2. The Manifestations of the Values of the Chinese
What kind of values Chinese people,especially the contemporary Chinese people have,is the theme that we try to illustrate in this book. As regards this theme,we will elaborate on it in the later chapters. But before this,we need to talk about in what forms the values of the Chinese are shown,that is,what are the manifestations of the values of the Chinese?
Once this question is raised,readers will feel it is a very difficult problem. Why? Because values is a quite complex system of value residing in people's minds,which is a generic term for people's thinking,cognition,value judgment and behavior guidance system. Values are closely combined with people and their minds,permeating in people's words,thoughts,behaviors and survival activities. In particular,people's life values are basically combined with their lives,thus they exist everywhere at any time,and may be manifested in any possible form,for this reason,it is difficult to enumerate them all. In view of this,we can only select some of the most important and typical manifestations to illustrate the existence and representation of the values of the Chinese.
Ⅰ.Language &Words
As we all know,Chinese nation is a generic name for the fifty-six ethnic groups living in China at present,which is a complex ethnic integration. Since or even before a written history of China,the Chinese specifically refers to those people living in Zhong Yuan (the Central Plains of China),generally referring to today's Henan and Southern Hebei Province. Those living in marginal areas and having different dialects,costumes and habits are regarded as barbarians or alien tribes. Later,after slow exchange and integration,Chinese people gradually formed a united nation,that is,the Chinese nation. Although they are all called the Chinese nation,those people who are derived from different origins and races brought different dialects,costumes,etiquette and custom,as well as habits of life and production. Actually,all of these embody their own cognition and judgment of value in the field of their life,production and survival,as well as their own values. Of course,these values are fragmentary and full of vitality,which would be gradually integrated and changed with the values of Zhong Yuan people in the later national integration and social interaction.
Unified Chinese characters under power of Qin
With the exchange and integration of all ethnic groups in the Chinese nation,the language was also unified. Prior to the Qin Dynasty,most vassal states have their own dialects and script. After Emperor Qin Shihuang (also called the First Emperor of China) unified the other six states,the Small Seal Script was adopted as the standard script,thus achieving the unification of the script. Later,also with the integration of ethnic groups,dialects in various areas were gradually merged,and slowly,a language that can reflect the common values of the Chinese took shape and was consolidated. Today,the common spoken language used by the Chinese people is Mandarin (Putonghua) and the script is commonly referred to as Chinese character. However,Mandarin and Chinese character are evolved and formed from the dialects and script over the long history,which contain contribution of all Chinese people of all ethnic groups as well as their ways of thinking,habits of life,and cognition of value,so we believe that the language reflects the ideological concept and the habit of being of the Chinese,and of course the values of the Chinese.
Taking the two characters “国家” (country and home) as an example,their standard pronunciations in modern Chinese are “guo jia”,the unification in terms of their pronunciation and type font expresses the unified cognition and judgment of the Chinese people,which originates from the meaning of the two characters contained in the ancient Chinese—“國” is the traditional form of “国”,which,from the pictographic perspective,can be interpreted like this: “a soldier holding a halberd guards a territory with population and land”,and “家”: “A place where pigs live under roofs”. From the interpretation of the character “国”,people get to know that a country has its territory and population,and must be guarded by soldiers,thus they acquire a sense of identification with the land and population as well as a consciousness of safeguarding the boundaries of the country. From the interpretation of the character “家”,people know that home means people and livestock coexist under the same roof,which brings people a sense of warmth,happiness and peacefulness. It is not only the ideological and cultural tradition of the Chinese people that passes on through the characters,but also the basic values about country and home that a Chinese people should have.
Evolution of Chinese characters “国”and“家”
Each Chinese character as well as its pronunciation is the component element of the Chinese culture,which also contains the values of the Chinese. How far-reaching the influence of the values contained by a unified language is depends on how widely it is spread. Today,many Chinese people,in particular minority groups continue using the languages created by their ancestors. Their languages,in themselves,are integral parts of the Chinese culture and Chinese civilization,and also contain the values of their own groups. This is the manifestation of the diversity and comprehensiveness of the Chinese culture,which is worth cherishing and protecting. At the same time,many minority groups that do not speak Chinese or write Chinese characters originally have learnt Mandarin and Chinese characters,and they have obtained benefits both economically and culturally in various ways from Han people that are in the majority,which greatly contribute to the progress and development of minority groups.By and large,Mandarin and Chinese characters that are widely used by the Chinese people contain their common values. Therefore,it is concluded that language is a basic form and an important vehicle that shows the values of the Chinese.
