英語畢業(yè)論文--食品文化

1、<p><b>　　Outline</b></p><p>　　Thesis: As an important part of culture, Chinese and Western foods differ to some extent not only in ingredients and way of cooking but also in the way of serv

2、ice.</p><p>　?、?Significance of understanding disparities between Chinese and Western food cultures</p><p>　　Importance of food</p><p>　　Importance of comparative study of Chinese

3、& Western food cultures</p><p>　　Ⅱ.Theoretical basis</p><p>　　Definition of culture</p><p>　　Concern of food culture</p><p>　?、? Difference of Etiquette in Chines

4、e & Western food cultures</p><p>　　Different tableware</p><p>　　Different time-orientation: lateness vs. punctuality</p><p>　?、? Different focusses placed on dishes in Chinese

5、& Western Food Cultures </p><p>　　Exquisiteness and taste in Chinese food</p><p>　　Nutrition and balance in Western food</p><p>　　Abstract: The study of food culture is a broad

6、issue, which involves a wide ranger of aspects, and a comparative study of Chinese & Western food cultures form the cross-cultural communication perspective which contains even more. This research is mainly focused o

7、n three general aspects.They are theoretical foundations, etiquette difference and contents difference which covers only a small part of the whole study. Actually there are many other aspects to be studied. Besides, food

8、 cultures in West</p><p>　　Comparative Study of Chinese and Western Food Cultures</p><p>　　Food, as essential prerequisite for existence, is any substance that provides the nutrients necessary t

9、o maintain life and growth when ingested (Pamela & Kathryn, 1998:2). It plays an irreplaceable role in the development of society and in the progress of human beings, whether in ancient times when primitive man ate t

10、he raw flesh of birds and beasts or in modern times when humans have entered the new era of information, and whether in East or in West.</p><p>　　There are great disparities between China and Western countri

11、es in etiquette and content of food cultures, so the comparative study of Chinese & Western food cultures will help us increase cross-cultural awareness that tolerating, understanding, and furthermore, appreciating a

12、nd respecting cultural difference is essential if we are to achieve cross-cultural competence during the interaction. Moreover, as we communicate with people from different cultures, we will learn more about them and the

13、ir </p><p>　　Culture is a system of shared benefits, values, customs, behaviors, and artifacts that the members of a society use with their world and with one another, and that are transmitted from generatio

14、n through learning (Longman Dictionary, 2002:535)</p><p>　　We define culture as the deposit of knowledge, experience, beliefs, values, actions, attitudes, meanings, hierarchies, religion, notions of time, ro

15、le, spatial relations, concepts of universe, and artifacts acquired by a group of people in the course of generations through individual and group striving (Samovar et al, 2000:36).</p><p>　　Food culture obv

16、iously belongs to popular culture that is overt, explicit and objective. Actually, till now, nobody has ever made a widely recognized definition because of various reasons. However, here, as far as this research is conce

17、rned, in order to make the comparison more concrete and practical, the author confines food contents, food habits, food etiquette, the attitudes towards food, the function of food, etc. that are derived from each individ

18、ual culture.</p><p>　　Chinese food culture in this research mainly refers to the one in Han nationality. As we all know, China is a nation with 56 ethnic groups, each of which has its unique food, food habit

19、s, etc. But the Han nationality and its culture are the mainstream in China due to some historical, political and economic reasons, which, however, are not the main concerns of this research. Besides, the author which is

20、 much more familiar to the Han cultural background, than that of any other ethnic group.</p><p>　　Western food culture in this research is mainly concerned with the one in the English-speaking countries, esp

21、ecially in America and Britain due to the fact that their cultural patterns and influence have become dominant in the West, which is generally recognized by the international community. On the other hand, most of the mat

22、erials and information on food culture collected by the author are all about American or British people’s food, food habits, etc.</p><p>　　As mentioned above, China is a country that belongs to the second or

23、ientation. Actually, since the ancient times, this orientation has always been stressed and put into practice. To sum up, just as many scholars point out that the traditional attitude of Chinese people towards universe o

24、r nature is “Oneness between Man and Nature”. Under the influence of this orientation, Chinese people attempt a balanced act with nature and try to live in harmony with it. Besides, China is a traditional agricul</p&g

25、t;<p>　　The application of chopsticks as the chief tableware can be traced back as early as during the Shang and Chou periods, although hands were probably used more often than chopsticks. When Chinese people use

26、chopsticks, usually they appear to refined and cultivated, with little disgraceful actions like poking or stabbing and their attitudes toward food are gentle and kind, although Chinese people also like eating meat. Rolan

