中西情人节对比

1、湖南商学院北津学院学年论文The Differences between Valentines Day and the Double Seventh Festival1. IntroductionTraditional national holiday of every country is the culture of a nation formed by the long-term accumulation. The origin of a festival has a close relationship with peoples life. Festival brings forth

2、in the big specific historical background and constantly changes with the development of society; it embodies the rich emotional world of the people and shows the deep love of people towards life. Traditional national holiday is an extremely complex social and cultural thing which including personal

3、ity, psychological, beliefs, concept, way of thinking and moral sentiment of historical formation and accumulation. It also includes the concept of thinking and moral sentiment, aesthetic taste, and cultural connotations of the deep structure values. It is the national spirit of the soil on a specif

4、ic long-term outcome of pregnancys important carrier; it is also the most prominent and the most characteristic display of a form of the national survival. It reflects some history of a nation or a country and the origin of culture to some extent. Furthermore, different ways to celebrate festivals w

5、ere formed by people in the course of a nations developing history. Hence, understanding the history and custom of Valentines Day in western and eastern, we can learn more history and culture about different nation. Therefore, it contributes to improving communication and understanding among countie

6、s and offers a window for developing international communication2. A Review of Different Origin2.1 Origins of Valentines DayValentines Day is named St. Valentines Day. It is one of the oldest traditional festivals in western countries. Although it has about 2000 years history, it is still full of vi

7、tality. It is the traditional day on which lovers express their love for each other; sending Valentines cards, candy, or donations to charities, often anonymously. It is very common to present flowers on Valentines Day. The holiday is named after two men, both Christian martyrs named Valentine. The

8、day became associated with romantic love in the High Middle Ages, when the tradition of courtly love flourished. The styles, which people celebrate, are richer and richer and varied .Nowadays, more and more Easterners accept the festival, and it has become a worldwide festival.About the origin of Va

9、lentines Day, it has roots in several different legends through the ages. There is a very beautiful fable about Valentines Day on Feb.14th. It is not only the best time to express love, but also the most romantic moment to propose. It is originated from Rome. In three AD, there was a dictator named

10、Claudius in Rome, and there was not far away from the palace, a beautiful church where Valentine lived. Romans respected him and thought highly of him from the young to the old, from the poor to the rich, people always gathered around him listening to his prayer and words. The wars in Roman occurred

11、 frequently, and then the dictator ordered the citizens go forward to the frontline, but they did not want to leave their families, especially young people, they did not want to depart with their sweethearts. Claudius got angry and did not allow people to hold weddings, and those who had been propos

12、ed were told by him to dismiss the proposals. As a result, many young people had to say goodbye to the lovers, and girls became blue for losing their soul mates.Valentine got frustrated by the deed of the dictator. When a young couple came to the church asking him for help, Valentine held a wedding

13、for them in the church without hesitation. Then the news spread from one corner to another, many young couples came here and got married with the help and prayers of Valentine. The news finally reached the ears of the dictator, he puts him into jail. Valentine was saddened to death in the jail. In h

14、onor of the day of his death, people namedthat dayValentines Day.2.2 Origins of Double Seventh FestivalValentines Day in eastern called Double Seventh Festival on the 7th day of the 7th lunar month, is a traditional festival full of romance. It often goes into August in the Gregorian calendar. This

15、festival is in mid-summer when the weather is warm and the grass and trees reveal their luxurious greens. At night when the sky is dotted with stars and people can see the Milky Way spanning from the north to the south. On each bank of it is a bright star which sees each other from afar. They are th

16、e Cowhand and Weaver Maid, and about them there is a beautiful love story passed down from generation to generation. This is the only one about the origin of Double Seventh Festival. Most Chinese remember being told this romantic tragedy when they were children on Double Seventh Festival, which fall

17、s on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month, which is usually in early August. This year it falls on Thursday, August 11.As the story goes, once there was a cowherd, Niu lang, who lived with his elder brother and sister-in-law. But she disliked and abused him, and the boy was forced to leave hom

18、e with only an old cow for company. The cow, however, was a former god who had violated imperial rules and was sent to earth in bovine form. One day the cow led Niu lang to a lake where fairies took a bath on earth. Among them was Zhi nu, the most beautiful fairy and a skilled seamstress. The two fe

19、ll in love at first sight and were soon married. They had a son and daughter and their happy life was held up as an example for hundreds of years in China. Yet in the eyes of the Jade Emperor, the Supreme Deity in Taoism, marriage between a mortal and fairy was strictly forbidden. He sent the empres

20、s to fetch Zhi nu. Niu lang grew desperate when he discovered Zhi nu had been taken back to heaven. Driven by Niu langs misery, the cow told him to turn its hide into a pair of shoes after it died. The magic shoes whisked Niu lang, who carried his two children in baskets strung from a shoulder pole,

