Interpersonal Conflict in Film - Movie Review Example

Interpersonal conflict in “Crash” (2004) 30 May Interpersonal conflict in “Crash” (2004) “Crash” (2004), directed by Paul Haggis, is filled with different forms of interpersonal conflicts, which traverse primary and non-primary relationships. This paper will analyze one particular interpersonal conflict, particularly between a business owner and a customer, which is considered as a non-primary relationship. It refers to the conflict between Farhad and the white American store owner.

During this time, Farhad planned to buy a gun with his daughter, Dorri, because his wife almost got killed by a burglar. Farhad did not know anything about guns and so when the store owner asked him about the kind of ammunition he wanted, Farhad had an argument with Dorri. This made the owner impatient and he told Farhad: “Yo, Osama, plan the jihad on your own time, what do you want?” Because of this statement, Farhad reacted: “Are you making insult at me?” The store owner continued in insulting Farhad and he said: “Is that the closest you can come to English.

” Farhad emphasized that he can speak English and that he has rights to buy a gun: “Yes, I speak English. I am an American citizen…I have rights to buy guns!” Then the store owner reminded Farhad about 9/11, which made Farhad angrier. The owner called the guard, which led Farhad outside the door, while Dorri was left inside the store to demand either their money back or that the owner give them the gun. The conflict was not handled effectively, because the store owner and Farhad both had negative stereotypes about each other, which they used to prejudge each other’s motives and actions.

Stereotypes are “preconceived opinions” about someone that tend to be “negative and reflect prejudices, preconceived opinions of dislike, hostility, or unjust behavior” (Sole, 2011, section 7.2). In this case, the store owner already had preconceived nations that Farhad is a terrorist, by employing name-calling techniques. He called Farhad, “Osama,” even he is not even sure about the nationality of Farhad. Farhad happens to be Persian and not Arab. Farhad got angry and had his own stereotypes about white Americans.

He called the store owner “ignorant” and that he “cheats” on him. Apparently, he thinks Americans are ignorant and keeps on cheating on Middle Eastern people. Because of these stereotypes, their listening skills have been affected. The store owner no longer listened to Farhad as a customer, but as an Arab who have wronged his country and Farhad is no longer interested in listening to the owner as the expert on guns. The result is the escalation of hostility against each other. What could have been done differently is that the store owner and Farhad should have listened more to each other and focused on the sale, instead of their negative stereotypes of each other.

First, the owner should have applied comprehension and empathic listening skills to the situation. Comprehension listening is called “critical listening” (Sole, 2011, section 7.3), where the owner could have understood, from nonverbal cues, that Dorri does not approve of her father buying a gun, and yet Farhad insists on doing so. This could have made the owner more sensitive to the situation and less concerned of his stereotypes. The owner could have also understood that Farhad does not know anything about guns and instead, he should have offered his expert knowledge and asked Farhad about the purpose of the gun.

On Farhad’s side, he should have also applied “critical listening” and asked the owner what he could suggest for ammunition, if he wanted to protect his store from burglars. Second, the owner did not apply empathic listening skills. As the owner, he should have tried to “connect” with Farhad and to understand his needs (Sole, 2011, section 7.3). He should have asked him what happened and why he needed the gun, because this could have compelled him to show support for a fellow store owner who had a right to hold a gun and protect his family and property from criminals.

Hence, if these two men applied critical and empathic listening skills to each another, they could have avoided the conflict and focused more on the transaction at hand. References Sole, K. (2011). Making connections: Understanding interpersonal communication. California: Bridgepoint Education, Inc. Haggis, P. (Director). (2004). Crash [Film]. Los Angeles: Bob Yari Productions.