论文总字数：31256字

摘 要

随着技术进步与经济发展，跨文化交际也越来越引起了人们的重视。由于地域、语言、传统等方面的不同，文化差异造成了各国交流的困难，文化冲突必然随之而来。本文即以电影《刮痧》为例，从家庭，友情，社会等方面阐述中美两种文化间的差异和冲突，最终达成文化融合的一些策略，如跨文化交际能力，文化移情的培养以及民族相对主义的意识。该电影旨在克服文化冲突，并论证文化融合是文化交流的必然趋势，而不是为了让大家喜欢或排斥一种文化。

关键词：文化冲突；文化融合；电影《刮痧》；文化移情；民族相对主义

Contents

1. Introduction 1

2. Theoretical Foundation: Cultural Conflicts and Blendings 1

3. Cultural Background between China and America 2

3.1 Traditional Confucianism in China 2

3.2 Egalitarian in American culture 3

4. The Potential Source of Cultural Differences between China and America 4

4.1 Differences on family education in guasha 4

4.2 Differences on friend view in guasha 5

4.3 Differences on social view in guasha 6

5. Communication and Blending between China and America 7

5.1 Overcoming “ethnocentrism” and advocating “ethnorelativism” 8

5.2 Accelerating the integration of multiculturalism 10

6. The Importance of Inter-cultural Communication 11

7. Conclusion 12

Works Cited 14

1. Introduction

As an art form, a movie involves abundant cultural contents, and an intuitive carrier to culture, including the movie guasha. The culture of a country or a nation has been showed completely in the movie. It tells the hero Xu’s cultural sufferings in a foreign country, America. Xu Datong has acquired a certain achievement on his business during eight years’ life in America. He is full of ambition, and he makes a speech excitedly on his company’s annual prize ceremony: “I love America and my American dream has come true finally.” However, a series of culture shocks knock the family completely off balance with bewildering rapidity. For example, Xu Datong smacks his child in front of his boss John Quinlan; the court concludes Dennis suffers violence at home because of red marks on Dennis’ back caused by scraping; in order to let the old father see his grandson, Xu Datong steals out his son Dennis from welfare homes. The movie contains dramatic stroys, stressful rhythm, poignant plot, theatrical performance, and happy ending. In order to express cultural conflicts better, Zheng Xiaolong chooses the shot location in Missouri (one of America"s states) which is famous for its obstinate residents, rather than the familiar city New York and Los Angeles. Because the two cities are too international and they can not represent the real American culture. Actually, they are nothing in Americans’ eyes. Restatement: in America, a place which holds local knowledge, it must resist the foreign culture. That’s why the so-called cultural conflicts not only attract our own attention, but also Americans’ interests.

2. Theoretical Foundation: Cultural Conflicts and Blendings

Cultural conflicts are disagreements between cultural beliefs and values by two or more sides. The spirit of understanding and vast breast should be put in the different cultures. Avoiding contradiction, abandoning yourself, or coming into collision is uncivilized practice. According to the Chinese journals, since 2001, various periodicals in China have published nearly 100 reviews about the movie guasha. However, they almost try to analyze cultural differences and cultural conflicts from surface rather than deep structure of culture. For example, Siqi points out that the movie shows the cultural conflicts between China and America.（Siqi 2001: 2）Zhang Bocun considers the movie reflects the perceptualism of China and the rationalism of America and so on.(Zhang Bocun 2002: 1) In today"s cultural market, it pins down the perspective of criticism unnecessarily, which makes the academic understand the movie guasha only from its cultural conflicts. Therefore, the article will cross limitations of cultural conflicts, and combine cultural conflicts with cultural identity, and cultural empathy to arouse people’s cross-cultural awareness, and achieve cultural blendings, which avoids another Xu’s tragedy in the globe.

3. Cultural Background between China and America

Chinese culture and the Western culture originate from the East Asia continent and Europe"s continent. The differences of environment provide the stage of history to the creation of Chinese culture and western culture. That is different cultural background between China and America about Confucianism in Chinese traditional culture and egalitarian in American culture.

