Verbal and Non-Verbal Communication

For this assignment, I watched ABC’s Revenge.  I had never watched the show before and actually had a difficult time understanding just what was going on, even after I had turned to volume on.  There were many characters in the episode, who I later found out, when I watched with volume, were all connected in some way or another.  When watching the episode on mute, I didn't

 realize the way that the characters were intertwined. 

            One specific example I watched was a man and a woman walking through the street.  They were holding hands and he gave her his jacket.  I automatically assumed by their behavior and non verbal communication that they were a couple.  After watching with volume, I found out that they were actually brother and sister.  Later, they walked into what looked like a campaign room up to an older man.  I assumed that the man was the girl’s father, but they did not express signs of contentment with each other.  They stood a distance apart and did not embrace.  This led me to believe that they may have had an argument.  This was not addressed in the episode, perhaps there was a conflict in a previous episode. 

             After watching this show without the volume, I realized that some parts of the plot were easy to decipher.  For example, there was a scene between a man and woman, who I assumed were husband and wife, where she behaved very coldly toward him.  She did not greet him when he entered the house and she sat down at the table and drank and ate as if he weren't there.  I could tell by the body language of the woman that she was not particularly fond of him.  When I turned the volume on, I was correct; in fact she had just helped another character spy on her husband. 

            Some parts of the plot were difficult to decipher, such as the relationship between the characters.  I didn't learn how they were connected until I watched the episode with volume and I started to learn their names. 

            I have learned that communication can occur in many different forms.  Also, a lot can be communicated without words, just by non verbal clues.  In the beginning of the scene, there was a blackout and some people showed concern on their faces by staring out the window with a furrowed brow or they looked tense and had a tight jaw when they were angry.  I also learned that non verbal clues do not always match up with what is actually happening.  For example, the couple who were holding hands wasn't a couple at all, they were brother and sister.  Communication is definitely not straight forward and it is important to pay attention to both verbal and non verbal communication to effectively understand a situation.