两种舌尖：论舌尖上的中国与BBC发现中国的差异

论文总字数：27076字

摘 要

《舌尖上的中国》自开播以来受到了社会各界的关注。无独有偶，BBC也制作了一档类似的节目：《探索美食中国之旅》。这二者之间有着同样的主题，都是介绍了中国的美食以及中国的文化传统。本文旨在探索它们在叙事角度，取材重点，传播主题方面的不同，并指出了这种分歧在于两者传播目的以及视角的不同。

关键词：舌尖上的中国；探索中国美食之旅；传播目的；传播视角

Contents

1. Introduction 1

2. Literature Review 2

3. Similarities and Differences 3

3.1 Similarities 4

3.2 Differences 5

3.2.1 Narration 5

3.2.2 Focus 6

3.2. 3 Communication Purpose 7

4. The reason why they are different 8

4.1 Different Purpose 8

4.2 Different Perspective 9

5. Conclusion 10

Works Cited 11

1. Introduction

Nowadays, there are many Chinese restaurants in the world and more and more people like eating Chinese food. Chinese food becomes very popular among the world. And as we all know, China is a country of food and drinks, world renowned for a board array of superb cuisine and exquisite culinary skills. For the Chinese, food is not just three meals a day, but also a culture, an art, an essential social activity. Chinese people pay great attention to eating, not only concerned about what to eat, but also the good taste and beautiful shape of food, and the exquisite way of preparation. It is said that Westerners eat with their brains: insisting on the rational way of dining. Nutritional factors, such as vitamin, protein and calories are given more priority over the color, aroma and taste of the food. (Qiao Jiaojiao，2012:07) Each country has its own food culture and we can define food culture as: “Food culture is the sum of opinion, behavior, technology and product in daily life that people in order to survive, is the best way to pass natural selection and adapt to the environment.”(Chen Suhua，2013：06) From what they have discussed above, food culture is an important part of the traditional Chinese culture. There are eight recognized regional cuisines in China: Lu, Chuan, Yue, Su, Min, Zhe, Xiang and Hui. They taste different because they represent different regions and different cultures. Each one is the breath of Chinese food culture.

In A Bite of China, there are seven episodes, which are Gift of Nature, The Story of Staple Food, Inspiration for Transformation, The Taste of Time, The Secret of Kitchen, To Reconcile the Five tastes and Our Field. It shows us many different delicious foods. The events are also intended to familiarize students with Chinese food culture and local customs. They not show us very expensive foods in the restaurant, they just show normal foods in our daily life. The increasing rating also implies it has gained more and more popularity among people, which is a sign of success. People watch it at home and abroad. An American newspaper called Qiaobao reported that A Bite of China has become the most popular topic in 80s and 90s. They talk about in SMS and watch it on the Internet. Reminded countless Chinese miss their motherland and their family. Whether in the bar in Chinatown, in KTV where young people gathered or on sina Weibo, these six words appear extremely high. Zhang Tongdao says that homesickness is a kind of mood that we cannot give up, no matter from the south to the north, from domestic or overseas, the most delicious food is mom’s food, the best thing is hometown’s, the best memory is childhood. A Bite of China makes people miss their hometown. Besides those, many foreigners also watch it. For example, the 65^th chairman of Cannes whose name is Nanni Moretti deliberately watched it, after watching the program he highly praised it.

A Culinary Adventure, which is a four-part British documentary television series that aired on BBC Two. Chefs Ken Hom and Ching He Huang, both Chinese food specialists, describing their travels through China and the recipes and personal stories they find there. Hom and Huang travel to Sichuan Province, Beijing and on to the Silk Road, Kashgar. They travel around China, seeing and introducing a lot of delicious food with pleasure. Not only do they introduce food but also they cook similar food to compare with traditional Chinese food. Because they both chefs, they cook food on their own way. Beside common Chinese food, they look for some special foods, such as the head of rabbit. BBC always has good rate. However, this program"s rating is not very good. Despite the fact that it doesn’t receive a great success like A Bite of China, it still makes a great contribution to China, which makes a plenty of people know Chinese food and Chinese culture.

