On the differences between Western culture in the movie "The Wedding Banquet" in the reflected

Paper Keywords: filial piety; family ethics; individualism; multi-cultural; moderate; cross-cultural awareness
Abstract: The analysis of Ang Lee's early works "<Wedding Banquet>> reflected in the cultural conflict in the plot, analyze the potential cultural background, the Chinese filial piety and family ethics and Western individualism and family ethics view; conservative compared to the traditional Chinese cultural identity and diversity and openness of Western cultural identity; and the fact that in addressing gay marriage and traditional Chinese contradictions reflected by the China's "Golden Mean" philosophy. Through analysis concluded that reflects the view characteristics of Western culture in the film is to understand and learn different cultures, develop an effective way to cross-cultural awareness.

Carries the film as a media content and symbols of different cultures, reflecting the cultural identity through the interpretation of the film, make it more intuitive understanding of the image of the culture of other countries. In Hong Kong, directed by famous director Ang Lee's early trilogy of three families film which reflects the family as a unit of Chinese and Western cultural differences due to the conflicts arising from the experience and feelings, the paper selected in the second trilogy <<The Wedding Banquet>> as the object of study, analysis of the conflicts which and reflect the differences between Chinese and Western culture.

The main contents of the film: not yet reached the 33-year-old Gao Wei married Simon with the Americans fell in love with the same sex. Gao Wei's father with the family line has a deep-rooted sense of family. Gao Wei's an old house with the rental with a bit girl from Shanghai to the United States Kuo Wei-wei. In order to appease the press Gao Wei Gao with married parents, Wei, and Wei-wei with sham "marriage." Finally, Scott with his mother had to explain the truth and his own homosexuality and cock truth, high mother shocked. illness discharged from the high Father Simon talks with his relationship with Wai has long been high with the parent to see through, but decided to keep a secret high-parent. Wei and Wei-wei to have children with the idea to Simon told the whole, the child's request that he promised to do another "father." at the airport, the old couple about to leave New York Gao, Wei-kai with his wife and stuffed with the door, watched the old couple was walking to support each other.

Complex entanglement of the plot bears deep cultural connotation of the phenomenon of the surface has numerous and caught deep behind the necessity and cultural reasons. This paper analyzes the play from the following three areas in the West reflected the different cultural connotations.

First, the Chinese filial piety and family ethics and the Western concept of individualism and family ethics
Since ancient times, Chinese culture of filial piety to guide the thinking of Chinese standards and codes of conduct. Confucian classics <<Book of Filial Piety>> by "the husband of filial piety, days after also, to the righteousness, the people of the firms have" , ancient Chinese people themselves to become the ideological criteria. <<Book of Filial Piety>> in the "people of the line, is greater than filial piety" has become the norm. filial filial piety-oriented culture respected advocate to honor, father and son, ruler and subject, hierarchy, old and young, up and down the order. in the family unit, filial piety is about respect for the elderly, caring for the elderly, obedient to their will and thought is built on the blood relationship of a special kind of feeling. According to cultural scholars Zhu Yongtao, layer of meaning filial obedience, that action must respect the will to obey their parents; another layer of meaning is to maintain the continuity of the family, children must follow the will of the ancestors, the family name, the family business, honor, etc. from generation to generation down. between human relations in China, "virtues of filial piety as the first, for the virtue of filial piety in this." filial culture has more than two thousand years of history, has experienced dozens of dynasties, a cultural heritage from generation to generation. As a result of the recognition of its generation , which has played the role of intergenerational integration.

In "<Wedding Banquet>> one of the hero's father fell seriously ill with high-Wei obsession is when the son of the unmarried and did not hold the grandchildren so sorry." Filial piety, three, be without, "which is the traditional Chinese society Everyone knows the best tenets of filial piety. If so father with regret sleep, Gao Wei filial descendants with no doubt. So, in his gay partner Simon's suggestion, Gao Wei sham marriages with the selected. Although not a false marriage an ideal way to solve the problem, but as a gay high-Wei to take such a delaying tactic with it is also out of frustration. The motive is good: to appease the father seriously ill, to meet the aspirations of parents and obey their parents will, practice Chinese person's piety.

