The Differences Between Chinese and Western Food Dietetic Culture中西饮食文化的差异College of MinshengHenan UniversityMay 2011AcknowledgementThere are a lot of people who help me to contribute to the completion of this thesis. Firstly, my deepest gratitude goes first and foremost to Zhu Taiyin , my teacher for his constant encouragement and guidance. He has led me through all the stages of the writing of this thesis. Without his consistent ad illuminating instruction, this thesis could not have reached its present form.Secondly, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to all the teachers, who lead me into the world of English. They instructed and helped me a lot in the past four years.Last, owe my sincere gratitude to my friends and my fellow classmates who gave me their help and time in listening to me and helping me work out my problems during the difficult course of the thesis.[Abstract]: This thesis explores the differences between Chinese and Western food dietetic culture. The food dietetic culture plays an important role in the world culture. The differences between Chinese and Western culture created the differences between Chinese and Western food dietetic culture. Different countries have their own food dietetic cultural. In different cultural contexts, both in concept, objects, manner, tableware, etiquette and nature, these differences are obvious. But as the communication and integration of the international, Chinese and western food culture will be developed in common communicate. This will play a significant role to promote the communication of culture in the world.[Key Words]:intercultural communication; food dietetic culture; culturedifferences[摘要]:本篇论文探讨了中西方饮食文化的差异.饮食文化在世界文化中起着非常重要的作用.中西方文化的差异带来了中西饮食文化的差异,不同的国家有自己不同的饮食文化特点.在不同的文化背景下,无论是在观念,对象,方式,餐具还是礼仪等各方面,这些不同都是显而易见的.但是,随着国际的交流与融合,中西饮食文化业将会在交流中共同发展,这对全世界范围内的文化交流将起到促进作用.[关键词]: 跨文化交际; 饮食文化; 文化差异ContentsAbstract (Engl ish) (i)Abstract (Chinese) (ii)Introduction (1)Chapter One Chinese and Western Food Dietetic Culture (3)1.1 Characteristics of Chinese food dietetic culture (3)1.2 Characteristics of the Western food dietetic culture (3)Chapter Two Differences in the performance of Chinese and Western Food (5)2.1 Differences between Chinese and Western diet concept (5)2.2 Differences between Chinese and Western diet objects (6)2.3 Differences between Chinese and Western diet manner, tableware andetiquette (7)2.3.1 Diet manner (7)2.3.2 Diet tableware (8)2.3.3 D iet etiquette (9)2.4 Differences between Chinese and Western diet nature (9)Chapter Three Reasons for the differences between Chinese and Western food dietetic culture (11)3.1 The impact of the geographical environment (11)3.2 The impact of the economic system (11)Conclusion (14)Bibliography (15)IntroductionWith the deepening of the international communication, in different countries or cultural background, the communication of people are increasing all the time, and the communication between them is called intercultural communication. Intercultural communications gradually becomes an indispensable content of people's life. Due to the differences of regional, different nations and countries form different cultures. People with different cultural backgrounds behavior or habits is endless and same, they have their social statute or habits, reflected in the political economy, education religion, culture , art and so on. America famous newly chemical representative figure White is called “father of cult urology”, he put the culture as a kind of special and objective social phenomenon, and as a complete system (White, 1949). So specially, what is culture? Chen Huawen once lists cases to illustrate the connotation and importance of culture; he said “culture is like air and water that permeates every corner of our lives, people are enjoying the culture achievements that were created by predecessors in every time, also, people are inventing new culture in every moment. Our progress is the result of the culture creation and developing.”(Chen Huawen, 2001:2) When people are communicating under the different culture background, the language and non-language factors which influence of message effect are make communication hen culture. If foreign language learners are lack of knowledge for its behavior and function, it will appear inappropriate behavior, resulting in the communication barriers, and it is difficult for effective cross-cultural communication, as a result causes of communication error.The diet is the first need for human’s survival and development; also it is the one of the basic form of social life. However under the different cultural background, having different diet idea and diet custom, then finally form the different diet culture. Food culture is an important part in the intercultural communication. Understand the differences between Chinese and western diet culture and its origin, for foreign language learners, not only increase the understanding of the target language culture,but also improve the success rate of intercultural communication, avoid the misunderstandings and communication barriers just because of the inappropriate way or behavior .In Sun Weixue’s book <<culture of America>>, he once pointed out any country in the world should carry out cultural exchanges and publicity actively, this is not only benefit to their native culture, but also spread the culture in worldwide .