A Comparative Analysis of“ Cultural”Differences between China and the West

【Abstract】Mastering the differences between Chinese and Western cultures plays a very important role in cross-cultural communication and avoiding communication mistakes. What are the main differences between Chinese and Western cultures？ It will be summarized and discussed from the following four aspects： differences in geographical environment， differences in values and moral standards， differences in social relations， differences in customs and culture， and differences in social etiquette.

【Key words】Chinese and western culture； Differences； compare

【作者簡介】邵子君，吉林省長春市東北師范大學附屬中學（凈月校區）高三8班。

Introduction

Each national language carries the nations rich cultural information. It not only contains the nations historical and cultural background， but also contains the peoples outlook on life， values， lifestyle， ways of thinking， customs and customs， etc. Therefore， to learn a language well， one must not only master the language， grammar， vocabulary and idioms， but also know how the people who use the language view things， observe the world， but also understand the cultural traditions， customs and habits， social norms， ideology and language behaviors of the language countries they learn， that is， understand their “ language of mind”.

First， the differences between values and moral standards

The western nation advocates individualism， and the values of individualism are the characteristics of western culture. For example， since the Renaissance and the Enlightenment， the values that have been dominant in western society are individism.The westerner believes in personal struggles， particularly the pride of individual achievements， and never camouflage the rapture of self - confidence， honor， and achievement. However， individualism is not “ individualism” in the eyes of Chinese people， much less egoism. Because individual freedom， advocating individual rights， emphasizing democracy and equality， and respecting others and their rights are the real and typical characteristics of individism. Chinese culture does not advocate showing off personal honor， but advocating modesty.

Second， differences in social relations and religious beliefs

Westerners have a strong sense of equality. Whether rich or poor， they wont let other people violate their rights， and everyone will respect themselves. At the same time， they also show full respect for others. In America few people are proud of their illustrious family background， rarely are they ashamed of their poor background， and that the children of the President are also unemployed. there is nothing shameful about it. on the contrary， people believe in “ If working hard， even a cowboy can be president.” After their hard work， they believe that they will succeed. In China， the traditional concept of hierarchy between monarch and minister， father and son is still deeply rooted in the minds of Chinese people. Father and son are still deeply rooted in the hearts of the people of China. Father in the sons eyes， the teacher in the eyes of students has absolute authority， son call the name of the father， students of the teachers name.All these are considered disrespectful. Family background still plays an important role in human growth.

Third， customs and cultural differences

In the process of forming the custom culture， it is related to the peoples daily life style in the region， and has close ties with the political， economic， cultural， artistic and other aspects of the region while involving all aspects of peoples daily life. At the same time， customs and culture can largely reflect the national characteristics of the region. In the process of the formation and development of a nation， language must be used mainly to reflect the local customs and habits， only in this way can the purpose of language communication be achieved. However， in English cultural translation， if we blindly understand the literal meaning， we will not only fail to achieve the effect of cultural exchange， but also to some extent influence the significance of the whole cultural exchange.

Conclusion

To sum up， in order to learn a language， we must not only master the language itself， but also understand the social culture of the language.Only in this way can we communicate and communicate with each other and effectively improve cross-cultural communication skills.

References：

[1]Wang dehua.The reason for the cultural difference between China and the West[J].Seeking Truth from Facts，2011（01）.

[2]Xu wenyu. comparison of cultural differences between China and the west[J].Chinese learning，2000.