2. Literature Review

The documentary A Bite of China is on CCTV-1’s night shift on May 14, 2012.This is a documentary that records thousand years of Chinese precipitation down the catering culture primarily. Since the first program began, it has received wide attention and discussion from all orders of society. And a lot of people started the research of this program. But just a few people studied it from communication theory. Someone said that A bite of China has not jump out “eat” this traditional concept from a subjective as a documentary of catering culture as the starting point. Nevertheless, the classification becomes more inclusive. Broaden thinking, and broken the regional style of cooking partition before the previous section of mesh, films instead of starting point of from different culture. Three parts have been played, using such as collection, staple food differences, processing evolution. each set of field covers more broad, from ZhaGan lakes fishing to south China sea fishermen, from Shandong pancakes to Xinjiang KaoNang, from brine bean curd to bridge meter, macro field span to reflect more vast land food culture’s difference and coexistence.(Wang Yujin，2012)

No one studied it from the differences between A Bite of China and Exploring China: A Culinary Adventure. They studied it from what the effect of this program and how can we let foreigners learn China better. Just few people watched A Culinary Adventure. There are still many people even didn’t know this program. I watched it by chance, finding this program is also very good. There are many differences between these two programs. And in this paper I will study Chinese culture and history thoroughly. Then I will make some conclusions from Chinese culture. I will also tell the differences between China and the West.

3. Similarities and Differences

A Bite of China, which introduces the amazing variety of food in China, has received wide attention from all orders of society since it was launched in CCTV. The increasing rating also implies it has gained more and more popularity among people. What is the most remarkable effect of A Bite of China since it launched in CCTV? Taobao received a flood of orders for local food like Wuhan duck neck and Jinhuaham. According to site traffic statistics, Taobao’s snack category had over 4.5 million hits in seven days between May 14 and 20 when the documentary was shown. And several travel agencies and tourism websites have launched hundreds of travel routes concerning the food in A Bite of China.

Why A Bite of China achieve highly rate? Because it’s the confirmation of millions of common people’s eating experience and culture. It can show respect for those people’s work wisdom and culture value. Though we are in the era of globalization, we all know: we know that we have the strong feelings, lofty desire and lingering dream often attach themselves to a particular group, expressing a particular language, pertaining to a specific place to live in the same time, uphold the people of the same faith. We deeply rooted in all kinds of traditional ties; they give us the meaning everyday existence. If people can"t deliberately choose into a completely different person, it is more unable to erase its links with the traditional. (Du Weiming，2006:100) Each country has its own tradition, deep root sense and humanistic spirit brought by the traditional sense is our precious spiritual wealth. It makes us see the history and experience the tradition and family love.

3.1 Similarities

A Bite of China and A Culinary Adventure are both a program that introduce Chinese food. They travel around China and collect different materials. They let us know many tasty food and culture that we don’t know, such as the rabbit head, I have never heard the rabbit head can be eaten. I think it amazing. They introduce us not only Chinese food but also culture. Ching says that food is the best way to explore Chinese culture. So do I. Culture is the total accumulation of beliefs, customs, values, behaviors, institutions and communication patterns that are shared, learned and passed down through the generations in an identifiable group of people. If we want to know a place well, the best way is to learn its culture.

