Communication is only effective when the participants are willing to listen, hear, and try to understand the person expressing an idea. While this does not necessarily mean changing one’s mind or shaping personal overviews to fit the agenda of the other party, a dialogue implies an exchange of opinions rather than a rigid defense of an individual idea with little room for a change of hearts. Thus, rigid minds contribute to a lack of communication as the discussion does not correlate with the notion of information exchange but has the purpose of only allowing for personal overviews to be considered valuable.
Several examples express how close-mindedness contributes to a lack of communication. Plato’s The Allegory of the Cave reflects on the idea that an enlightened person may be considered foolish if the receiver of the message is not ready to give up ignorance (Plato). Ignorance may correlate with comfort as changing an opinion means that the individual is prepared to admit wrongness, which is a complex task. Thus, one would rather defend an incorrect point of view and exemplify the rigidness of the mind instead of engaging in communication that may potentially affect the thought process on the topic.
Another example of the rigidness of mind concerning ineffective communication is Sherman Alexie’s The Joy of Reading and Writing: Superman and Me. The authors mention that one is close-minded when the environment facilitates a rigid overview of oneself (Sherman 2). Thus, a person is more likely to be stagnant in intellectual development, hence, openness to new ideas when the individual is expected to remain limited in creativity and ambition. As a result, communication is ineffective since the person firmly believes they do not have the capability of engaging in meaningful discussions.
Rigid minds and a lack of desire to learn and walk in someone else’s shoes negatively impact communication. It affects the speaker who cannot express an opinion without meeting barriers, as well as the listener who is not ready to accept a different overview due to personal experiences or external influences. Nonetheless, it is certain that when one is not predisposed to having an open mind, communication is impossible.
Works Cited
Plato. “The Allegory of the Cave.” Washington Faculty, Marc Cohen, 2006.
Sherman, Alexie. “The Joy of Reading and Writing: Superman and Me.” Los Angeles Times, 1998. Web.