分析电影《喜福会》所表现的中西方文化差异英语论文-毕业论文.doc

毕业论文（设计）

Title: An Analysis of the Cultural Differences Between China and the West from The Joy Luck Club
题 目: 分析电影《喜福会》所表现的中西方文化差异

年 级 2009级英语本科五班
专 业 英语
系 别 外国语言文学系

黑龙江外国语学院本科生毕业论文（设计）任务书
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学号

专业班级
英语本科五班
毕业论文（设计）题目：分析电影《喜福会》所表现的中西方文化差异
毕业论文（设计）的立题依据
由于中西方文化差异，每个国家都有各自不同的文化之处。通过对中西文化进行比较研究，探求两者之间存在的差异及文化根源，有助于增进中西方之间的互相理解与沟通。同时通过本文的分析研究，深入了解中西方文化差异的原因。
主要内容及要求
本文以电影《喜福会》系列为切入点，主要从教育方式方面、爱情观和婚姻观方面、价值观方面、语言表达方面、称谓语方面, 对比和比较了中国和美国在文化诸多方面的差异，生活化地描写了中西方文化差异与交融。
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黑龙江外国语学院2013届毕业论文

摘要

本文以电影《喜福会》系列为切入点，对比和比较了中国和美国在文化诸多方面的差异，主要从以下几方面进行了讨论：教育方式方面、爱情观和婚姻观方面、价值观方面、语言表达方面、称谓语方面。通过对电影《喜福会》中不同人物性格、生活方式及个人命运的刻画，生活化地描写了中西方文化差异与交融，也深刻细致地表达出这种差异和交融对人们的启发和思考，表达作家谭恩美得人生观和中西方文化交融中的世界观。几位女性主人公的命运是中西方文化差异和交融的现实体现。
关键词：教育方式；爱情观；婚姻观；价值观；文化差异

iv

Abstract

This paper uses The Joy Luck Club series as an entry point, contrasts and compares the similarities and differences between China and America in many aspects of culture, mainly discussed from the following aspects: ways of education, views of love and marriage, senses of value, ways of language expression and address terms. The article describes the difference and combination of Chinese and western culture according to different figure characters, living ways, and individual fates in the movie The Joy Luck Club, and also profoundly expresses people’s inspiration and pondering upon the difference and combination. The fates of several female figures in the movie are the realistic manifestation of the difference and combination of Chinese and western cultures.
Key words: ways of education; views of love; views of marriage; value; cultural differences

黑龙江外国语学院2013届毕业论文

Contents
摘要 i
Abstract ii
Chapter 1 Introduction.................................................................................................1
1.1 Brief Introduction to the Author..........................................................................1
1.2 Brief Introduction of the Novel ..........................................................................1
1.3 Introduction About the Thesis.............................................................................2
Chapter 2 The Differences Between American and Chinese Cultures Presented
in the Movie....................................................................................................................3
2.1 The Chinese Culture in the Movie.......................................................................3
2.2 Different Views on Love and Marriage ..............................................................3
2.2.1 Maternal Love in The Joy Luck Club..…....................................................3
2.2.2 Different Views on Marriage……..............................................................6
2.3 Different Senses of Value……............................................................................8
2.3.1 The Differences Between Chinese Family in the Pecking Order
and American Family of Equality.......................................................................8
2.3.2 The Differences Between Chinese Traditional Family Concept
and American Individualism...............................................................................9
2.3.3 China’s Modest Comity and American Foursquare People ....................10
2.4 Different Ways of Language Expression ….....................................................11
2.5 Different Uses of Address Terms......................................................................12
Chapter 3 Compatibility Between Chinese and American Culture.......................14
Chapter 4 Exploring the Methods of the Harmonious Coexistence of
Sino-US Culture from The Joy Luck Club…………................................................16
4.1To Enhance Political and Cultural Exchanges ..................................................16
4.2 To Show Understanding of and Respect for Foreign Cultures.........................17
4.3 To Seek Common Points While Reserving Differences ..................................19
Chapter 5 Conclusion.................................................................................................20
Bibliography................................................................................................................21
Acknowledgements.....................................................................................................22

An Analysis of the Cultural Differences Between China and the West from The Joy Luck Club

Chapter 1 Introduction

1.1 Brief Introduction to the Author

Amy Tan (Chinese: 譚恩美; born February 19, 1952) is a Chinese American writer whose works explore mother-daughter relationships. In 1993, Tan’s adaptation of her first novel, The Joy Luck Club, became a commercially successful film. The book has been translated into 35 languages.