(Sun Weixue, 2004) This paper expounded from various of the differences between Chinese and western food dietetic culture, enhance mutual understanding and facilitate communication.Chapter One Chinese and Western Food Dietetic Culture 1.1 Characteristics of Chinese food dietetic cultureChina is one of the most ancient countries on the world, it has the long history of 5000 years, and created innumerable splendid civilization. In this culture, it makes China contain more expansive and profound diet. It has experienced several thousand years of history development, and has become one of the most important Chinese traditional cultures of department.Because of the district difference in our land, it gradually formed four major cuisines that is Sichuan cuisine, Guangdong cuisine, Shandong cuisine and Chaozhou cuisine. This four major cuisine have different features, but in common is with making complex fastidious, the product methods are very complex, and have a great diversity of taste and dishes, this is amazing. Because of our vast land, there are differences in climate, products and custom in every place. For a long time, on food was formed many flavor. Our country has been have the saying of “ south rice north noodles”, in the taste, it has the differences that “sour in east, hot in west, sweet in south and salty in north", it mainly have four flavor about Bashu, Qilu, Haiyangn and Yuemin. ( Zou Guangwen, 1998) On the other hand, all the year round, according to season for eat is a feature in China’s cooking. Since ancient times, our country has been according to season changes to taste, and dishes. Winter taste strong, summer flavor cleaner; in the winter more braised stews, summer more cold.In the long-term development, evolution and accumulation process, Chinese people gradually formed its own unique food folk from many aspects, such as diet structure, food production, food utensils, nutrition healthy and diet aesthetic, this created a diet with unique flavor of the Chinese food culture, become a pearl of the world food culture.1.2 Characteristics of the Western food dietetic cultureRational westerners pay more attention to the nutrition and survival. Due to the different philosophical thoughts of Chinese and western, westerners in diet takes thescience, takes the science about nutrition, so the nutrition is the supreme principle in the western diet.Eating like a biological machine add fuel, especially about the food's nutrition composition, protein, fat, carbohydrates, vitamins and all kinds of inorganic element content,( Dang Binghua, 2010) whether calorie supply properly, and whether these nutrients can be fully absorbed, and presence of other side effects, and dishes color, fragrance and taste is the second requirement. Even in the west’s leading power –France, even though in many aspects the diet culture is similar with our diet, but a contact to nutrition, both sides will the gap. While French cook also pursued delicious, but also adhere to the “nutrition” this one major premise, they don’t agree with pieces of nutrition and beg delicious.In the culture of diet, westerners have the culture descent of nomads and sailing nationality, they hunting, breeding, aided by acquisition and planting, they eat more meet, the eating, wearing and using are took of animals, even the western medicine are made from animals to take. Pay more attention to animal protein and fat intake, in the structure of diet, also with animal figurines in the majority, it is mainly dishes, beef, chicken, pork, mutton and fish. So the meat diet has been very high in proportion. In modern times, planting proportion is increasing, but the proportion in meat still higher than Chinese.Chapter Two Differences in the performance of Chinese andWestern food dietetic2.1 Differences between Chinese and Western diet conceptChinese people are thinking highly of eat. “B read is the staff of life”, this old adage explained that we see eating as important as days. Because our national for thousands of years are in the low level of productivity, people always do not have enough to eat, so they would have a unique food culture that eating is very important.I think this is probably from a survival to needs. Li Xiaohong pointed out: “I f a culture put ate as primary, so it will appear two phenomena: on one hand will put the food function to acme, not only survive, but also use it to maintain healthy, this is also the culture basis that “diet cures more than the doctors”. On the other hand, the excessive attention to eat, it can make the person praise highly of delicious pursuit.”