And filial piety were also closely related to the strong Chinese family ethics. In the film, and cultural enrichment to the conflict in the family category, the Chinese people a strong sense of family is the exception, family ethics and different foreign countries. " Chinese family values ​​focus on the level of the different generational relations, stressed the interdependence of family, filial obedience, many children and grandchildren of the grandchildren, family members rarely ask the right or to protect their privacy, because the elder has absolute authority of the command arrangements for home all matters, to understand the dynamic of each individual's thinking, children can only be obedient, submissive, or is filial. "In this context of family values, Gao Wei with the option to false as a means to deceive the cost to meet the wishes of their parents the approach is understandable. Chinese people attach importance to blood, blood relationship, the family unit than in Great Western nuclear family, often several generations of extended family, although with the social development, China's family units are shrinking, family structure has changed, however, compared with Western countries, China's family members have a more strong sense of family, members of the closer ties between the relationship between the function of the family are emphasized. It is precisely because of such based on the concept, Gao Wei with the emphasis on individualism, though living in the Western world, but its essence, the influence of Chinese traditional culture gene can not be divorced from his own culture nourish the soil, can not go against the wishes of the family and parents to make choices.


In contrast, Westerners focus more on personal feelings, better able to live according to their own will, and less by their parents, family constraints and limitations, and enjoy more freedom. Such as <<The Wedding Banquet>> the plug door there is no pressure to marry by their parents and worry, the way in accordance with individual choice to live in freedom. Freedom means: "to control their own destiny free from the government, the ruling class, church, or other organized authority outside interference willingness and ability. "In this culture, the West will be less influenced by the young people from families, interfering parents, more independent life." In academia, scholars are more inclined to call this concept "individualism", it means "the inviolability of personal dignity, to promote independent thinking individuals, judgments and freedom of choice, stressing self-reliance, self-improvement, self-realization, but also stressed the supremacy of individual interests." individualism The core values ​​advocated by the West, the West's life more autonomy, freedom, and greater emphasis on personal experience and feelings, and less bound by discipline and restraint.

Although homosexuality is not an ordinary sense of personal matters, not the Western sense of individual rights to the things you can call the shots themselves, it also relates to the impact of public opinion and social concerns. Homosexuals as a special group, or be subject to the number of from social and family pressure. However, Western individualism and family values ​​are given more of their individual self-selection opportunities and greater living space, so that a homosexual would not be at least as high as from the same Wei parental pressure, so the Western individualism and family values ​​can be attributed to cock gay life more freedom to choose one of the reasons.

Second, China's relatively conservative cultural characteristics of traditional and Western cultural characteristics of diversity and openness
In "<Wedding Banquet>>, China's traditional culture is the wish of the parents Gao traditional Chinese marriage embodied. Son grown up, married, old couple holding on to the eyes of grandchildren is a matter of course thing. can be the director failed to make the old couple to do so, the son of Gao Wei play with gay couples in the United States has a cock, which is incompatible traditional film plot is a major conflict. homosexuality that in the United States accepted phenomenon in China will not be tolerated. When the son of Gao Wei with his mother eventually had to tell the truth, the mother can not accept, such as thunderstruck, also repeatedly told not to tell the high parent. reposted elsewhere in the Research Papers Download http://www.hi138.com As most Chinese people who resent the attitude of homosexual acts, and no law expressly states that to protect the legitimate rights of homosexuals, so homosexuality in the community subject to a certain degree of discrimination and oppression. China for several thousands of years are the feudal society, the economy based on agricultural self-sufficiency, more occlusion, little contact with new cultures and things, so that the cultural background of the Chinese people to accept so weak. film with a high-wei to do in New York Taiwanese real estate business, income, career stability, as well as the extra real estate rental business modicum of success, the gay identity did not affect the peace of his life, career development. However, if the high-Wei gay identity with the living in China, then no matter how good his ability, qualifications I am afraid it is difficult to be recognized by prominent, mainstream society will only be considered a heresy by the exclusion, survival, development of plans.

