Pieper: CAPS Blog #2

When I first saw the blog prompt I was excited to see the movie Crash on the list of possible movie references.  When I saw the movie it invoked a lot of thought and reflection in me.  The director and actors seemed to point out about every racial stereotype, give either positive or negative results from these stereotypes, and intertwine each sub-story into one plot.  With regard to the interpretive approach to intercultural communication, Crash did an excellent job describing human behavior.  I imagine the director took the necessary research conducting “field studies, observations, and participant observations” so that he might better describe intercultural human behavior as it might occur. (Martin & Nakayama, 2012, p. 59)

            The first cultural pattern I noticed in the movie was the pattern that white people are afraid of minorities, especially African Americans and Hispanics.  One instance of this pattern early in the movie occurs when Sandra Bullock, Jean, and her husband, Rick Cabot, are walking to their car from dinner.  When Jean sees two black males walking towards them, she instinctively grabs Rick’s arm. (Harris 2005)  Jean is immediately frightened by these two men without even knowing them.

            Thinking about this pattern through an interpretative perspective reminds me that human experience is subjective.  Later on in Crash, Jean makes a subjective assumption about Hispanics.  When a Hispanic locksmith comes to change Rick and her’s home locks, she tells her husband that “I would like the locks changed again in the morning. And you know what, you might mention that next time we'd appreciate it if they didn't send a gang member…he's not gonna go sell our key to one of his gang banger friends the moment he is out our door?” (Harris 2005)  In this instance, we can see how Jean’s subjective opinion about Hispanics effects the way she communicates with her husband as well as the hired worker in her house.  In this case, the interpretative perspective does not do a good job of explaining how past experiences are directly related to the current cultural views. 

            The second cultural pattern I recognized was that behavior is creative, not predictable.  This really came to light when a police officer risks his life to pull a woman out from under an upside down car that was seconds away from exploding. (Harris 2005)  Now some may say that was a predictable act by the officer since he signed up to “protect and serve.”  However, earlier in the movie this same officer sexually assaulted this same woman he just now saved.  Therefore, his life saving act comes as even more of a surprise knowing his previous interactions with this woman.

            Finally, there was a scene in Crash that showed how culture is created through communication.  The scene is as simple as one man telling another about his St. Christopher statue.  Relaying the information that St. Christopher is “the patron saint of travelers, dog.” (Harris 2005)  One can see how telling someone else about faith and their beliefs is a good example of how culture is created through communication.  The sharing of thoughts, ideas, and opinions is what shapes our culture.

            Moving forward, I would like to begin to recognize the significance of not only sharing my ideas but also intently listening to others’.  I think the interpretive perspective nails it when it says that culture is created through communication.  Too often, people get their “culture” from TV shows on MTV, VH1, and E!.  Instead, I think it would be a benefit to everyone if they simply shut off their TV’s and communicated with the people around them.  Everyone would learn so much more and we would start to develop a culture based around our own ideas and not those pumped into our brains by the said TV stations.

Here is a great video that talks about TV and media's effect on our culture.  It can be very eye opening to anyone who is oblivious about how these media outlets influence the way we think about other people. 

Harris, M.R., Moresco, R., Cheadle, D., Yari, B., Schulman, C., & Haggis, P. May 6, 2005. Crash. United States: Apollo Pro Screen, Harris Company, Black Friar’s Bridge, Bull’s Eye Entertainment, Yari Film Group, DEJ Productions.

Martin, J.N., & Nakayama, T.K. (2010). Intercultural communication in contexts (5th ed.). Boston, MA: McGraw Hill.