Chinese Culture Research Articles

Chinese in the Linguistic Landscape of Chinese Communities in Malaysia: A Tale of Three Cities

The study of linguistic landscapes (LL) in Malaysia has emerged as a prominent area of research in Asia, predominantly focused on Kuala Lumpur, the capital city. Despite Chinese constituting over one fifth of Malaysia’s population, the presence of Chinese in the LL remains insufficiently explored. This empirical study addresses this gap by examining the visibility of Chinese in the LL of Chinese communities across three Malaysian cities: Penang, Ipoh, and Johor Bahru. By analysing a corpus of photographed public signs from various spaces, this research investigates the visibility of Chinese in the LL both quantitatively and qualitatively. The findings reveal that the visibility of Chinese in the LL of Chinese communities in the three selected cities not only signifies Chinese identity but also serves as an effective means to preserve traditional Chinese culture among Malaysian Chinese. This study underscores the importance of understanding the role of minority languages in the LL within ethnic communities, contributing to a more comprehensive view of Malaysia’s multilingual and multicultural context.

Basic Concepts of the Yin-Yang Story and Five-Element Doctrine and Their Implications in Business

This paper explores the fundamental principles of the Yin-Yang story and the five-element doctrine, both of which have their roots in ancient Chinese culture—one of the oldest continuous civilizations in the world. These philosophical concepts have profoundly influenced the Chinese people throughout their history, shaping their mentality, business practices, and social pursuits. The aim of this paper is to examine how the dualistic nature of Yin and Yang, representing opposing yet interconnected forces, and the five-element doctrine, categorizing the physical world into the elements of wood, fire, earth, metal, and water, continue to impact modern business strategies and decision-making processes in China. Through a detailed analysis, this paper reveals the complex relationships of unification, opposition, interdependence, mutual consumption, and transformation inherent in these philosophies. The findings demonstrate how these ancient doctrines still play a vital role in contemporary Chinese thought, offering valuable insights for global business interactions and contributing to the enrichment of the world’s cultural heritage.

Chinese Culture with Socialist Characteristics

Chinese Culture with Socialist Characteristics

The building system and modeling evolution characteristics from the stacked patios to the pingqi of the grotto

ABSTRACT This paper takes the cave top Pingqi as the breakthrough point, discusses the relationship between the building system and the shape evolution from the lantern roof in the dwellings of Central Asia to the caisery in the grottoes of Xinjiang and then to the Dunhuang cave top Pingqi, discusses and analyzes the process of the integration and mutual learning, absorption and tolerance, innovation and development of Chinese and western cultures in the process, and combines them. Through the comparative analysis of the historical background, structural characteristics and spatial layout of various types of architectural forms, as well as the investigation of their evolution from focusing on functional needs to focusing on decorative art in different periods, we strive to sort out the origin and evolution of the decorative style of cave top Pingqi. The final conclusions of the study are as follows: Dunhuang Mogao Grottoe-roof decoration has experienced the imitation, inheritance, reference and innovation of the architectural style of the roof of Central Asia, Xinjiang and the Central Plains. It can be traced back to the wooden architectural style of “lantern well” in India and Central Asia, as well as the basic functional style of “chimney” in the early Central Plains. The evolution process of roof decoration in different periods is completely preserved in the existing grottoes. Showing the overall evolution process of “chimney”, “lantern well”, “stacked patios”, “sculpture Pingqi” and “drawing Pingqi”, the style of Pingqi in Mogao Grottle-No. 428 has become a typical representative of the evolution of “drawing Pingqi” in the Northern Dynasty, highlighting the deep integration of Chinese and western culture and architectural art, which is of great significance to the study of Chinese traditional architectural history and grotle-decorative art.

Relations between dimensions of self-perceptions and academic achievement in Chinese children: A cross-lagged panel analysis.

