My brother, Daniel, and I were taking French I at the time so we were excited to try out the basics of the language we had learned. Luckily, Alexi spoke English. I wish I had known more about the French culture other than how to say hello so I could have asked more questions. He did show us some really cool dance moves!
This experience helped me realize how important intercultural communication is. You never know who your life will allow you to cross paths with so it is best to be able to effectively communicate with someone different than you. The Intercultural Communications article tells about people who have even made it their job to help others be more prepared for communication across borders.
I remember watching Slumdog Millionaire in high school and being so moved by the movie. It takes place in India as Jamal, the main character, is a contestant on the Indian Who Wants to be a Millionaire? It a great movie about crossing cultures. Jamal has to answer questions about American and European culture and the movie shows how he knows those answers.
The Power of Movies article tells of the different ways movies can reflect culture, both positive and negative. One of the features was that movies can "can allow us to 'experience' other cultures. Another feature was to "speak to and evoke emotion." A third was "give us permission to talk about sensitive and controversial issues."
I think that Slumdog allows the viewer to experience these three features about movies on culture. I'm sure that most Americans were unaware of the way the slums of India operate before this movie. My friends and I were all shocked at the poverty. This movie evoked great emotion! There were several scenes that were difficult to watch, but I kept rooting for Jamal and hoped he would win. A feature I found very important was that this movie allowed us to talk about the themes of poverty, violence, and corruption in third world countries.
