中西文化对比阅读材料1--Traditional Festivals.docVIP

Module 1Traditional FestivalsText ASymbolic Chinese New Year DecorationsThe Chinese New Year is a very special day in the lunar calendar of this ancient civilization. One can see Chinese families decorating their homes with many different Chinese New Year decorations prepared especially for the occasion. From the insides of peoples homes to the city streets China is glittering in color throughout this season. The array of decoration items is wide and colorful,some of which have become symbols for this time of the year.Paper cutsPaper cuts are usually pasted on windows or hung on doors, especially during holidays and festivals. The most important time to make and display papercuts is during the New Year Festival. Each part of China has different styles of paper cuts. However, many paper cuts share two common themes: protection from evil forces and the health and well-being of the family. Papercut designs can be pictures of anything, including lucky Chinese words, animals, children, or illustrations of popular stories. They are often made with red paper, since red is the color that represents happiness in China.Chinese KnotsChinese knots, suggested as Wall Hanging, Auto Mirror Hanging, Lamp Hanging or Door Hanging， are espacially seen in peoples houses and stores in the streets during spring festival. Chinese Knot or Chinese traditional decorating Knot is a kind of characteristic folk decorations of handicraft art. Appeared in ancient time, developed in Tang and Song Dynasty (960-1229A.D.) and popularized in Ming and Qing Dynasty (1368-1911A.D.), Chinese Knot has now become a kind of elegant and colorful arts and crafts from its original practical use. The characteristic of Chinese Knot is that every knot is made of a single rope and named by its specific form and meaning. By combining different knots or other auspicious adornments skillfully, an unique auspicious ornament which represents beauty, idea and wishes is formed.Spring CoupletsSpring couplets (chunlian) are poems that are hung up in pairs on New Years Eve, one on each side of an entryway. Each one usually has four, five, or seven Chinese characters, although some are 500words long! These poems are hung outside homes and businesses. They wish for wealth, good fortune, and long life to those inside. Like other New Year decorations, they tend to be written on red paper, the luckiest color. They are difficult to write. Each half of the couplet must use the same exact grammar and match the other half perfectly. People also hang a third piece of paper across the top of their doorways. This paper has four Chinese characters on it that sum up the meaning of the spring couplet.Spring couplets are often pasted on the front doors of houses and the gates of companies or restaurants to greet people or customers or to make a wish. Chinas New Year PicturesSpring Festival, Chinas most celebrative occasion, begins its annual felicitations with the posting of New Year pictures on the walls and windows on the 24th of the 12th month in the lunar calendar according to tradition. The pictures convey peoples jubilation and expectations of the coming new year. They are called nianhua in Chinese, including woodblock prints (木版年画). This means “New Years pictures,” because they are always put up around the house during the New Year Festival. People in China use them for two reasons: to bring good luck and for decoration. Chinese people call buying nianhua “inviting in the gods” because pictures of gods are some of the most popular kinds of prints.Door GodsPeople decorate their gate posts and door panels with door gods(menshen) on the last day of the 12th moon. Since the second century AD, Chinese people have put up door gods during the New Year festival in order to protect their families and homes from harm. People paste pairs of door gods in the center of their door panels. In ancient times there were two gods, named Shentu and Yulu, that people carved or painted on peachwood and hung on their doors for good luck. These fierce-looking gods were guardians of the underworld who were thought to protect homes from demons. Beginning in the Song Dynasty (9601279), people began to draw these images in ink on red paper. Door gods are still popular today, and there are many different types of guardians. Animals like roosters and tigers, along with famous military generals from hundreds of years ago, are some of the more recently displayed door gods. In the past, door gods were always made by hand; however, today they are usually made in factories.Stove GodsFor about 2000 years Chinese people have worshiped the Stove God. He is very important because he protects the home and the family from harm. A poster of the Stove God is often hung above the stove in Chinese kitchens. TheStove God watches over each family throughout the year. On the 23rd of the last month of the lunar year he reports to the Jade Emperor on each familys behavior. Families offer the Stove God many sweet foods before his departure. Often candles and incense are lit at this time; sometimes an offering of paper money is burned. Many families then seal the mouth of the Stove Gods poster with honey so that he will be able to report only sweet things about them. Others believe that the honey acts as a seal, so the Stove God cannot say anything at all. The Stove God is said to return to families homes on the first day of the New Year.Fat BabyTraditional New Year pictures mainly feature local peoples life and customs with intense colors and violent contrast. Famous pictures like Fat Baby, “wholesome children holding coins”, Abundant Harvest of All Food Crops, and Surplus Every Year have been prevailing across China for hundreds of years. Paintings of various such themes are also put up to adorn their