What am I listening to? (Episode 5, Chapter 7)
Initially, I struggled to see how Chapter 7 would relate to the episode entitled “Blood is Blood” but, after reviewing the text again, I realized that there are concepts that can be applied to the episode from the very beginning. As the Hunahpu tribe returned from Tribal Counsel, Jon immediately began his “apology tour”. He had been Drew’s closest and only ally and, with him gone, Jon realized that he had some major damage control to do. As Jon was apologizing, I started paying attention to the way that the different tribe members reacted to what he was saying. Interestingly, I noted that there were some definite gender differences in the listening behavior of the men and the women. The chapter states that men listen analytically whereas women tend to listen empathically. This is evident in the differing responses of Kelley and Jeremy. Kelley responded by telling Jon that he’ll ” be much better off in this tribe without [Drew]”. Kelley’s response is focused on Jon’s ability to have better relationships with other tribe members now that he is free from Drew’s bad influence. Jeremy, on the other hand, responded to Jon’s apologies with gloating. He analyzed the content of what Jon said and decided that Jon will be useful to him now as an ally.
It follows that the above example is also indicative of the different types of listening that Kelley and Jeremy used. It seems that Kelley was listening to interpret while Jeremy was listening to evaluate. In my opinion, this shows that Kelley is exhibiting a tendency toward collectivism. She cares more about what is best for the group. In contrast, Jeremy is revealing his individualistic culture and looking to forward only himself and his personal agenda.
That being said, differences in listening can also be seen in the dealings of the Coyopa tribe. When Missy started doling out double portions of the tribe’s carefully rationed rice, Dale was very upset. Dale tried to tell Missy to use small portions but, Baylor kept encouraging her mom to make more and more. I think this example shows the way that personality differences can play into the way someone listens. Dale seems to be more of a thinker and, as such, he would have listened analytically and found the advise to be logical and sound. Missy, however, comes across as a feeler and, she cared more about the fact that her daughter was hungry then about saving food for later.
Although Dale was noticeably upset by this conflict, Kelley was able to help diffuse the situation by asking Dale to go for a walk with her. In a way, what Kelley did was essentially to encourage her dad to “listen before he leaped”. Dale had listened to what Missy said and, I would assume that he perfectly comprehended her and was upset by what he heard. He needed to take some time to adjust his reaction in order to keep the tribe from erupting into a full-blown affective conflict.
