Unit 3

I enjoyed this unit. This unit focused a lot on nonverbal communication and the meaning of different types of communication. There were many things that I learned and found interesting in this unit. Tentativeness, for example, I do think that woman tend to do this more often, but men do also. There are times that men just want to state their opinion or give their knowledge, and you can tell that they are not looking for any more conversation. However, at least the men that I am around, tend to end at least half of their conversations with questions. I also found it interesting that time is considered a form of non-verbal communication. After I read the chapter, it made sense, but I would have never classified it as nonverbal communication. I think that it would be weird to live in Latin America. How could you ever make a doctors appointment if you are expected to arrive late as a sign of respect. What would be the point of having an appointment time? In our area, if you are more than 10 minutes late for your appointment, you have to reschedule and you're charged for that visit. I also thought that the different meanings of silence were strange. For example, in Japan if a woman is silent after a marriage proposal, that is her way of accepting. In Igbo, if a woman is accepting a marriage proposal, she runs away. It is just so neat to read how different cultures interpret things so differently.

Unit 2

This unit focused on several different types of identities and religions. I find it interesting to study other religions. I am a Christian and I am grounded in my believes, so it is interesting to read about why others believe what they do. I was surprised that Islam is the fastest growing religion. Chapter 4 dealt with identity and the different aspects that go along with it. I find cyber and fantasy identity really weird. I am also taking a womans study course and we have discussed this in their also. I guess a lot of people who have gender confusion use this as a way to be someone else. This was definitely an interesting chapter, I enjoy reading about why people are the way they are.