By Doris Thompson
Donald K. Jarvis, chair of the Department of Germanic and Slavic Languages, spoke Thursday, Nov. 13, on miscommunication, its relationship to ethnocentrism, greed and self-absorption and ways to overcome these problems.
'What we''ve got here is failure to communicate,' Jarvis cited from the 1960s classic film 'Cool Hand Luke.'
Jarvis explored this failure to communicate through five 'communication inhibitors.'
The first communication inhibitor he discussed was 'distorting language for small group identity.'
Certain social factors can speed language evolution, Jarvis said.
He gave the example of Martha''s Vineyard residents who changed the way they pronounced certain vowel sounds to separate themselves from seasonal visitors.
'This is hardly a grievous sin... but it is a step in the direction away from communication...motivated by something less than altruistic,' Jarvis said.
The second communication inhibitor Jarvis discussed was 'solipsism.'
Jarvis defined solipsism as the philosophy that only the self really exists or can be known...isolation, self-centeredness and selfishness.
'Most of us occasionally veer into solipsistic thinking with our children and colleagues despite everything we''ve read in the scriptures and preached about humility....' Jarvis said. 'What we can agree on is that self-absorption and closed-mindedness is why solipsism was never enjoined by Christ and is a huge barrier to communication.'
The third communication inhibitor Jarvis explained was 'ethnocentrism and fanaticism.'
Jarvis said these two barriers to communication are among the most dangerous to the contemporary world, citing these miscommunications as the impetus for conflict.
'The long-running conflicts in Northern Ireland and the Mid-East are bloody testaments to the danger of ethnocentrism and fanaticism and their effectiveness at blocking communication like a brick wall,' Jarvis said.
The fourth communication inhibitor was 'pride and fear, leading to jargon and ambiguity.'
'Simplicity and clarity too often fall victim to our academic temptation to cloak small thoughts in big words,' Jarvis said.
The fifth communication inhibitor explained was 'greed, leading to distorted accounting.'
Jarvis gave the example of advertising''s usage of this type of communication inhibitor.
'For instance, mystical powers, promised social benefits and true joy are attributed to consumption of soft drinks, which are nothing more than carbonated sugar water which will rot your teeth, makes you fat, and is devoid of any real gain of nutritional value,' Jarvis said.
Jarvis then explained a few ways to overcome these 'failures to communicate.'
'Follow the golden rule of readable rhetoric,' Jarvis said. Make your writing what you would want to read. Help the reader. Writing, reading, and conversation are a cooperation effort.
Jarvis also said that even things like simple apologies help, and we should follow the admonition given at the Sermon on the Mount to 'judge not that ye be not judged' in communication issues.
'Generally err on the side of simplicity,' Jarvis said. Even in academic work, the audience will generally appreciate a more simplified version.
Jarvis closed by giving examples of missionaries and their efforts to overcome communication barriers in the world through their selfless service.
'Altruism with its corollaries of curiosity, simplicity, clarity and honesty can help overcome ''failure to communicate,''' he said.