The goal of the present study was to examine the associations between different dimensions of self-perceptions and academic achievement in Chinese children. Participants were 604 children in Grades 4-7 attending primary and middle schools in mainland China (342 boys, 262 girls; Mage = 11.25 years). Measures of children's self-perceptions and academic achievement were collected via self-reports and school records at two time points over one academic year. Results from cross-lagged panel analysis indicated that after controlling for the effects of gender, grade, and stabilities, Time 1 perceived scholastic competence positively predicted Time 2 academic achievement (β = .08, p < .05), and Time 1 academic achievement predicted Time 2 perceived scholastic competence (β = .10, p < .05). Time 1 perceived athletic competence negatively predicted Time 2 academic achievement (β = -.08, p < .01). The findings provide evidence that self-perceptions have different facets and are differently associated with academic achievement and emphasize the reciprocal predictive relations between perceived scholastic competence and academic achievement and the negative impact of perceived athletic competence self-perception on academic achievement. The implications of these results are discussed in the context of self-development and academic performance within Chinese culture, as well as their educational implications for school practices. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

The Spiritual Journey of Chinese Americans Viewed from the Cultural Connotation of The Joy Luck Club

Chinese-American writers who live in both Chinese and American cultures are the most sensitive to cultural conflict and integration. Amy Tan is one of those writers who probe deeply into the relationship between the Chinese and American cultures. The Joy Luck Club, a novel that tells stories of four Chinese mothers and their American-born daughters, has caused a great sensation inside and outside the United States and made Tan a famous writer. From the perspective of intercultural communication, Cultural conflicts between four couples of mother and daughter, between husbands and wives arising from the difference in cultural background are looked into from the angles of Chinese obedience to parents and American independence and democracy, Chinese women’s submissiveness and American women’s independence, Chinese family’s honor and American individual achievement, Chinese high-context culture and American low- context culture, Chinese superstition and American science. The causes of the conflicts are also discussed in the aspects of Chinese culture and American culture. Chinese mothers are deeply influenced by the concept of "Three Obedience and Four Virtues", "Resign oneself to Adversity", Etc. However, American daughters are born in the culture that emphasizes "Individualism, Equality, Independence and Freedom." In this thesis, it is also put forward that despite the conflicts, mutual compatibility of two cultures is unavoidable and an inescapable tendency, which reflects the development from the clash to the coexistence of the two cultures in the context of globalization.

Lexical Means of Hierarchization of Value Ideas about Russian Culture among Chinese Students (Based on Materials from the Textbooks “Russian Language for Universities” of the “Vostok” Series)

Introduction. The article analyzes the contexts of the textbooks published in the Peopleʼs Republic of China and addressed to students studying Russian at universities. The analysis includes contexts devoted to the realities of Russian culture and texts containing evaluative vocabulary. The purpose of the study is to present the lexical means used by the textbook authors to form a hierarchy of value ideas about Russian culture among Chinese students studying the Russian language. Methodology. The work was conducted in linguocultural and linguoaxiological aspects, using modern research into ethno-oriented methods of teaching Russian as a foreign language. Results. The analysis showed that one of the main means of creating ideas about Russian culture among Chinese students studying Russian as a foreign language is evaluative vocabulary, which is used to form a value picture of the world, hierarchically structured and determined by the ideas existing in Chinese culture. Conclusions. Words having evaluative meaning set a hierarchy in accordance with the evaluative scale reflected in them.

Variational Translation Phenomenon of Six Chapters of A Floating Life

The Variational Translation theory was summarized and proposed by Huang Zhonglian, a Chinese translator and scholar, from his many years of translation practice and research. There are altogether seven flexible means: omission, editing, narration, condensation, combination, modification and addition. Six Chapters of A Floating Life by Shen Fu of the Qing Dynasty was beautifully written and deeply loved by Lin Yutang. To better promote Chinese culture to the world, Lin translated this novel, and its English version was highly praised abroad. Based on the Variational Translation theory and combined with examples, this paper discusses in detail the specific manifestations of the translation variation strategies such as omission, editing, narration, modification and addition in the English version of Six Chapters of A Floating Life. The ultimate goal is to enhance the guiding role of the Variational Translation theory in the English translation of Chinese novels.