The North Americans are more open and more easily accept the new, new things, cultural diversity was, diverse characteristics, the nature of their country of immigrants have a greater relationship. Of the United States and the Republic of China is the number of different nationalities, races and beliefs collection, so "the United States is called a 'mosaic of Xi State - is small by a different color composition of an individual picture. appears to be a country, but if you look closely, you will find individuals of different skin color and race is still maintain their distinctive characteristics, different. "more or less because each nation to maintain their own cultural traditions, national characteristics, showing the entire contents of different cultures, distinctive features. So, in this cultural context Americans on the new things and phenomena can be more easily understood, accepted. American society to be gay does not imply its approval, but they're convinced the individual right to choose their own lives and society's respect for individual rights, so this pluralistic and inclusive kind of society makes homosexuality a more free form in American society.

Third, to solve the contradictions of Western marriage, the "golden mean" philosophy of life
Video is full of subtle detail that, without exception, after the demonstration of a harmonious cultural conflict. In "<Wedding Banquet>> the end, Gao Wei, after struggling with the mother finally confessed to his gay identity . this plot in China, which is undoubtedly a shocking movie, and homosexuality in Chinese society, the concept is difficult to identify the hero who has been used in the film, which is the wish of Chinese parents, traditional marriage against the acute phase fact. in the different Western attitudes towards marriage, different ideas how to reconcile the conflict?

Directed by Ang Lee clever use of visual language to solve such a conflict. Farewell at the airport, parents, Guo Wei-wei, Gao Wei with, cock three mixed feelings embrace. This is a very strange lens, the three original people opposing positions, how will it hold together? In fact, the director of this scene is passing through this information: two very different concepts in the West can coexist, one is to respect same-sex love, a is the traditional Chinese-style marriage.

This approach reflects the contradiction between the doctrine of the Chinese culture, that is a compromise, to reconcile the different ideas and consciousness, so that people's behavior, things do not go to extremes to seek a harmonious and tolerant atmosphere. For cultural differences and conflicts, the best solution method may be that "but different", and only accepted ideas different from their own, to live in harmony. doctrine of the essence of Chinese traditional culture, which reflects the difference between the Chinese people to face, the face of alien tolerant acceptance of the mind Yu wise. Chinese Confucian classic "Four Books" one of the <<Mean "> said:" The emotions of the previously unknown, that being; issued and are in the section, that the and. also who is also the world of Big Ben, and also those, the world of the Way. "That is, the doctrine of the ideal state, is all in harmony, harmony is all things that the security of its position. Specifically, the doctrine is the philosophy that stresses the" degree " It is people's behavior does not go to extremes to do things the right standards of conduct.

"The concept of moderation is so important that the Chinese people they call their country for China. The name not only represents a geographical concept, but also implies a way of life by mastering the principles of moderation, they have found all the schools of philosophy basic facts. "In the Chinese view, master of the golden mean, that mastered the golden rule of dealing with interpersonal relationships, to be able to cope with the complicated things in front of ease, it is a sign of human mature sophistication. AND philosophy President once said: "Interpretation of the new life the old country accessories, extremely sophisticated road moderate." This is about moderation is actually leading to the extremely sophisticated realm of an appropriate method. <<The Golden Mean "describes the" one realm of the ideal sage species: is the "calm middle." doctrine after it reached a high degree of awareness of people, the unexpected course, not intended for, but doing everything the state. "This is the highest state of cultivation of the Confucian Personality : When all the rules of road has become a life habit, to be able to do what the heart desires, it can be said that every life is the highest level of the individual pursued.

IV Conclusion
According to the above discussion and analysis, we can see film "<Wedding Banquet>> complicated in the story reflects the cultural identity and their Western values, which includes the Chinese concept of filial piety, family values ​​with Western individualism and family view; conservative compared to the traditional Chinese cultural identity and diversity and openness of Western cultural identity; and the fact that in addressing gay marriage and traditional Chinese contradictions reflected by the China's "Golden Mean" philosophy. Through vivid plot and characters wonderful performance, the audience sees is not just a visual feast, more importantly, is the foreign culture, customs and cognitive understanding of customs, local culture and comparison of his country's culture and feel. film played an important cultural transmission the role of the audience while watching the film, in fact, consciously or unconsciously in all the acquisition, acceptance of cultural nourishment and nurturing, understanding, knowledge of cultural differences and conflicts. So the film is an important medium for intercultural communication, language learners can watch movies in different countries to direct and vivid learning, understanding cultural differences, and to develop their own cross-cultural awareness and cultural sensitivity. reposted elsewhere in the Research Papers Download http://www.hi138. com