等级观念 Rank is beautiful
Chinese society is strongly hierarchical and a person’s rank counts for much. Every individual is slotted into a complex system of superior and ordinate beings. The person’s place is not fixed and he or she can rise or fall within the ranks, but the ranks themselves continue unchanged.
For a foreign business person, this means that someone who provided valuable help a few years ago may by now be of little use—or might possibly even more valuable! If they have gone up, it also means that you should treat them with more respect, as befits their new position.The movement of others up and down the hierarchy can easily cause resentment and hurt feelings, so that office politics loom large in China. Most enterprises contain a variety of fluid factions. Because everyone lives within a rigid hierarchy and harmony must prevail in society, specific rules of conduct are laid down and strictly taught to all children. In contrast with a person’s position is society, within the family a person’s place is immutably fixed, so that the elder brother is always the elder brother, and treated accordingly.
Bureaucracy is an ancient Chinese art-form and the bureaucracy, like Chinese society, is strictly hierarchical in rank. The privileges of every level, and person, are clearly defined or recognised. The Chinese approach foreign visitors and residents in the same vein. Your particular status will be determined after careful scrutiny of your company and its national or international standing, and your position within the company. That is worked out by your ranking on any lists you may have sent them, your job title, and any letters appearing after your name on your business card. In China, like meets with like, consequently the higher your status, the higher the officials you can meet. In your company’s first approach, it should send someone with the greatest credentials, in order to gain entry as high as possible, and thereby meet more important people. They can ensure that more will be done for you by those lower down.
Despite being a communist country with an ideology that supposedly should emphasise egalitarianism and the workers, the demands of Confucian hierarchy easily dominate. Members of a foreign aristocracy are revered and this was true even in the extreme days of the Maoist left-wing period. Ex-heads of state are particularly well respected and treated because of their old position, irrespective of their current status, past behaviour, or even criminal record. Ex- President Nixon was always treated royally on his visits to China.
和谐关系Getting along with harmony
Harmony is an important part of the Confucian heritage. It is believed that if everyone in society plays his or her proper role, then overall harmony will be preserved. For this reason, self-discipline and moderation are essential components of human behaviour, for without them harmony cannot prevail. For most foreigners, harmony is best preserved by avoiding confrontations, maintaining temper, not raising the voice, and smiling rather than looking angry. Not causing anyone to lose face is also an important part of preserving harmony.The preference for harmony does not preclude the Chinese from suddenly becoming forthright and even turning downright rude in their dealings with you, but such a switch is almost always tactical and a part of their negotiating strategy. They may be searching for weakness to see if you can be easily dominated, or may already have decided you can be, and are now going for the jugular.
食 Cuisine
You can eat out in all the big cities. American, French, German, Italian and Japanese restaurants opened in the 1990s. All modern hotels and many new shopping malls have Western restaurants. The initial quality may be worse than what you are used to at home, but after a while, the quality seems acceptable. The fast food industry is proliferating, with names like KFC, McDonalds, and Pizza Huts in major coastal cities. Local Chinese restaurants excel in every way (although usually better than you think, but usually you find it important) Taipei), down to the bottom street, with an appropriate standard in the middle. Surprisingly, some of the latest products are cheap and cheap. Unfortunately, many of these people have lower hygiene standards and, if unfortunate, can cause stomach upset and even hepatitis. Ask a long-term resident where they prefer to eat and if there are any clean food crusts they ecommend.When dining at home, remember to wash or peel all fresh products carefully before eating. Washing fruits and vegetables in a liquid sterilizer such as Milton can effectively kill bacteria, which is a good idea, especially if you have children.
Chinese culture can also be understood through the vehicle of food. Chinese cuisine, like Chinese philosophy, is organized along Daoist principles of opposition and change: hot is balanced by cold, spicy by mild, fresh by cured. The cooking of Sichuan province in central China is distinguished by the use of hot peppers. The lush southern interior of the country prizes fresh ingredients; Cantonese cuisine in particular is a symphony of subtle flavours from just-picked vegetables and lightly cooked meats. No matter what the region, foods of all kinds are viewed as an accompaniment to grains, the staple of the Chinese diet.
