I personally believe in the mutability premise over the rationality and perfectibility premises. In regards to the rationality premise, I don’t believe that most people are able to logically discover truth. There are many people in our society who are very good liars. No matter how much logic a person uses, there are times when they can be totally oblivious to the truth. An institution that relies on this logic is the U.S. court system. We rely on trial by jury because many people believe that most people would be able to find truth buy using logic. Unfortunately, many guilty people are set free to roam the streets because their lawyers do a great job avoiding the truth. As for the perfectibility premise, I don’t believe that everyone is born a sinner. I think that the ancient Christian and Catholic churches like to push this idea so that their society would maintain some sort of order. People wanted to do good, because if they weren’t good then they would go to Hell. This sort of logic scared people and made them less likely to commit crimes. On the other hand, the mutability premise seems much more logical to me. I really do believe that people are shaped by society and that the circumstances that they may encounter within their lifetime have a huge effect on the way the person develops. I think that many institutions that provide help for orphans, refugees, rape victims, and homeless people tend to support this sort of idea.

post 1 - chapetr 12

I do believe that we are "a creature of our culture." From what I have experienced, it seems to me that every culture has some sort of tradition or custom that would be viewed as strange by another culture. For example, my mothers friend is Polish, and she thinks it's very weird to dress up and ask strangers for candy on Halloween. Society and our culture tell us that such activities are common, so we tend not to think twice about them, but to an outsider they may seem very strange. On the other hand, the traditions and customs that we celebrate may also alter the way we view things, think of things, and also communicate.

Culture also plays a key role in discovering who you are as a person. If a culture celebrates and rewards a group of people based on their weight, height, gender, sexuality, skin color, education, or wealth, and you are not within the rewarded group, then you may begin to feel as an outcast. In America, we tend reward thin females over overweight ones, but in many other cultures things are the complete opposite. Our culture tells us whats beautiful and socially correct. If we don't fit into their guidelines, then our own image of ourself may begin shift to a more negative point of view. As horrible as it is, our culture is responsible for shapping our lives.

post 3 - chapter 5

Something that I found to be very interesting in this chapter was the information regarding the kinesic code. I really think it is interesting the body movement and placement can say so much. I know that everyone interprets movement differently, but it is interesting that in general there is a basic agreement of what is being communicated. Even though we may be unaware of the messages that we are sending out through our body, they do still exist. I really would like to find out more about this area and be able to identify what different movements can explain about a person. I also think it would be interesting to do some sort of study and find out what movements represent specific things to people. By finding out this information, people may be able to come off as more confident, happy, or successful, which ultimately may improve their dating life, work life, and close friendships.

post 2 - chapter 5

Unfortunately, I haven't had very many opportunities to travel outside of the country. There are certain customs that I have observed while living in the bay area that vary between cultures. One form of nonverbal communication that is used in many European countries is a greeting with a kiss. This is also a common custom in Mexico and South America. Kissing in not a typical American custom, and is usually only seen being used by lovers. Another nonverbal form of communication that I have heard varries between cultures is the thumbs up gesture. I guess in some cultures this gesture means "up yours". This can cause confusion because in America, it is a way to say good job. I have also heard that some cultures use their pinky fingers to symbolize the same sort of message that we send out when we use our middle finger in America. Although we may think that gestures and nonverbal forms of communication are universal, the truth is that they are not, and actually can be very offensive.

post 1 - chapter 5

I have a HUGE problem with over analyzing nonverbal communication. I'm a dancer, so in my opinion, every movement has meaning. Like Marth Graham, I believe that movement cannot lie. I think that non verbal communication is a very important tool to use if you want to know how someone really feels about you. On the other hand, if you read too far into the information being sent out, you may end up misconstruing what is being said.

I'm a huge perfectionist, so I always try to be the best at everything I do. That's a very difficult task in the dance world because there will always be someone better that you, no matter how good you are. With that being said, auditions are torture for me. I strive to be the best in the room, but since dance is a very subjective art form, it is hard to know what the person in charge is looking for. One way to dicover this information is through nonverbal communication. Most of the time, the people evaluating you never speak to you directly. The only way to know how they feel is through their reaction. Since most judges are trained to be very hard to read, non verbal communication can often be misinterpreted.

