AOW #14: The Art of Listening

NY Times article by Henning Mankell, best-selling author

After spending nearly 25 years traveling back and forth from Europe to Africa, Mankell distinguishes key differences between Western and African culture.  One of which is sharing, but the main one is listening.  As Mankell eloquently puts it, the reason we have "two ears and one tongue is that we have to listen twice as much as we speak."  He also goes on to explain the different styles of rhetoric used between Westerners and Africans.

The context includes basic differences between Africa and Europe.  It also includes a bit of background knowledge on the author, who has spent a worthy portion of his life in Mozambique.

Rhetorical elements include compare and contrast.  Mankell juxtaposes the traditional linear European style of writing with the anachronistic African approach of writing.  He also does a lot of reflection, which comes from his memory and experience.

The author's purpose is to share important insights from his travels.  He wants to make evident the key part of story-telling in humanity and instill the idea of "listening" into people.  In this way, he can pass down his learnings.  I thought what the author had to write was rather interesting.  I think just his experience and worldliness credit his observations.