Culture isn't static. Take a look at the fashion, music, architecture, and language of past decades. Culture is constantly changing. This is why intercultural conflicts can happen even in families where everyone is of the same race. Each generation is born in a different time, and they grow up under the influences of a different society.
My parents are quite modern, but they still follow some old traditions like not sweeping the floor during Chinese New Year, buying new clothes and shoes for Chinese New Year, and not saying "unlucky" things. I value tradition a lot less than they do. I prefer to follow traditions only when it's convenient or fun.
I used to hate buying new clothes for Chinese New Year. If I didn't go with my parents when they went shopping, they would end up buying odd-looking or very uncomfortable new clothes for me. If I went with them, I would have to go walking around shopping centres for hours when I would much rather be reading or playing. Either way, it wasn't fun for me, especially since I had always preferred wearing my older and more comfortable clothes anyway.
My parents weren't really superstitious. They certainly didn't believe that breaking New Year taboos would bring bad luck. I remember being very annoyed back then because my parents couldn't give me a satisfying answer when I asked them about the point of following tradition. Their reply was always something along the lines of "Because it's tradition." They were following tradition simply because it was part of Chinese culture, and they thought it was important to remember our history. I, on the other hand, didn't see the point of following traditions that didn't seem useful in any practical way. I thought it was silly to do something simply because our ancestors did it, especially since many traditions involved superstitions that we didn't believe in. I do find our old traditions somewhat interesting, but to me, just knowing these traditions is enough.
Even though I and my parents are all Chinese, we value the past differently. It's one small difference between two generations from the "same" Chinese culture.
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Hey Joshua,
ReplyDeleteGreat post on how cultures are always changing. My family is similar to yours in that though we are not superstitious, we still do follow tradition because it is tradition.
I agree with you that our generation and our parents generation have different views on the same culture. My parents were brought up to observe strictly the Chinese culture and taboos. However, our generation being exposed to the western world and various culture focuses more on the practicality of things. Hence things that we do not see the point of doing, we find it a chore.
Tradition does have its importance. I feel that some tradition have some meaning in it. For example, reunion dinner on the eve of Chinese New Year. It emphasizes on the togetherness and unity of a family. If just knowing is suffice, would it be passed on the the future generation or will we dilute and lose our tradition in the end?
Hey Joshua,
ReplyDeleteYou gave us a good example for the ever changing culture.
For the tradition of buying new clothes for the Chinese New Year, I guess that you actually don't like shopping. For me, I don't treat it like a tradition, I do it just because I want to go shopping from time to time.
I agree with you that some traditions are unnecessary, they would be diluted in the future. However, I don't think we will loose our tradition in the end. To illustrate, we may not buy new clothes for new year, we still have Chinese New Year, and there are many other traditions for the Chinese New Year.
Regards,
Rachel
Hey Joshua,
ReplyDeleteI feel that this is probably a matter of opinion more then culture. We might feel that what were are doing is no longer relevant, but at least for the case you have mention, I feel that we could look at as a way for us to get new clothes. Just like spring cleaning, which is a practice before the Chinese New Year, is a good time for us to clear the clutter in our homes yearly.
Like what Amos has said, I do feel in order for a tradition and a custom to be passed down and be made known to future generations, we will have to practice it actively.
cheers
Dear Joshua,
ReplyDeleteI think our generation seems to be less conservative than the previous generation. I have the same problem with my parents. My parents asked or ordered me to do something which did not make sense to me. I asked them the reasons, and got simple answers such as “That’s our tradition” or “Because we are Vietnamese”. I was angry at them for a while though. I thought we should do what makes sense, not what was done in the past.
I would say that we are less conservative because we have been living to a globalized world. That allows us to get a better understanding of other cultures and different interpretation of ways of life. Hence, at least for me, I have questioned my own country/culture’s ways of life and refused to practice what I consider “out of date”.
Anyways, I enjoyed reading your post and totally agree with you that we should not practice the traditions involved superstitions just because they are part of the traditions.
Hai Van.
Thanks, Joshua, for this interesting post. You do explain well how culture is "dynamic," and how a family's values for tradition, their beliefs and norms change over time. I'm not sure though that this answers the question of the assignment in the best possible manner. However, it does address the general topic of culture.
ReplyDeleteIs this an intercultural observation rather than a discussion of the "cultural changes" taking place from one generation to the next within one Chinese family?
I'll let you answer that question after reconsidering the definition of culture and cultural group.
You also write that "This is why intercultural conflicts can happen even in families where everyone is of the same race." I'd like to suggest that in the last clause it would be more appropriate to use the word "culture" rather than "race." I know that in Malaysia people use the word "race" interchangeably with culture, but most social scientists would disagree with that common usage. There are, for example, Moslem Malays who happen to have Chinese facial features. Race is just that, in fact: a physical attribute, not cultural. Racially, one might say that people who are Asian/Chinese can, and do, convert to Islam. (Some are born Moslems, at the number of Chinese-featured Moslems in Beijing will show you. Culturally/ ethnically, anyone who speaks Malay every day, acts as in practice as a Moslem, and in fact, does everything *traditionally* that qualifies them as Malay, is Malay in terms of ethnicity, no matter what their racial background.
To look at your question about "intercultural conflicts" taking place within one family, I think you would have to present a different example. For example, if your family back in Kuching adopted a Penan teenager then I think you could argue that within the same family, an intercultural conflict might take place.
In the anecdote that you recount about you being uncomfortable with following your parents shopping during Chinese New Year, or you being suspicious of various Chinese traditions, a social scientist would be hard-pressed to find anything about this as an intercultural conflict.
Do you understand why?