homes with a festive look. In addition, the Chinese New Year decorations also include embellishing their doors or windows with auspicious Chinese New Year Children Figures, usually one boy and one girl, opposite each other. They both hold “Lucky” signs and are the symbols of “Good Luck” for the Chinese New Year.Upside-down Fu Character Not all luck-bringing pictures are fat baby pictures. Some are four-character-phrases that express traditional sentiments(感情) for a rich and bountiful spring. Still others are single characters, for example, the Chinese character fu ( 福), meaning luck, blessings, happiness and good fortune. The character fu is everywhere during the festival. On the doors of shops and families and even in rooms, people like to paste high the fu character calligraphed on red paper. Fu (福 ) is written on the paper squares, which can be pasted normally or upside down, for in Chinese the reversed fu is homophonic with fu dao le pronounced as fu comes. The upside down fu becomes a pun that implies good fortune has arrived. Thus, the paper squares represent the arrival of spring and the coming of prosperous year.The Chinese New Year is incomplete without the elegant and colorful decorations that adorn peoples homes during this time. The favorite colors of Chinese New Year decorations are red and gold. Red symbolizes happiness while Gold symbolizes wealth. These two colors are predominant in most Chinese New Year decorations and greeting cards. Doors and windows are often given a fresh coat of red paint on Chinese New Year. People in China adorn their front doors with Chinese decorations and Spring Couplets, which are fragrant with fresh India ink, to give the feeling of lifes renewal and the return of spring. Words and Expressions:【春节的特殊词】 春节 The Spring Festival 农历 lunar calendar 正月 lunar January; the first month by lunar calendar 除夕 New Years Eve; eve of lunar New Year 初一 the beginning of New Year 元宵节 The Lantern Festival【春节的风俗习惯】 过年 Guo-nian; have the Spring Festival 对联 poetic couplet: two successive rhyming lines in poetry 春联 Spring Festival couplets 剪纸 paper-cuts 中国结: the Chinese knot 买年货 special purchases for the Spring Festival ; do Spring Festival shopping 年画 New Year paintings 敬酒 propose a toast 灯笼 lantern: a portable light 烟花 fireworks 爆竹 firecrackers (People scare off evil spirits and ghosts with the loud pop.) 红包 red packets (cash wrapped up in red paper, symbolize fortune and wealth in the coming year.) 舞狮 lion dance (The lion is believed to be able to dispel evil and bring good luck.) 舞龙 dragon dance (to expect good weather and good harvests) 戏曲 traditional opera 杂耍 variety show; vaudeville 灯谜 riddles written on lanterns 灯会 exhibit of lanterns 守岁 staying-up 禁忌 taboo 拜年 pay New Years call; give New Years greetings; New Years visit 去晦气 get rid of the ill- fortune 祭祖宗 offer sacrifices to ones ancestors 压岁钱 gift money; money given to children as a lunar New Year gift【春节文化】 辞旧岁 bid farewell to the old year 扫房 spring cleaning; general house-cleaning【春节食品名称】 年糕 Nian-gao; rise cake; New Year cake 团圆饭 family reunion dinner 年夜饭 the dinner on New Years Eve 饺子 Jiao-zi; Chinese meat ravioli 八宝饭 eight treasures rice pudding 汤圆 Tang-yuanText BChristmas DecorationsWhere Did All These Christmas Decorations Come From?We love them; we buy truckloads of them every holiday season. So where did all the Christmas decorations come from? Here are some facts about a few Christmas decorations that might amaze you.The Christmas Decoration of StockingsIn medieval times, St. Nicholass Day was celebrated on December 6th. Tradition says that on St. Nicholas Eve, St. Nicholas would drop down the chimney to fill up childrens stockings and shoes with treats-and thus the stocking became a familiar Christmas decoration. Todays Christmas traditions are similar. Each child hangs a stocking over the fireplace where Santa will enter on Christmas Eve and fill them with candy and presents.Electric Christmas Lights are a Recent Christmas Decoration.Did you know that Thomas Edison invented the first electric Christmas lights? Who would have thought that he would have invented one of our most beloved Christmas decorations? It is said that Edward Johnson, the vice president of Edisons company, decided to adorn his Christmas tree with eighty red, white, and blue bulbs. And presto! The Christmas decoration of Christmas lights was born!Christmas Trees are the Ultimate Christmas Decoration.St. Boniface, born in 680 A.D., is often credited with the fir trees being associated with the Christmas celebration. Christmas tradition says that he happened upon a human sacrifice that was taking place at the foot of an oak tree. In anger, he felled the tree with an axe. In the ruins of the great oak was a single fir tree. He pointed to the fir and told the idolaters that they should cease their wicked ways and only worship Christ, the bringer of life ever green. The Germans probably originated and popularized the Christmas tree. The earliest written record of an evergreen tree being decorated for Christmas is 1521. Today, the Christmas tree is still a symbol of peace and eternal life-the central Christmas decoration.Christmas Cards are a Cheery Christmas Decoration.Did you know that the first Christmas card was probably made in 1843 at the request of Sir Henry Cole? But it was a Christmas decoration that had a controversial beginning. It turns out that Coles Christmas card was a disaster. It contained a middle panel of a family-with a child!