OnCulturalDifferencesofParenthoodbetweenChinaandtheWest-精品文档

1、On Cultural Differences of Parenthood between China and the West【 】 Parenthood is a vital component of social relations which is greatly influenced by particular culture. The paper studies on cultural differences between China and the West from the perspective of parent-child relation ， enlightening

2、 on family educational modes.1. IntroductionFamily plays an important role in the constitution of a nation. Family relation， especially parent-childrelation ， is a vital component of social relations ， and exerts direct and significant influence on the development of the society. On the other hand，

3、different familyrelation is the product of particular culture and social background.2. Differences of Parenthood between China and the West2.1 Differences in parents love towards childIn China ， parents are responsible for their child in the whole life. The Chinese regard their child as the apple of

4、 one s eye. Parents play the roles of guardian and protector and almost put all their hope on their child.In the western countries， influenced by the idea ofindividualism ， parents tend to cultivate childs ownpersonality. They do not force their child to learn something ， but guide them to find thei

5、r own interest as a friend.2.2 Differences in child love towards parentsChinese culture regards filial piety as the basic standard to judge childs love towards parents. Filialconduct is regarded as the rule to confine the children and establish the root of family provision.Western culture attaches g

6、reat importance to equality. Children leave home when they are 18 years old or even earlier and offer more emotional support to their parents. Most aged parents tend to choose nursing homet o spend their senior life ， while Chinese people regard it as the irresponsibility of child towards their pare

7、nts.3. Cultural roots behind the differences between China and the West3.1 Different social systemThe Western countries are mainly capitalist and developed countries. People have integrated social pension insurance system. The future of the children depends ontheir own efforts as an independent indi

8、vidual. Individualism is the core of western culture. A scholar in America pointed out sharply that “in a democratic society ， every citizen is accustomed to think about a small goal，that was himself ”.China ， on the contrary ， is asocialist and also a developing country. Without the reliable social

9、 insurance system ， parents care much about the future of their children. They treat their children as their own property rather than independent individuals.Thinking highly of collective interests ， they have a sense that parents and children are unity and treat their children as the continuity of

10、their own values.3.2 Different traditional valueTraditionally ， Chinese value is the pursuit of personal perfection. Family education in China pays much attention to the development of etiquette and the sense of collectivism. In the relation between individual and collective ， Chinese culture emphas

11、izes that personal interest must be subordinate to that of the collective absolutely and unconditionally.From the ancient ， parentsthink that children should be trained to be obedient. They must follow what their parents ask them to do.children areIn the eyes of western parentsindependent ， and equa

12、l to adults. They communicate with the children on an equal state and pay more attention to the children s opinion. What is more ， they adopt the children s idea positiv ely. All these are helpful to the cultivation of the childrens independent personality.3.3 Different position of family institutio

13、nFamily institution moves along with the movement of culture. Family is the foundation of Chinese society. Family bureaucratic system is the typical characteristics of Chinese society. China emphasizes family life. It organizes the society by the ethics， which is called the“Ethics - based” society.T

14、he base of western society is individual. Westerners focus on group life. They depend on religions to unify individuals ， and finally establish the independence and freedom of the individuals. Therefore ， it has been called the “individual - based” society.4. ConclusionBecause of diverse historical background， culturaltradition and social value， the parenthood presentstotally differential style. The study on culturaldifferences between China and the West from the perspective of family relations can be instructive for us to know different family educational modes， b