21、 off on a chase after the empress. The pursuit enraged the empress, who took her hairpin and slashed it across the sky creating the Milky Way which separated husband from wife. But all was not lost as magpies, moved by their love and devotion, formed a bridge across the Milky Way to reunite the fami

22、ly. Even the Jade Emperor was touched, and allowed Niu lang and Zhi nu to meet once a year on the seventh night of the seventh month. This is how The Double Seventh Festival came to be. The festival can be traced back to the Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 220). Traditionally, people would look up at the sky

23、 and find a bright star in the constellation Aquila as well as the star Vega, which are identified as Niu lang and Zhi nu. The two stars shine on opposite sides of the Milky Way. 3. An Overview of Different Customs3.1 Customs of Valentines DayThe Valentines Day customs and traditions vary a little f

24、rom one country to another. But on a broader look, youre sure to come across this, the customs and traditions of Valentines Day commonly include pampering ones loved ones with loads of gifts and greetings, finding out the right partners for one and spelling out those three magical words I Love You!

25、There arent any ends to what one can do on Valentines Day to make his or her dear ones feel more and more loved and cared for. Just remember, whatever you do, dip it in love and youre sure to come out in flying colors! Because, this is a day for those in love, a day to love, get love and live in lov

26、e. And it does not mean just lovers and sweethearts; it includes all those close to your heart. So be it your father, mother, siblings, cousins, friends, gramps or just anyone whom you dearly love. All you have to do is open your heart out to them, wish them a “Happy Valentines Day” and tell them ho

27、w much they mean to you!One of the commonest customs and traditions of Valentines Day is going on dates, looking for the right companion. This practice probably descended from the popular English belief that birds chose their partners on February 14. And todays Valentines Day is a time totally high

28、on love, a time to whisper sweet “I Love Yours” ,or just flirt a special someone with a few love-verses or some sizzling kisses. Quite in keeping with the Valentines Day customs and traditions, people buy romantic gifts and cards for their beloveds and sometimes they even get into the act of the day

29、 with fragrant flowers, candlelight dinners or a romantic day-out, whichever suits their pockets. Heart-shaped cards, candies and gifts are all the rage in the market this time around. Gifting of cute heart-locks and keys are also quite favorite customs and traditions on Valentines Day, to say “You

30、hold the keys to my heart”. Then theres the custom of sending romantic messages to him or her on Valentines Day. Thousands of stores sell mushy love-notes for this occasion to draw throngs of lovesick souls to their doorsteps. So if you want to pamper your sweetheart with some really romantic poems

31、and songs start queuing up now and avoid the rush!One of the many other Valentines Day customs and traditions is the pinning of bay leaves in the pillows by unmarried women on the Valentines Day eve. This comes from a belief that they would be able to catch a glimpse of their future husbands in drea

32、ms if they pinned five bay leaves to their pillows and sprinkled rose water on them the night before Valentines Day. Then theres also a popular Valentines Day practice of choosing female-partners by drawing their names from a big jar. Men pick a piece of paper each and the woman whose name comes up,

33、 she becomes his valentine. In some occasions, men wore their partners names on their sleeves and its probably from this that the popular Valentines Day saying of “wearing the heart on sleeve” came from. In Wales there was a tradition of gifting carved wooden love-spoons on Valentines Day, while in

34、some places of England youll find the custom of special Valentines Day feasting and baking of extra-special Valentine buns. Now, the Italian and British maidens observe Valentines Day with a very interesting custom. They stand by the window before sunrise on Valentines Day with bated breath because

35、they believe the first man they spot would be their partners for the rest of life. In Denmark, people send anonymous love-letters to their valentines to keep the fun alive and kicking.3.2 Customs of the Double Seventh FestivalWhile the customs of this festival varies according to the different regio

36、ns, the same hope is cherished by all.In the past, the Double Seventh Festival is also called Qi Qiao Festival or the Daughter Festival. Qi Qiao is a very important content to show the intelligence and wisdom in ancient China. Qi Qiao in the Double Seventh Festival have many activities, such as Bubb

37、le Qiao which called the grow beans as Qiao buds, now many parts of the south still retained these customs. The activities of Qi Qiao is very simple in the area of Shangdong province, including Jinan, Huimin Gao Qing, they just display some fruits for Qi Qiao. If a spider webs in the fruit on top, i

38、t means succeed in Qi Qiao. And in Cao Ping and other places have a very interesting customs, eating Qiao rice to Qi Qiao. Seven girls with good relationship gather grains and vegetables to make dumplings. They put a copper coin, a pin and a red jujube into three different dumplings. It is said who

39、eat coin would have a rich life, who eat pin would be skilled, who eat red jujube would get marry at an early age.The most prevalent custom is that of girls praying to Weaver Maid for skillful hands for sewing. Because Weaver Maid is regarded as a beautiful woman deft at weaving, in the evening of t

40、he festival, girls sew some articles to compete with each other and prepare some delicious fruits to worship Weaver Maid in order to be endowed with the masterly sewing skill. Not only hoping for this skill, they also pray to have a sweet love. In the Shaoxing rural areas, a lot of young girls will