In the first place, they both introduce the food culture. Eating for the Chinese is more than to meet the basic daily needs. On all festive occasions or important days, eating is an indispensable entertainment. Chinese folk traditions are closely related to food. The food-related customs vary according to the occasions and the days. (Qiao Jiaojiao，2012:41) In A Bite of China, Shi Baozhu who is an experienced fisherman. In his family, they celebrate the Chinese New Year every year and they cook 14 types food with fish, in their mind Chinese New Year is very important. It means a new start of the next year, in this special day family members should gather together and welcome a new year together. What they eat in that day means every year has enough things to spend. And in Zhejiang, grandmother Gu who is a common people. In her family her daughter, son and grandchildren come to see her and her husband just three times a year. Many old people who live alone hope that their kids will visit them often. It is difficult for their children to visit them. So when they come back, Gu prepares a lot of food, especially a food called Niangao, which has a specially meaning in their culture. In her mind, food is her love to her children. So do A Culinary Adventure. In this program, Ken and Huang went to their interpreter’s home whose name is Janny Gao, a food writer raised in Canada, but born in Chengdu. GAO’s family gives them a warm welcome. GAO’s aunts take Ken to Chinese market and cook many different types of food to welcome their coming. Janny’s grandmother and aunt prepare many delicious foods. They gather together to eat and talk about the development and climate of Chengdu, which looks very harmony.

Next, from food culture, we can see the long history of China. China has a long history, we often say: five thousand years of Chinese. There are many different types of food, such as Mapo Tofu, hot pot and Beijing Roast Duck. We can know China’s history from these foods, and know the weather and physical geography. In Sichuan Province, it always rains there, so it is very cold there and people who live there like eating spicy to warm their body. In north-west of China, it is not often raining, so they plant a material, which called Shu. People use them to make a food that is called Momo, it’s just like Mantou but it looks yellow and is easy to keep. From food we can see the differences of climate and habits in China.

Finally, as I referred, Shi, Gu and Gao, in their family they eat together and share food from the same plate. It’s another culture. It is social culture. Chinese people are accustomed to eating around the table and share the food. No matter on what occasions, sharing food is the first choice of Chinese because they believe it is merrier and closer eating from the same plate. People feel detached to eat separately. This habit reflects the traditional thought that the family shall stay together, as well as the belief in harmony in traditional Chinese philosophy. Eating from the same plate helps to communicate, to bring the family together and maintain social contact, so as to reach the harmony between people, no matter family members or from different groups.(Qiao Jiaojiao，2014:46)

3.2 Differences

3.2.1 Narration

In A Bite of China, there is no guidance or emcee. We cannot see interviewers and cannot hear their sound. We just can hear a man narrate the story of the people and the nature. He introduces different foods and different stories of the local people around China. A Bite of China doesn’t have any given personal views, it just has a sound that knows everything and can deal with anything to show us a wonderful world of Chinese food. The man just explain something to us not talk about any his opinion. This sound sounds like a god; it can let you know everything from each term.

However, in A Culinary Adventure, there are two people whose names are Ken and Ching. They are both Chinese but they live in the West. They are emcee in this program. They live in the west, so when they introduce Chinese food, they just look like two foreigners travel around the China and introduce tasty food to audience. They use the eyesight of others to introduce food. They introduce food because it is very amazing and they want to know how to cook it. Though it is a documentary in BBC2, it looks like their travel notes. Describing their travels through China and the recipes and personal stories they find there. Ken and Ching travel to Beijing, learning about Peking duck, and on to the Silk Road, Kashgar, and the Sichuan Province, together bringing a unique and authoritative perspective on Chinese food that will surprise and inform. Ken and Ching undertake an epic 3000-mile culinary adventure across China. We can see where they travel, what they eat and what they cook. And in A Bite of China people just introduce the foods and materials in the local; they do not introduce the way to cook. It is just a television documentary. But in A Culinary Adventure, they introduce the way to cook more than food; it looks like a cooking program.

3.2.2 Focus

A Bite of China chooses a large amount of foods and stories. It starts with a food material and then tells the life style and the culture in the local. And tell us something through these stories. For example, in the first series, which is called Gift if Nature. We can learn that we should cherish and last the gift of nature like Zhuoma and Shibaozhu, they receive the gift from nature and last the treasure of nature in return. We also can learn the hard work from people who dig lotus root through the pool. They work day and night to support their family. In The Story of Staple Food, we can know the basic of food is making our stomach to be completely full, especially for Chinese. In A Bite of China, there are seven stories but six of them are told us the food material and only one story, which is called To Reconcile the five taste introduce tasty food. It chooses small things to introduce Chinese food and Chinese people. Though these selections are small, it can shock the heart of people. When I see the smile of the person, my heart was touched and my eyes run over with tears.

