Chapter 5: The Verbal Dimension of Communication

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Chapter 5 The Verbal Dimension of Communication
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Content

• Chapter check
• Symbols
• Principles of Verbal Communication
• Constructive power of symbols
• Question to ponder on

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Chapter Check

• Define SYMBOL

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Symbols

• Arbitrary
• Intrinsically connected to what they represent
• Because language are arbitrary, we can create
  private codes that only certain people know
• 2. Ambiguous
• Meanings arent fixed or clear cut
• 3. Abstract
• Not concrete or tangible
• Stand for ideas, people, events, objects,
  feelings, etc. but they are not the things they
  represent

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Three Principles of Verbal Communication

• Interpretation creates meaning
• - Meanings of symbols arent self-evident or
  absolute
• - We construct meaning in the process of
  interacting with others and through dialogues we
  carry on in our lives

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Three Principles of Verbal Communication

• 2. Communication is rule guided
• Communication rules
• shared understandings of what communication means
  and what kinds of communication are not
  appropriate in various situations
• b. Regulative rules
• specify when, how, where and with whom to talk
  about certain things
• c. Constitutive rules
• - define what communication means by telling us
  how to count certain kinds of communication

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Three Principles of Verbal Communication

• 3. Punctuation affects meaning
• - Mental mark of the beginnings and endings of
  particular interactions

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Constructive Power of Symbols

• Symbols define
• Used to define experiences, people,
  relationships, feelings and thoughts
• 2. Symbols evaluate
• They are not neutral, they are laden with values
• 3. Symbols organize perceptions
• How we organize experiences affects what they
  mean to us
• 4. Symbols allow hypothetical thought
• We name ideas so we can hold them in our mind and
  reflect on them
• 5. Symbols allow self-reflection
• - Used to reflect on ourselves

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Activity Questions (15 points)

• 1. Why is verbal communication considered as a
  symbol? Give explicit examples from the movie.
• 2. Based on the movie, what functions do verbal
  communication serve? Give explicit examples from
  the movie.