27、d Barthes, a well-known French literary critic, once talked about the usage</p><p>　　Kluckhohn’s third orientation is seen in many Western societies, in which, people believe that nature is something to be c

28、ontrolled, domesticated, and subjugated. Stewart also points out the tendency of “Dividedness Between Man and Nature” in Western countries when he writes, “The early image of the dismal wildness as an enemy was in part r

29、eplaced during the nineteenth century by a romantic vision, …, But the separation between man and nature survived and remains securely in place to this day. T</p><p>　　As compared with chopsticks, it is not

30、exaggerating at all to say that knife and fork represent the violence and cruelty, and the devastation to food without any concealment. What is reflected from the way of eating in Western countries actually is human’s co

31、nquest over nature. Therefore, during the whole process of dining, Westerners perform the action of cutting, poking and stabbing repeatedly, which, to some extent, is the recurring of those bloody fighting or killing. Al

32、though human beings h</p><p>　　Punctuality seems to be a universal concept to everyone. However, just like other issues discussed in cross-cultural communication, the perception and use of time in different

33、countries are culturally based. In other words, cultures vary widely in their conception of time. Even within the same culture, the conception can vary with different activities. Edward T. Hall, who is well-known for his

34、 discussion of time across cultures, proposes that cultures organize time in one or two ways: either mon</p><p>　　Meanwhile, Hall maintains that the two orientations are incompatible. Therefore, misunderstan

35、dings or conflicts may occur between people from M-time and P-time cultures, as Hall vividly describes, “Particularly distressing to Americans is the way in which appointments are handled by polychromic people. Being on

36、time simply doesn’t mean the same thing as it does in the United States. Matters in a polychromic culture seem to be in a constant state of flux. Nothing is solid or firm, particularly pl</p><p>　　According

37、to Hall, P-time cultures deal with time holistically (Samovar et al, 2000:169). People in such kind of cultures do not emphasize scheduling by separating time into discrete, fixed segments. They treat time as a less tang

38、ible medium so that they can interact with more than one person or do more than one thing at a time. They do not perceive appointments as iron-clad commitments, therefore, in these cultures, personal interaction and rela

39、tionship development are far more important than m</p><p>　　Since China is a country that falls into the category of P-time, Chinese people are inclined to be little later than what is scheduled when partici

40、pating in some activities, like banquets. Normally, they would be half an hour later or even longer. In order to fill in this “blank” period of time, some entertainment, such as playing cards or chatting with other, etc.

41、 is arranged, and some snakes like watermelon seeds or a variety of sweets are for those who have arrived ”earlier” to “kill” the tim</p><p>　　However, this orientation to time is not always unchangeable. Ac

42、cording to the survey made by Professor Hu Wenzhong and his students among Chinese students, only 17% of the interlocutors chose to be 5 or 10 minutes later when attending a banquet. Actually, with the development of cro

43、ss-cultural communication, more and more Chinese people, especially the young are gradually influenced by the M-time in Western countries and begin to appreciate and observe the rule of being on time.</p><p>

44、;　　By contrast, people in M-time cultures live their lives quite differently. As a matter of fact, “People in the Western world find little in life exempt from the iron hand of M-time” (Hall, 1989:48). Hall writes that,

45、“People of the Western world, particularly Americans, tend to of time as something fixed in nature, something around us and from which we can not escape; an ever-present part of the environment, just like the air we brea

46、the” (Hall, 1990:6). As the word monochromic implies, this appr</p><p>　　Hall concludes that, “M-time, on the other hand, is oriented to tasks, schedules, and procedures. As anyone who has had the experience

47、 with our bureaucracies knows, schedules and procedures take on a life all their own without reference to either logic or human needs. And it is this set of written and unwritten rules—and the consequences of these rules

48、—that is at least partially responsible for the reputation of American business being cut off from human beings and unwilling to recognize the imp</p><p>　　Therefore, appointments and schedules are very impo

49、rtant to them. Unlike Chinese people, people on M-time cultures tend to follow precise scheduling. Once the time is set, it is rarely changed, and people should take it seriously. Usually everyone is suppose to arrive on

50、 time when attending a formal banquet or meeting appointments. Sometimes, it is also acceptable that people can be little later, but no more than 10 minutes; otherwise his behavior will be regarded as inappropriate or in

51、sulting t</p><p>　　As we all know, China enjoys a good reputation for its plentiful and splendid cuisine. So farm China has developed four major cuisine groups, based on the localities of their origins: Su (

52、Su Zhou, Yang Zhou and Hang Zhou). In addition, since ancient times, the Chinese have employed many cooking methods, such as braising, boiling, braising with soy sauce, roasting, baking, grilling, scalding, deep-frying,