Myth and Cyber: A Study of the Narrative and Visual Language of Chinese Cyberpunk Anime Films

Abstract The cyberpunk genre started a new trend in Chinese anime movies after 2020, represented by the hugely commercially successful New Gods: Nezha Reborn (2021). Unlike Western cyberpunk, which focuses on portraying the future as a subcategory of science fiction, Chinese cyberpunk anime chooses to look back, fusing ancient myths with cyborgs, which is called myth-cyberpunk, reconstructing traditional Chinese culture, and broadening the boundaries of cyberpunk. This paper focuses on spatial construction and characterization in Chinese cyberpunk anime films. It traces the influence of Western cyberculture on Chinese animation and the uniqueness and local innovation of the Chinese side. Importantly, it examines the role of audience participation in the processes of cultural encoding and decoding, as proposed by Stuart Hall, to understand the dynamics behind the growing popularity of cyber animation in China. This paper aims to interpret the evolution of the cyberpunk style in Chinese animations, its reception, and its deeper societal motivations, offering insights into the unique allure of Chinese cyberpunk anime within the contemporary socio-cultural context.

Motivation for Learning Chinese as a Second Language: A Case Study of Students at Thu Dau Mot University

This study investigated the motivation of Chinese language learners by surveying over 138 students from various majors who are studying Chinese as a foreign language at the Foreign Language Center of Thu Dau Mot University. The results showed that students have a relatively positive learning motivation. In terms of the relationship between achievement and learning motivation, the motivation to fulfil the university's foreign language requirements accounted for the highest proportion (81.7%). This was followed by the motivation to find a job easily (66.7%), as they believe this is an essential condition that determines the material results of their work after graduation. The motivation to have the opportunity to advance in their careers later on is also relatively high (accounting for 62.7%). The motivation to learn Chinese to listen to music, watch movies in Chinese, the motivation to learn because of interest in Chinese music and cinema (49.2%), and a liking for Chinese history and culture (33.3%) are factors that affect students’ academic performance.

A down-to-earth visual representation of contemporary China: analysing the video game Chinese Parents

The award-winning indie video game Chinese Parents, developed by a mainland China-based studio, has gained significant popularity among both Chinese and Western players owing to its unique narrative and representation of contemporary mainland China. Some of these in-game representations include the strict parenting style, academic pressure on Chinese children, unique Chinese school culture and popular Chinese internet memes. This article applies compositional interpretation, as well as the framework of iconology in visual culture to analyse the representation of contemporary mainland China from a video-game-context graphic communication perspective. Examples of character portraits, background scene illustrations, biaoqingbao meme application and supporting visual elements are selected and analysed to demonstrate how the game incorporates contemporary Chinese culture into the visuals, while also challenging and playing into existing clichés of Chinese culture.

Dyadic effects of attachment styles on marital satisfaction among Chinese couples: The mediating role of perceived partner responsiveness

Insecure attachment styles, widely recognized as negative predictors in most Western samples, have been found to impair marital satisfaction for individuals high in attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance. However, Chinese culture is more tolerant of some features of attachment avoidance, which may lead to different implications of attachment styles for marital relationships. Besides, considering that responses of the partner play a vital role in the interaction of intimate relationships, the current study examined how attachment styles affect marital satisfaction through perceived partner responsiveness (PPR). This study is based on dyadic data from 668 Chinese couples across six marital stages, whose average length of marriage was 15.22 years (ranging from 0.03 to 67.57 years, SD = 13.88). Using the actor-partner interdependence model (APIMeM) to analyze these data, results suggested that: (a) individuals’ attachment anxiety was negatively associated with marital satisfaction for both themselves and their partner, and these associations were partially mediated by PPR; (b) PPR was a full mediator of the positive association between individuals' attachment avoidance and their own marital satisfaction; (c) wives’ PPR fully mediated the positive association between their attachment avoidance and their partner’s marital satisfaction, whereas husbands’ PPR partially mediated the positive association between their attachment avoidance and their partner’s marital satisfaction. These findings differ from previous studies based on Western samples and advance our understanding of how attachment styles are related to PPR and marital satisfaction in Chinese context, providing practical guidance on marital interactions for people with insecure attachment styles.

