A Synchronic Cultural Approach to Modern Chinese Shame
Keywords:
synchronic cultural approach, Chinese culture, shame culture
Abstract
Ferdinand de Saussure effectively identified the way that language acts in both a diachronic and synchronic approach. The present work intends to demonstrate that de Saussure’s synchronic approach can be adequately applied to cultural constructs to enhance cultural dialogue and learning. Synchronic terms and general concepts will be applied to cultural terms and general concepts. The primary example used to develop this concept is the cultural construct of shame and its social expressions within the modern Chinese cultural context. First, Chinese culture will be established as a predominantly honor-shame culture and point to the common honor-shame aspects of patronage, kinship, purity, and tight culture. Then, specific examples of shame as it manifests itself within Chinese culture. These examples include the second-generation rich, leftover women, lying flat, and the general fear of losing face. The result is a rich and meaningful read on culture that will further dialogue and enhance cultural understanding.
References
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Thomas, I. (2018). Jesus: The Path to Human Flourishing. Midview City, Singapore: Graceworks Private Limited.
Vanhonacker, W. R. (2014). Guanxi Networks in China: How to be the Spider not the Fly. The China Business Review, 31 (3), pp. 48-53.
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Wu, J. (2012). Saving God’s Face: A Chinese Contextualization of Salvation through Honor and Shame. Pasadena, CA: WCIU Press.
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Zhang, M. (2020). ‘Too Busy to Do Anything Else’: How Caregiving and Urban Sojourning Impact the Aging Experience of China.” In Shea, J., Moore, K., & Zhang, H. (eds.). Beyond Filial Piety: Rethinking Aging and Caregiving in Contemporary East Asian Societies, pp. 194-229. New York, NY: Berghahn Books.
Chan, J. (2019). Online Public Shaming is Here to Stay—Here’s What You Can Do About It. Linkfluence.
Chen, F. Forbidden City: ‘Benz Intruder’ Sparks Doxxing War: Wife of Grandson of Party Patriarch Flaunts US $350K SUV in Piazza Off Limits Even to Xi Jinping’s Motorcade. January 20, 2020. Asia Times. https://asiatimes.com/2020/01/forbidden-cibenz-intruder-sparks-doxxing-war/.
Chen, L. Chinese Parents Spend up to US $43,500 a Year on After-School Classes for Their Children. December 4, 2018. South China Morning Post. https://www.scmp.com/news/china/society/article/2176377/chinese-parents-spend-us43500-year-after-school-classes-their.
Cheng, E. ‘Reverse Migration’ is picking up in China as workers give up on big cities. June 6, 2021. CNBC. https://www.cnbc.com/2021/06/28/reverse-migration-is-picking-up-in- china-as-workers-leave-big-cities.html.
Chik, H. China is Home to 18 of the 20 Most Surveilled Cities in the World. Inkstone, 2019. https://www.inkstonenews.com/society/china-home-18-20-most-surveilled-cities-world/article/3094805?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_content=article.
Chiu, J. China has an Irrational Fear of a “Black Invasion” Bringing Drugs, Crime, and Interracial Marriage. March 30, 2017. Quartz. https://qz.com/945053/china-has-an-irrational-fear-of-a-black-invasion-bringing-drugs-crime-and-interracial-marriage/.
Fischer, K. W., Li, J., & Wang, L Q. (2004). The Organisation of Chinese Shame Concepts. Cognition and Emotion, 18 (6), pp. 767-797. https://doi.org/10.1080/02699930341000202/2004.
Foulk, T. (2004). “Chanyuan qinggui and Other ‘Rules of Purity’ in Chinese Buddhism.” In Wright, D. S. & Heine, S. (eds.), The Zen Canon: Understanding the Classic Texts, pp. 275-312. Oxford, NY: Oxford University Press.
Gelfand, M. (2018). Rule Makers, Rule Breakers: How Tight and Loose Cultures Wire Our World. New York, NY: Scribner.
Georges, J. (2019). Ministering in Patronage Cultures: Biblical Models and Missional Implications. Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic.
Giskin, H. (2001). “Written and Spoken Chinese: Expression of Culture and Heritage.” In Giskin, H. & Walsh, B. S. (eds.). Chinese Folktales and the Family, pp. 123-138. Albany, NY: State University of New York.
Hu, A. N. Ancestor Worship in Contemporary China: An Empirical Investigation. 2016. China Review, 16 (1), pp. 169-186. https://www.jstor.org/stable/43709965.
Hu, H. C. (1956). “The Chinese Concepts of Face.” In D. G. Haring (ed.), Personal Character and Cultural Milieu, pp. 447-467. Syracuse, NY: Syracuse University Press.
Kraft, C. H. (1996). Anthropology for Christian Witness. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books.
Lake, R. (2018). Leftover in China: The Women Shaping the World’s Next Superpower. New York, NY: W. W. Norton & Company.
