Culture Shock Essay

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Culture Shock Introductory Paragraph: Moving to different country can be an exciting, even exhilarating experience. In a new environment, you somehow feel more alive; seeing new sights, eating new food, hearing and foreign sounds of a new language and feeling a different skin against your skin stimulate your senses as never before. Soon, however, this sensory bombardment becomes sensory overload. Suddenly, new experiences seem stressful rather than stimulating, and delight turns into discomfort. This phenomenon is known as culture shock. Thesis Statement: Culture shock is more than jet lag or homesickness, and it affects nearly everyone who enters a new culture – tourists, business travelers, and students alike. Although every one may not experience the culture shock in exactly the same way, many experts agree that it has roughly five stages. Paragraph 1: In the first stage, you are excited by your new environment. You experience some simple difficulties such as trying to use the telephone or public transportation, but you consider these small challenges that you can quickly overcome. Your feelings about the new culture are positive, so you are eager to make contact with people and to try new foods. Paragraph 2: Sooner or later, differences in behavior and customs become more noticeable to you. This is the second stage of culture shock. Because you do not know the social customs of the new culture, you may find it difficult to make friends. For instance, you do not understand how to make “ small talk”, so it is hard to carry on a casual, get – acquainted conversation. One day in the school cafeteria, you over hear a conversation. You understand all the words, but you do not understand the meaning. Why is everyone laughing? Are they laughing at you or at some joke that you did not understand? Also, you aren’t always sure how to act while shopping. Is this

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