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China:
Society
Values
I Social Life I
Religions I Festivals
After thirty
years of being isolated, China opened its doors in the late 1970s.
Twenty years later, the Chinese world has changed immensely. The
sight, so popular in the West, of marching peasants and workers,
uniformly clothed in blue is gone. Today a growing middle class
visits supermarkets and plays tennis on Sundays.
China is becoming
more modern, and unfortunately or not, more westernized. Some could
argue that China is just changing its face... again, but here's
one example - À Chinese boy about twelve years told old his foreign
teacher that the most important traditional holiday in China was
Christmas.
Values
In China, the
Family name comes first, the given name second. It's a result of
twenty centuries of living under traditional Confucian values. The
family remains Chinese society's most important social unit.
The birth control
policy has had profound effect on Chinese society. Children with
no siblings, particularly if they are male, are usually spoiled
by parents and even more by grandparents. These days the love which
was once shared by 3-5 children is now concentrated on one. Often
these children are called "Little Emperors".
Although increasingly
rare in cities, a rural family of three generations may be living
together, with responsibility for the elders falling to the sons.
Daughters, on the other hand, become members of her husband's family
after marriage. Families in the cities, however, are increasingly
small and self-contained, like most urban families worldwide.
Social
life
Chinese start
their days very early by practicing Wushu, jogging or just walking.
Parks and squares are filled with people doing different (sometimes
really strange) things with their bodies while exchanging views
on various subjects from rising pork prices to new Government policies.
As a rich and
varied cuisine reflects, the Chinese people love to eat, and China's
rise in living standards becomes obvious at mealtime. The table
should have no empty space, and there should be much more food than
everyone can eat, otherwise it can be construed as disrespect.
Religions
As a socialist
country, China declares most of its population are atheists. Traditional
Chinese religion is now officially considered a cultural heritage.
Chinese government actively promotes the restoration of temples,
churches and holy mountains as tourist sites.
Traditional
China was dominated by three major faiths: Confucianism, Daoism,
and Buddhism. These three different faiths coexist quite peacefully,
and the average Chinese might practice more than one of them. On
one day a Chinese believer could pray in Buddhist monastery and
the next day visit Daoist temple.
Festivals
Spring
Festival
(Chinese New Year). Celebrated on first day of the Lunar year.
Lantern
Festival
- 15th day of the first lunar month.
Dragon
Boat Festival
(Double Five Festival) - 5th day of the 5th lunar month
Mid-Autumn
Festival
- 15th day of the 8th lunar month.
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