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DUONG KIM THANH QH2013.F1.E10INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION ESSAY
ASSIGNMENT
INTRA/CROSS/INTERCULTURAL MATERIAL ANALYSIS
“LOST IN TRANSLATION”
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“Break open a cherry tree
And there were no flowers
But the spring breeze
Brings forth myriad blossoms”
It is a magnificent poem by Ikkyu Sojun about gorgeous Japanese
Cherry blossoms. Up to now, Japan has been well-known for a land of
beauty of both nature and people, attracting millions of the hearts all over
the world, particularly the director Sofia Coppola. This country is a source
of great inspiration to her “Lost in Translation”, a comedy released in 2003
about two lost souls seeking the meaning of life in Japan. The movie
depicts a couple of cultural dimensions especially Japanese value,
individualism versus collectivism and communication styles in both
Japanese and North American (The U.S) cultures.
“Lost in Translation” begins when Bob Harris (Bill Murray), a
fading, B-level American movie actor facing with his “midlife crisis”,
travels to Japan to make commercials for whiskey. Here, he meets by
chance Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson), a Yale recent graduate and also a
young wife of a photographer working on assignment. As living in the
same hotel, they meet during one of their midnight to share with each other
their feeling of desperate loneliness and “out of context” in Japan. The
seed of their friendship germinates day by day and becomes a perfect
relationship despite their age gap. They begin exploring foreign cultures as
well as seeking the meaning of life together. Eventually, Bob and
Charlotte, however, are not together till the last moment, either as friends
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or lovers because he suddenly travels back to the U.S, resulting in a semi-
open ending for viewers.
Intercultural value presented in “Lost in Translation” contributes to its
great prominence. That the movie was shot entirely in Japan gives audience
the opportunity to experience most marked points of value in Japanese
community. “Value” is culturally defined guiding principle or standard of
good, beautiful and desired characteristics in society (Lustig & Koester,
2010). Throughout this film, “strict hierarchy” must be the most splendid
value which is clearly proved by Japanese greeting. When arriving at the
hotel from the airport, Bob receives a warm and rapturous welcome from
the staff and a small group of his future colleagues. Not only do they offer
Bob their business cards as well as precious presents but they also greet him
by bowing, whereby the angle of inclination illustrates the hierarchical
relationship or the comparative status difference between him and them.
This astonishing welcome really makes him a little overwhelmed but Bob
still manages to follow this deep-rooted culture. Actually, it is not difficult
to understand the astonishment of Bob. He is a typical American who often
tries to freeze almost all status differences in social interaction whereas
Japanese community does not. Another important factor supporting the
hierarchy value in the movie is language. Research by Dolan and Worden
(1994) indicates that the system of honorific vocabularies and humble terms
used by Japanese is very rich and diverse. Evidence corroborating this can
be noticed in the scene of shooting whiskey commercial at the studio. The
director gives Bob long instructions and explanations in Japanese, which
then are translated into English by the female interpreter. It becomes a
matter when the English texts are obviously much shorter than Japanese
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ones, which makes him confused. Bob sees the director speak for a long
time but what the interpreter says to him is just “look into the camera,
please”. His face appears anxious and insecure for not being sure whether
she covers all the Japanese words or not. Lost in translation, Bob is like a
child taking the first hesitant steps into a strange world with a strange
language, too. Were Bob to know that “formalities” have been preferred to
utilize in Japan so far, he would get the answer for the question why
Japanese speakers usually take far longer than the English to say nearly the
same things. He still follows what he can hear from the Japanese interpreter
but his head is burning inside. It is language barrier that provides a literal
interpretation of the title “Lost in Translation”.
In addition to Japanese cultural value, “Lost in Translation” describes a
great number of distinct differences between individualistic society and
collective one. There is no doubt to say both Bob and Charlotte are typical
examples of individualism which prioritizes the individual self rather than
social institutions (Craig, 2012) while “Land of Rising Sun” itself is a
representative of collectivism in which the group spirit is highly respected.
