Customs And Family Reproduction

This dissertation takes the Zhang’s Family of H village in North Jiangsu Province as research subject adopting the day-to-day Interactive Microeconomic research perspective. Through the analysis of folk custom such as Premarital births, mothering taboos, ancestor worship and so on, the phenomenon that how does the reproduction of family realize and continuity in daily life is discussed.This dissertation consists of three parts:introduction, six chapters and conclusion.The part of introduction focused on analyzing the research of the Chinese family of Han people in the past hundreds years, then to propose the research perspective, ideas and methods.The first chapter introduces the Regional geographical and historical background of the H village. In its history this region has many disasters and wars; this historical background has produced a profound influence on the development of the Zhang’s Family.The second chapter introduces the four main legends of Zhang’s Family, and the amendments, saving, spreading, and writing specifications of the Pedigree of Zhang’s Family. Then making retrospection the important event in history by the family’s legends and Pedigree, and also giving a definition of the concept family reproduction.The third chapter analyzes and summarizes the variation and inheritance of the contemporary wedding in H village through a fieldwork case. The wedding variation is mainly reflected in the rise of premarital births. Compared with the traditional era, the programs and the concept of the modern wedding have changed greatly. This variability is a product of the country’s One-child Policy, objecting to achieve security family reproduction.The fourth chapter selective analysis the mothering taboo of married female in festival customs through combing the festival’s sequences and activities of H village. And points out that the mothering taboos is a kind of life strategy, and the standard setting of this taboo ensuring the continuity of the Family’s reproduction.The fifth chapter combines with field survey data and historical documents, to explore the ancestor worship of H village from the two aspects of funeral and memorial. Through the analysis of field data and historical documents, thinking that ancestor worship is the most important religious belief customs and also the motive force of family reproduction.The sixth chapter summarizes how the family reproduction continues through customs. One hand, the inheritance of father’s blood relationship is fixed and strengthened by confirmed customs. On the other hand, the custom becomes the motive force of the building and inheritance of Family. In Chinese modernization process, urbanization and One-child Policy will seriously threaten the family reproduction.In conclusion, I definitely point out that this study looks the Family as a Culture in Ontology from the day-to-day Interactive research perspective. The existence of Family in the northern part is true. The consciousness and behavior of father’s blood relationship and the conception and rite of ancestor worship is the Family’s inscape, which is the expression of one Family’s heart and soul.