3.1 Traditional Confucianism in China

Confucian culture is the mainstream of Chinese traditional culture. “Benevolence” is of primary importance in the doctrine of interpersonal relation. “Benevolence” is used to emphasize that people should transact his benevolence in mutual association, and regard it as the fundamental principle dealing with others. Confucius points out that “Benevolence” means “giving love” . Mencius also advocates “the benevolent loves others”. The movie guasha focuses on family. In the traditional idea of Chinese family, and in the Confucian family values, the most important part has two sides. Firstly, Confucian culture regards harmony as fundamentality. Confucius thinks that if everyone can keep his nose clean, people can live with each other peacefully. The country"s welfare is based on stable families，so keeping “peace” is the most important. Secondly, “loyalty, filial piety, chastity, and righteousness” are also important. The grades between father and son, king and vassal are core; strict hierarchy has proved an insurmountable relation. Father is recognized as an authority in a family. Patriarchy is a system which invades Confucianism. Vassal must be absolutely loyal to king; children must absolute obey their parents and brothers and sisters should be treated with decorum and respect.

3.2 Egalitarian in American culture

Human rights in western are based on abstract concept of “human”. There is an obvious contrast on race, status, sex, religious beliefs and so on. But it emphasizes that everyone will be given equal opportunities on rights. It makes life, property, freedom as human’s natural rights, rather than natural welfare. They are the demands of human nature and birthrights of every citizen, and they are not awarded by any authority. Therefore, they are inalienable rights of man. Furthermore, between the individual and the state, it regards the individual as basic unit of the state. So nation"s prosperity can hardly do without the individual, and the state is only the tool to achieve individual rights.

America’s mainstream culture is derived from original immigrants from Europe. These immigrants opened up the process of America and Europe. Passing through generations’ deposition, new American culture has been created finally. The process of American history greatly influences people’s cognition to other people, themselves and everything. The core of this historical stage is their national character of adventure, innovation with pioneering spirit, individualist, equality, liberty and optimistic self-confident. On the issue of people and nature, Americans advocate that man should conquer nature. In America, they never initiate one should have deep relationship with teachers.

4. The Potential Source of Cultural Differences between China and America

With the development of political and economic integration, the world today is characterized by an ever-growing number of contacts resulting in communications between people with different languages and cultural backgrounds. Sometimes these differences become barriers in the process of communication, and even sometimes result in tragedy.

4.1 Differences on family education in guasha

Family structure is the core of any culture. This unit probably varies more among cultures than any other variable. (Dai Weidong 2009: 83) When it comes to education, we cannot leave the deep-rooted traditional culture similarly. Xu Datong lets his son apologize to his boss’s child and he smacks him with his open hand when his son refuses. Chinese think Xu Datong wants to show greater respect for his boss John Quinlan when he smacks child and lets his son apologize to his boss’s child. This polite expression has been accepted in our country, but it is ungrateful in western. His boss considers that this expression is a twisted Chinese logic, and he can hardly understand.

Therefore, there is great difference between Chinese concept of education and western. “Anyone would ever hate you is because they want be just like you” is always Chinese traditional concept. Parents regard children as their private property. Under a mindset of high expectations, we think scolding the children, physical punishment, even whipping are to show love from parents. In China, some old adages are going down, such as “if a son is uneducated, his dad is to blame”, “spare the rod, spoil the child,” and so on. These old adages all show the idea and the idea is always being accepted and admired by the Chinese. A large number of people put it as their mottoes.

But in western countries, things are completely different. This kind of behavior should be opposed severely. They find it impossible to agree because it"s cruel. They are more aware of reality: the interest of individuals is paramount to all the others. Parents are only guardian of children’s, and everyone is given equal opportunities. All citizens have certain democratic rights, so that parents are forbidden to curse and beat. In western countries, young persons’ rights and interests are protected by a strict law. Nobody can cross to commit an offence against the right of others. You will be severely punished if you against, even children’s parents. Actually, in the final analysis, these embody great affection from parents. It is the difference between views in education and ways of education that result in the cultural differences and conflicts.

In China, filial piety is an important side in family education. Filial piety is one of the most important concepts in Confucian traditional philosophy. In the movie guasha, the old father is smoking at home. He gets into a panic and hides it up when Xu Datong and Jane come home suddenly. We can speculate about that Jane objects to smoking at home. Jane knows the old father is pining for his grandson, and she knows if she prevents him smoking, her dutiful husband will be angry. Bright Jane does not stop the old father instead of allowing him to smoke. This is Chinese filial piety. If they are American couple, they must stop him smoking at home immediately.

