This course combines theory and practice in intercultural communication. It is designed to help students communicate better with people who belong to various cultures taking into account that we live in a global environment in which interaction between individuals take place not only face to face, but also in virtual spaces. This course is intended to lead students through an examination of various cultural contexts that allow them to better understand not only the multicultural facets of the world, but also their own cultural identities. The dominant perspective will be the communicative one. The ultimate objective of this course is to develop students’ intercultural competence by broadening their perspective on cultures and people and by building their capacity to adapt to a changing multicultural world.

Syllabus:

- the critical approach of fundamental concepts such as nation, ethnicity, gender, ethnocentrism, otherness, stereotype, interculturality;

- the issue of culture in the contemporary world;

- the relationship between language and culture;

- the process of identity building and affirmation;

- challenges brought about by globalization;

- models of cultural policies;

- interculturality and migratory phenomena;

- local and global worlds.

Bibliography:

Fairclough, Norman. 1989. Language and Power. London: Longman.

Geertz, Clifford. 1973. The Interpretation of Cultures. London: Fontana Press.

Holiday, Adrian. 2013. Understanding Intercultural Communication. Negotiating a Grammar of Culture. New York: Routledge.

Judith N. Martin, Thomas K. Nakayama. 2010. Intercultural Communication in Contexts. New York: McGraw – Hill Higher Education.Lakoff, George & Mark Johnson. 2003. Metaphors We Live By. London: The University of Chicago Press, Ltd.

Pinto Ribeiro, António (Ed.). 2009. Can There Be Life without the Other? Manchaster: Carcanet Press Limited.