Ray T. Donahue

After decades of study, the author explains why contrastive rhetoric (CR) appears to have tenuous roots and the necessity for critical cultural analysis. The once vaunted "empirical" evidence from Japanese, a major basis for CR, appears methodologically unsound. CR, however, has been routinely accepted uncritically by scores of second language instructors, not to mention researchers in the field. Bold words to be sure, but until CR\u27s house is put into order, the field will be left banking on hopes rather than solid empirical evidence expected of any social science. In this "Back to the Future" or nether land condition, practitioners are cast without a compass and so may more easily succumb to ethnocentric impulse. Rather than a strong form of CR, the author argues that a weak form would be more pragmatic. Various examples show why. Suggestions for future research are provided

Chapter 9 Deconstructing the Japanese National Discourse: Laymen's Beliefs and Ideology Rotem Kowner Nihonjinron is a currently vast discourse that takes place within the Japanese society and seeks to account for the particular characteristics of its culture, behavior, and ...

Historically, Japan has been viewed as the “mysterious Orient”; and its people, inscrutable. Framed in terms of the mysterious Orient(al) schema, these cultural images of the Japanese are traced through triangulation, including a discourse study of American training films for its ...

Preface Introduction DISCOURSE ANALYSIS Discourse Analysis: A Conceptual Foundation The Framing and Formatting of Discourse Contrastive Discourse Analysis: Genre and Culture Functional Versus Structural Approaches to Discourse Analysis Asian Conflict: North and South Korea Face Off at the UN RHETORICAL ANALYSIS Classicial Antecedents and Their Successors Contemporary Western Perspectives Three UN Situations APPLICATIONS Middle Eastern Conflict: Israel and the PLO An African Conflict Resolved Super Power Conflicts and Resolutions Toward a Future World Order Freedom, Human Rights, and Women's Rights Appendix References Author Index Subject Index About the Authors

Invited to offer my commentary on racism, I do so from the view of an interracial counselor/trainer with much experience in the U.S. and elsewhere. Global listener herein refers to those ascribing to the ideals and definition of listening set forth by the Global Listening Centre. Why would racism be of import to the global listener? Beside moral and humanitarian reasons, effective listening as a constructive process (Burleson 2011) is predicated on having clear perception through which meaning unfolds. The classic adage pertains: garbage in—garbage out. The more racialized our perception, the less effective listening becomes. The very fact that we are human means imperfection—our minds however sharp can never be pure. That is inescapable whatever stripe of color you might be. My hope is that in a small way, what I set forth might aid us become better global listeners. Herein my purpose will be to chart out the who, what, and where about racism and how we might overcome this bane that afflicts humanity, while sharing actual interracial experiences and the role of listening for a successful outcome.