Language & Landmarks: Delivering Bad News

Culture is fascinating! Did you know that people in some cultures have a very difficult time delivering “the bad news”? In India, for example, saying that you are unable to do something that a superior or a guest might expect of you is considered rude or impolite, no matter what the circumstances. So an Indian might say “yes” to something knowing full well it is impossible to do. In Korea, subordinates save negative reports or information for the end of the day so that their boss will have ample time to recover from shock or disappointment before business in the morning. . The Chinese language avoids the use of “no” by formulating many phrases of polite escape. “Truth” is relative; some might even say that in some cultures truth is elastic. How do we learn to interpret and identify the “truth” the way that other cultures might express it?

 

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