This week we were asked to watch a TV show we don't usually watch and write about the verbal and nonverbal communication that can across with our watching it.
News Flash!!!
I DO NOT WATCH VERY MUCH TV!
The two shows I watch consistently are NCIS AND Big Bang (reruns for Big Bang because the daughter's show is on when Big Bang is.) And this past week I didn't watch any of them. What to do. Look in Saturday scheduling. Nothing at all interesting and I don't watch TV on Saturday to begin with.
Consternation abounds.
Since I don't watch much television I chose to watch an episode of a show I had on DVD. Third Rock From The Sun. This episode is called Jolly Old St. Dick. Now the premise of the show is four aliens who are sent to earth to assimilate themselves with earth's culture. Of Course their understanding of holiday's is somewhat nil. What ensues is a great deal of misadventure.
When I watched with the sound off the relationships between some of the characters is easy to understand. Others not so much. When the episode opens Tommy and his girlfriend are in the kitchen, they have been studying and are laughing and talking as the girlfriend is packing up her books. This is easily understood with no sound. The scene changes to the living room and Dick and the landlady as well as the other two characters. Can't tell what they are saying but the whole scene ends in a big group hug. Now Dick is at the office of the college where he teaches. A piece of Mistletoe was hanging he takes it and throws it in the trash. His co-workers come in and get Dick to pick a name to give a gift to for Christmas exchange. Meanwhile Harry and Sally, have found jobs in a Department store as helpers. Harry is an Elf with Santa and Sally as a gift wrapper. As the show proceeds the communication is not easy to follow with our the sound on. A few scenes are obvious though: when Santa goes on break Harry follows him and sees the man taking off his beard and hair. Harry is obviously traumatized by this and screams and runs out. Later during a scene at a bar harry is once again traumatized by several Santa's coming in to the bar. It was easy to tell what was going on when the sound is off. As seen in the show when the sound is on it stands out that what was shown in the non sound version was what was shown in the sounded version.
At the very end of the show there is always a group discussion with all the cast on the roof. They are always discussing things they do not understand about earth culture. It was not easy to understand the conversation however it is always easy to understand by their facial expression and body language that they are clearly confused.
Third Rock From The Sun is one of my go to shows when I am feeling down. I relate to these characters because like me they get things wrong because they don't understand the context. That is one of the reasons I like it I can relate to them. And that is one of the best forms of communication there is.
Peace and all good
Thanks for dropping by
Hi Linda,
ReplyDeleteI was wowed by this assignment as well. I don't have time to watch TV. My family and I purposefully plan a dinner and time to watch a movie together once per week, just to get some time to sit at home together. I had to have my husband record a sitcom that I have been wanting to watch, but always missed because I was either doing something at the time it aired or not at home yet. Nevertheless, my show was similiar to your observational experiences. The beginning of the show was predictable, but later in the show as the story line became more complex it became more difficult to assume what was taking place. I also used their nonverbal cues in an attempt to assume what was happening. The actors in my show were very animated, therefore it was easy to read body language to determine if they were happy, angry, confused, etc.
As you stated in your blog, being able to understand and relate to others help ease the communication level between parties. Sometimes it is difficult to understand people from the same country and culture, therefore I know it is difficult to understand people from different countries and cultures, which is why we need to understand characteristics of effective and ineffective communication as well as develop these skills.
Tabitha Abney