(Li Xiaohong, 2010: 33)In China, the pursuit of delicious reached almost acme, Chinese living overseas to open restaurants for industry in the world, it has become our settlement fundamental.Unfortunately, when we put the pursuit of delicious as the first requirement, we are neglecting the most fundamental nutritional value of food. Many of our traditional foods are through hot fried and long time boil, cover the dish nutrients to sabotage, many nutrients are loss in the machining process. As a result of nutrition problem, in fact touched on the Chinese culinary culture to the greatest weakness. Folk have saying, “It is of great importance of eating and whether the food is delicious or not depends on taste”, this is the pursuit of delicious make us ignore the real meaning of dinner.European is represented the western, also, his culture has a long history. In the middle ages, the European culture has very perfect, during this period; the old western food culture has been formed. Its main features are: most food with flour primarily, raw material also more abundant, its production method is simple, but also in China pays much attention to taste.China's five mixed cookery aims to pursue delicious, its processing process of hot fried and long time of fire, this can make dishes nutrients were damaged. (Lin Lirui, 2009) In western countries, especially in 1960s, appearing the emergence of modern cooking thought, with particular emphasis on health care, reduce weight, thus less oil, emphasize the pursuit of light by fresh materials, emphasizing the cooking process of nutrients and maintain the original taste, so the vegetables are basically raw. So says the heavy nutrition in western diet is universal.2.2 Differences between Chinese and Western diet objectsWesterners believe that cuisine is the longing, so only eat of meat, chicken this "hard food"; While Chinese cuisine is "taste". So the Chinese cooking with makings also show great randomness, many westerners as something is the outcast, this in China are excellent raw material, foreign chefs can't handle this things, but to a Chinese chef hands, this can turn decayed for magical. It serves to show the Chinese diet in the wide randomness of materials.According to the survey of western plant scholars, Chinese eat vegetables have more than 600 specious, it is six times more than the west. In fact, in the Chinese dishes, vegetarian dishes are common food, only in holidays or volunteers at the higher living standards, it can enters the usual diet, so since ancient times, we will have saying of "food feed", food feed is the dominant statement in our usual diet. The Chinese make plant as the main dish, and has a lot of contact with the advocacy of Buddhism. Their think the animal is "the life", but plants the laws of nature "not to work", therefore, advocates the vegetarianism. (Yang Naiji, 1993)Westerners in introducing the food characteristic of their own country, they feel more attention about reasonable collocation of nutrition than China. They have more developed food industry, such as canned, fast food. Although the taste is common, saving time and the nutrition is good. So in common, human body of their country is stronger than Chinese: tall, long legs, broad shoulders and developed muscle; But Chinese appears narrow skinny, short legs and the color is yellow. Someoneaccording to the obvious differences in characteristic of western diet object, the Chinese character known as the plants, the Western character known as animals.2.3 Differences between Chinese and Western diet manner, tablewareand etiquette2.3.1 Diet mannerChinese and Western food is quite different from the way that such differences also have an impact on the national character. In China, any of the feast, whatever the purpose, there will be only one form, that is, we were sitting around, sharing one seat. The banquet must use the round table; this formally has created one kind of unity, politeness, altogether the interest atmosphere. The delicacy delicacies put on table of people's centers, it not only is the object which table of people appreciates, tastes, also is a table of people sentiments exchange intermedium. People propose a toast of each other for food, vegetables, in the face of good things, reflects the mutual respect between people, the virtues of comity. Duo Xiaoping said that: “A lthough from the health perspective, this kind of food have obvious deficiency, it meets the general mind of happy in our national, reflects the influence thoughts to offspring about Chinese classical philosophy, facilitate the emotional communicated of collective, and yet difficult to reform”.( Duo Xiaoping, 2005: 12)Freedom westerner is individual serving when they eating, the first is the point of all the food, they can eat what something, and it also showed respect for the West on the personality. After serving up, people eat the entire various one and their random add spices, the second course dish to eat after eating, before and after the two never mixed vegetables to eat. The most popular form of buffet in western is individual eating, incompatible interference, and lack of the emotional appeal for chat with each other.In the western-style banquets, food and wine are very important, but in fact it is setoff. The core of banquet in friendship, through the conversation with neighbors, in order to achieve the friendship. If the companionship of party is compared withdance, then it can be said that Chinese