In A Culinary Adventure, they only travel to 4 cities that Sichuan Province, Beijing, Yunnan and Guangzhou. They choose these cities to show the British and the world what is Chinese food and Chinese culture. Describing their travels through China and the recipes and personal stories they find there. Also teach people what preparations that should we make before cook and how to cook tasty food. They introduce food from their job. They choose many foods that the world has known, just like Hot Pot, Beijing Roast Duck, Mapo Toufu and so on. They also introduce some restaurants such as flying restaurant. Many people like this type of restaurant because it is cheap and tastes very. So am I. Although I know some of them are dirty. In contrast, A Bite of China just introduces the stories of family. Food which they recommend is cooked by local people, not a professional chef. Ken also go to the Chinese market. Ken describes the market as chaotic and insanitary. Because he says: “chaotic, and despite the government’s pledge to improve food safety, I can’t see many fridges.” Maybe it’s amazing for the foreigner. Foreigners always buy food from supermarket where there has big fridge. From my point of view, this scene may cause bad effects to our country’s image. People who see the scene may think that China still like many years ago. It is still very backward.

3.2. 3Communication Purpose

Chinese food is famous for its long history and great diversity around the world. A Bite of China not only brings the colorful images of local foods, but also shows great respect to the custom and culture passed by our ancestors. For example, many interviewees said this is passed by our ancestors. In some field, advanced as some machine they still use the way to prepare their material. They think it is a treasure that their ancestors leave for them, which shows great respect to their ancestors.

What’s the aim of them? A Bite of China aim is not only show Chinese culture to the world to let they know China, but also show Chinese dream to Chinese and the world. For the society, A Bite of China is the symbol of Chinese dream. It shows us happiness and tells people that we are able to support ourselves. China is poor in the ancient, making their stomach full is the most important thing for the Chinese. The notion haven’t experienced hungry without enthusiasm in food, they treat food like water and stay there. (Gao Chengyuan，2013:04) It reflects the development of China and shows the world that China has become richer and powerful. These interviewees are all live better than before. Many of them say they are satisfied with their lives. They don’t say it directly but we can see it from different foods. From their advanced lives we can see the fast development of China.

For the personal, it also a China dream, which dream for themselves. In A Bite of China, everyone try their best to work hard for a better life, such Amiao a girl who learn how to cook delicious Chinese bread and Zhang Shizhong an old man who want to meet his family again to eat together but his family are all in Taiwan. And Ju Changlong’s dream is to spread Huaiyang cai. BBC’s programs are always having politics. In A Culinary Adventure, when Ken arrives in Beijing and sees many traditional cook all sorts of feelings well up in his heart.

He goes back to China after the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution. At that time, it was very hard to live as a cook. And it just introduces some Chinese food and Chinese culture. It introduces like a travel and cook program. Not make a deep understanding of China.

4. The reason why they are different

4.1 Different Purpose

Grierson"s principles of documentary were that cinema"s potential for observing life could be exploited in a new art form; that the "original" actor and "original" scene are better guides than their fiction counterparts to interpreting the modern world; and that materials "thus taken from the raw" can be more real than the acted article. In this regard, Grierson"s defines documentary as "creative treatment of actuality". (Peter Morris, 1987:20) They are both documentary. However, they transmit different aims. To show the Chinese dream CCTV make this program. We can say that this program serve for Chinese dream. It shows us good concepts to us, which make us know the beauty and strength of China to us. A Bite of China mainly in face of two types of audiences, one is the overseas Chinese which belongs to spread across the border another is foreign audience which belongs to spread across the culture. For the first one, they watch it in YOUTUBE, PPTV, YOUKU and TUDOU. It shows they their hometown’s life and prosperous. It also relieves their homesickness. While A Culinary Adventure is just faced with the foreigners, people who stay in China cannot watch it. Because of this, A Culinary Adventure’s rate is not very good. However, I think it’s not the reason why A Culinary Adventure has not achieved a good reception. From my point of view, it is far away from the nature of documentary. It looks like a cooking program rather than a documentary, which makes people feel bored. Women who like cooking food may like it. When I watch it, I just feel very bored and like watching a food program.

