Interpersonal Communication In Hotel Rwanda
Reflection Paper on Hotel Rwanda
The 1990s marked a time of turbulence and unrest in Rwandan history. During April-July 1994, over 800,000 Tutsi people were killed relentlessly at the hands of the Hutu militant group “Interhamwe,” whose name translates to “Those Who Attack Together” (History.com, 2009). Based on true events, Terry George’s Hotel Rwanda follows the Rwandan Genocide through Paul Rusesabagina’s experiences, and from an interpersonal communications perspective, appreciates both the art and importance of three fundamental ideas: culture, self-concept, as well as the interaction of verbal and nonverbal messages.
Paul Rusesabagina regularly faces various cultures both in his professional and personal life. At the luxury Hotel des …show more content…
In one scene, Hutu businessman George Rutaganda throws a shirt at Rusesabagina and comments, “[it is] time for you to join your people,” suggesting that such artifactual communication helped maintain the rigid cultural distinction between the two. Later in the film, viewers can easily determine who is Hutu by clothing alone. Another scene shows Western journalist Jack Daglish conversing with two Rwandan women at the bar. One is Tutsi and the other is Hutu, yet he remarks, “you could be twins!” For me, this highlighted that the cultural differences did not so much rest in physical appearance, but instead reflected the sociopolitical issues present at the …show more content…
As the synopsis notes, it is only through Rusesabagina’s negotiations that the Tutsi lives are spared. Nevertheless, Rusesabagina is too guilty of ethnocentrism at the beginning of the film, commenting in one scene that he “should not have brought the Tutsi here,” or worse, “lowered [the hotel’s] standards.” It should also be noted that although they are both ultimately Rwandan, ethnocentrism is expressed much stronger through the Hutu soldiers as opposed to the Tutsi
The 1990s marked a time of turbulence and unrest in Rwandan history. During April-July 1994, over 800,000 Tutsi people were killed relentlessly at the hands of the Hutu militant group “Interhamwe,” whose name translates to “Those Who Attack Together” (History.com, 2009). Based on true events, Terry George’s Hotel Rwanda follows the Rwandan Genocide through Paul Rusesabagina’s experiences, and from an interpersonal communications perspective, appreciates both the art and importance of three fundamental ideas: culture, self-concept, as well as the interaction of verbal and nonverbal messages.
Paul Rusesabagina regularly faces various cultures both in his professional and personal life. At the luxury Hotel des …show more content…
In one scene, Hutu businessman George Rutaganda throws a shirt at Rusesabagina and comments, “[it is] time for you to join your people,” suggesting that such artifactual communication helped maintain the rigid cultural distinction between the two. Later in the film, viewers can easily determine who is Hutu by clothing alone. Another scene shows Western journalist Jack Daglish conversing with two Rwandan women at the bar. One is Tutsi and the other is Hutu, yet he remarks, “you could be twins!” For me, this highlighted that the cultural differences did not so much rest in physical appearance, but instead reflected the sociopolitical issues present at the …show more content…
As the synopsis notes, it is only through Rusesabagina’s negotiations that the Tutsi lives are spared. Nevertheless, Rusesabagina is too guilty of ethnocentrism at the beginning of the film, commenting in one scene that he “should not have brought the Tutsi here,” or worse, “lowered [the hotel’s] standards.” It should also be noted that although they are both ultimately Rwandan, ethnocentrism is expressed much stronger through the Hutu soldiers as opposed to the Tutsi