Intercultural communication is prone to misunderstanding and confusion, or, put simply, prone to confusion. While common cultural miscommunications are often minor crimes, some have far more harmful consequences. In E.M. Forster's novel A Passage to India, conflict results from the collision of two cultures in the Anglo-Indian town of Chandrapore, which is plagued by racial, class, and religious tensions among Anglo-Indians. The novel chronicles the attempted cross-cultural friendships of Dr. Aziz, a native Indian, and three English individuals: Cyril Fielding, Mrs. Moore, and Mrs. Questad. While A Passage to India presents many potential opportunities for friendship and positive relationships between Anglo-Indians and Natives, each is inhibited by the communication confusion described in Laray M. Barna's "Stumbling Blocks in Intercultural Communication." Although American education has emphasized the similarity of all human beings, the failure to recognize cultural differences between other individuals when communicating produces the first of Barna's communication messes. The assumption of similarities in intercultural communication easily allows for misinterpretations. As Barna explains, "The obstacle of alleged similarity is a problem,..., not only for the foreigner but for people in the host country... Native inhabitants are likely to be led to expect that... he or she will also have similar nonverbal codes, thoughts, and feelings.” (371) At their first meeting, Aziz displays the Assumption of Similarity when he exclaims his disgust at his Anglo-Indian superior and his Anglo-Indian wife in response. to Mrs. Moore's vague remark about his wife's lack of charm (Forster 21). In response to... half of the document... which continues the racial tension present in Chandrapore. Anglo-Indians maintain an overwhelming display of superiority for ensure predictability in daily life. However, the reduction of anxiety resulting from rationalization of prejudice is only temporary, since the effective use of intercultural communication is the only method to permanently reduce anxiety. While there are ample opportunities for cross-cultural friendships in A Passage to India, endless communication confusions continue to inhibit the civilization's successful implementation of cross-cultural communication. Works Cited Barna, Laray M. “Stumbling Blocks in Intercultural Communication.” Intercultural communication: a reader. Ed. LA Samovar and RE Porter. Belmont:Wadsworth Publishing Company, 1994. 370-378. Print.Forster, E.M. A Passage to India. New Brunswick: Transaction Publishers, 2009. Print.