4.2 Differences on friend view in guasha

In China, the idea on friendship is also affected by Confucianism. Confucius says：“a man who has friend must be faithful in keeping his word.” Faithfulness here can be understood to honesty. This sentence shows the idea on friendship of Confucius. It also shows the idea on friendship of Chinese. So faithfulness is the cornerstone between friends. In addition, loyalty to friends is also important. Everybody tries to give those friends a hand who are in trouble, shares joys and sorrows with your comrades, and supports one another in adversity. As the saying goes, when trouble occurs at one spot, help comes from all quarters. China is a relatively stable society, and people usually are not willing to associate with strangers. We all think that make friends for as long as possible and we will know more about others when we know him longer. At the hearing which decides whether to take Xu Datong to court or not, Xu Datong asks for Quinlan to plead his case. Although Quinlan tries to emphasize he is a lawyer great on intellectual property rights, and he hopes Datong ask for a special lawyer to plead his case, Xu Datong insists on Quinlan being his lawyer. Xu Datong knows Quinlan is his friend, and Quinlan is aware of his love to his son. Xu Datong can trust him extremely, and Xu puts his all expectation on Quinlan to bring back his son. Surprisingly, Quinlan confirms Xu Datong’s maltreatment of his son at hearing. And consequently, Quinlan’s evidence makes welfare home believe more about Xu Datong’s maltreatment on children. Then Xu Datong leaves his job in a fit of pique and says: “Those whose courses are different cannot lay plans for one another.” Xu Datong thinks he is betrayed by Quinlan, and Quinlan is not a true friend. As the old saying goes in China, Misfortune tests the sincerity of friends, and willing to do anything to help friends. (Liu Shijue 2001: 1) However, in America, the order is law, logic and affection. In other words, starting with laws, then reason, affection is the last one. American’s concept on making friends is the polar opposite of Chinese concept. Chinese think we should not lose our own face, and we could not make others lose face especially our friends. More than five thousand years of Confucianism has planted the form of face in propriety. Because propriety is the expression of respect, and respect is the inner spirit of propriety. Propriety and respect will be very effective in keeping and improving Chinese interpersonal relationships.

4.3 Differences on social view in guasha

From the sociology standpoint, the definition of culture is all findings of human society which is different from natural phenomena. It includes all substantial and immaterial things which are created by humans. Culture is the symbol of a society or a nation. Between different nations and groups, the differences showed by culture are much more than skin color or other physical phenomenon. The movie guasha starts with the difference of social culture. In the movie, the most revealing of all is judgment on scraping. Scraping has come across more than two thousand years’ practice, which as the means to treat disease in traditional Chinese medicine. It is the theory summarized by predecessors and it is also rational recognition. However, the medical skill which has been inherited for two thousand years cannot thrive in America. What is more serious is that scraping is misinterpreted as witchcraft, social abuse and equated to cruelty. In the final analysis, it is caused by the difference of social view. We can also name it “culture shock”. The so-called culture shock can be understood that people who live one cultural environment will have ideological confusion and psychological stress when they get in touch with another cultural mode. (Conrad, Kottack and Phillip 2002: 50-53) In this movie, Dennis is sent to emergency departments because he falls down the bed and hurts his head. The doctors find red marks on Dennis’ back amazingly when they do general physical checkup. The doctors conclude that Dennis must be badly treated at home, thereby leading to a series of chaos later. This is a kind of expressions of culture shock. Culture shock is social view, an objective phenomenon and there is no good or bad to say. But the approach for culture shock will result in two different outcomes. It is not hard to see from these examples, a large number of different deep-rooted social view, values, morals lead to decidedly different discourses and patterns of behavior. Xu Datong and Jane’s efforts and hardships are scarcely thinkable to champion Chinese traditional culture under the circumstances.

5. Communication and Blending between China and America

We believe that the existence of every culture has made the world become more colorful. The spirit of understanding and vast breast should be put in the different cultures. Avoiding contradiction, abandoning yourself, or coming into collision is uncivilized practice.(Sun Lili 2009: 20-21) Respecting, admitting, respect, assimilation and compatibility are the display of vigorous vitality and sustainable development of any culture, which are also where the hope lies.