- sipping wine together while enjoying each anothers company. A child drinking wine! No way would the public condone such a thing. According to Christmas tradition, Coles Christmas card was so controversial that it drew public attention and became an instant hit. Without the negative publicity, Christmas cards might not have become a favorite Christmas decoration. Arent we glad they did?The Poinsettia is a Beautiful Christmas Decoration.The poinsettia has become the Christmas flower. The star of the leaf of this lovely Christmas decoration is said to represent the star that stood over the Christ Child. Likewise, the red flower signifies the blood that Christ shed for each of us.The Wreath is an Old Christmas Decoration. The symbolism of the wreath has been popular for centuries. In this Christmas decoration, the circle or ring shape is said to be symbolic of eternity or eternal life, because the shape has no beginning or end. In ancient Rome, this symbol became so powerful that people used decorative wreaths as a sign of victory. Some believe that this is where the Christmas decoration of wreaths on doors came from. The Christmas decoration of the Advent Wreath is unique. From Germany, the ancient use of the Advent Wreath spread to other parts of the world. The Advent Wreath is a Christmas decoration made of four violet or rose candles in a circle of evergreens with a fifth candle in the middle. Each day at home, the candles are lighted before the evening meal, one candle for the first week, and then another each succeeding week until December 25th. The last candle is the middle candle of the wreath. The lighting of this candle takes place on Christmas Eve and represents the birth of Jesus Christ, the light that illuminates a dark world. A beautiful and highly symbolic Christmas decoration!Christmas Candles.a Christmas Decoration we cannot do withoutThe Christmas decoration of Christmas candles placed in windows dates from the beginning of Christianity. Candles in medieval times were often lit on Christmas Eve to symbolize Christ, the light of the world. These Christmas decorations were supposed to burn throughout the night to mark the path to the Nativity , in other words, lighting the way for Mary and Joseph. This ancient custom continues today in European countries such as France, England, Ireland and Denmark. Many people still place these Christmas decorations in each front window of their houses as a welcoming symbol of friendship.Christmas Bells-Another Ancient Christmas Decoration.Christmas bells might pre-date Christianity by centuries. In the book of Exodus, Moses wrote, Aaron the High Priest must wear it bells when he ministers. The sound of the bells will be heard when he enters the Holy Place before the LORD and when he comes out, so that he will not die. The Christmas decoration of bells has always produced joy and excitement. Bells were used in religious services long before Jesus birth.Since then, these Christmas decorations have been in churches in every land ringing out the glad tidings of great joy of the coming of the Lord. According to some Christmas traditions, bells were supposed to ring on Christmas Eve for an entire hour before midnight as if to warn the powers of darkness of the approaching birth of the Savior. Then, right at midnight, the bells message would change to a joyous peal, ringing out the news that Christ is born!The Christmas Decoration of OrnamentsDid you know that Christmas ornaments had their origin in props for religious theatrical plays about Adam and Eve? These ancestors to our modern-day Christmas decorations were initially apples hung on the Paradise Tree to represent our first parents expulsion from the Garden of Eden. Later, prop designers hung wafers on the Paradise Tree to represent Christs redeeming sacrifice. But the Germans were the ones who really made ornaments a favorite Christmas decoration. Germans made ornaments of cookies, bread, nuts and other delicious foods. In fact, the German Christmas tree was decorated with so many sweets it was nicknamed the sugar tree.Over time, other Christmas decorations such as small gifts filled the tree. When German immigrants arrived in America, they brought with them their Christmas decoration traditions with them, and the idea of ornaments on trees caught on fast. Later, these Christmas decorations got a big boost when F.W. Woolworth reluctantly began selling ornaments one Christmas and sold out in two days. That remarkable success convinced him of the Christmas decorations profitability, and he began traveling to Germany to stock his stores with ornaments each season.Candy Canes are a Delicious Christmas DecorationWe love their sweet flavor, but the Christmas decoration of candy canes goes back 2,000 years. This Christmas decoration is linked to the shepherds staff. In fact, Christmas tradition states that the candy cane was created to honor Jesus. If the candy is held upright, it clearly has the shape of a shepherds staff, and Christ is the Good Shepherd who always watches over his sheep. If the candy is turned upside down, it becomes the letter J for Jesus. And this Christmas decoration has more meanings. The candy canes stripes symbolize the stripes, or whipping, that Christ received before He was crucified. The candy cane was made with red stripes, to represent the blood of Jesus that washed away our sins, and white stripes representing Christs ability to make us pure as snow. Although there are many varieties of candy canes today, they are not true candy canes unless they are red and white and thus tell the story of Jesus. The Nativity Scene is an Enduring Christmas Decoration.No Christmas decoration better visualizes the scriptural account of Christs birth than the nativity scene. These Christmas decorations can be traced back to the 4th century A.D. Eight hundred years later St. Francis of Assisi popularized the nativity scene. He is said to have constructed a life-sized manger scene with live animals. In those early years, the Christmas decoration of nativity scenes was simple, focusing on the baby Jesus Christ and His mother Mary. Joseph was added later, as wer