1.2 Brief Introduction of the Novel

The Joy Luck Club is a well-known American-Chinese writer Amy Tan’s representative works.
In the novel, she presented to the reader four Chinese immigrant mothers and their daughters. Although living in America, the immigrant mothers cling to Chinese traditional culture. They organize the Joy Luck Club regularly, a weekly meeting of best Chinese friends. Four mothers with their own view of the world, their world view is based on their experiences of life in China. However, the girls from their mothers can not understand the Chinese culture because they are born in America. So the conflicts have been vividly described in this book. As time goes by, after a series of misunderstandings and conflicts, they begin to understand each other. The two generations go into harmony with their efforts of love.

1.3 Introduction About the Thesis

The thesis is the discussion about the mother-daughter collision and compatibility between Chinese and American cultures, it is divided into five major parts: Introduction, The difference between American and Chinese cultures presented in the movie, Compatibility between Chinese &American culture, exploring the methods of the harmonious coexistence of Sino-US culture from The Joy Luck Club, conclusion. In addition, the paper argues that mother-daughter conflict presented the different culture between China and American in the movie. More importantly, after a series of misunderstandings, the two generations are in harmony which means cultural compatibility between China and America. It brings hope that contradiction or oppositions in our lives between past and present, between generation and between cultures can possibly be well reconciled.

Chapter 2 The Differences Between American and Chinese Cultures Presented in the Movie

2.1 The Chinese Culture in the Movie

In the movie, we can see that the four mother-immigrants hold The Joy Luck Club every week. All their best friends and related people will attend. They cook Chinese food, wear Chinese traditional clothes. Especially, they prefer to play mahjong. It undoubtedly provides a place for the others to get in retrospect.
In my oppinion, I think that playing mahjong reflects the character of a person and the culture of a nation. In the movie The Joy Luck Club, we can see four vivid characters at the mahjong table. Jingmei (the leading acterss) plays mahjong with three eldly women, the expression and behavior of Auntie Lindo, she is aggressive and mighty as we see after the movie telling the stories between she and her daughter. Analysing the character of Auntie Lindo, culture of the mahjong can present. When playing mahjong, every person prefers to suppress the others, making every endeavor to win. If something indicates he will lose, he will destroy all the games to make everyone lose. But people are enjoying strifing openly and secretly. Such a game mirrors most of Chinese characters：passive, defensive, selfish. Instead, as we know, pokers are more popular in America. So it is hard to be accepted by the America-born girls.