banquet is like collective dance, and western banquet is like dancing between women and men. Therefore, the purpose of companionship is obvious between Chinese banquet and western banquet, only Chinese banquet more reflected in all guest, and western banquet more reflected the friendship between adjacent guests. And Chinese food is more obvious differences between them were western popular buffet. This method is: we need display all the food, should not fixed in his seat to eat, you can walk freedom, this method in favor of the emotional communicated between individuals, not speak all the words on the table, this also showed respect for the personality and self.Therefore, in the final analysis is differences between perceptual and rationality. However, the difference seems to be with the development of science and become blurred. More and more Chinese no longer only paying attention to food color, fragrance and taste, they pay more attention to its health and nutrition. Especially after the experience of SARS. Also, because of people are more and more busy with job, they think when doing the Chinese food is too much trouble, not equal convenient to come a hamburger and so on. So in dietary the differences were not too clear.2.3.2 Diet tablewareIn the space of diet tableware, the differences are more obvious. As we know, Chinese people including some Asian countries, use chopsticks, spoon, when they have a meal also use bowl to fill. But how about westerners? They are fill food use plate, to use a knife and fork to eat, there are specialized spoon to drink soup. Chopsticks and knife, fork as two kinds of representative tableware for the east and west, they affected the different lifestyle of eastern and western, representing two kinds of different wisdom.As we know the emergence of a knife and fork is much later than chopsticks, it was originally the ancient nomadic origin and the European lifestyle; they carry knives for live, and often cooked the meat, then cut off to eat. After settle the city, the knives and forks into the family kitchen, at this time, people just do not have to carry them. However, only about the 18th century, there was found the fork for fourfork. Therefore, western people using a knife and fork, just four or five hundred years of history. Compared with the simple chopsticks, the type of knife and fork much more, knife and fork belong to the special tools, but because of this "special" often show "great wisdom appears stupid", so they are often ignored by their people.Different people have different views, it is difficult to draw the conclusions that the relationship of thinking method between chopsticks and knife and fork. However, there is scientific basis of use of chopsticks is better training your thinking ability. From a physiological point of view, Hu Wenzhong has made a study of chopsticks, he found that when you eating with chopsticks, it affect the human body of thirty joints and fifty muscles, there by stimulating the activity of brain systems,it brings agility and quick thinking.(Hu Wenzhong, 1999)And there is no doubt that the chopsticks have the scientific principles.2.3.3 Diet etiquetteIn etiquette, both in the west and Chinese are even more different. In ancient China, during people have the dinner, they have a set of unnecessary and over elaborate formalities. When people eat together, not just eat their own interests. If you eat with others, you must check the hands clean. Do not put extra food into the pot, and do not post occupied food. After dinner, guests should pack up and move the dishes on the table, take them to the master, then the master get off, you should request them do not work, then the guests sit down again. Some of this ritual is essential in modern manners. In the west banquet, the master generally folder the dish only once for the guests, and the remaining self-consumption by the guests, if guests do not eat, you should not let them to eat, according to the habit of Chinese, people are not frequently provide guests to drink and take the food. When people eating, do not make the noise, but the guests should pay attention to appreciate the food by the master. If talking to people, only overstated with your neighbors, do not talk to people with the distance.2.4 Differences between Chinese and Western diet natureFrom the different concepts, the western diet tends to scientific and rational, Chinese food tends to artistic and emotional. After cooking the delicious food, diet was originally designed to supply a life-sustaining nutrition.Li Mingying said: “the focus of the western diet custom raw diet is just an extension of utility, and customs of the Chinese diet's emphasis on flavor, put the food into the art. We can see the point from two different diet concepts, the western diet is increasing normalization, and the Chinese diet is more randomness. ( Li Mingying, 1997: 03)Chapter Three Reasons for the differences between Chineseand Western food dietetic culture3.1 The impact of the geographical environmentChina is the closed continental geographical, this environment limited the thinking of the Chinese people within the local