The Lord said, “If as one
people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing
they plan to do will be impossible for them. Come,
let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand
each other.”
-Genesis
11:1-9
When I was 15, I was hurtled
across half a world form Chennai, India to Paris, France. Language was the
first problem I faced, but not the last. The cultural scenario in France was
very different from what I had experienced till that point of my life. One of
the things I found hard to come to terms with was the diversity in the attitude
of the French towards new cultures and languages.
On one hand, the French seem extremely
polite - To an extent that they greet almost random people they see on the
street with a ‘bonjour’. At first, I found this rather surprising but later, as
I grew more accustomed to the environment, I felt that it was a cultural norm
and you could be passed off as rude if you do not do greet or greet back.
On the other hand, in a few of
the shops and stores that I frequent, I found the store keepers rather intolerant
towards non-speakers of French. I felt that this could have arisen form their
cultural pride. Coming from India, where not being able converse well in English
is widely considered a disadvantage, I found this reluctance towards accepting
another language intriguing.
I feel that in this culturally
varied world, the need to empathise with cultures other than our own is dire.
In order to smoothen interactions with peers, it is necessary that we are
considerate towards the cultural norms of the societies they are from. In case
of interactions with potential customers or clients, it would be an advantage
to adapt their cultural norms as people tend to trust and like those who are
similar to themselves.
