All We Need Is Comprehension

李秋凝

【Abstract】We always talk about cultural differences around us. It seems to be very easy to receive and adapt to a new culture. However， the answer is totally adverse. When we are faced with other races or countries cultures， most of us will have many ridiculous understandings about them. For us students coming from the college of foreign languages， should have a more lenient mind to respect other cultures. This paper is aimed at showing us that cultural differences dont matter much， as long as we endeavor to walk closer， and comprehend them.

【Key words】Comprehension； Cultural Differences

In class， our professor recommended a Chinese classic film Gua Sha （The Treatment） to us. At first， I did not give much attention to it and decided to watch it just for fun. However， gradually， I found that Gua Sha is like a gate to a new world， a world of totally different cultures. In this paper Im going to analyze the cultural differences from four aspects. And I hope all of us can see various kinds of differences in our life in a more lenient way and try to comprehend others. When it comes to why Gua Sha appeals to me so much， I do have a lot to say. Because of the word limit， I will just talk about the novel plots and the sharp clashes reflected in the film. The film tells a story about a couple—Xu Datong and Jian Ning—who became new immigrants to America eight years ago. One day， they are wrongly accused of child abuse because of the reactions of Gua Sha on their son， Denniss back. It is like a farce because Americans mistakenly consider Guasha—an ancient oriental treatment as rough stuff. In the later story， Datong suffered a lot. In the end， when the family was together on Christmas Eve， my face was covered with tears. The story happened in the US， so all the things are brand-new to me. Thats why I am lost in the movie.

Apart from the fascinating plots， Id like to talk about the cultural differences between China and America in this movie combined with my own understanding of them.

I. Difference in individual and group

In Chinese cultural value， a country are far more important than an individual. It might be the reason why Datong chose to continue the meeting in his company instead of accompanying his wife and their newly-born baby. This people of America cant understand. They think this behavior should be censured seriously. In Gua Sha， the nurse can still recall the day 5 years ago because Datong is an irresponsible husband and father in her view， or in Americans view.

As a matter of fact， it is hard to criticize whether Datong chose to devote his time to his company is right or wrong. Because there should be a precondition—this benefit must be reasonable and moral. No matter what kind of value we have， we all need to have the ability to distinguish right from wrong. On this point， I agree with the nurse， because I believe that the most precious treasure is love.

We Chinese tend to sacrifice selves to fulfill the groups aim. It is a noble spirit. But my suggestion is that we should also pay more attention to our close relatives and friends. They are complementary to each other.

II. Differences in emotions and laws

As we can clearly see in Gua Sha， Datong lost his temper on the court and did a lot of crazy things in order to get Dennis back. As an immigrant who had lived in the United States for eight years， Datong is still deeply influenced by the Chinese traditional values. For example， when they were at the first hearing， Mr.Quinlan believes Datong abuses Dennis because of the shocking pictures. Driven by anger， Mr.Quinlan refused to defend Datong. At the second hearing， he still wants to help Datong， but he does not lie for Datong， he admit that Datong did hit Dennis. One of Mr.Quinlans lines leaves me a deep impression. When Datong explains that is to show respect to Mr.Quinlan， Mr.Quinlan roared， “what a messy Chinese logic！” According to American values， no person can offend against the law， even if they want to help their friends. To Datong， a typical Chinese， he has the courage to challenge the laws， such as taking Dennis furtively to the airport， climbing the tube outside their apartment to give Christmas presents to his son， and he dose not believe laws have the rights to prevent him from accompanying his son. All of his behaviors are because the results of his Chinese values. We think friends must help each other， even if one of us is wrong.

The concept of value is an order that people can not be avoided in social or cultural life. Peoples innate rules， ways of thinking， cognitive criterion， social philosophy， deductive reasoning and evaluation of things， moral standards are so their own different values.

In Chinese culture， their will consciously or unconsciously deal with the problem according to our motions. The concept “cultural unconsciousness” is put forward by the Li Shuyi in 1988， which is said to be one of the phenomena of human unconsciousness formed in a certain social and cultural environment. It dominates peoples behavior in a subtle way， and thus unconsciously， indirectly， carry out the dominant role by awareness. As the existence of cultural unconsciousness， Chinese people tend to make it full of human interest even in the field beyond human emotions. Chinese people think that a good friend should go “through fire and water without any hesitation”. Chinese think there could exist some exceptions in law， because we always put love in the first of all. Meanwhile， Americans firmly believe that no emotions can be involved in law. So Chinese pay more attention to emotions， while American focus on observing the law.

III. Different ways to solve attitudes to solving problems

In Gua Sha， Datong faces so many difficult problems that he even has the idea to go back to China with his father and Dennis. To him， America is no longer his home， so he does not need to stay here any longer. Actually， this kind of behavior is escaping. When so many difficulties appear， what Datong wants to figure out is not how to solve them one by one， but to be far away from them. To some extent， it reflects the attitude that the majority of the Chinese hold toward problems. Just look around， many students will wont finish their homework in advance until the deadline approaches.

On the contrary， when Americans have a lot of unexpected tasks， they tend to be excited and optimistic. Just like Mr.Quinlan， after Datongs father visits him， he decides to make the whole incident clear. He goes to Chinatown and asks a Chinese doctor to do Guasha to him and introduce this ancient Chinese treatment. As soon as he knows about it， he hurries to Margarets house and tells her the truth. Margaret is also shocked and ashamed. After they meet the lawyer and repeal the lawsuit， they rushed to Datongs home. Although that is Christmas Eve， they are still willing to solve the problem in time and they are brave enough to admit their mistake.

On this score， I must say that we should learn from Americans. Avoiding difficulties will never be a wise way to solve problems. Obviously， facing problems bravely is the best and the only way to save ourselves from the tough environment efficiently and effectively.

Make a general survey of Gua Sha， it not only gives us a look at the world out of China but also shows us a lot of classic symbols of cultural clashes， such as Sun Wukong， Guasha， Christmas Eve and so on. No matter how different our cultures are， in the end， all the people in the movie have a wonderful Christmas. In a nutshell， we dont need to be afraid of cultural differences， what we are supposed to do is comprehend them， thats enough. Gradually， I do believe all of us can bridge the gap between two or more different cultures！

References：

[1]Xu，Fenrong.“Value and Target Orientation of Chinese Americans Values”Supplement to the Journal of Sun Yatsen University.Apr2004：272-275.Print.

[2]Ren，Yuling.“See Cultural Unconsciousness of Xu Datong through Gua Sha Treatment” Film Review.Jun2009：48.Print.