community, they good at summing up the experiences and lessons from their predecessors, they like “history as a mirror”, and their spatial awareness is weak. (Bian Haoyu, 2004) This mentality of inward-looking led to the Chinese people have the personality of stability and quiet, they lack of curiosity about the new things, and also they lack of interest in the unknown things. So the Chinese diet food is more have the regional characteristics, different places have the different favorite food to eat, the north have the lower temperature than south, especially in the winter, the weather is very cold, so in the diet of the north, a large proportion of fat and protein in the food, especially in pastoral areas, the food of pastoralists is majority of milk and meat, also they like eating noodles. And the food diet of southerners is based on the plant, the residents have the habit of drinking soup and eat porridge, no matter if the food has been put on, they must be the first to eat soup, drink soup before eating a bit, after fond, they also have another bowl of soup to drink, this to be considered as eating a meal. And they mainly eat rice.The majority of western countries are in the open ocean environment of geography, they developed industry and seafaring, since the ancient Greece, they have valued the study of natural objects, and they exploring the mysteries of the natural heritage. At the same time, the marine environment, mountain tsunami, unrest, this all constitutes the personality of the western nation pay attention to the space expansion and military conquest. So westerners have a scientific attitude of the food diet, this also very standard and arbitrary, and they like to eat the meat food.3.2 The impact of the economic systemMarx once said: “Ideas of consciousness is initially directly with peopleproduce the material activity, and people's physical contact and the reality of language intertwined production.” (Marx, 1972: 89) This point of view clear expressed the symbiotic isomorphism relations between the cultural and economic activity. Peter, Koslowski also said that, “the most important ec onomic behavior is decided by the cultural, their cultural engraved with cultural cachet.”(Peter, Koslowski, 1999: 229) The real economic growth depends on the culture. The traditional economy of China is a typical self-sufficient economy. People are more law-abiding and conservative, because they can live for the whole life rely on a piece of land. And their culture is more introverted. Moreover, China’s ancient civilization originated in the river basin, it belongs the agricultural civilization, "agricultural civilization character" inspired the Asian emphasis on ethics, and the principle of life is “harmony, and love for the high”. In the ancient China, people are still more poor rather than the western countries, at that time, the lower people just required eat their fill and wear the warm clothes, the Chinese people in the old ancient, because without something to eat and drink, a lot of people and children are being starved to death. You can not image the horror in that time. Followed the progress and development of the social, people have been get the basic meet in terms of food, they do not worried just because they have not enough food to eat, on the other hand, people are paying attention to the nutrition of diet food, and trying to convince themselves to eat more healthy, more nutrition, so now there have been many so-called food therapy.The ancient Greek civilization of the west is originated in the Aegean coast, belongs to the Marine civilization, besides Europe's farming is not far as China's agriculture as important in ancient society, so the Europeans like to explore the world, and their cultural is more comparative extroversion. Lai Anfang is mentioned in the book of <<An outline introduction to Britain and America>>, “pursuit of freedom and eq uality has been the guiding principles and goal of the western culture.”(Lai Anfang, 2004: 229) And through the industrial revolution, the western countries is early enter into the industry economy, "industrial civilization character" contributed to thewesterners have stronger struggle spirit and legal consciousness to protect one’s own interest. These also can manifest in their eating habits.ConclusionThe differences between Chinese and Western food dietetic culture is obvious, and they have their own strengths. Followed the economic globalization and the accelerated flow of information changes, Chinese and western food culture will be continued integration in the collision, complement each other in the fusion. Chinese food now has begun focus on food, nutrition, health, the science of cooking, western food also begun to develop from the realm of Chinese food’s color, smell, taste and meaning. Chinese and western food culture will be developed in common communicate. This will play a significant role to promote the communication of culture in the world.BibliographyLeslie ,White. 1949. The science of culture. New York: Random.Peter, Koslowski. 1999. Post-modernism culture. Ludwig Maximilian Muenchen University. 卞浩宇,2004, <<论中西饮食文化的差异>>。