Apart from French cuisine, the highest expression of the gastronomic art is generally regarded to be that of the Chinese. In ancient China the preparation and service of food played an important part in court rituals. The first act of many emperors was to appoint a court chef, and once they were on the job these chefs strove mightily to outdo each other.Hunting and foraging supplied much of the food in ancient China. Wild game, such as deer, elk, boar, muntjac (a small deer), wolf, quail, and pheasant, was eaten, along with beef, mutton, and pork. Vegetables such as royal fern, smartweed, and the leafy thistle (Sonchus) were gathered from the land. Meats were preserved by salt-curing, pounding with spices, or fermenting in wine. To provide a contrast in flavours the meat was fried in the fat of a different animal.
As Chinese agriculture developed, styles of food were determined to a great degree by the natural resources available in certain parts of the country, thus the vastly different manners of cooking and the development of distinctive regional cuisines of China. As a more varied fare began to emerge, tastes grew more refined. By the time of Confucius (551–479 BCE), gastronomes of considerable sophistication had appeared on the scene. Confucius wrote of one of these fastidious eaters, For him the rice could never be white enough. When it was not cooked right, he would not eat. When the food was not in season, he would not eat. When the meat was not cut correctly, he would not eat. When the food was not served with the proper sauce, he would not eat.Traditionally, China is divided into five gastronomic regions, three of which are characterized by the great schools of Chinese cooking, Beijing, Sichuan, and Zhejiang-Jiangsu. The two other regions are Fujian and Guangdong, whose cuisine is less known outside of China.
迷信——我?Superstitious—me?
Most Chinese are superstitious. Well-educated people, apparently entirely Westerners, may follow traditional beliefs. Probably the best time until now is the most likely important decision. It may be determined individually by fortune tellers or by individuals in traditional books that are easily available in China. Unexplained delays in negotiations may be due to these factors and to more widely known bureaucratic factors.
Many superstitions exist in different places in China, and there are different superstitions in different places in China, so it is not easy to know who will believe. In Chinese, many synonyms may sound monotonous. Even a simple Chinese-English dictionary for beginners may have fifty meanings for the word li. A large number of homonyms are considered lucky or unfortunate because they sound like a completely different word with good or bad meaning. For example, some people believe that it is good to see a deer because it has a synonym meaning `` prosperity ''. Since there are different pronunciations locally and there are several different (if relevant) languages in China, there may be many words with lucky or unfortunate meanings somewhere.
Some ancient monthly calendars have some superstitious beliefs. The seventh day of the lunar month is a month that is particularly relevant to death. Hungry Ghost Festival involves those who lack the spirit of offspring to provide them with products or die of violence. These ghosts are not good by nature, and some people choose to leave food and burn incense and paper money to give them glory. It is considered a bad month to celebrate, so it's best to avoid weddings and birthday parties. It may not be your best time for you to conclude negotiations for a business transaction and then hold the necessary celebration dinner. During this festival, it is best to avoid traveling to the countryside, as many spirits are thought to be lurking there.
迷信数量 The number superstitions
Numbers have special meaning for Chinese. Most Cantonese believe that the numbers 4,44,444, etc. are very bad because they are homonyms of death; they will not buy a car with this license plate or stay in a hotel room with this number. Eight were considered good and eight were considered better. The most recent example is a good example provided by the Japanese department store Yaohan, which opened in Beijing in 1992. A joke is that the person in charge of the nib was sold for 14 carats of gold coins (about 88 yuan) (about 88 yuan) ($ 11,000). The lucky number worked-not only did he know the amount, but he was the first one to sell it! 3
In tradition, the odd numbers are traditionally expressed as males and the even numbers are expressed as females. This is usually the preferred number among boys who have a high preference for boys in a society. The three lucky numbers are five, probably related to the old belief in the five elements, the five grains and the five flavors, and the old empire hierarchy. There are usually seven lucky numbers, which are multiples of 14, 21, or 35. Nine are very lucky numbers, and 81 is the square of nine, especially; you may notice when traveling, that almost all ancient gates in China had eighty-one studs. At weddings in some parts of China, as part of social custom, the groom was forced to pay the bride and maid to see the bride. He handed over the money in multiples of nine.
