Exersice #8b

“Outsourced” - the movie study guide

You are going to watch and create a reflection on the film "Outsourced".

These questions will help you. If you miss watching the film in class, you may get a copy from the library and watch it at home. Here are some clips from "Outsourced"

http://www.outsourcedthemovie.com/Clips/ms_educlips.html

Cultural Dimensions in Outsourced

As you watch the film, answer the questions and write down any examples of different cultural dimensions. This will help you with your reflection.

Cultural Dimension	Character Todd, Puro, Aisha or other	Outsourced Scene or Circumstance
Low-context culture	Todd	Class
High-context culture	Aisha	Class (Aisha)
Individualism	Todd	He wanted to stay lonely
Collectivism	Aisha	Family Pictures
Low power distance	Todd	Talking to his boss
High power distance	Puro	Asking every time he wants to talk
Uncertainty tolerance	Todd	Cursing his boss
Uncertainty avoidance	Aisha	Asking every time he wants to talk
Task orientation	Puro	Manager
Social orientation	Aisha	Good talker

Reflection

Create a reflection about the movie Outsourced using the PowerPoint I give you. Show that you really understand the above cultural concepts.

1. As soon as Todd arrives, he experiences the discomfort of being disoriented in a strange new place. What happens at the airport? Chaos, He missed his original escort

2. When a friendly traveler helps him get on the train, what does he tell him to do? “Jump into the train”

3. When he gets on the train, he cannot find an empty seat. How is this problem

solved for him? How might this be a cultural solution? Kids in India respect grown-ups, he gave up his place to Todd

4. As any exchange student, he has a lot of experiences trying new food. His first

encounter is with an iced drink. What happens? Enjoyed it at the beginning but suffered a bad stomach ache later.

5. First encounters with a culture can be shocking – Todd sees crowded streets with

cows, noise, and a man urinating in the street. But how does his host describe the

city? Very clean and nice

6. Even though the host Puro speaks English, Todd uses American slang a lot

without thinking. So as not to insult Puro, what does he say the meaning of

Schmuck is? Very nice guy

7. Todd wants to check in to a hotel. But Puro insists he comes to a boarding house.

What is the reason he gives Todd? It’s lonely at the hotel

8. As soon as they meet, Aunti Ji starts asking very intimate questions that

Americans who have just met would never ask. What kind of things does she ask? What does your father do ?

9. During his first conversation with Aunti Ji he makes two big mistakes. What are

they? He ate with his left hand, and putting his hand back into the food after eating

10. The Golden Rule says do unto others as you would have them do unto you. That

means his Indian hosts and friends are trying to make him comfortable the way

they would be comfortable. How does this apply when the servant is preparing

tea for Todd? Extra of everything.

11. How does Todd figure out why one does not eat food with the left hand? When he went to use the bath bathroom, he used his left hand to clean himself

12. What is ethnocentric about his statement "You need to learn about America"? He thinks America is better than India

13. Why do they disagree on how a "native" speaks English? Because they pronounce the words differently

14. What doesn't Todd understand about the Indians' response to the "cattle brand"? He talked about it in an insensitive way.

15. What is Todd's reaction to "You need to learn about India"? What stage of culture

shock might it represent? He was shocked and didn’t understand why Aysha said that. High-context culture

16. He calls home several times. Why? What stage of culture shock might provoke

calls home? Because he is homesick.

17. What mistakes in language usage are represented in the recording of the call about

"a rubber"? Rubber means eraser in English – British accent, as it doesn’t mean the same in the American English. It means condom.

18. Why is he so eager to go to McDonnells? Because he was craving his homeland’s food.

19. Todd doesn't understand bargaining. How does the Indian respond to this? Bargaining is very common in India. Se he kept decreasing the value himself

20. What does I.N.D.I.A. stand for? I never do it again

21. What advise does his fellow American have for him? Give in

22. When Todd develops the incentive system, he has begun to adapt to India. How has he adapted? Holy day / he celebrated the color festival with them

23. When he looks at the cow in the office the second time, why is his reaction so different? He got used to it and thought of it as a good luck charm

24. Explain the difference between American and Indian cultures when Todd and Puro discuss how often he visits his family and why he doesn't live with them. Indians are more attached and close to their families than Americans. They consider the family an important and number one priority in their lives and that explains why they live with their families even if they get older and what their parents mean to them. While in America people mostly move out in a very young age and get caught up in their busy lives away from their parents and they’re family and only gather when there’s an event such as weddings, Christmas and thanksgiving.

25. What cultural values are involved in the exchange between Aunti Ji and Todd about ironing his underwear? It shows the difference of how the mother works in America and India on chores

26. How well does Todd handle himself when he is invited over the wall to an Indian home for a meal? He showed some passion and enjoyed it

27. In what ways does he show he has adapted? when he dance with the employes and wear Indian clothes also when he had lunch with indian family and get sad when know that he have to go to China 

28. When the call center floods and they are shut down, Todd finds an "Indian"solution. What is it? He asked the poor Indian man that invited him over for a lunch from over the wall for his help with replacing the wires as he saw in his place how they all surviving on a public source of electricity by extending wires from it. And that’s an indian way as the economy is very bad and people try to survive in many ways in that was one of them

29. When Todd comes home, there are several signs that his Indian experience has influenced him. Name three ways he has become more "Indian". He ate with his right hand. His phone had an Indian ringtone. The way he made his tea

-Florida Study Guide