Impersonal Communication: My Name Is Khan - Assignment Example

Impersonal Communication: My Name Is Khan The term interpersonal skill is synonymous with business communication and there can be a plethora of reasons for which such skills are being talked about and discussed in various forums. Communication can be of various types and there are cultural and technological influences that affect its form to a great extent. Thus, knowledge and understanding of these influences is necessary for us to comprehend the significance of interpersonal communication (West and Turner 9-10). The term interpersonal communication has traversed a long way from the previous days when it was limited to letters indicating non-verbal communication. However, the scenario has changed rapidly during the last four decades and communication has emerged as one of the key factors whether in a group of people or between two individuals. Since interpersonal communication is an unending process (West and Turner 10), the changes that are noticed in this type of communication are obvious. In short, it is extremely difficult to define what interpersonal communication is, simply because it cannot be bound within a restricted area. Thus, the changes that it has picked in various stages of evolution have become an intrinsic part of the same. Communication is a broad term in itself that incorporates several nuances. As a matter of fact, the factors that affect interpersonal communication require more focus in order to understand and draw conjectures. For instance, Judee Burgoon’s Expectancy Violation Theory is a significant milestone that illustrates non verbal communication in various ways. This theory that demonstrates how non verbal communication comes under the influence of expectations is worth appreciating. The significance of this theory lies to the extent and capacity in which it depicts non verbal communication such as body language and eye contact. Interpersonal communication is intertwined with our daily lives and there is hardly a moment that does not reflect various aspects of this communication, which is substantiated by Turner and West: “Each day we perform one of the most ancient of all behaviors: interpersonal communication. We head off to work and greet people on the bus, in the office, in the carpool or on the street. We talk to our roommates and discuss last night’s party over breakfast. Or we wake up and soon find ourselves in the middle of a heated exchange with a family member about dirty dishes. Although each of these situations differs, they all underscore the pervasiveness of interpersonal communication in our lives” (West and Turner, 4) In the movie ‘My Name is Khan’, the protagonist, Rizwan Khan suffers from Asperger’s Syndrome and exhibits different shades of emotion in different phases of his life. The way in which the protagonist interprets or reads other people’s thoughts whether it is with the family members or outsiders helps in creating the persona of a man, based on which the film has been made. In fact, this book provides an account of the ways in which interpersonal communication is interpreted and the extent in which it affects people. The disease that affects the protagonist exposes different features of this man and how he takes it in his favor for acquiring trust among all those people who interact with him. Thus, interpersonal communication, in this film takes different turns during the course of events beginning from the journey of the protagonist to USA from India, and the way in which he settles down abroad and his frantic appeal to the President while trying to prove his innocence when suspected as a terrorist. Similarly, the reactions of this man within a group and his emotional outbursts that he can hardly express like others unravels some of the most crucial aspects about the attitude of society towards people like him suffering from similar diseases. The Emotional Contagion theory is another doctrine that relates with interpersonal communication. It is often noted that people have a tendency to imitate the emotions of a person during conversation. For instance, body languages such as nodding head, crying, laughing are some of those features that exhibit trends of agreement or disagreement. In the film, ‘My Name is Khan’ a similar emotional semblance is observed in Rizwan Khan when his foster son dies in the film and he empathizes with his wife and the mother of the child Mandira despite facing opposition from her later when she accuses him of being the reason for the death of Sameer, her son from the previous marriage. The tendency of people to imbibe emotions of others indicates a significant characteristic of human behavior. As a matter of fact, the existence of Rizwan Khan becomes an immensely convoluted issue at one moment and his hope that rekindles while helping Mama Jenny from the pangs of hurricane reveals clearly the momentary phases of emotion. Thus, there are people who understand the feelings of Khan and believe him; on the other hand, he is misinterpreted at different moments throughout the film. At the same time, the religious sentiments also contribute towards the emotional expression of many people in the film. The societal changes are also responsible for the behavioral changes that take place in different countries. For instance, the modern American society is far removed from what it used to be during the previous times (West and Turner 10-11). While the film is intrinsically related to interpersonal communication, it must be kept in mind that the protagonist who is being highlighted in the movie is different from normal human beings. This is important because interpersonal communication and different scenarios that are associated with it should be taken into account while analyzing its aspects. In short, communication is influenced by different stimuli such as physical sound, noise, and emotions. Similarly, the inner voice or the psyche of an individual affects communication to a great extent, which is again demonstrated in the film ‘My Name is Khan’. For instance, Rizwan Khan feels helpless while expressing his antagonism towards a group of Muslim community although he disagrees with their views. Similarly, it is extremely difficult for him to survive the period or console his wife Mandira at the time of the death of her child. Therefore, interpersonal communication differs in various cultural groups as well as within members of a family. However, the emotional struggle also helps Rizwan to instigate himself to speak to the President of US and his love towards Mandira helps him survive the loneliness throughout the time when he moves out of the house. The lack of communication between husband and wife becomes a major impediment in their relationship and it seems at one moment as if they are never going to reconcile. The film is expressive of different forms of communication and the relation that it establishes towards the end is perhaps the greatest learning point. We tend to make several mistakes in our everyday lives and a majority of it is related to communication. For instance, the misinterpretation of Mandira, who becomes obsessed with the death of her son and her tyrannical attitude towards Rizwan is one of the most touching moments of the film. It is difficult to fathom whether Mandira’s attitude is temporary or she is far more ruthless towards a man who could find little words to convince her and stand by her side during such a difficult time. However, it would be wrong to underestimate Mandira’s attitude and state it as ruthless because she is grief-stricken not only because of her son’s death, but also because she had to expel Rizwan, which was not the voice of her heart. Thus, lack of communication comes to the forefront once again particularly Mandira’s helplessness to express her feelings to her husband. A major point that can be analyzed here is whether Mandira would have communicated to Rizwan had he not been a victim of Asperger’s Syndrome. After all, her marriage to Rizwan was a generous decision and nothing in particular was imposed on her. Thus, the dilemma of her inexpressiveness makes her a soulless figure towards the end of the film and the focus of the audience shifts completely towards Rizwan. It is pity that despite having lost her son in unpremeditated conditions, she failed to gather enough sympathy from the audience. On the other hand, this technique can be viewed as a deliberate move of the filmmaker to put the spotlight on Rizwan, the protagonist of the film. If interpersonal communication is viewed in the perspective of this film, the major deterrent would be the character of Rizwan and the disease that puts him into distress and acts as a savior at the same time. It emerges towards the end that Rizwan is probably a person who has little or no restrictions when it comes to expression of feelings and communicating with his loved ones, which is clearly revealed while he openly talks about sex with Mandira. This is a distinctive characteristic of the personality of Rizwan and helps the audience to get to the bottom of different tones of interpersonal communication. While this film is exceptional when it comes to exploration of human attitude, it is not larger than life and this is what creates the scope of similarities and it becomes easier to understand interpersonal communication. However, it is to be understood that interpersonal communication is not a cliché as it is an ever-changing concept that traverses through different cultures, regions, milieu and individual attitude of people belonging to several communities. Towards the end of this film, ‘My Name is Khan’, the biggest lesson learnt is the overlapping of emotions that changes the lives of Mandira and Rizwan although they tend to realize that emotions are to be shared and love is the most precious thing ever. REFERENCES Johar, Karan, My Name is Khan, Fox Star Studios, February 11, 2010 West, Richard and Turner Lynn, Understanding Interpersonal Communication: Making Choices in Changing Times, Cengage Learning, 2011. Read More