Ⅱ.Food and Costumes
Not long before,a documentary television series A Bite of China which introduced Chinese food and culinary art aroused strong reactions both home and abroad. Many people who have watched this documentary are deeply touched by the culinary wisdom of the Chinese,fine food in China,as well as the living wisdom,life experience,perfect artistry and values behind Chinese food. Someone once said half-jokingly and half-seriously: if you are watching A Bite of China while having dinner,your appetite will be increased a lot; if you are watching A Bite of China not at dinner time,you will feel very hungry; if you are watching A Bite of China in your dream,you will taste all the delicacies over China;if you are watching A Bite of China while you are awake,you will feel happy about and proud of being a Chinese sincerely. You are happy because you are living in a country with such plentiful,beautiful and gorgeous culinary arts,and you are proud because you can feel that Chinese people are pursuing “beauty” while enjoying “food”. The colorful and dazzling delicacies in China embody the emotions,thinking and values of the Chinese people over thousands of years. Indeed,at the time of singing the praises of the plentiful and beautiful Chinese food as well as the Chinese people's pursuit of the purest and most beautiful food,the documentary television series also make us reflect on the values of the Chinese in respect of food.
From the living realities of food and the food habits,which embody the wisdom of the Chinese,developed through thousands of years recorded in the documentary,as well as the pursuit of life and the living state reflected by these realities of food and food habits,we can easily find the values on survival,living and life in the bottom of the heart of the Chinese people. In The Gift of the Nature,we see that at the time of gaining food materials such as matsutake from Nature,Chinese people do not forget to protect the hyphae of matsutake,free young scallops,protect fish by increasing the mesh size,and grow young seedlings and sow new seeds,so as to continue the life of animals and plants. These good habits are undoubtedly the reflection of protecting the environment,paying back to nature and pursuing ecological civilization.In The Story of Staple Food,we learn various kinds of fondness for food all over China,Chinese people's ability and wisdom in gaining food materials according to local circumstances,and value pursuit with colorful local characteristics.In The Inspiration of Transformation and The Taste of Time,we realize the Chinese people's philosophy of food and rules for survival of being flexible,reasonable and patient.In The Secrets of Kitchen and Flavors of the Harmonic,we see the art of fire and water,the harmony between man and all Creation,the custom of filial piety and respect for elders expressed in the Chinese village feast,and the pursuit of harmony,persistence,tolerance,reunion,tranquility,smoothness and simplicity in food and life.In Our Fields,we comprehend the diligence,kindness,simplicity and honesty of the Chinese people in their pursuit of a beautiful life and appreciate their love and passion for life...
A bite of China(CNS
It is also the same case for costumes. In China,food is a kind of culture,so are costumes. There is Cheongsam,Tang suit and Chinese tunic suit; there is buttoned Chinese tunic,water sleeves and mandarin jacket;there is coarse cloth and silk,cotton fabric and jade clothes…In Chinese history,each dynasty has its own costume; in different regions of China,various ethnic groups also have their own costumes. The difference in food and costume is not only due to the geographical factors,but also related with the customs and cultural pursuit. For example,red clothes are often worn on wedding and festival days,because wearing red and decorating with colors means happiness and good fortune; while white clothes are often worn on memorial ceremony and funeral,for wearing white and mourning implies misfortune and sadness,and so forth. Food and costumes embody the Chinese people's happiness,anger,grief and joy,represent their luck,position,longevity and festivity,and convey their perception,emotions,will and behaviors. In a word,the food and costumes of the Chinese contain their customs and cultural pursuit,as well as their values.
Ⅲ.Architectural Landscape
Architecture is the humanized construction,which is both material and humanistic. This is not just a consensus reached by architects,but it seems that it has been a consensus of everyone in the society. In human society and the history of the world,there have been a variety of architectural systems,and each of them represents a different cultural pursuit and values. Chinese architecture,together with European architecture and Islamic architecture is called three major architectural systems in the world. Its long history,wide spread and glorious achievements make architecture enthusiasts so obsessed and also attract the interest of the travelers around the world,memorable to them. In the process of social development in China,there have been numerous magnificent architectural landscapes.Although some of them have collapsed with the ups and downs of the history,those that survive today are still worthy as the representatives of the Chinese styles and Chinese manners,for architectural landscape is also a reflection of the values of the Chinese.
The Chinese architecture,ranging from city walls,moats and palaces,Buddhist and Taoist temples,pagodas to folk houses and gardens,from the Great Wall that has lasted thousands of years and the north-south transcontinental Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal to today's Three Gorges Dam,from countless bridges and buildings to innumerable mausoleums and gardens,from timber construction,masonry construction to modern metal construction,and from upright column,cross beam to mesh structure and axis structure,all embodies the cognition,values,spirit and taste of the Chinese and portrays the institutions,etiquette,aesthetics and habits of the Chinese. In the final analysis,it is the values of the Chinese that are throughout various architectural landscapes.