5.1 Overcoming “ethnocentrism” and advocating “ethnorelativism”

William Graham Summer (1940) gave a very comprehensive explanation of the meaning of “ethnocentrism”. He thinks ethnocentrism is explained as a national concept that they put themselves as the center of the world. They regard their own culture as reference frames of other national cultures. Other national actions should be weighed in their own native cultural standard, and they make their own culture different from other national culture. This negative behavior will bring painful repercussions on inter-cultural communication: it maybe lead to a conflict between two cultures; a mistrust between two national cultures; mistake on communication. If so, the distance of communication will be bigger and bigger, and the immediate sequel to this behavior is serious obstacles on communication. If we are willing to overcome and cross this cultural barrier, people should take actions against ethnocentrism, and it is “ethnorelativism”. In other words, whatever cultural behavior should be understood and judge by its own standard. It means that when we communicate with different cultural background, we only use opposing side’s beliefs, traditional values, and social standard to explain and judge their behavior. This requires that people should develop our own great sensitivity of culture conscientiously. We must avoid preconceptions and we should treat different groups or members of culture by equal attitudes. The false ideas of ethnocentrism must be remained vigilant, and we should also break away from inaccurate mindset that judge other’s behavior by using our own cultural Values and social standard. At here, we want to analyze Jane’s cultural identity. The wife Jane is completely run-down as well as his husband Datong because of tempest of scraping. Jane is brought up in the environment of Chinese culture, but she is more intelligent than his husband because she can realize her cultural identity better. She understands the rules of the old saying “when in Rome do as the Romans do”. So she knows the importance of keeping calm in negotiations with other people. (Li Dongyan 2008: 1-3) On this point, her ways are more brilliant than Xu Datong’s. He is stubborn and he is thrall to his passions. Jane can make concessions when conflict appears because she is an unbiased person. But Xu Datong is unwilling to compromise and herein lays the problem. Actually, Jane is also a painful decision-maker, and it is difficult for her to put down her status of Chinese culture. When the old father lights a cigar beside the dining table, Jane opens the windows immediately because she worries about the harm of second- hand smoke. If Jane is a foreigner, she must protest: no smoking! On hearing, he tells a lie in order to get green card for his father, but Jane can only choose silence. It is not hard to see that Jane must accept western culture in order to survive in America.

5.2 Cultivating “cultural empathy”

“Cultural empathy” means that in the inter-cultural communication, the two sides should get rid of restraint by the background of native culture. And put our own emotion into the opposing side’s cultural modes. You put yourself in other people’s place and enter into the characters’ feelings, and then the two sides will feel fulfilled on emotion in a sympathetic communication atmosphere. The ability to cross-cultural communication is the special mix of ability, and the ability of cultural empathy is the most important ability in the inter-cultural communication. In fact, the process of inter-cultural communication is equal to the process of cultural empathy. The ability of cultural empathy is often thought to the understanding of people’s mindset and behavior under the different background of culture. There are a number of prejudices against inter-cultural communications. Some people are prone to have a bias to other culture when they are regulated by their own native culture without our knowing it. That is to say, we use our own cultural values unconsciously to judge and measure people’s behavior under the different background of culture and the other social phenomenon. These prejudices are invisible obstacles hearts to affect the communication of different culture. Only when we could improve the ability of cultural empathy, and only when those people who have cultural empathy can cut down their own cultural prejudices can we break through the barrier in the inter-cultural communication to attain our goal of communicating effectively. Only those people who have cultural empathy can cut down their own cultural prejudices. Therefore, in order to develop “cultural empathy”, we should respect the cultural differences and distinguish the cultural differences. We should also overcome cultural prejudices and develop cultural identity (Huang Ming 2005: 100-103).

5.2 Accelerating the integration of multiculturalism

The core of multiculturalism is to admit cultural diversity and admit the equality and mutual influences between two cultures. Therefore, people should have diversified perceptions of the world and recognize and comprehend the world from a number of angles. The substance of developing multiculturalism is cultural communication, collision, conflict, adaptation, reconstruction and blending. It is also the communication, collision and conflict of values, mode of thinking, behavior and even world view. Because culture is not simply a social phenomenon, it represents the connotation of in different populations and minorities. In the cultural communication, it’s no more than many cultures are planning to realign, determine value orientation of each other, ways of living and choices on behavior. Sympathizing one culture means sympathizing one nationality, sympathizing one value, thereby leading to the integration of cultures. If refusing one culture, it means refusing one nationality, refusing one value, thereby leading to cultural conflict and ethnic conflicts. Modernization accelerates the process of globalization and globalization becomes even more prominent to show multiculturalism. The education of multiculturalism develops naturally under such time background. Therefore, the concept of multi-cultural education should insist on multi-view and the orientation of personality, and integrate structure to develop all students the adaptability and development capacity for entering into the multicultural world. Students should be taught the new mission of promoting multiple cultures around the world, respecting the difference between cultures and taking on the responsibilities of globalization. So, multiculturalism has provided the modern world of the methods about more mutual aid, more angles of thinking, more ways of practicing, more roads of choosing, more aspects of developing and values of judging.

