For this assignment I decided to log into my Netflix account and find a TV series that I never viewed before but always heard about and I chose the TV series "The Walking Dead". I never was a person for movies about weird people or zombies but decided to give it a try. In the beginning of one episode a man in a police uniform was riding through an abandoned city on horse in an effort to get somewhere important I assume. When he turned the corner on one of the streets h was greeted by a large amount zombies running towards him. He was soon overrun and knocked off of his horse where he ran to hide underneath an armored tank. As he was shooting at the zombies he had the look of uncertainty on his face and place the gun to his own head. Before he pulled the trigger he found an opening in the armored tank and slipped inside. Inside, he had the look of panic on his face as if he was trying to figure out his next move. At one point he looked at a speaker in the distance with a confused look on his face but I couldn't understand why. On the next episode he escaped the tank and ran towards a building where he was greeted by normal people and he found refuge in side of that building. I decided to stop at this point and go back to the beginning of the show to watch it with sound to see what I could understand.
The man riding on the horse name was Rick and he was a cop in the city of Atlanta before the apocalypse took place. He was in search of his family, who he had been separated from during the apocalypse and decided to ride a horse through Atlanta to find him. The zombies caught up with him and he ran under the armored tank. As he was shooting the zombies he realized that he wasn't going to make it so he said, "Lori and Carl I'm sorry" and almost pulled the trigger before realizing there was a way inside of the tank. Inside of the tank he heard the voice of a man coming from the speaker and that is why he looked so surprised. The man on the speaker name is Glenn and he was assisting Rick with the route to get to the building they were in for safety.
My first impression of this show without the sound was a bit confusing and I felt like the TV series wouldn't be worth watching what so ever but after watching it again and listening it peaked my interest to want to watch more. In the text (OHair & Wiemann,2012) it states, "that just because we place more stock in nonverbal communication doesn't mean that we are always right." This statement was true when I first viewed the show without sound. I made a assumption because of the nonverbal cues that the show would not be interesting because of focused on the body language of the characters. I decided to watch a few more episodes and I think I am hooked, well let's just say that I will be watching once the series starts again in February.
I appreciate the quote you pulled from the book, as I felt the same way. I have found this week that people's non-verbal cues are sometimes the things they are least conscious of, therefor they may not be communicating the same thing with their actions and their words. Communication is all about finding a balance between verbal, non-verbal, and listening. It is when we master all three that we become effective communicators. Thank you for your post.
ReplyDeleteMy son loves this show because of its complexity of the characters. I value nonverbal communication and feel there is a time and place for it. I much prefer verbal communication so there are no misunderstandings. In this show the nonverbal cues do not match with what is really going on. I have seen this in real life as well. Great post
ReplyDeleteKami,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your post because I think you may be one of the few people who have not seen this show! I am a huge fan so it was great to get input from someone who didn't share similar interests. We do put a lot of value in non verbal cues, but these can often be misleading. As a teacher I am constantly evaluating non verbal cues to check student engagement. Thanks for your post.
Hi Kami,
ReplyDeleteGreat post! I really enjoyed your synopsis of the show. I, myself has not seen the Walking Dead. I am not a tv person and this assignment was very difficult for me to complete. It was very difficult to sit through a show without the sound especially one that I had no knowledge of. It is true that we make assumptions about the characters body langauge and movements and for the most part they are accurate. The words clarify and justifies the actions. Great blog. Thank you for sharing.
Maria
Kami I heard about this show as well, but I also have never watched it. This assignments made me realize that we make assumptions about people and their body language.
ReplyDeleteGreat Post