Cross-Cultural Miscommunication and Confucianism - Essay Example

The art of politeness in these two cultures differs a great deal in behaviors such as greetings, addressing, and complimenting. Thus politeness being a universal communication phenomenon reflects particular cultural values that come with or rather which are linked to diverse cultures. Being a relatively vital aspect in cross-cultural communication, politeness enables people from different cultures to establish, consolidate or maintain harmonious interpersonal relations that reduce misunderstandings and conflicts in society.

A snapshot of various aspects of politeness in the two cultures, Chinese and English, depicts that the rules of communication differ as they are influenced by the values and beliefs of individuals from these communities. For instance, English people always address others according to their genders; Mr., Mrs., Miss, and Ms, followed by a surname, depending on age and marital status. On the other hand, the Chinese address people using a surname and the title of the occupation; “Wang Yi sheng” means Doctor Wang, “Lee xiao zhang” means Principal Lee, and “shi fu” can be used to address strangers. In addition, the Chinese culture, especially for children, “shush” and “a Yi” is always used to address uncle and aunty respectively.

Another aspect of politeness in the two cultures is farewell and greetings. Whenever English people meet, they always use phrases like “Nice to meet you,” “Good Morning,” “Good evening” and “Good afternoon.” For the Chinese, the phrase “ni hao” is always used whenever people meet. Moreover, when the China people meet their acquaintances, one can say “Qu a li” to ask where one is going or “chi le ma?” to ask whether one has eaten or not. Thus, whenever a native speaker of English hear Chinese phrases, he or she might interpret them as an invitation to lunch or dinner and any other interference in their personal affair.

I met one of my colleagues, an English speaker on my way to a restaurant. I was not fluent in English by then and have learned a few English words, so I opted to use my native language. After shaking hands I asked him, “Qu na li?” which means “where are you going?” To my surprise, he replied, “Yes, I don’t mind.” My colleague misinterpreted my question about a lunch invitation. I had no otherwise. I had to buy lunch for the two of us. As we were taking our lunch, I opted to engage him in a further discussion. A man was sitting at the table next to ours, he looked point to where the other man was sitting. My friend replied, “I know that chief, we always meet in a math class.

In conclusion, cross-culture miscommunication is a serious issue among people from different cultural backgrounds. In the above-discussed example, of a Chinese and an English man, various phrases are confused or misinterpreted unknowingly. Therefore, it is clear that a member from a given culture can always suffer from miscommunication not unless he or she attends the basic lessons of other cultures; politeness in every culture is basic for effective communication. If my friend would have an understanding of the above Chinese phrases, he would not have misinterpreted my questions.