Interpersonal Communication In Finding Forrester

Gus Van Sant’s 2000 film Finding Forrester portrays a unique relationship that develops between William Forrester, an eccentric, reclusive novelist and Jamal Wallace, a gifted scholar-athlete, African-American teenager. After the novelist discovers that the young athlete is also an excellent writer, Forrester secretly takes Wallace on as his protégé, and they develop an unlikely friendship (Van Sant, Finding Forrester). As their relationship develops and they learn about each other, Forrester and Wallace learn more about themselves than they originally anticipated.

The film depicted many strengths and limitations as Forrester and Wallace’s relationship grew. An excellent example of an interpersonal communication strength presented was how their level of communication went from an I-It to an I-Thou. In the beginning, Forrester is known by Wallace and his Bronx peers

Most of their miscommunication was because of defensive or selective listening, and pseudolistening. Forrester and Wallace can benefit from removing both internal obstacles, such as Forrester’s preoccupation and prejudgment thinking, along with external obstacles, such as Wallace dribbling his basketball during a conversation. Improvements for Forrester and Wallace’s listening skills include being mindful and wholly present during a communication exchange and the removal of internal and external obstacles. Both could engage more as an active listener using paraphrasing that would gain a better understanding of the other person’s perspective. Taking their whole relationship into consideration, Forrester and Wallace overcame many of their communication limitations as their relationship grew into an I-Thou type. Nevertheless, Forrester and Wallace would not encounter the same difficulties in future communication processes, if they consider these recommendations for