Outsourced

Exercise #5

Cultural Dimension	Character Todd, Puro, Aisha or other	Outsourced Scene or Circumstance
Communication- direct/indirect	Todd & Dave	Dave was very direct when he told Todd about the outsourcing plan and his role in it
Decision-making: rules / relations	Todd & the staff	Todd let the staff have some freedom in the workplace (clothing, cubicle personal space, brining personal items, etc,.)
Context – Informal / formal	Todd & Puro	They started off being formal (In the cab and the first couple of days) with each other and grew to become more informal (when they got to know one another)
Relationship-Universal/situation	Todd & Puro	They bonded out of the workplace in the celebration of Holi (color)

Reflection

Create a reflection about the movie Outsourced using the PowerPoint I give you. Show that you really understand the above cultural concepts.

1. As soon as Todd arrives, he experiences the discomfort of being disoriented in a
strange new place. What happens at the airport?

2. When a friendly traveler helps him get on the train, what does he tell him to do?

3. When he gets on the train, he cannot find an empty seat. How is this problem
solved for him? How might this be a cultural solution?

            A young kid gave up his seat to him, and to his surprise, sat on his leg. Because kids are mentored to respect their elders and they have a very tightly inclusive society, additionally to how elders are compassionate to the children, it would be appropriate for that situation to take place, casually.

4. As any exchange student, he has a lot of experiences trying new food. His first
encounter is with an iced drink. What happens?

The iced drink disturbs his stomach, making him feel unwell after a little while.

5. First encounters with a culture can be shocking – Todd sees crowded streets with
cows, noise, and a man urinating in the street. But how does his host describe the
city?

6. Even though the host Puro speaks English, Todd uses American slang a lot
without thinking. So as not to insult Puro, what does he say the meaning of
Schmuck is?

7. Todd wants to check in to a hotel. But Puro insists he comes to a boarding house.
What is the reason he gives Todd?

That the hotel is lonely, and that they would treat him better than his own mother does in the boarding house.

8. As soon as they meet, Aunti Ji starts asking very intimate questions that
Americans who have just met would never ask. What kind of things does she ask?

What his father does for a living, how much he earns, whether he has a girlfriend and when he’s planning on getting married.

Cultures Around The World Make Decisions

Exercise #4

        When striking an example on precision when it comes to time, or even driving in most cases, whom better than the German to give praise to? My choice, which is to mention the dimensions that the German people stand out and excel in such as; planning, accountability and status, is purely based on the respect I hold for the German society. 

        When planning, they are known to side strictly with time over people, which supports the fact that they consider individual accountability more just than one that involves the community. Their respect of achieved status over an ascribed one makes them more worthy of the respect they demand. Nevertheless, they still hold respect for ascribed statuses, regardless.

A short story:

                A German/Russian childhood friend has gotten used to the way things work here in the UAE, and they like to always remind us that they were born and raised here, which gives them the right to be flexible about their German-like behavior. Although our dear friend likes to brag about how they are very flexible, in reality they only believe they are because of how they’re compared to their German-borne relatives.

        They came late to a movie once, or so they say, since the lights in the cinema were dimmed and the advertisements had just started playing. And, to this day, they still believe they are very flexible (-flexible in comparison to Germans in general that is).

         

         

Cultural Adaptability

Exercise #3


Able                                        Unable

Name:                                                                                     

1. Evelyn                      Used humor; thrived by keeping busy

                                    by occupying herself with a little job

                                    hunting. Was very friendly and open

                                    to the new situation she was in.

2. Mrs. Hardcastle        Adapted with an aggressive approach

to get what she wanted. (Taking Sonny’s

door equipped room)

3. Mr. Graham              Although it was a more rugged approach

                                    than Evelyn’s, he interacted quite nicely

                                    with some kids playing Cricket, and even

                                    let them win out of sheer kindness.

4. Mr. Ainslie                Felt curious and explored a little and

                                    became intrigued by the temples. He was

                                    more adventurous than his spouse.

5. Mrs. Ainslie                                                                                      Felt uncomfortable and

                                                                                                            disliked the idea of

                                                                                                            exploration and stayed in the

hotel instead of going out

with her husband.

6. Mrs. Donnelly                                                                                   Saw the whole experience as

                                                                                                            unfortunate but unavoidable

                                                                                                            because of her hip surgery.

                                                                                                            She was quite bitter about it

                                                                                                            and was not afraid to show it.