American Elyse Ribbons she says that after seeing this program she has different feelings when she eats food. These foods occur to her these people who behind these foods, not the citizen but the countryman. Julian has recommended it to many people and he looks forward to it to make foreign language program. He doesn’t worry about these foreign who don’t know China well can’t understand it. Because he says: “This program show the simplest thing in the world, human civilization heritage who will think about these things, they don’t need the language. It’s the charming of this program.” In Julian’s view, China is serious lack of documentary, which is the bridge to easily be recognized by the world.(Han Dong，2012) BBC makes it looks like a travel program, it introduce different places and attract the people who watch BBC.

4.2 Different Perspective

Another reason is this. It’s a new and interesting way to know China. They learn it from “the other”. The other and self is an important topic in post-colonialism, and this criticism focuses on the antagonistic relation among different kinds of culture. “The other” is a concept consist with “self”, if self presents the leader position, the other is the thing that besides self.

Holliday A explains the other from four parts. The most important are stereotype and prejudice. Different as they are, they have closely related to each other. Otherization is used to describe the process that we undertake in ascribing identity to the ‘self’ through the often negative attribution of characteristics to the ‘other’. (Holliday, A., Hyde, M．and Kullman, J, 2004, 159) O’ Sullivan said that prejudice implies stereotype about some groups or members. We can also define stereotype as highly simplified and generalized. As we know, there are some opinions in our mind, and if we learn something from the other, we may have some prejudice. Many stereotypes are brought by the media. (Samovar, amp; McDaniel, 2010)

From the sight of the other, we can know it quickly but we cannot learn it thoroughly. If we study something from the others we may learn some inaccurate information that brings the other’s personal feelings, which will make confused. In A Culinary Adventure, they are guided by the local, though the local take them to the most reprehensive places, it still has the local’s personal feeling and they just know it from the surface, not like A Bite of China. However, learn from the other is also very important, we can learn something we don’t know quickly. And to learn ourselves, we need the existence of the other. The other always related to nationality, sex and class step. What’s more, in this process, it always related to the problem of words, knowledge, power and control.

5. Conclusion

During the time of tasting tasty food, we also find the differences between west and China in eating and culture. Differ from western-style food dining. Sharing the food is the first choice of Chinese because they think eat in the same plant can get closer. This habit reflects the traditional thought that the family shall stay together, as well as the belief in harmony in traditional Chinese philosophy. Delicacy is just a start point, seeing the whole society from the fine food is our ultimate purpose. It is not important what you eat, it is important the person you eat with and the feelings you feel during the delicious food. If the western buffet reflects individual character, then China’s dinner responded to the heart of the universal. Some people compare A Culinary Adventure as the BBC version A Bite of China. Of course both films are food documentary, carries on the Chinese cuisine and the interpretation of folk culture, but they have each characteristic. In my opinion, A Bite of China is more representative because BBC describes Chinese food from “the other”, which doesn’t study things thoroughly. However, we can learn many things from other people who are different from us..

Works Cited

[1] Holliday, A., Hyde, M．and Kullman, J. Intercultural communication: an advanced resource book for students (2nd ed.). London amp; New York: Routledge. 2004

[2] Peter Morris, Re-Thinking Grierson: The Ideology of John Grierson. History amp; Film Association of Australia, 1987

[3]Samovar, L. A., Porter, R. E. amp; McDaniel, E. Communication Between Cultures（7th ed）. Belmont, CA.. Wadsworth Publishing Company. 2010

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