Ecological Folk Of Minorities In Study Of Human Settlement

Today, in an era where ecological consciousness has been greatly awakened, ecological culture has been greatly developed, and human beings march toward the ecological civilization.Being a branch of folklore study, ecological folklore is a new interdisciplinary subject developed from the integration, overlap, and infiltration of ecology and folklore study, bearing the features of both liberal arts and science. Guided by modern ecological notion, ecological folklore not only surveys the folklore culture on the basis of certain ecological theories and principals from an ecological perspective but also from the perspective of folklore study inspects the restriction and influence of the ecological environment on human culture and explores the two-way correlation of human beings with the ecological environment within the range of human behaviors and activities.Aiming at the integration of ecological system and folklore system and facing the global ecological crisis, ecological folklore intends to readjust its outlook on life and values, to form an ecological pattern in which human beings are in harmony with nature, to offer a new perspective of thinking, for the purpose of promoting sustainable development of the whole human society. How the ecological folklore came into being reflects the history of the evolution of human's relation to nature. Living in large cities, what we are enjoying is just hundreds of skyscrapers in front of us and lots of noise came into our ears both of which are the consequences of the industrialized civilization, but nearly no existence of folklore system. Thus, we have to return to nature to experience the specialty of the village settlements, appreciating not only the beauty of the fanned countryside fields, but also the sublimity of the most primitive environment, which make our dreams come true.Due to some historical factors, in the minority settlements in the southeastern part of Guizhou Province, the perfect harmony between human and their living environment is attained. There we could experience the peace and harmony between human and nature, between human beings, and also feel the ancient and pure atmosphere of ecological culture embodied by the attempts of locals' preserving nature. One apt example is the designing of the residential settlements which never build on fertile lands, in order to better reflect the correlation of human with nature and notion of the sustainable development, The location and layout of the settlement is directed by the primitive ecological theory of "Unity of Nature and Man". The structure and function of those buildings are taken into Consideration by using local plain materials in order to make them adaptable to the regional climate and natural environment. The harmonious interpersonal relationship is achieved through folklore patriarchal buildings and patriarchal notions. Thus ultimately the whole settlement is in perfect harmony with its carriers either in material production or in spiritual life.In the natural world, human beings exist as a special group, which entitles human with the obligation to preserve rather than merely exploit nature. We view equality not only as the ethical relations between human beings but also as the relations between human and all lives on the earth, which means that human has a moral obligation to human and to everything on the earth as well. The minorities'settlements in the southeast of the Guizhou province exemplify the protective role that positive ecological conception offers to the construction of the ecological environment.It is of significant importance for us to scrutinize the minorities'settlement environment from the perspective of ecological folklore, and to apply the ethics of nature-preserving as well as the value of making use of natural resources properly to modern environment designs, for they are practical in enhancing the level of art-design and creating of a harmonious residential environment for humans.