2. What Is Ethics?
Ethics have to do with morality – concepts of right and
wrong
Concepts of what is ethical and how to behave ethically
differ across cultures or groups of individuals
Ethics is a branch of philosophy dealing with the
morality of actions, motives, and end results
3. How Do We Compare
Cultures?
It is natural to classify things or to create binaries (good
and bad, right and wrong)
Harmonious binary – sees how the two “opposites”
interrelate
Ethnocentrism – idea in the superiority of one’s own
culture
An important thing to keep in mind when
communicating with other cultures: It’s not good, it’s not
bad, it’s just different!
4. Reader & Writer
Responsibility
What are some of the main differences?
Sometimes expectations of the reader clash with the
style of the writer
Writer responsible authors may come across as
providing insufficient context, being insulting,
unprofessional, or pointless
Reader responsible authors may come across as
irrelevant, unfocused, unprofessional, or dogmatic
5. Deductive Reasoning
Foundation of Western logic
One argument is explicitly connected to the next
Not all deductive reasoning results in truth. One must accept both
premises to accept the conclusion.
Example: All dogs bark. Rex is a dog, therefore Rex barks.
Students are not allowed to use the printer. Sara is a student. Sara
may not use the printer.
The success or failure of the economy is the president’s sole
responsibility. Barack Obama is the president. Therefore, Obama
only is responsible for the state of the economy.
6. Inductive Reasoning
Movement from the specific to the general
Uses lots of examples to prove a main point
The conclusion is probable, not definite
Statistics and repeated observations work as inductive
reasoning
Example: Basel barks. Shuun barks. Jimminy barks.
Basel, Shuun, and Jimminy are all dogs. Therefore, all
dogs (seem to) bark.
7. Logical Fallacies
Logic as a science – rigor, reason, rationality
Logic as an art – not always rigorous or rational
Flexibility
Uncertainty
Fallacies “reflect deep cultural values and beliefs”
8. Hypothetical Syllogism
A kind of deductive reasoning based on hypothetical
situations
Imitates writer responsible organization strategy of
parallel progression
May seem repetitive for reader responsible readers
9. Equivocation
When a term has more than one meaning and can lead
to ambiguity
Attempting to connect two things that are not
connected, often by using the “other” meaning of the
word
Example p. 108
People who speak different languages may not
understand the multiple meanings of a word
10. Using and Abusing Tradition
Balance between reason and tradition is important in
intercultural writing
“Using tradition to make and support a claim is not the
same thing as making a clear and reasoned argument”
(110).
It is also important not to completely dismiss the
cultural traditions of your readers.
11. Democratic Fallacy
Also called ad populum
Claim made on the basis of popular opinion
Based mostly on emotion
Beliefs across large groups of people do not
necessarily make them true
Consider stereotypes
12. Abuse of Expertise
Using one’s status to make a claim that is not based on
reason
Using position instead of proof to make a claim
“Expertise does not guarantee truth” (114).
Remember that it doesn’t always feel natural to
question authority
Power distance
13. Quantifying Quality
“Artists describe the world and scientists count the
world” (115).
Emphasis on numbers and empirical data – low
uncertainty avoidance cultures
Not all things can be quantified and trying to do so is
problematic
Excessive use of empirical data can be seen as
suspicious or unnecessary
14. Cause and Effect
False cause is when one thing is assumed to cause the
other, but there is no causal relationship
Think of many superstitions: I wore my lucky socks to
the game; therefore, we won.
Writer responsible cultures are more inclined to search
for causes
15. Appeal to Pity
Feelings of sorrow (but not necessarily sympathy) for
another person’s misfortune
Using pity to argue a point can be manipulative
Group-oriented cultures tend to use appeals to pity
more often
Such appeals can show a submission to authority
16. Appeal to Flattery
Deflecting attention from the issue by focusing on a
positive aspect of the audience
Eastern cultures appeal to the authority and expertise
of the person they are trying to persuade
Western readers may feel embarrassed or that the
writer is being insincere and manipulative
17. Affirming the Consequent
Assuming that an if, then statement can go both ways
All dogs are mammals. This is a mammal. Therefore,
this is a dog.
BUT all mammals are not dogs.
May not be a troubling fallacy for some Eastern
cultures.
