Cross-cultural communication is a very complicated issue. People from different regions of the same country may have different customs, not to mention the people from different countries. Therefore, when the representatives of different countries or ethnic groups meet and communicate, the differences between their cultural backgrounds can cause misunderstandings and conflicts. So the question arises, how to behave in this case: to pretend that there are no differences between them there or to turn the attention to this difference of opinions and to behave accordingly. The difficulty lies in the fact that no matter what tactics a person chooses, cultural differences do not disappear and can become a time bomb if someone constantly goes against the views of the representative of the other culture. Thus, one should not downplay or ignore that difference. Accordingly, showcasing that people belong to different cultures seems the most reasonable and productive option.
Two views on this issue are demonstrated in the stories "How to date a brown girl (black girl, white girl, or halfie)" by Junot Diaz and "Who's Irish?" by Gish Jen. Junot Diaz in his story shows that for each representative of nationality and race there should be a specific approach. On the contrary, Gish Jen tells the story about the case where cultural differences are not taken into account. This story is told from the face of the old Chinese woman, who lives with her daughter and her Irish husband, trying to raise her granddaughter. The narrator does not take into account the differences that exist between China customs, where she grew up and raised, Ireland, where the customs are very different, and America, where Sophie grows, the granddaughter of the narrator. Despite the fact that the protagonist of the story constantly refers to these cultural differences, she does it only in words. She clearly separates the things on the Irish and Chinese, but, in fact, she does not pay attention to the traditions of other cultures, she does not understand them (Jen 105). She tries to bring up her granddaughter in accordance with the Chinese concepts and it gives its results (Jen 108). Treating Sophie like a normal child, not as a representative of some particular nationality, her grandmother ignores her cultural identity. The narrator shows that she communicates with all people equally. And it is certainly a huge benefit from downplaying cultural differences. When a person does not divide other people into "us" and "them," communication flows much easier. In addition, paying no attention to the fact, that the other person relates to another nationality or race, can play a decisive role when it comes to ethnic minorities. These minorities in such a case will not feel like strangers in the community of representatives of other nationalities. As it happens with the protagonist when she eventually found herself living with her son-in-law’s mother Bess and, in this case, she turned out to be satisfied. This happened because Bess needed the female company, and the difference in their cultures did not bother her (Jen 109). This episode shows that, if not to draw attention to cultural differences, the cultural gap can be filled with communication and understanding.
At the same time, if a person continually breaks the cultural norms of other nationalities, there can be problems. This can cause irritation and dissatisfaction with the interlocutor, even if such violations do not occur on purpose. And in general, the representatives of different cultures may have different ideas about how to behave and communicate with people. For example, Junot Diaz in his "How to Date a Brown Girl (Black Girl, White Girl, or Halfie)" explains how to impress girls from different ethnic groups. Written in the form of instructions to the young Dominican-American, the story reflects well how differently people can respond to the same actions. Of course, the young man has his interest in pleasing the girls from different ethnic groups. Therefore, various models of behavior that he chooses, depending on the person with whom he is dealing with, are correct behaviors when dealing with the representative of a certain nationality. The girls of the one nationality may be more liberated than of the other and in accordance with this the young man should behave differently (Díaz). However, the author notes that the pattern of behavior of white girls will be standard, as well as such a model of the black girls. Thus, emphasizing the obvious cultural differences between girls of different nationalities, this young man will be able to impress them much more likely if it is not taken into account. These same differences demonstrated in "Who's Irish?" However, there an old Chinese woman does not understand why her son-in-law does not work because she does not take into account the cultural differences between them. She wonders why white men cannot find a job while black people can find it and live quite well (Jen 105). She does not understand that the Irish will likely want to find a more prestigious job than the one that the old Chinese woman is likely to have in mind – work in the service sector. This difference in terms of different cultures in what is right and what is wrong in this story leads to misunderstandings and conflicts. And this is exactly what happens when a person perceives their cultural beliefs as the only true. The protagonist of Junot Diaz’s story understands and takes advantage of the cultural characteristics of each person. Such communication is much more effective and pleasant than the one described in Gish Jen’s story. The story of the old Chinese woman shows what happens when the customs from one nation faced the other ones. For example, in China it is okay to spank a child while in America it is considered detrimental to their mental state (Jen 107). The protagonist does not pay attention to this distinction, yet continuing to divide everything on the Irish and Chinese. And it leads to a quarrel between her and her daughter, who moved her mother to another place after that (Jen 109). And it shows that this pattern of behavior is wrong. In fact, an old Chinese woman highlights the differences between Chinese and Irish, but she does not draw any conclusions from this, unlike the young man in the story of Diaz. He also sees a difference, however, derives a lesson and changes his approach to depending on person’s nationality. And it seems right and polite. Such a person does not impose their ideas on another person while they understand that the other person may think very differently. Thus, it can be said that by no means any person should downplay the cultural differences. This can lead to a complete disaster. People belonging to different cultures will think and act differently in any way. People grow up with this, certain cultural norms are enclosed in their own language and customs. And if people from other racial or ethnic groups ignore the idea of what is correct, it will lead to the conflict. Therefore, underestimating these differences is not worth it. At the same time, over-emphasizing these differences, people are building a wall between each other. And this division into friends and foes, too, will not end up in an effective communication, as the representatives of different cultures simply will not listen to each other.
Summing up, it should be said that the extremes on such issues as cross-cultural and interracial differences are not needed. However, ignoring these features does not lead to anything good. Consequently, there is only one way to solve this problem. This solution lies in the fact that everyone should know that the representatives of the different cultural group have their own individuality and ideas about life. It needed to be understood that each person has the right to their own national and cultural identity. Thus, this right should be respected. In addition, intercultural communication leads to a much deeper knowledge of the world and the people living in it than ignoring any other views dissimilar to their own. Consequently, the cross-cultural differences are something that people need to pay attention to, but not as to something alien and wrong, but as something new and what helping to the deeper understanding of our world.
Works cited
Díaz, Junot. "How To Date A Brown Girl (Black Girl, White Girl, Or Halfie)". Genius. Web. 5 Mar. 2016.
Jen, Gish. Who's Irish?. 1st ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2010. Web. 5 Mar. 2016.
