The Confrontation between the East and the West or the Fusion of the East and the West

【Abstract】Recently， more and more Chinese people have little enthusiasm for our traditional festivals， but some western festivals， e.g.： Saint Valentine's Day and Christmas Day have gained their passion. That has been a weird culture view.

【Keywords】Confrontation; Fusion; East; West; Festivals

For China's policy of opening to the world， these western traditional customs are introduced and exert an influence gradually. And the importance of the living standards gives people more reasons to enjoy life and to relax them. What's more， the times of seeking fashion and showing individuality also promote prosperity. However， with the rapid development of globalization and the invasion of foreign cultures， China's traditional festivals are losing popularity among modern Chinese; in particular the younger generation， so the values and the way of life of the developed countries in west impart the Chinese folk culture; especially reflect upon these Chinese young people. That is an inexorable trend of global development that the culture of different countries fuses and collides rapidly.

In the modern world， life in China has become even more diversified in recent years， allowing more space for western fashion and convention. Today， Valentine's Day and other interesting western festivals are widely celebrated， particularly among the youth. Therefore， celebrating western festivals can hardly be associated with cultural invasion. It's good for us to touch more western cultures and customs through the celebration of their festivals.

China has such a long history and culture that its festivals are plentiful and many Chinese festivals originated more than 5000 years ago. These festivals are passed down from generation to generation， so these Chinese traditional festivals emphasize reunion more. During the Lunar New Year， also known as the spring festival， everybody of the family in any other place will come back and the whole family will be together and celebrate the most important Chinese festivals. However， passing down through the time， spring festivals is just the time when Chinese people used to reunite， and to come back just for sharing the big dinner together for many Chinese people now. That means family reunion and then during the national day and Labor Day， most of people will choose to travel or sleep to relax themselves. On the contrary， these colorful western festivals give people more chance to feel crazy and happy.

All in all， these Chinese traditional festivals emphasize reunion， and need people to pay more attention to them in thought， so that will be a burden for people， especially for many young people. Festivals are expressions of every nation's cultural tradition and their ups and downs have many social reasons. With the development of society， Chinese festivals will develop under change， and some will be faded from our memory but some will be taken more great interest， and maybe some will be given a new meaning. That is the result we choose and the society develops.

Nowadays， with the development of globalization， the life style of people in the whole world is approaching increasingly and is reaching unanimity. Therefore， we can come to the conclusion that we should not throw away our own traditions， at the same time; we also don't eliminate those western festivals. We can enjoy some interesting western festivals accepted through common practice while developing out own traditional culture. In future， China will be more open and more advanced， and the Chinese traditional festivals and the western festival will be a wonderful combination.

【References】

［1］Translated by Geraldine Chay and YN.Han “Festivals.” Gatewate to Chinese Culture. Singapore. ASIAPAC BOOKS PTE LTD. July. 2003.

［2］China's Valentine's Day Love Affair. CHINA TODAY Feb.2004.