2.2 Different Views of Love and Marriage

2.2.1 Maternal Love in the Joy Luck Club

Every mother loves her child or children. Although the Joy Luck Club mothers are very strict with their daughters, they still love their daughters. And the maternal love the four mothers impart to their daughters is just a typical Chinese one. The maternal love of Chinese mothers is not as direct as that of American mothers. Chinese mothers do not kiss and hug their daughters and say “I love you” to them like their American counterparts. Mothers all love their daughters in a Chinese way. 
First, just as the woman in the preface of the Feathers From A Thousand Li Away cooes to her swan, In America I will have a daughter just like me. But over there nobody will be measured by the loudness of her husband’s belch. Over there nobody will be look down on her, because I will make her speak only perfect American English. And over there she will always be too full to swallow any sorrow! She will know my meaning, because I will give her this swan—a creature that became more than what was hoped for.  the Joy Luck Club mothers put high expectations upon their daughters. They hope their daughters will become successful. They begin to plan for their daughters’ future since they are children. They don’t care whether their daughters like the plan or not, because in traditional Chinese culture, sons and daughters must obey their parents, and they cannot rebel against the parents. If they do this, it is filial impiety, and they will be criticized by the family members and the neighbors and the society.
Second, the Joy Luck Club mothers criticize their daughters much more instead of praising them more like the American mothers. In their eyes, if they want their children to have power and skills so that they can survive in the fiercely competitive society, they have to be strict with their offspring. For the Joy Luck Club mothers, in order to make sure that their daughters are powerful enough in the future, they are very strict with their daughters and criticize them much instead of praising them. When Ying-ying thinks that Lena can go to school by herself, she urges again and again: “You must not walk in any direction but to school and back home”. But too much criticism makes the daughters feel dissatisfied and even angry with their mothers. They cannot accept this kind of love because they are strongly influenced by American individualism. They cannot bear their mothers’ arbitrariness and criticism no longer. Some of them openly say “no” to their mothers.
Third, they care too much for their daughters’ life. The Chinese parents hope that their offspring will have a happy life. Even if their child or children get married, they will still pay much attention to their marital life, and want to make sure that their offspring have a happy life. For the Joy Luck Club mothers, their care and love can be reflected in the assistance they provide their daughters to solve their marriage problems. They never hesitate to help their daughters when their daughters have marriage problems. They try their best to pull their daughters out of troubles. Both Rose and Lena marry Americans. In front of their American husbands, they have a sense of inferiority. Rose does not make any decision on anything. Instead, she lets her husband decide because she believes her husband’s decision is always better. Gradually, she begins to lose charms to her husband who believes that she is shouldering off responsibility. He even proposes a divorce. Crisis also exists in Lena’s marriage. They fight to solve the problems, but they are too weak to work out a solution. At this critical moment, their mothers do not walk away from them but try their best to help their daughters. An-mei encourages Rose to speak up, “Why do you not speak up for yourself? Why can you not talk to your husband?” When Rose takes her mother’s advice and does speak up for herself, she not only astounds her arrogant husband, but also saves her marriage. Ying-ying shows her daughter what disastrous consequences would happen if she continues to ignore the imbalance between her and her husband. In this way, she reminds her daughter to take immediate actions to get rid of the imbalance in her marriage. From the assistance that their mothers provide them, the two daughters feel the deep love as well as the powerful strength of their Chinese mothers, although sometime they may feel annoyed. Rose finally realizes that her mother is more enthusiastic and helpful than an American psychiatrist in pulling her out of psychological troubles. The American psychiatrist only makes her feel “hulihutu”. As for Lena, she finds out that her mother loves her better even than her American husband because her mother still clearly remembers that she never eats ice-cream while her husband knows nothing about it even though he has been married to her for many years. From this aspect, the Joy Luck Club mothers give their daughters a lot of help and comfort. 
In fact, the maternal love of the Joy Luck Club mothers exists almost everywhere. The four daughters come to realize that their mothers are always loving them in every possible situation. They find out that their mothers would express maternal love at any moment. At the crab dinner, Suyuan would not let her daughter Jingmei pick the crab with a broken leg after every guest has taken away the good ones. In Suyuan’ eyes, a crab with a broken leg is a symbol of bad luck. She does not want her daughter to suffer from bad luck. In order to protect Jingmei from bad luck, when there are only two crabs in the plate, Suyuan picks the one with a broken leg for herself, and gives her daughter the better one. Again, the maternal love of a Chinese mother is vividly shown here. The mothers would always protect their daughters and make any sacrifice for them at any moment. 
In all, the maternal love that the Joy Luck Club mothers show to their daughters is brim with Chinese culture. In the beginning, because their daughters don’t know anything about their mothers’ motherland culture, they cannot understand their mothers, but after hearing their mothers’ experiences in China, and sensing their mothers’ sincere love, they begin to understand and accept their mothers. Although they have been soaked in the American culture, the