41、hide in grow lush pumpkin shed secretly at that night. At the very night, if you can hear the whisper of the Weaver Maid and Cowhands meeting, you will get the undying love.In order to show peoples hope to the Weaver Maid and Cowhand that they can live a happy family life everyday in the areas of Zh

42、ejiang Jinhua ,every family will kill a cock in the Double Seventh Festival meaning that Weaver Maid and Cowhand meeting at that night, if no cock crowing they will be never separate.In the west of Guang Xi, it is said fairy tales will have bath on earth in the Double Seventh Festival, drinking its

43、bath water can heal illness and run away danger. This water is called water of double seven. People run to the river scrambling to get water when cock crowing. They store it and wait for later use. In addition, the Double Seventh Festival is also concerned with the imperial examination. It is said t

44、hat the Double Seventh Festival is the birthday of Kui Xing, and he is the god who in charge of the imperial examination.In the rural regions of China, people usually see the meeting of Cowhand and Weaver Maid as two stars in the sky. At the same time, the old people tell the young about this old lo

45、ve legend.4. The differences between Valentines Day and the Double Seventh Festival4.1 Differences in Developing Trends and ReasonsThe west has formed a worldwide Valentines Day holiday. Now, everyone in the world celebrate the Valentines Day, especially in China. Every where in China on February 14

46、, the streets are filled with people, couples and lovers, students and even some singles. Every restaurant, every cinema, every park is filled with people. While the Double Seventh Festival in China now becoming less and less important in our daily life. Though, some traditional customs are still ob

47、served in rural areas of China today, but have been weakened or diluted in urban cities. There is no young people celebrate this festival, just some elders enjoy this tradition festival.There are several reasons to explain this situation. First, the celebrating time of the traditional festivals in w

48、estern and eastern is different. WesternFestivalis use the international calendar, whilethe Chinese traditional festival is unique to China by the lunar calendar,so people in other countries is difficult to synchronize with us. This may be the most important reason why the Double Seventh Festival is

49、nt popular in the whole world. Second, the Double Seventh Festivals activities are seemed only suitable in the countryside. In the past the Double Seventh Festival is for girls to sewing. While with the development of the time and attitude, some manual skills gradually lost and today very few girls

50、learn to sewing. While in the Valentines Day people usually express their love to their lovers, families and friends and tell them how much their love mean them to you. The Valentines Day now regarded as a day for love. It can be said, the loss of traditional meaning cause the Double Seventh Festiva

51、l fades out of peoples memories slowly.4.2 Differences in Acceptance Degrees and Reasons Now the world seems choose to accept the Valentines Day while to forget the Double Seventh Festival. It is really true even in China among the young people. Now, in china many young people are enthusiastic about

52、 Western Valentines Day in recent years, and even many foreigners think that Chinese Valentines Day passes a little too crazy. It can be said, over and non-over Valentines Day seemed to test whether a person is in fashion. There are several reasons to explain this situation. First, ChinasDouble Seve

53、nth Festival focus onthe calling legend rather thanthe expression the feelingsof others, Westernersarepassemotions free through theValentines Day,to enrichthe lives of modern people. Second, the way of celebrating the Double Seventh Festival is Old-fashioned and cumbersome in China, but the foodis a

54、lso always theme of theDouble Seventh Festival. So the Double Seventh Festival is departure from reality, and gradually forgotten. The Western Valentines Daywas full ofmodernhumanism andromantic; it creates a betterliving environment. By this made the west festival has a strong universal and cross-c

55、ultural portability.4.3 Differences Celebrating Ways and Reasons In western countries, people always send presents which contains their love to their families, friends and lovers. The present can be everything you want to express your love. While in ancient Chinas the Double Seventh Festival also ca

56、lled Qi Qiao Festival . Qi Qiao is begging for smart craft. The most prevalent custom is that of girls praying to Weaver Maid for skillful hands for sewing. In the evening of the festival, girls sew some articles to compete with each other and prepare some delicious fruits to worship Weaver Maid in

57、order to be endowed with the masterly sewing skill.There are several reasons to explain this situation. First, since the Valentines Day and the Double Seventh Festival has the different historical origin, the ways celebrate the festival is naturally different. Chinahas long beenin the self-sufficien

58、tagricultural feudal society itstraditional festivalhas a strongagriculturecolors, includingthe social characteristics of the farming culture is mainly derived from the conversion at the age of seasons. While theWestern cultureis different,it islong-terminfluenced byChristian anditstraditional festi

59、valhas a strongreligiousorigin. The origin ofValentines Dayisbecause of a tyrant called Claudiuswho commandmenwent forth to battle,and bantheir marriage. Valentine died for helping young people to get marry. In order to memorial him, people consider this day as the Valentines Day. Second,ChinasValentines Dayexpress the desire about undying love thro