Differences between two cultures are clarified by the situation when
Charlotte calls her friend at homeland, Lauren, trying to explain and express
her loneliness in new country and her not-going-well relationship with her
husband. But to her distress, Lauren says sorry for being snowed under and
not having time to listen to Charlotte’s stories. As a result, Charlotte is left
alone with silent tears rolling slowly down her cheek. It is as if she did not
make a phone call. From the hotel windows, looking to Japan outside where
people move in packs down the city sidewalks or get together to eat at the
hotels and to sing karaoke in public houses, she finds herself lost in that
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world, the world of collectivism. She is additionally disappointed at her
family and friends back home in the U.S who normally are too
individualistic to care about problems of the others. Bob’s situation is also
similar to Charlotte’s when he calls his wife in the last minutes of the movie.
After he completely cuts off the family life at home, the individualism of
Bob's world becomes more and more obvious. They, Bob and his wife, do
not spend much time communicating with each other. His voice over the
phone seems tired revealing his deep underlying dissatisfaction to the
stagnant marriage. He cannot tell her about his good and bad experiences in
Japan because she herself shows no interest in his new life. She also finds it
not difficult to keep their everyday life at home going smoothly without his
appearance. Even when asking about the kids, Bob is given the usual
response "They are fine but they miss their father, but they are getting used
to your not being there". It means that with or without Bob’s presence at
home, nothing special happens because each person has to make their own
private life by standing in their own feet, taking care of themselves and
adapting themselves to circumstances. What an individualistic culture!
Last but not least, it cannot be denied that “Lost in Translation”
succeeds pretty well in rendering communication styles including high and
low context. Hall (1977) argues that low context culture values directness,
trustfulness and details. In contrast, indirectness, formality and
interpersonal relationship are features of high context one. It is possible for
audience to realize that the low context communication is mirrored into the
image of Kelly, a friend of Charlotte’s husband. As sitting with her close
friends including the couple Charlotte and John and some other American
fellows in the hotel bar for a drink, Kelly talks about her private affairs and
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then her father life in which he was taken prisoner during the fight for the
"Bay of Pigs” so loudly and naturally as though no one else existed in the
world but only them. Even though involved in Kelly’s small talk, Charlotte
decides to stand up and plans her escape. The brash and direct way of
speaking, in deed, is inappropriate and awkward in such a society like
“Land of Sakura” where people would prefer to discuss private topics
confidentially or in secret. On the contrary, while Kelly brings her low
context culture to Japan from her beloved homeland, the U.S, Bob chooses
to abide by high context communication style when invited to participate
in one of the most popular talk shows in Japan. From his point of view,
this show is completely crazy with a Westernized in blonde hair, a very
colorful suit and a freaked-out style. Nevertheless, no matter how vulgar it
is, Bob makes his effort to adapt a little, being a ridiculous bloke imitating
outlandish acts as well as dances required by the host. He does not refuse
to do those weird things, because they are presumably what Japanese
people want, what is "cool”.
“Lost in Translation” is really a brilliant movie with many beautiful
and obsessed scenes about the loneliness, fear and insecurity of two main
characters in a foreign country. Watching this movie, audience can find the
perfect balance between the brooding melancholies with a little hilarity.
Besides, audience is provided a vivid image of Japan with a blend of
tradition and modern as well as various intercultural aspects in which
hierarchy value, collectivism and high context culture are central.
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References
1. Lustig, M.W. & Koester, J. (2010) Cultural identity and cultural
biases. In M.W.Lustig, & J. Koester, Intercultural competence:
Interpersonal communication across cultures (6th ed.) (p88). Boston, MA:
Allyn & Bacon.
2. Dolan, R., & Worden, R. (1994). Japan - VALUES AND BELIEFS.
Retrieved from http://countrystudies.us/japan/58.htm
3. Lazos, K., Donnellon, E., & McConnell, C. (n.d.). Japan: Values,
Proverbs and Languages. Retrieved from
http://acad.depauw.edu/~mkfinney/teaching/Com227/culturalPortfolios/
japan/values.htm
4. Craig Biddle. Individualism vs. Collectivism: Our Future, Our Choice
[Online] 2012. Retrieved from:
https://www.theobjectivestandard.com/issues/2012-spring/individualism-
collectivism/
5. Chapter 1 Lecture: High-Context & Low-Context Culture Styles.
(n.d.). Retrieved from
http://www.marin.edu/buscom/index_files/Page605.htm
6. Eckert, A., & Kohler, I. (2003). Lost in Translation. Retrieved from
http://www.uni-hildesheim.de/interculturalfilm/show_entry.php?
fid=115&sid=0&cl=1