World Views

Exercise #2

          Different countries/continents believe that different things are illegal, and their rules support their beliefs. In a situation where a Qatari local student who happens to study abroad in the UK comes across an over-the-counter drug in the UK, which is labeled legal there and becomes rather attached to it.

            The problem starts when the Qatari man tries to bring the drug into Qatar, but is disallowed to and feels the need to simply smuggle the drug in, because of how attached he has become to it.

            The conflict is mainly between the Qatari man with his drug usage and the Qatari society, which finds this very unacceptable due to the many factors, such as the religious beliefs, the law supporting those beliefs and the society which does not accept such behavior.

            I’ve chosen this article because of how it involves all the aspects of every cultural view (I/G; H/S; P/F) in more than one sense.

I/G: The man knew he was bringing an illegal substance into the country, thus making it obvious that he was to blame for the incident. But, knowing that the substance was legal in the country he was in, makes this somewhat confusing.

H/S: It’s shameful that the man was simply using the substance both in a matter of the society and for the man himself as it it’s also a religious matter, not to mention that he tried to bring it into the country illegally.

P/F: The substance the man tried to smuggle into the country was legal in the country he brought it from, but not legal in Qatar. Thus, he is punishable by the law of Qatar, which he has willingly broken.

Bullfighting

Exercise #1

            Some traditions are built into the souls of the community, and are very hard to shake off. Although people know the consequences of these harsh traditions, they see it as a hard-built activity that would take away their cultural identity if discontinued.

            In my modest opinion, I believe some traditions need to be pushed to wear-off as time passes, especially the ones that are harmful to our community. Although it may seem that these traditions don’t harm people who don’t participate in them, it’s very much the opposite. As some of these traditions such as bullfighting harm animals, they in return ignite and instigate aggressiveness of the people who wish that no harm is done to these animals, which in return has a negative toll on the community as a whole.

            In short, I believe that some of the traditions that don’t wear-off on their own, need to be put down for the sake of the realm of man (Deep, I know). Not to mention that in the end, discontinuing these traditions wouldn’t harm the people who are holding onto them as much as it harms the rest of the population.

To begin this brainstorming session, here’s the definition of the word to kick things off:

What is a tradition?

tra•di•tion \trə-ˈdi-shən\ noun
[Middle English tradicioun, from Middle French & Latin; Middle French tradicion, from Latin tradition-, traditio action of handing over, tradition — more at TREASON] 14th century
1 a : an inherited, established, or customary pattern of thought, action, or behavior (as a religious practice or a social custom)
b : a belief or story or a body of beliefs or stories relating to the past that are commonly accepted as historical though not verifiable 〈the bulk of traditions attributed to the Prophet —J. L. Stewart〉
2 : the handing down of information, beliefs, and customs by word of mouth or by example from one generation to another without written instruction
3 : cultural continuity in social attitudes, customs, and institutions
4 : characteristic manner, method, or style 〈in the best liberal tradition ¹〉

Ask yourself these questions before making up your mind about a tradition:

·               Is it harmful? (In any way possible, whether it be to one’s environment, lifestyle, mental state, world peace, equality, etc,.)

·               Would it be more harmful to discontinue it?

·               What good does it bring?

·               Does the good outweigh the bad?

·               Is it socially, globally, personally and religiously acceptable?

I believe traditions are a personal choice, and will always agree that one can always choose what they participate in.

But, I will always hold closer the fact that be the tradition harmful in any way, the other party has just about the same amount, if not more, right to object and nullify the existence of said tradition.

About Zayed Alhosani

                Simple, and always cuts straight to the chase. And, that’s exactly what we’re doing here. Eccentric, maybe to some extent, yes. It’s difficult for me to agree with new concepts or ideas, but I’m always ready to investigate and find out for myself whether or not it suits my mindset. Time is my worst enemy, as it is apparent. Honestly, a perfectionist is an exaggeration, but I lean towards it occasionally, when I’m very interested. Always lose track of the topic and goal of what I’m aiming to speak about, but it’s always amusing and entertaining as, for some reason, I tend to always get carried away with excitement when it comes to talking or writing about something I enjoy.

• Simple
• Cuts to the chase
• Eccentric (In a good way, hopefully)
• Curious
• Chronologically Inaccurate
• Comfortable (Take all the time I need to do what I need to do, because of the above point)
• Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (Not really, but symptoms do exist)

Since people will most likely not read most of this, I'll just add that I'm always honest, unless it takes dishonesty to convince (or persuade) someone to be honest