Lau, T. L. (2020). Defending Shame: Its Formative Power in Paul’s Letters. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic.
Liu, L. (2007). “Filial Piety, Guanxi, Loyalty and Money: Trust in China.” In I. Marková and A. Gillespie (eds), Trust and Distrust: Sociocultural Perspectives, pp. 51—77. Greenwich, CT: Information Age Publishing.
Mascolo, M. J., Fischer, K. W., & Li, (1997). “Dynamic Development of Component Systems of Emotions: Pride, Shame, and Guilt in China and the United States.” In Davidson, R. J., Maslach, C. & Leiter, M. P. (2003). The Truth About Burnout: How Organizations Cause Personal Stress and What to Do About It. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Ma, L. (2018). The Chinese Exodus: Migration, Urbanism, and Alienation in Contemporary China. Eugene, OR: Pickwick Publications.
O’Brien, Danny. China’s Global Reach: Surveillance and Censorship Beyond the Great Firewall. October 10, 2019. Electronic Frontier Foundation. https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2019/10/chinas-global-reach-surveillance-and-censorship-beyond-great-firewall.
Pattison, S. (2011). “Shame and the Unwanted Self.” In Jewett, R., Alloway, Jr. W. L., & Lacey J. G. (eds.), The Shame Factor: How Shame Shapes Society, pp. 22-51. Eugene, OR: Cascade Books.
Pickle, L. S. (2001). “Written and Spoken Chinese: Expression of Culture and Heritage.” In Giskin, H. & Walsh, B. S. (eds.). An Introduction to Chinese Culture through the Family, pp. 9-40. Albany, NY: State University of New York.
Roberts, J. A. G. (1992). China Through Western Eyes. Portsmouth, NH: Alan Sutton Publishing.
de Saussure, F. (1966). Course in General Linguistics. Charles Bally, Albert Sechehaye (eds.), Wade Baskin (trans.), and Albert Reidlinger. New York: The Philosophical Library.
Schaaf, J. (2001). “Written and Spoken Chinese: Expression of Culture and Heritage.” In Giskin, H. & Walsh, B. S. (eds.). Jia 家, “Family,” and the Chinese House, pp. 163-194. Albany, NY: State University of New York.
Seok, B. (2017). Moral Psychology of Confucian Shame: Shame of Shamelessness. New York, NY: Rowman & Littlefield International.
Shea, J., Moore, K., & Zhang, H. (eds.). (2020). Beyond Filial Piety: Rethinking Aging and Caregiving in Contemporary East Asian Societies. New York, NY: Berghahn Books.
deSilva, D. A. (2000). Honor, Patronage, Kinship & Purity: Unlocking New Testament Culture. Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic.
Tang, Y. & Shea, J. (2020). “Old-Age Support in Rural China Case Study of the Jiangxiang Model for Community-Based Filial Piety.” In Shea, J., Moore, K., & Zhang, H. (eds.) Beyond Filial Piety: Rethinking Aging and Caregiving in Contemporary East Asian Societies, pp. 92-142. New York, NY: Berghahn Books.
Taylor, A. Chinese Rich Kids Post Photos of Their Bank Accounts Online After ‘Sex Party’ Feud. April 12, 2013. Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/china-fuerdai-show-off-bank-accounts-2013-4.
Ten Elshof, G. A. (2015). Confucius for Christians: What an Ancient Chinese Worldview Can Teach us about Life in Christ. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.
Thomas, I. (2018). Jesus: The Path to Human Flourishing. Midview City, Singapore: Graceworks Private Limited.
Vanhonacker, W. R. (2014). Guanxi Networks in China: How to be the Spider not the Fly. The China Business Review, 31 (3), pp. 48-53.
Wilson, D. (1989). Towards a Diachronic -Synchronic View of Future Communication Policies in Africa. 3 (2), pp. 26-39. ACCE.
Wu, J. (2012). Saving God’s Face: A Chinese Contextualization of Salvation through Honor and Shame. Pasadena, CA: WCIU Press.
Yang, J. W. & Knight, A. (ed.). (2015). Racism in China: Mao’s War on Racial Tolerance and Multiculturalism: Does the Chinese Communist Party, Try to Secure Their Power by Promoting Racist and Anti-Multicultural Values? Publisher Unknown.
Zhang, D. H. (2019). The Problem with Chinese Universities? Not Enough Dropouts. January 15, 2019. Sixth Tone. https://www.sixthtone.com/news/1003440/the-problem-with-chinese-universities%3F-not-enough-dropouts.
Zhang, M. (2020). ‘Too Busy to Do Anything Else’: How Caregiving and Urban Sojourning Impact the Aging Experience of China.” In Shea, J., Moore, K., & Zhang, H. (eds.). Beyond Filial Piety: Rethinking Aging and Caregiving in Contemporary East Asian Societies, pp. 194-229. New York, NY: Berghahn Books.
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2022-07-30
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