颜色的含义 The meaning of colours
Color plays an important role in superstition and influences what you decide to wear. White is the color of death, and white is the common color. For example, as the color of dresses, suits, shirts, and trousers, traditional mourning clothing is preferred, so it is best to avoid this. Do you respond quickly and enthusiastically to people dressed in traditional dressers? Wearing a white shirt or shirt is acceptable, but it is best to match it with a suit or skirt of different colors.
Red is considered a very "happy" color, so a red tie with a white shirt or red buttons on a white dress offsets the image of death. But writing in red ink is a bad idea, because it shows that friendship is at stake.
Death may also be represented in China as blue and white or blue and yellow. At traditional funerals, money is usually placed in a yellow envelope with blue stripes, so this color combination is best avoided. Blue pants and white shirts should be fine, but you can choose to avoid heavy blue and white, blue or yellow and yellow striped ties.
Own yellow can be associated with death, although dark yellow is also associated with historical emperors (only allowing them to set yellow roofs on buildings) and also carries some monks. Due to different traditions, there is no real problem with wearing yellow clothes and may give you a useful talking point.
Be sure to avoid wearing green hats. For example, in some parts of China, green hats are recommended. There is a story where a senior foreign negotiator posted a green baseball cap with a company logo on each member of the team with whom he negotiated-and wondered why no one was actually going to wear it!
Red is a particularly good or happy color in many parts of Asia, including Japan and South Korea and China. In certain areas, such as Chengdu, white bread always carries edible red dyes to make them look more attractive. At first glance, if the baker has to cut himself, it looks like Westerner! Dressed too much, but looks a bit silly. For foreign women, wearing a bright red dress that perfectly matches shoes and handbags may look excessive. This is something that little girls wear during very special celebrations, the kind of things that little girls wear with lots of adult makeup.
绘画和卷轴 Paintings and scrolls
Traditional scrolls and paintings are usually a scene with mountains and streams, usually with a small humanoid figure, possibly a fishing figure. This reflects the importance of Taoism (pronounced Taoist) for the nature, the insignificance of human beings, and perhaps the importance of Confucianism, that is, how well people adapt to certain specific painting elements. For example, the dragon represents the emperor and the phoenix represents the emperor. Specific animals have a strong symbolic meaning.
Some traditional beliefs about animal symbolism
Tortoise |
Long life. |
White cockerel |
Good; it can ward off evil spirits. |
Red cockerel |
Good; it might ward off house fires. |
Bats |
Lucky; homonym with happiness. |
Foxes |
Really a spirit and sly; can change into human form; it specialises in helping you to find lost documents. |
Tiger |
Male, fierce; king of the land (in China it is not the lion). |
Tortoise |
Longevity. |
Horse |
Speed, endurance. |
One wild goose |
Masculinity; the spirit of yang. |
Two geese |
Symbol of the married state. |
Fish |
Symbol of wealth. |
Deer |
Longevity; wealth |
Pair of Mandarin ducks |
Happily married life |
了解传统信仰的价值 The value of knowing about traditional beliefs
If you can comment on traditional views about the significance of numbers, colours, a painting, or an animal, it can impress the Chinese it demonstrates you have a genuine interest in their culture. It can be most useful when socialising and casting around for good and safe topics of conversation. Understanding traditional culture can impress.