This situation happened within one of my dance classes last year. I spent the entire semester being picked on by the teacher. Everytime I saw him outside of class he would give me a fake smile and avoid eye contact. He also would watch me with a sense of concern on his face. This made me think that he hated me! I wasn't going to audition for the modern company at school because he was in charge of the program and I knew how he felt about me. My friend signed me up and made me go. To my surprise he took me into the company, and ended up giving me one of the highest grades in the class. Now he jokes around with me and I am able to understand his nonverbale communication, but at times it still makes me feel like he hates me!

I think one way to avoid this sort of situation is by taking the time to get to know the person better. People from different cultures use nonverbal communication differently. If we jump to conclusions, we may be creating a situation out of nothing. Also, I think it is important not to rely only on nonverbale communication. By using regular verbal communication, you may be able to clear up some of the things you may not have understood about the nonverbal communication.

post 3 - chapter 3 and 4

Something I found very ineteresting in chapter three was the information about listening. I usually believe that I am a good listen, but after reading the chapter, I now realize that I do get bored or distracted pretty easily. Since I have so much going on, I typically spend lectures thinking about what I have to do, rather than listening to the teacher. I think the idea about making goals for yourself is a great idea. I actually plan on figuring out a list of what I want to get out of each lecture. That way I would be much more likely to listen, in hopes of accomplishing my goal. The other idea that I want to try out is the concept of keeping a positive attitude. Lectures aren't really that bad, but for some reason I always go into my classes thinking that they will be the most boring things ever. I spend most of my time looking at the clock and wishing it was over, but after it is, I realize that it wasn't that horrible. If I go in with a positive attitude then I may actually enjoy the process much more. Overall I found all these concepts very interesting and I can't wait to test them out for myself!

post 2 - chapter 3 and 4

I think that men and woman do use different language while communicating. The best examples that I can think of actually come from commercials. A few years ago I remeber there was a commercial where there was a man with a bunch of his friends, and instead of saying that a clothing item was "cool" or "stylin" he said it was cute. In response all of his friends looked at him like he was crazy. The man then quickly changed his comment to something more manly. Another commercial that I stands out was a TGI Fridays commercial. Three men were eating. The first man said mm beef. The second said mmm bacon and the third said VEGETABLE MEDLEY with a sort of excitement. Again, all of the men looked at him like he was crazy.

Men are not the only people who get crazy looks while using more feminine language. I personally use this sort language role reversal for my friends entertainment. I often copy and speak like my boyfriend. People often laugh at me for trying to sound like a guy. I think that it is interesting how funny people think it is for me to speak differently.

In contrast, I do believe that men and women are more likely to use more similair language while writing. People typically do not write exactly how they speak in every day life, so if a person was to hand me some sort of text and ask me to determine the sex of the author, then it would be much more difficult. The truth is that society restrics us into two different catagories. If we do not fit in either of those catagories, then our peers may not understand us as well or begin to make judgements.

post 1 - chapter 3 and 4

I don't believe that it is possibe to perceive others without making some sort of judgement. As humans, we rely on those judgements to help us interact properly. Whether we like it or not, we form opinions based on the messages that people send out to us. If a heterosexual person was to go up to a homosexual person and explain their negative views on gay rights, then they would not make a very good first impression.

On the other hand, not all people send out strong messages or fill a specific stereotype. Society tends to classify people into certain groups. The problem is that common characteristics linked to such groups are often false. If a person does not fit into a group, this makes it more difficult for some people to understand how to interact with them. Within the first few interactions each party may disclose basic views that are not very personal or private. From these views, they are able to interact accordingly and go into further detail.

A friend of mine actually is very qucik to judge people in a negative point of view. If someone was raised in a different environment, has different beliefs, or has experiences something that she doesn't understand, then she is quick to dislike them. In contrast, over the years I have learned that everyone has a very different way of living. Most people who have lived a totally different life then me, communicate differently than me. It does not make them wrong, it just makes us different.

By being able to recognize such differences, I have been able to form many diverse friendships. If someone disagrees with my opinion, I don't think less of them, I just realize that our brains think differently. I think that by looking past the stereotypes and understanding that everyone is different, judgements may become much more fair. If a person does one thing that causes you to form a negative opinion, take the chance to get to know them better and and put your judgements aside. Eventually you will discover something in the person, or begin to understand why they are the way they are. By being open to differences, you may actually learn something new.