New Quality Productive Forces: The Empowerment of the Metaverse on the International Dissemination of Chinese Local Traditional Culture

New Quality Productive Forces: The Empowerment of the Metaverse on the International Dissemination of Chinese Local Traditional Culture

Sustainable Local Operation of Chin Woo Athletic Association in Singapore and Malaysia

This study analyses the literature produced by the Chin Woo Athletic Association to shed light on the process of localization and development in Singapore and Malaysia since 1970 and investigates the strategies it employed for sustainable growth. The Chin Woo Athletic Association in Singapore and Malaysia replicated the lineage model from China between the 1920s and 1960s, navigating several challenges such as the Japanese invasion, temporary cessation of activities, gradual recovery, eventually leading to its subsequent localization in the 1970s. The localization strategies included the Malaysian Chin Woo Association’s promotion of Chin Woo martial arts to younger generations through a membership system and integrating it into schools’ educational framework; the Singaporean Chin Woo Athletic Association’s role in national development, tourism, and cultural diplomacy, in alignment with the government’s call to foster physical fitness, determination, and unity among the populace; and the organisation of martial arts instructors, training, and competitions through the network of Chin Woo Athletic Associations in Singapore and Malaysia to foster mutual understanding and integration. This study identifies the Chin Woo Athletic Association’s role as a guardian of traditional Chinese culture and a medium for nurturing national identity within the multi-ethnic socio-political structure of Singapore and Malaysia.

Aspects of translation of Russian linguistic realities of N.V. Gogol’s novel “Dead Souls” into Chinese language

Abstract In the modern world, characterised by the increasing popularity of world literature, there exists an escalating demand for accurate and culturally adapted translations that convey the semantic accuracy and meaning of the original text. The purpose of this study is to analyze the specific features of translating antonyms into Chinese reflecting everyday realities in N.V. Gogol’s novel “Dead Souls”. The following methods were used to achieve the research objectives: hypothetical-deductive, content analysis, and comparative. The study determined that the novel “Dead Souls” is rich in Russian everyday realities and antonyms that convey the linguocultural features of the time within the context of the literary work. In addition, it was revealed that translators face the challenge of conveying Russian everyday realities and cultural features in the Chinese translation. This includes the problem of adapting antonyms that may be unfamiliar or have a different meaning in Chinese culture. The translation of antonyms must maintain semantic accuracy and comparability with the original to convey the meaning and contrast that antonyms create in the text. The study showed that the translation of antonyms can influence Chinese readers’ perception of the text. Their correct rendering preserves the meaning and structure of the original, which is significant for a full understanding of the literary work. As a result of a comparative analysis of Chinese translations of N.V. Gogol’s novel “Dead Souls”, various aspects influencing the translation of antonyms and their role in conveying Russian everyday realities were revealed. Practical significance lies in the use of the findings of this study by the researchers engaged in the translation of literary works, as well as specialists in the fields of literary studies, linguistics, and translation studies.

Introduction

Social transformations in Sinic intellectual history reveal a complex interaction among evolving cultural, philosophical, and artistic ideas and socio-political shifts. The Sinic region, encompassing areas in East and Southeast Asia influenced by Chinese script and culture—particularly Confucianism and various forms of Chinese Buddhism—includes China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau, parts of Japan, Korea, Vietnam, and other neighbouring countries. The term “Sinic”, originating from the Latin word for China, highlights the shared cultural and linguistic heritage across these regions. This history illustrates how shifts in intellectual thought have continually influenced and been shaped by changes in societal structures and governance. The present publication explores the intricate relationship between the individual and the state—a theme that resonates deeply through the annals of Asian thought. This relationship, characterized by an evolving dialogue between personal autonomy and state authority, serves as the backdrop to the discussions presented in this issue. Each paper contributes to a broader understanding of how individuals have negotiated their space within the structures imposed by state ideologies, influencing and reshaping them in turn.

