     What does this experiment say about our use of “signs” in our language? How important is non-speech language techniques in our ability to communicate effectively?

I developed an ever greater appreciation of the fact that the use of “signs” in the human language is in fact a blessing. Body communication apart from verbal communication is very helpful. It gets the point across when words or other ways of communication cannot. Many humans are visual people and visual learners (myself included) and it helps me a lot when I can see visually what someone is trying to communicate to me. It is very important in our ability to communicate effectively in that it helps those that cannot hear or understand in spoken communication understand fully visually through body/sign language.

4.     Are there people that have difficulty reading body language? Describe the adaptive benefit to possessing the ability to read body language. Can you describe environmental conditions where there might be a benefit to not reading body language?

I believe that there are many people who have difficulty being able to ready body language and body communication particularly when it comes to people who are auditory learners or people who may come from a different cultural background or foreign nature. The adaptive benefit to possessing the ability to ready body language is a better way of understanding communication altogether. Speech and body language provide the means for one to fully understand without getting confused. There may be a benefit to not being able to read body language in a situation such as when you’re giving a public speech that is significant to you individually (giving the speech). Not being aware of the lack of attention from the audience through body language will play off as a positive thing in this situation since the speech-giver would be unable to understand that their speech may be boring or of zero significance to those that are supposed to be listening and learning.