Intercultural Mirrors: Dynamic Reconstruction of Identity contains (auto)ethnographic chapters and research-based explorations that uncover the ways our intercultural experiences influence our process of self-discovery and self-construction. The idea of intercultural mirrors is applied throughout all chapters as an instrument of analysis, an heuristic tool, drawn from philosophy, to provide a focus for the analysis of real life experiences. Plato noted that one could see oneâs own reflection in the pupil of anotherâs eye, and suggested that the mirror image provided in the eye of the other person was an essential contributor to self-knowledge. Taking this as a cue, the contributors of this book have structured their writings around the idea that the view of us held by other people provides an essential key to oneâs own self-understanding.
Contributors are: James Arvanitakis, Damian Cox, Mark Dinnen, James Ferguson, Tom Frengos, Dennis Harmon, Donna Henson, Alexandra Hoyt, William Kelly, Lucyann Kerry, Julia Kraven, Taryn Mathis, Tony McHugh, Raoul Mortley, Kristin Newton, Marie-Claire Patron, Darren Swanson, and Peter Mbago Wakholi.
Chapter 15 Intercultural Mirrors and Cultural Humility
Chapter 16 Cultural Observations and a Conversation about Drawing by a Wandering Artist
Marie-Claire Patron, Ph.D. (2006), University of South Australia, is Assistant Professor of Intercultural Communication, French and Spanish at Bond University. She has published monographs, ethnographies and co-edited books on cultural identity issues, internationalisation of students and interpersonal relationship issues, including emotional and psychological abuse.
Julia Kraven, Ph.D. (2009), Hitotsubashi University, Tokyo, has a background in English and Japanese Applied Linguistics. She is currently teaching ESL whilst doing her second Ph.D. in the field of Intercultural and Global Citizenship Education at Bond University, Australia.
"This book is an excellent synthesis of cultural influences, and the effects of moving from one culture to another, told by those who experienced it firsthand. It is unique and original contribution to the field. Highly recommended."
â Ami Rokach, Ph.D., York University (Canada) and the Centre for Academic Studies (Israel)
Foreword
âRaoul Mortley Acknowledgements Notes on Contributors
1 Expansion of Self through Intercultural Experiences
âJulia Kraven
2 Hansel and Gretel Revisited: Quixotic Reflections of Online Dating
âMarie-Claire Patron
3 Doni Doni Kononi Danala â Little by Little the Little Bird Builds Its Nest: Intercultural Reflections: Western Travel in Non-Western Culture
âAlexandra Hoyt
4 Migration and Making Sense of Place: Against a Backdrop of Negative Media Discourse About Africa
âPeter Mbago Wakholi
5 Mirror Mirror: What Culture Am I?: Using Philosophy to Reconstruct Our Images and Cultural Identities
âTom Frengos
6 Spreading Roots Globally, Losing Roots Locally: Coming to Terms with Being an Expat as an Intercultural Identity
âLucyann Kerry
7 Barceloneta as Heterotopic Mirror: A Place of Different Spaces
âTony McHugh
8 Reflection and Aspiration: Mirrors and Models in Traditional European and Chinese Thought
âR. James Ferguson
9 Becoming a Person through Intercultural Communication: A White Americanâs Experiences in Asia and Africa
âWilliam Kelly
10 Affect Mirrors
âDamian Cox
11 List Yourself: An Autoethnography of Intercultural Identity
âDonna Henson
12 Iâm So Normal, I Must Be Different
âTaryn J. Mathis
13 The Decentred Delegate: Adapting Identity within a Model United Nations Learning Environment
âDennis Harmon II and Mark Dinnen
14 Scotland the Brave? An Exileâs Perspective on Scottish Identity from Abroad
âDarren Swanson
15 Intercultural Mirrors and Cultural Humility: My Journey as an Educator
âJames Arvanitakis
16 Cultural Observations and a Conversation about Drawing by a Wandering Artist
âKristin Newton
The book is intended for a general audience, travel lovers, global nomads, people of mixed cultural backgrounds, an intelligent and thoughtful reader. It might be particularly interesting for educators, counselors, career development consultants, care providers, practitioners, libraries and specialists.