Prereading

I have almost finished my seasonal book selection Bloodless Revolution by Tristram Stuart.  "Seasonal" due to my vegetarianniversary coming up on Halloween (18 years now).  The book was a very boring history of vegetarianism in Europe and America, from scientific advances to medical and theological reasons for vegetarian movements through the years.  It got better around page 372, in which Percy Bysshe Shelley and his second wife Mary Shelley were discussed.  Admittedly, 371 pages is a long time to wait for the mildly interesting Shelleys.  The last chapter looks a bit better, discussing more modern vegetarians, including Hitler.

One of my friends has recently read Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain, and she has posted on her blog and Facebook extensively on the topic of the book.  Having read her posts, and having heard the author on NPR, I have finally given in and ordered a used hard copy, which hasn't arrived yet.  I'm interested in this book as a Meyers-Briggs INFJ (Introverted-Intuitive-Feeling-Judging, online quiz available). From what I have read, Quiet describes the definition of an introvert, how our society came to value extroversion over introversion, and something about how the introvert-extrovert dynamic plays out in church/religious situations.  There is also, presumably, a section on group work.  My thoughts are the following:

Why are there more introverts in China?  This may be a case of introverts being made.  There is a Chinese saying, "The nail that sticks up will be hammered down," commonly described as similar but opposite of "The squeaky wheel gets the oil."  I suppose, I was more comfortable in China in some aspects, due to this expectation of introversion.  I also suppose that I am likely to be more extroverted in another language because it's not my language, and I don't really hear what I'm saying in the same way as I do in English, and I don't think about the vocabulary and shades of meaning before saying things, mostly because in Chinese, I only know one way to say something, for better or for worse.

Are introverts born or made?  One of my parents is somewhat of an introvert, and the other is somewhat extroverted, but not extremely so.  Based on that alone, perhaps there is something genetic or something about emulating one's parent's mannerisms and relationships with others.  However, I do know the exact moment when, if I was not already, I became more introverted.  In first grade, I was that proverbial nail.  I remember always raising my hand, giving unexpected answers, and receiving the negative feedback that would make anyone try to avoid talking in front of class, or large groups of people, for that matter.

Are introverts essentially opposed to group work?  I have always considered group work to be my friend.  Why?  Because if you can practice your answer in a small group, then talking in front of the large group is not as scary.  So I support small group discussions.  However, I don't like group projects, although pair projects are ok.  Group projects, I kind of hate, but mostly because I don't trust the group, not because the social situation stresses me out.  Group work to me is entirely separate from my introversion.  I don't want to give the control of my grade away to 3-4 other people who don't really care about my grade and may not be as diligent about the work as I would be.

Lastly, what would it take to make an introvert more extroverted?  I've been a teacher...That's weird, right?  Because I don't like talking in front of big groups.  First of all, my aunt once told me that while walking in heels, "Pretend you know how to walk in heels."  So when teaching, or SLP-ing, I pretend I'm an extrovert.  Secondly, I'm able to feel confident when I'm the expert and when there is no threat of someone telling me my answer was wrong or my comment was stupid.  Thirdly, I feel a responsibility to be the teacher or SLP that is affirming to students and children especially.  Affirming to a fault, like my Czech professor, who said, "Right, good job" and then gave the correct answer, even when my Czech was totally wrong.  I don't know if that's the right thing to do, but I almost want to cry when I think about my Czech prof because she was so sensitive to how her students felt, especially in Czech when even the best-intentioned student is likely to get a lot of wrong answers.  And sometimes you need partial credit or a little encouragement before you feel comfortable saying something else in Czech.  And sometimes you need to be told "Good job" even when you did a somewhat ok job, because you truly tried.  I wish she had been my first grade teacher.
-吴碧芙