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Introducing Jan: An Analysis
| Now that you have completed the activities in this chapter, look again at the excerpt from Jan's journal. In light of what you have learned in this chapter, do you find other passages you want to mark as questionable or inaccurate, or passages you noted previously that now strike you as acceptable?
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The purpose of these introductory excerpts from the writings of PCV Jan is to teach you about culture and cultural differences through the "actual" experiences-and in particular, the mistakes-of a typical Peace Corps Volunteer. For this technique to work, and especially for these lessons to have maximum impact, you are presented with more of Jan's errors than her triumphs. If Jan's impressions leave you with the notion that the Peace Corps experience is nothing more than a steady progression of cultural "faux pas", misunderstandings, and misinterpretations, remember that you haven't seen all the letters and journal entries Jan wrote that contained no cultural mistakes.
Jan will do fine. And so will you.
Paragraphs 1 and 2:
| It has been so hectic in the 10 days we've been here I've only had time to make notes for this journal. Now, at last, I can write a real entry. It's Sunday afternoon and for once we have nothing official scheduled. My clothes are drying on the line (I have to sit here and watch them, my host mother told me, because "bad people" may come and steal them) and I'm sitting in the shade of some kind of fruit tree. I'm not so sure about those bad people, for I've certainly not met anyone yet who fits that description. Everyone we've met so far, from the training staff to our host families, has been remarkably kind and nice. It's a cliche, I know, but the people really are exceptionally nice; they can't do enough for you, and, much to my surprise, they understand us much better than I thought they would. |
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Jan is at the beginning of a dynamic process - getting to know how she, as an American, fits in with another culture. In this excerpt, she is full of enthusiasm, delighted with people's kindness, and understandably uncritical of the few host country nationals she has met. Nevertheless, she is right to listen to her host mother and keep an eye open for "bad people", even though she hasn't met any - yet. As she herself suspects, her observation that there are no bad people is premature. Her evidence here seems to be that she hasn't made a mistake yet (no "disasters") nor has she seen anything that "shocked or offended" her. She may have made a few cultural "faux pas," but no one may have told her so, not wanting to embarrass her.
Paragraphs 3 and 4
| Maybe understand isn't the word. Maybe the real point is that they just aren't as different as I thought they would be or was led to believe they would be. Or maybe it's that in spite of a few superficial differences, in clothes, food, dress, that underneath they are more like us than I thought. Why do I say this? It's just that there haven't been any real disasters yet; I haven't done anything that has shocked or offended anyone. I suppose it's because I learned a lot of the do's and don'ts from that culture-shock book I read before coming here that I can get by without making any major mistakes. And I certainly haven't observed anything that really shocked or offended me. I really do understand more than I expected to (not the language, of course, but the things people do) and recognize a lot of common behaviors. I watched people in a restaurant the other night, and there was nothing they did that I wouldn't do back home. On the other hand, come to think of it, I did see someone kick a dog the other afternoon and was shocked at such casual cruelty. |
At this stage she is relieved to see that people "aren't as different as I thought they would be" and that she recognizes "a lot of human behavior". Recognizing similarities (universal behaviors) is reassuring for anyone beginning a new adventure in a new country. However, she is not taking her surroundings for granted. She is already experiencing some of the contradictions of living in a new culture. and she is conscious of the potential for disaster or for shocking people. And she may have made a few cultural "faux pas," but no one may have told her so, not wanting to embarrass her. On the one hand, the people in the restaurant behaved as they would "back home" On the other hand she was shocked at the "casual cruelty" of seeing someone kick a dog. Recognizing her feelings and reactions is important. But was that kick really casual cruelty? It's also possible that it was self-protection, not wanting to be infected by the bite of a diseased animal.
Her book of do's and don'ts have probably provided her with a useful security blanket for her first few days. Though as you have seen in this chapter, crossing cultures a complex. For Jan to have a deep understanding of her host culture and her interactions with people around her, it will be important for her to go beneath the surface, and learn the reasons and the values behind the do's and don'ts.
Finally, when Jan says she recognizes "a lot of common behaviors," she may indeed recognize the behaviors, but she may not be interpreting them correctly. At this stage, she cannot have experienced the many ways these people may act differently from what she is accustomed to. Her world is full of common behaviors because for the moment these are the only ones she can see.
Paragraph 5
| I have a lot to learn, I'm sure, but if these first few days are any indication, this is not going to be quite as hard as I had expected. |
"I have a lot to learn" says Jan. Her openness to new experiences and her willingness to reflect on her learnings in her journal are signs that she started out well.
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