6. The Importance of Inter-cultural Communication

The aim of inter-cultural communication is to absorb the other national advanced culture. We only decipher differential secret of different cultures, we will go on cross-cultural communication. Therefore, the strong realization of inter-cultural communication must be remembered tightly. Inter-cultural communication is first born in America. The motivation of America decides to actively carry out cross-cultural communication is that American current development is based on a variety of immigrants. But that also makes so much trouble from cultural differences between races and nations. Dealing with cultural differences is very important to such a country which exists the culture with multiplicity, complexity and otherness. So the rise of cross-cultural study meets American needs on social inter-cultural communication. Chinese cross-cultural study and the research of national conditions are born in 1980s. Since reforming and opening, the two courses have been brought in China. It promotes our country’s teaching and research of foreign languages. Bring in theories and methods of these courses on language teaching are very necessary for us to deal with barriers brought from different cultural conflicts. It not only help to push on spread of culture in language teaching, but also help to achieve better teaching effect, enrich students’ life on inter-cultural communication, strengthen the realization and ability to cross-cultural communication, and reduce failure on communication because of cultural differences. Inter-cultural communication itself has both ways and interaction. If it reaches to a mélange of fine culture, it needs interaction of each other. The existence of cultural differences makes cross-cultural communication necessary. We drink in the essence of various nations different from actives and it gives the cross-cultural communication more significance. However, nowadays, merits and drawbacks are mixed together in cross-cultural communication, which requires that we should be able to distinguish advanced culture and backward one from cross-cultural communication, take the essence and discard the dregs. Only in this way can we propel the society forward and progress of the times.

7. Conclusion

Culture is not the quiet mountain range, but the sluggish river. In the communication and collision, all national cultures respect each other, understand, influence, permeate, absorb and develop. They adhere to the principle of that “inherit in study, develop in inheritance”. As the distinctive cultural image and spiritual symbol, the movie guasha not only uncovers difference and collision between Chinese and western culture, but also shows the possibility and importance between cultures. It is easy to see that the theme of the movie guasha is to show the conflicts and settlement of cultural dimensions (it is not the conflicts between the so-called good man and bad man, or advanced and backward in the film and television works which enjoy usually) .The characters are mostly good and kind people, but there is blazing conflicts on the opinions about subsistent lives. To one"s surprise, it is so hard to mediate in the dispute showed by the movie. The difficulty of the mélange of different cultures in this movie has been pushed to extremes, but we can not say the gulf between the two cultures cannot be bridged. Cultural difference is an objective fact, and there is not wrong in cultural difference itself. The cause of cultural conflict due to one is not familiar with each other. The director Zheng Xiaolong of this movie tells us such words: “we believe that the existence of every culture has made the world become more colorful. The spirit of understanding and vast breast should be put in the different cultures. Avoiding contradiction, abandoning yourself, or coming into collision is uncivilized practice. Respecting, admitting, respect, assimilation and compatibility are the display of vigorous vitality and sustainable development of any culture, which are also where the hope lies.” (Zheng Xiaolong 2002) Although conflicts between Chinese and western culture are much more than approbation because of their sharp differences, the conflict is absolutely no outlet. The disagreement can be alleviated because Quinlan is deeply affected by kind-hearted humanity of Xu Datong, so that Quinlan is willing to put away his prejudice, and comes to China. By trying to scrapping in person, Quinlan realizes profound nature of Chinese culture and typical moral virtues, which removes the barriers between Xu Datong and him, and even all the Chinese people. Culture is vitally important for a nation and a country. China is a country which has a long history and splendid cultures. Chinese movies should be expected to be cultural modes which are built by our own value system in the process of going global, rather than regarded as subservient to Hollywood careers. Chinese movies should own strong ethnic characteristics and cultural temperament. We should use a distinctive and national image to lead the audience and value orientations. We should be fully bent upon the dissemination of beautiful and loving China all over the world by showing the best spirits and culture image of the Chinese nation.

Works Cited

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[8] 任玉玲. 电影《刮痧》的“无文化意识”分析. 新疆艺术学院学报，2010（14）：（47-48）.

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