Communication is what many people believe is the key to healthy relationships, however within communication Ratcliffe does a great job of emphasizing how speaking is something that is praised, on the other hand, listening is an act that is overlooked. Ratcliffe describes listening as something that “broadens our possibilities for interpretative (Page 27).” When we do not listen, we limit our ability to understand and see things from another perspective. I feel as if this directly relates to Burkes theory of identification, because he believed that humans align their interests to establish a connection in order to persuade. That being said how is someone able to align interests, if they are not listening and able to relate?
Burke and Ratcliffe seem to both agree that finding a shared perspective is extremely important. When we don’t listen we limit ourselves, as well as the people around us, which in turn can create division. Since listening is so important then why is it something that has been so underestimated for so long? One aspect of the reading that I found incredibility interesting was the negative connotation behind listening and how it is linked to being a “feminine” quality, while speaking is considered to be a “masculine” more positive quality (Page 7). Just like how the act of listening is overlooked, women are overlooked as well, which is a horrible norm that society has constructed. Listening is something that needs just as much educational backing as reading and writing since it is such a key component to life. Not being able to relate or even just understand a person’s actions or feelings is detrimental to society.
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