Spectacular Earth Buildings in Fujian(CNS
City walls and moats are used for protection and defense,which not only reflect the enfeoffment system during the feudal era,but also represent the concept of the pursuit of peace and self-protection; palaces are the symbol of the dignity and solemnity of feudal imperial power,which imply a kind of inviolable supremacy; all landscapes,including the comfortable folk houses,extravagant gardens and placid Buddhist temples,contain the information of value. Taking folk houses for example,the tiled roof ridge in north China,the patio in south China,the screen wall in front of the house,the screen in the house,and the courtyard behind the house all have their distinctive characteristics and ingenious uses. Skylights are used for widening the vision and floor drains for draining.In addition to their own ingenious uses out of consideration for natural factors,people's feelings and moods play a larger part of the consideration.They may be used for privacy,for convenience,for comfort,and also for some kind of recognized standard of value. The quadrangle dwellings in Beijing not only take account of the order of family members,but also pay attention to the concord and convenience as well as the happiness and unity of a family. People living in the Loess Plateau in Northern Shaanxi Province acclimatize themselves to local conditions and use local materials to build cave dwellings on the hill slopes.These cave dwellings are warm in winter and cool in summer,low in construction cost,comfortable and beautiful,and have good sound insulation,which reflect the concept of harmony between man and nature. Besides,the earth buildings in Guangdong and Fujian provinces,the Mongolian yurts of Mongol ethnic minority,the stilted buildings of Tujia ethnic minority,the drum towers of Dong Village,the watchtowers of Qiang ethnic minority and the bamboo buildings of Dai ethnic minority are all the best choices made by the local people through combining the local realities with their own demands,especially their own value judgments. All these choices without exception embody their consideration for the value of nature,society,time and space,as well as human factors.
Ⅳ.Philosophy and Art
The above description of the manifestations of the values of Chinese people is not inclusive,but just a small part of the countless vehicles for representing values. However,these manifestations,to a large extent,represent the survival value of the Chinese people in their daily lives and activities,as well as their value cognition and value choice. In addition to this,there are another kind of relatively abstract values,those are,cognitive values,which are largely manifested in philosophy,religion,literature,music,art,and other spiritual products of the Chinese. For example,Daoism represented by Laozi and Zhuangzi,Confucianism represented by Confucius and his descendants,Mohism represented by Mozi and other various doctrines and schools that originated in local China,as well as doctrines of Buddhism,Christianity and Islam that are introduced into China from foreign countries or areas,are all the ideological sources that construct this kind of abstract cognitive values.And the thinking mode and value cognition contained in them also profoundly influence and shape the values and spirit of the Chinese people. In short,the values contained in the traditional Chinese philosophy and religious culture are distinct and unique,which have a profound influence on the way of thinking and the way of act of the Chinese people.
Similar to the traditional philosophy,the innumerable traditional literature and art in China are also remarkable and splendid. From the ancient myth to the Book of Odes and the Songs of Chu,from the Music Bureau Poetry to folk songs of Northern and Southern Dynasties,from Tang Poetry,Song Ci,Yuan Drama to novels of the Ming and Qing Dynasties,essays of the Republic of China,and to today's diverse literary and artistic forms,Chinese people have embedded rich information of value and conveyed plentiful concept of value in their literature and art. It is not exaggerated to say that each poem,each novel and each song contains some certain values in itself. For example,so many moods in the turbulent years are portrayed in the novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms; so many phenomena in the world of mortals are depicted in the novel The Scholars; so many cultural emotions are aroused by the song Descendants of Dragon,and so many feelings of nostalgia are evoked by the song Nostalgia.
The Analects of Confucius
The values of the Chinese people shown in philosophy,literature and art are the same as those shown in respect of food,clothing,architecture,medicine and festivals,which are all the reflections of the thinking and judgment of the value of some aspects in Chinese people's lives and production activities. Values are abstract and implicit,which are not easy to be described; but in another sense,values are distinctive and unique,if you pay careful attention to them,you will find they are right in your life and beside you,and finally will manifest themselves in the words and deeds of the Chinese people.
Apparently,only through the description from above few aspects,the values of the Chinese,as an enormous and complex research object,cannot be straightened out,nor can their connotations and meanings be fully expressed. Similar to all other nationalities' values in the world,the values of the Chinese are rooted in their life,production and survival. Therefore,in order to acquire in-depth understanding of the values of the Chinese,we must turn back to their life,their pursuit of survival and their production practice so as to analyze the primitive value choice made by the Chinese people.