The Rise of Individual Personhood in Early Medieval China

The term “Early Medieval China” usually refers to the Wei Jin period, also known as the Wei Jin Southern and Northern dynasties (Wei Jin Nanbei chao 魏晉南北朝). This era was characterized by extreme sociopolitical circumstances, marked by constant instability, upheavals, wars, corruption, intrigues, external invasions and the exhaustion of the population. These conditions led to significant and unprecedented social and intellectual transformations that profoundly impacted Chinese culture, especially in the fields of philosophy and art. This article explores the cultural and philosophical ideas of the period that contributed to the rise of individual personhood, which emerged as a response to the suppressive and authoritarian Han Confucianism, which was heavily influenced by Legalist doctrines. Neo-Daoism, the most important stream of thought that arose from the political turmoil of the period, provided intellectuals with a refuge during these traumatic times, allowing them to explore new ways of philosophizing and experiencing an aesthetic way of living. The article examines the philosophical inquiries of the School of Profound Learning (Xuanxue 玄學) and Pure Conversations (Qingtan 清談) movement, which gave rise to self-awareness and fostered new perspectives on individual personhood.

The Effect of Group Counseling with Chinese Folk Dancing on the Psychological Quality of College Students

Background and Aims: Chinese folk dancing is an energetic and essential part of Chinese culture, helping to uphold customs, promote a sense of community, and honor the rich diversity of Chinese cultural heritage. The objectives of this study were 1) to compare the mood states of university students before and after participating in dance movement activities, and 2) to compare the mood states of a control group and an experimental group after participating in the dance movement activities. Methodology: The sample group was the university students of the Chongqing Vocational University of Mechanical and Electrical Technology. The experimental group, consisting of 30 students, participated in a dance program, while the control class, also comprising 30 students, did not engage in dance courses. The experimental group used dance movement activities, while the control group followed traditional teaching methods. Data was collected using the Profile of Mood States (POMS) scale which is commonly used in China. It was analyzed using SPSS descriptive analysis and t-test. Results: The results of this study are as follows: 1) After the end of the experiment, the positive mood score of the students in the dance movement activities was higher than before the experiment, the negative mood score was lower than before the experiment, and the difference was statistically significant (P &lt;0.05). 2) The positive mood score of the experimental group receiving dance movement activity was higher than that of the control group, and the negative mood score was lower than that of the control group, and the difference was statistically significant (P &lt;0.05). Conclusion: Overall, the results show that students' positive moods significantly improved and their negative moods significantly decreased when they participated in dance movement activities, both within the experimental group and when compared to the control group. This suggests that dancing movement activities have substantial emotional benefits.

Bringing the queen mother of the west to life: Digital reconstruction and analysis of Taoist Celestial Beings Worshiping mural’s apparel

Abstract Painted during the Yuan Dynasty, Taoist Celestial Beings Worshiping is a Taoist propaganda painting. It is one of the largest surviving ancient murals worldwide, featuring a variety of images of these beings dressed in costumes that vividly illustrate the blend of religious and artistic values in Chinese culture. To record and present the mural more intuitively and improve the study of Taoist Celestial Beings Worshiping, this article takes the example of five goddesses centered Queen Mother of the West in the mural and analyzes the styles, structures, colors, and patterns of the costumes from the perspective of costume engineering. Human models are established and the costumes at multiple levels are reconstruction by means of 3D virtual simulation technology. The display images are accompanied by QR codes, which can be scanned to view the 3D model. Finally, the Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process was used to comprehensively evaluate the reconstruction effect of clothing, and the result was “good.” The resulting digital figure can realize the “revitalization of cultural relics” and provides a new perspective for the digital exhibition of murals, which is conducive to the development of digital tourism and promotes the development of traditional culture.

On the Inheritance and Communication of Chinese Dragon Boat Culture in the Context of Integrated Media

Dragon Boat Culture, with its profound historical significance and broad grassroots base, is closely linked to the development of the cultural industry and contemporary integrated media. Integrated media provides new channels for the dissemination of Dragon Boat Culture. Through online platforms, the diverse ritual content and rich cultural connotations of Dragon Boat Culture can be rapidly transmitted globally, attracting greater public attention. The dissemination and influence of digital media not only facilitate the better inheritance and promotion of China s Dragon Boat Culture but also enable it to integrate with high technology, creating new cultural and social values.