Phenomenology of intercultural communication

Andrew R. Smith

pp. 235-247

in: Philip Blosser, Eiichi Shimomissé, Lester Embree, Hiroshi Kojima (eds), Japanese and Western phenomenology, Berlin, Springer, 1993

Abstract

Edmund Husserl's later phenomenology focuses on how meaning is manifested (endowed and fulfilled) semiotically. J. N. Mohanty's philosophy of communicatioon draws a complementary relation between Husserl's semiotic phenomenology and the Indian Nyaya model of communication. This essay shows how Mohanty's critical assessment of these orientations is pertinent for the interpretation of verbal and nonverbal messages and codes among people from diverse cultures. Extending Mohanty's suggestions I argue that the Husserlian transcendent, though useful as a common ground of provisional understanding, should be made problematic in communication where persons' expression and perception are challanged by cultural differences.

Cited authors

Husserl Edmund