David Mitchell Quotes

I say the same thing that I've said for decades now, which is: don't go over to Japan trying to change it, thinking that you know better. Go there trying to understand.

Now it is evident that a little insight into the customs of every people is necessary to insure a kindly communication; this, joined with patience and kindness, will seldom fail with the natives of the interior.

Believing in each culture's right to be understood by the other party without any form of falseness or distortion is paramount.

People have to start talking to know more about other cultures and to understand each other.

I'm a British intern going in. I'm hoping that John will just kind of tackle it from who this person is and what she's about rather than trying to go in on her culture. We need to move a step forward than that.

After September 11, 2001, I was feeling like I really wanted more understanding between cultures. It seemed to me that so much of what happened on September 11 was because people didn't understand each other and were suspicious of each other.

Learn to understand the culture of those that you wish to influence.

National culture can act as a bridge, instead of an obstacle, to mutual spiritual and intellectual understanding.

We're living with the Arabs; we have to understand them... Through knowing the Arabs, you know yourself better.

I think that's important: to know 'the other,' as a means of coming to understanding.

No matter how certain I am about some culture or some group of people, my opinions are only as accurate as the amount of time I've spent with them.

I don't think that people understand enough about each other's cultures any more.

I face no problem in communicating with the people of Orissa whom I meet everyday.

It only takes a room of Americans for the English and Australians to realise how much we have in common.

I'm committed to sign in everything I communicate, but I also speak. I still believe that I reach more people when I do that. I bridge two different cultures and two different worlds, and I think that bridge still needs work.

I hope to use dialogue and culture as a means of bringing people of various cultures together, and using that as a way to resolve conflict.

The two cultures of East and West are very different, and the priorities are very different. So when you understand that - if you are from this side or this side - when you understand that the other is different than you, and you respect these differences, you can build communication.

I had a hard time convincing students that they were going to North Africa to understand the North Africans, not to understand themselves.

Never impose your language on people you wish to reach.

Culture means, I think, that you have widened your experience enough through reading and through being a little bit thoughtful about these things that it has changed your outlook in some ways. And not necessarily made you a better human being but made you see things.

One of the things that I miss about Canada is that even the strangers, you have an immediate rapport, there's just an understanding that we're all good people, let's be nice to each other. And Kiwis have that. I find the Kiwis have that.

What the United States does best is to understand itself. What it does worst is understand others.

It's fun to meet people from throughout the world who you don't have to explain yourself to.

When you travel the world, you have to watch and you have to listen. We're not going to come in to Ireland without an understanding that there's a history that's very sensitive.

I try to study the background of the country I am in and what were my hits there, so I can at least give them some of what they want. It's like a wedding - give them something old, something new, something borrowed and definitely something blue!