Cultural differences in western culture from the dining etiquette

【Abstract】 This article mainly focuses on the cultural differences of Chinese and western countries in dining etiquette. By comparison， the cross-cultural differences are obviously seen， thus we can make better communication with westerners and pass through the excellent traditional Chinese cultures at the same time.

【Key words】difference；Chinese；Western；Dining

【作者簡介】朱世梅，日照職業(yè)技術(shù)學(xué)院。

With the deepening of opening-up policy， western cultural specialties is continuously flocking into China. The differences between Chinese and westerners in ways of thinking， life style as well as living habits， are gradually springing out. Thus it is urgent for us to make clear the differences since dining is an important way of communication.

1. Differences on using table wares

The main difference between Chinese and western dining etiquette comes from different table wares. Chinese mainly use chopsticks when eating foods， while knives and forks are chosen by westerners. Professor Xiuling You says that chopsticks are surely used by family members to sit around a table sharing same foods with others happily. At the same time， knives and forks bring separation of foods in eating habits. Westerners separate foods from their origins， which makes independence stand out in western ways of thinking. When growing up ，they are eager to explore the outside world without any hesitation. But Chinese tend to have strong affection and attachment towards their family. Wherever they are， theyll come together for family reunions during big festivals in a year.

2. Differences on arranging seats

（1）Chinese seating arrangement

In China， round tables are used frequently during banquets， which has the same Chinese pronunciation with the word “reunion”. Chinese is very serious about the seating arrangements， because it represents the significance of position. In China， it is common to see people with high status or the seniors take the chief seat because Chinese people take order and respect as standard when arranging seats. Normally， the most respected position is towards the south or door of the dining room. The host sits back to the door face to face with the chief. The other guests follow the rules that left is best and right is the second place. However， especially in the feudal society， women are not respected and in many areas and they are not allowed to sit around the table for a long time. Nowadays the status of women is greatly improved.

（2）Western seating arrangement

Different from China， people use long tables for dining in the west. The host and hostess sit on the two short sides of the table， while guests sit on the other two sides. The right hand side of the hostess is the first seat， then the left hand side. The host is same as above. Western countries take respecting women and lady first as the first choice when arranging seats. If men and women both join the party， host and hostess should preside the banquet together. Besides for the above mentioned， there are two rules ： first， the seat of couples should be arranged on the same side but not sit next to each other. Secondly， male guests should usually be seated in accordance with his position rather than age.

3. Differences on table discourse

There is different atmosphere on western and eastern tables of which one is very noisy and the other seems quiet. Extravagance can often be used to describe Chinese dining while western food is not so various because westerners think wasting is shameful. In China， the host likes saying：“The foods are not so good “or “Nothing special for you ”， which have the same meaning with “Enjoy yourself” in western countries. The westerners will be very happy if you enjoy their meal and eat up all the foods. In Chinese eyes， only more foods and joy on the tables can reflect the sincerity of the host and hostess. Such kind of noise shows the real warmness both in Chinese family and between neighbors. In addition to that， westerners will not talk about disgusting things on the table. They would use euphemism to replace toilet saying “I need to go somewhere/wash my hands. ”or “I need to answer the call of nature”，etc.

4. Conclusion

By comparison， we can get the differences between western and Chinese dinning etiquette. In fact， all the culture in the world is equal. We should understand the cross-cultural differences and inherit excellent traditional Chinese cultures.

References：

[1]Dajin Lin，Research on Cross-cultural Communication，Peoples Press of Fujian，Jan.1996.

[2]Ruijuan Qian，Dining Culture Aboard，Social Press of China，Aug，2006.

[3]Hongqun Zhao，World Dining Culture，F(xiàn)eb.2012.