The Conversation Issues of Immigrants

The Conversation Issues of Immigrants

   

     This essay is about the topic of The Conversation Issues of Immigrants, and it focuses on long-term immigrants, who are going to live or work in a country for years. This is an important area because it is not just immigrants’ problem in a new country, but also a problem of people in a non-mother tongue country has to face. With different knowledge and cultural backgrounds, people’s consideration of communication style, pluralistic perspectives, and psychological activities decide that the conversation will be multiple. In this essay I am going to talk about the impact of cultural background in second language learning.

     One definition of language is that it is a set of symbols shared by communication meaning and experience (Jandt, 2007). Language bonds a people together and reflects what people see, eat, and think. Each of us lives not in the midst of the whole world but only in that part of the world that our language permits us to know. Every speaker of the same language does not share exactly the same meaning for every word. That problem is compounded when you attempt translation between languages. Thus, the world as each of us knows it is, to a large extent, predetermined by the language of our culture. And differences between languages represent basic differences in the worldview of diverse culture.

     Based on multicultural environment, different languages would present many differences. Because of the different culture backgrounds, although they use a same word, it would be used variously. Because of the differences on culture, although they use the same conception word in two languages, they just could say they are similarity, but not the same!

     There is not denying that culture is a deeply ingrained part of human beings’ life, but language is for communication among members of a culture, which is the most visible and available expression of that culture. In considering the relationship between second language learning and second culture learning, it is very important to consider several different types of second language learning contexts. (a) One context is technically referred to as the learning of a second language, or learning another language either (i) within the culture if that second language or (ii) with one’s own native culture where the second language is an accepted use for education, government, or business within the country. (b) Another context is foreign language learning, which is learning a non-native language in one’s own culture with few immediate and widespread opportunities to use the language within the environment of one’s own culture (Brown, 1980). Therefore, the cultural background directly influences learning effect, when they learn a second language.

     When Chinese people arrive America, and go through relocation camps experienced fear and humiliation in dehumanizing conditions, resulting in passivity, dependence and learned helplessness. Staying for a period, newcomers see opportunities but also experience fear, uncertainty, and unhappiness.

     In addition, one more interesting issue is immigrant families’ life. Family structure changes as children and grandchildren begin to take their places in the new culture and become strangers to their family. The urban environment and value placed on individualism reduces the need for interdependence traditionally provided by the family. Somehow, cultural background is a big influence, and it may change their way of communication and language use.

     Human being do not live in the objective world alone, nor alone in the world of social activity as ordinarily understand, but are very much at the mercy of the particular language which has become the medium of expression for their society… The fact is that the ‘real world’ is to a large extent unconsciously built up on the language habits of the group… We see and hear and otherwise experience the world very much as we do because the language habits of our community predispose certain choices of interpretation (quoted in Whorf, 1956). Sapir-Whorf believes that the way one culture sees the world may not be the same as the way another culture sees the world. What you believe to be true is based on the language you speak. Thus, when you come into contact with a speaker of a different language, you are entering a different view of the world (Cooper, Calloway-Thomas, and Simonds, 2007).

     As an international student studying abroad, I have so many problems when I use the English. When I learned in China, for instance, my pronunciation was quite different from both my tutor and my classmates; somehow the grammar is different, as well. In addition, my thought and my conversation style are different from them, as well.  With different knowledge and culture background, the beginning of my abroad life was quite tough, I am still thinking whether some other barriers exist when I communicate with others.

Reference

Sam, D. L., & Berry, J. W. (2006). The Cambridge Handbook of Acculturation Psychology. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press

Jandt, F. E. (2007). An Introduction to Intercultural communication. America: SAGE Publications

Valdes, J. M. (ed.) (1986). Culture-Bound: Bridging the Cultural Gap in Language Teaching. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Brown, H. D. (1980). Principles of Language learning and Teaching. Reprinted by permission of Prentice-Hall, New Jersey

Cooper, P. J., Calloway-Tomas, C., & Simonds, C. J. (2007). Intercultural Communication a Text with Reading.