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A Study On The Inheritance Of Overseas Chinese Culture

Posted on:2013-05-06Degree:DoctorType:Dissertation
Country:ChinaCandidate:Y G LeiFull Text:PDF
GTID:1106330374958583Subject:Chinese minority education
Abstract/Summary:PDF Full Text Request
As a part of Chinese people who are living in other countries, the overseas Chinese are the most distinguished. About30million overseas Chinese spread their footprints around more than100countries and areas in the five continents. They managed to live and fight with troubles; they do as the Romans do; they share fate and bite the bullets; they devoted to the local economy and social progressing as well as the dissemination of Chinese culture. Most of the overseas Chinese got the residence country’s citizenship after the World War II, although they changed from "guest" to "host" in the role they played, from "go back to where they were born" to "start a new life in where they arrived" in the cultural recognition and mindset, they still keep an endless bond with the motherland both in blood tie and culture. As a result of this, Chinese culture has been carried on and inherited effectively among the overseas Chinese, and the ethnic Chinese culture has also become the inseparable and special main part. To inherit and develop the Chinese culture not only maintain the cultural recognition and the relations of the overseas Chinese, make them find more typical characters and make more room for the culture’s continued development as well.Apart from Asia, the United States has the most overseas Chinese, who are eager to become part of the upper society and spread Chinese culture in its approximately200years history. In this study, I take a case from Chinese people who lived in Jackson, Mississippi of United States, following the way of fieldwork in anthropology, combining with questionnaire, visiting and interview. By doing this, I could be acquainted with the Chinese community, watch and analyze the target’s behavior and thoughts based on the abundant original information, describe and define the state, problem, characteristic and mechanism of the culture inheritance of the people in Jackson. I hope to discuss the national cultural inheritance of overseas Chinese after the analysis of the Jackson’s case and the education strategy, and then to show the importance of cultural recognition and choice in the inheritance progress, also the significant meaning to those groups who stay far away from their parents body and their culture existence and develop. There are five chapters in this study:Chapter one is introduction, in this part, I explained why I choose this subject and the purpose and meaning of the study. I started from the overseas immigrants, then introduce, summarize, and analyze the studies of American Chinese, also define my study theory, methods and procedures and pick the key words.Chapter two, get know of American Chinese, following the historical and social development, summarize the stories of Chinese immigrants and their characteristics. Analyze the influence of the new immigrants to the local Chinese community in late1960s. Introduce and expound the appearance and development of the Chinese language school, basic information of Chinese people in Jackson, US.Chapter three, do the fieldwork of how Chinese people in Jackson inherit their culture. I have done research about how they make themselves part of the local society, which language they choose and how well they do, which nationality they prefer and grow with them, how they teach their offspring and their expectation toward profession, cultural and ethnic group’s identity recognition. Define and analyze the current situation of their cultural inheritance.Chapter four, Education strategy of Chinese’s national culture heritage in Jackson. By using methods of participate observation and in-depth interviews present Chinese’ effort to preserve and inheriting the national culture in Chinese school, family life, community activities and their education strategy how to impact on the development of national culture inheritance.Chapter Five, The last part is the conclusion and thinking. Based on previous researches, the paper argues that the life world of Chinese in Jackson divided into the public sphere, sub-public sphere and the personal sphere. In the public sphere, Chinese participate and fit into the American society and identify with the mainstream of American society. In sub-public sphere and the personal sphere, Chinese remain their own culture tradition, life style and concept of value. And the corresponding, The Chinese education can be divided into public education system and the sub-public education system. In the public education system, Chinese accept civil education and identify with the social culture of country of residence. In the sub-public education system, Chinese accept education of ethnic culture and identify with Chinese culture.Chinese family is the main body to choose education strategy and decides the direction and the development of next generation’s national culture inheritance. Finally, this paper analyzes the relationship of ethnic identity, cultural identity, cultural choice and the overseas Chinese national culture inheritance. The identity of the Chinese culture is not only the fundamental of overseas Chinese as a group, but also the source and power of inheritance and development of Chinese culture. The process of inheriting Chinese culture is also the process of choice and the creative culture. This process enhanced the Chinese’ability to adapt to different culture and produced the colorful Chinese culture.
Keywords/Search Tags:overseas Chinese, American Chinese, culture transmissionand inheritance
PDF Full Text Request
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