A Comparative Study of Chinese and American Cultural Differences in Wedding Customs

【Abstract】Wedding is a religious ceremony or legal notarization ceremony， its significance is to get social recognition and blessing， to help the couple to adapt to new social roles and requirements， ready to take on social responsibility. Different nations and countries have their own wedding customs. This paper mainly talks about the wedding customs in China and America， through the comparatives and discussion about the differences in wedding patterns， wedding tones， and wedding dresses. Then it tries to analyze the possible causes that lead to the varieties such as different backgrounds， different concepts， different values. Finally， the development of globalization enables people to have more colorful and wonderful wedding ceremonies， also enhance further communication between China and America.

【Key words 】wedding custom； difference； causes； significance

【作者簡介】李躍，海南大學(xué)。

1. Introduction

“Since ancient times， marriage is an important part of social life， differences in Chinese and American concept of marriage have reflected in peoples real life， causing diversities in both marriage customs”（JiaYuxin， 1997： 83）. China is a country with an ancient civilization， its long history and splendid culture continuously precipitate to the marriage customs， so Chinese marriage custom condensed the essence of traditional culture， has a unique oriental charm. However， because of geography， history， ethnic， religion and other aspects， American marriage customs and Chinese wedding customs are not the same， Of course， the American wedding customs are formed in their long-term historical and cultural heritage.

Actually， by now many professionals have produced a lot of works concerning the contract of wedding customs between the two countries， while most of them mainly try to analyze their similarities and differences without paying attention to the causes. According to that， this essay manages to find out the underlying causes from four aspects ——different religion， cultural backgrounds， concepts and values .

2. The differences of Chinese and American wedding customs

There are many differences between Chinese and American wedding customs which are rooted in the variety of eastern culture and western culture. Ross Koz once described marriage as： “marriage is an ancient system which exists in various forms from country to country（Yang Jixing， 2014： 89）.

2.1 Different wedding ceremonies

There are rituals of Three Letters and Six Etiquettes， Three Kowtows and Nine Prostrations in Chinese traditional wedding customs.” Three Letters “ is the documents used in the process of marriage， which can be said to be the valid text record to guarantee ancient marriage. “ Six Etiquettes “ is the six marriage laws and discipline rites. In America， the wedding is of holiness and simple， which traditionally called “the wedding of God （Qin Hui， 2004： 123）”. So the holding place is generally in the quiet， peaceful church where the new can get the approval and blessing of God under the auspices of a pastor.

2.2 Different Wedding Tones

We can use two colors to describe American and Chinese Wedding respectively： white and red. In China， red symbolizes good fortune and prosperity（Chen Juan， 2013： 67）. It can be said that red is the main color on the wedding day， wall， door， all kinds of goods everywhere are covered with the paper-cue which represents happiness and e auspicious.

Weddings in the United States also have a considerable selection of color. There is a statement about the symbolic meaning of wedding color circulating in America： choosing white at the wedding， you will be all the best（Chen Juan， 2013： 30-32. Therefore， most people turn to use white as the wedding color， both in the bridal chamber and the chapel are decorated with white flowers which create a quiet and harmonious atmosphere. Furthermore， the wedding dress shall also be white， the bride who is in white is considered to be pure and immaculate.

3. Reasons for the differences above

Different historical and cultural background have breed different kinds of distinguishing features .American prefer open， independent and solemn， while Chinese like conservative， traditional and lively（Richard and Porter， 2003： 12） .

3.1 The influence of historical and cultural background

In Chinese feudal society which was based on private ownership， marriage often serves as the foundation of the feudal hierarchy system， and its conclusion is often based on Confucian theory of “ hierarchy Yin and Yang “and patriarchal order which means that men always own the priority in family throughout the whole marriage ceremony（Richard and Porter， 2003： 33）.

America belongs to a capitalistic country with its unique historical and cultural origins， one-way thinking mode and the special historical development factors， which has a profound influence on wedding customs . It stresses that men and women in the West are sons and daughters of God， but Chinese is more focused on peoples weddings.

3.2 The influence of different love and marriage concepts

The position of love in Chinese traditional social culture is very low and Is considered to be minor. Because of the influence of Confucian political ethics， the function love has been simplified as one of contents for mankind to multiply the later generations and continue life. In China， most of the time parents will give certain advice or even control the choice of their kids boyfriends or girlfriends， and will consider the other party in all aspects（Zhang Yu， 2013： 12）. While American people believe that love itself is a kind of value， and holding “l(fā)ove first” view. They see love above all and even life， the one who doesnt understand love doesnt understand life. Under the influence of religious culture， they think that love is sacred and supreme. They advocate free love， the selection and marriage is completely on the basis of love regardless of origin， parentage， age， social status and other considerations（Zhang Yu， 2013： 21）.

4. Conclusion

The node for couples and family organization is not only the foundation of ethics， but also the promotion for human survival and development， In the long history of the marriage， whether it is Chinese traditional marriage etiquette or American romantic wedding， we can see that there are commons but also different places.

China is now trying to build a harmonious society， while harmonious and stable marriage is an important part of the it. Study on the cultural differences between Chinese and American wedding can help us more deeply understand its own characteristics， meanwhile also can make people have thoroughly recognition of the essence and significance of marriage， and has a positive reference and guiding significance to healthy development of our countrys marriage culture.

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