53、steaming, drying, salt-preserving, etc. Thus, one common feature among these cuisine groups </p><p>　　Meanwhile, the taste, another essential feature of Chinese cuisine, is also stressed Chinese people do no

54、t mind the nutrition of the food as mush as its taste. Savoring food is more important to them. According to the dictionary of Shuo Wen Jie Zi( 《 說文解字》), the Chinese character “美” is composed of “羊” and “大”，which means t

55、he aesthetic perception of Chinese people originates from the sense of taste. Only after eating the savoring lamb, can people really experience “美”. In other words, for a Chin</p><p>　　In the 1900’s many mov

56、ies reflecting the fundamental food culture in China were shot in Hong Kong. One of the most representative films is the Full Set of Manchu & Han Dishes, in which the exquisiteness of cuisine together with those incr

57、edible cooking skills compels all the audience to full admiration. Although the movie is of a little exaggeration, undoubtedly, the exquisiteness and the taste in Chinese cuisine are widely recognized around the world.&l

58、t;/p><p>　　Traditional British or American cuisine is boring and limited, and many foods or cuisine were actually introduced from other countries. For example, tomatoes, were introduced to Europe in 1523 from t

59、he New World (Pamela & Kathryn, 1998:160); chopped beef steaks were introduced to the United States from the German city of Hamburg in the late nineteenth century. Besides, as far as cooking methods or skills are con

60、cerned, Western countries are too far behind to catch up with China. Because of diffe</p><p>　　An interesting phenomenon in Western countries is the nutritional information on the food label, from which peop

61、le’s concern about nutrition is clearly reflected. A look at the information, like the number of calories preserving, grams of fat, sodium, cholesterol, fiber and sugar content will make you more knowledgeable in selecti

62、ng foods to reduce your nutritional health risk. As a matter of fact, in America, food habits are often identified as the most important way in which a person can maint</p><p>　　In addition, the balance in d

63、iet structure is also essential to Westerners. Nowadays, more and more Westerners are starting to worry about their weight, for their diet contains too many calories. Most of them are trying to keep their weight down and

64、 so they are “calorie” conscious. This is evident in menus in restaurants offering “l(fā)ow calorie” or “weight watchers” meals. Perhaps as many as 70 million Americans are on weight-reducing diets, and weight control has be

65、come a multibillion-dollar busi</p><p>　　In conclusion, it is under the influence of pragmatism the Westerners are inclined to take the intake of food into consideration basically from the nutrition perspect

66、ive. In their eyes, food or eating is just a way to keep healthy, having little to do with artistry. Nor will they be particular about the taste of food too much. Therefore, what Westerners care about most is the nutriti

67、on contained in food and the balance of the whole diet structure rather then exquisiteness in cuisine and taste of</p><p>　　By the comparison and analysis we have made so far, one conclusion may be drawn tha

68、t on one hand, it is the difference hidden in the deep structure of Chinese and Western cultures that leads to those disparities reflected in each individual food culture, and on the other hand, according to the cultural

69、 relativist’s point of view, food culture is neither superior nor inferior to the other.</p><p>　　The study of food culture is a broad issue, which involves a wide ranger of aspects, and a comparative study

70、of Chinese & Western food cultures form the cross-cultural communication perspective contains even more. This research is mainly focused on the three general aspects, covering only a small part of the whole study. Ac

71、tually there are many other aspects to be studied. Besides, food cultures in Western countries concerned in the research are mainly confined to America and Britain due to the </p><p>　　Workes Cited</p>

72、<p>　　Di Yanhua (ed), American Culture, Chang Chun: Jin Ling Science and Technology Press, 2002</p><p>　　Hall, E.T., Beyond Culture. New York: Anchor Books, 1989.</p><p>　　Hall, E.T., The

73、 Hidden Dimension. New York: Anchor Books, 1990.</p><p>　　Lin Yutang, the Importance of Living. Beijing: Foreign Language Teaching & Research Press, 1998</p><p>　　Pamela, M. S., & Kathry

74、n, R.D. Food and Culture in American. USA: Wadsworth Publishing Company, 1998.</p><p>　　Samover, L.A., & Porter, R.E., Intercultural Communication: A Reader. USA: Wadsworth Publishing Company, 2000.</

75、p><p>　　Stewart, E.C. & Bennett, M.J., American Cultural Patterns: A Cross-Cultural Perspective. USA: Intercultural Press, Ina.1991.</p><p>　　摘要：食品文化的研究是一個寬泛的概念，它包括許多方面。中西食品文化差異研究是跨文化交流研究的一個重要方