Have you ever wonder about the significance of the various vibrant festivals celebrated by the Chinese people every year, or why the Chinese eat with their Chopsticks? Or how did the intricate characters of their written language come to be? Ancient Chinese thinkers like Confucius and Sun-zi have left their mark on the Chinese Culture, but who were they? And with the Chinese cuisine that is available in Chinese restaurants all across the world, there's hardly any needs for introductions! Join us on a tour of the ancient and colourful Chinese culture in this part of this Montage Culture Series! First published in 2003, this book is in its 11th reprint in 2013. ISBN: 9789812293282 Page Count: 166 Year Published: 2003 Language: English
Have you ever wonder about the significance of the various vibrant festivals celebrated by the Chinese people every year, or why the Chinese eat with Chopsticks? How did the intricate characters of their written language come to be? Ancient Chinese thinkers like Confucius and Sun-zi have left their mark on the Chinese Culture, but who were they? And with the Chinese cuisine that is available in Chinese restaurants all across the world, there's hardly any needs for introductions! Join us on a tour of the ancient and colourful Chinese culture in this part of this Montage Culture Series!
There is more to the culture than what's cooking in the peroh rumah, or kitchen. For instance, have you ever wondered why they speak the way they do? And what is the big deal about cherki games? Why are they always singing the dondang sayang? And, more importantly, what does it mean to be a Peranakan?
Origins of Chinese Culture guides you through the perplexing maze of all things Chinese. Pick up interesting facts about the "Four Treasures of the Study"--the brush, ink, paper and inkstone--which form the cornerstone of Chinese culture. Be enthralled by the charming stories of Chinese icons: * Cao Cao, who hinted that he wanted a door widened just by writing a character on the door. * Shi Kuang, whose music was said to resurrect the dead. * Wu Daozi, who never completed his paintings for fear that they would come alive. You will be amazed by the wisdom and exquisite allure of Chinese culture, and be treated to insights into Chinese music, weiqi, xiangqi, calligraphy and painting!
The richness of Chinese classical literature encompasses a range of forms, from poetry and rhymed prose, to essays and novels. Each period has its own unique style, and there are outstanding representative works for each: the pre-Qin Book of Songs, Songs of the South, Han fu, Yue fu songs, Tang poetry, Song ci, Yuan drama and more. Using illustrations and exposition of the various styles of classical Chinese literature, this book takes the reader on a tour of the Chinese literary world, while affording valuable insights into the themes of early Chinese civilizations.
Xudong Zhang offers a critical analysis of China's 'long 1990s', the tumultuous years between the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown and China's entry into the World Trade Organisation in 2001.
A practical and accessible guide to an ancient but rapidly changing culture—now revised and updated Perfect for business, pleasure, or armchair travelers, China A to Z explains the customs, culture, and etiquette essential for any trip or for anyone wanting to understand this complex country. In one hundred brief, reader-friendly essays alphabetized by subject, this fully revised and updated edition provides a crash course in the etiquette and politics of contemporary China as well as the nation’s geography and venerable history. In it, readers will discover: · How the recently selected President and his advisors approach global relations · Why China is considered the fastest growing market for fashion and luxury goods · What you should bring when visiting a Chinese household · What’s hot in Chinese art · How recent scandals impact Chinese society From architecture and body language to Confucianism and feng shui, China A to Z offers accessible and authoritative information about China.
D. R. Howland explores China’s representations of Japan in the changing world of the late nineteenth century and, in so doing, examines the cultural and social borders between the two neighbors. Looking at Chinese accounts of Japan written during the 1870s and 1880s, he undertakes an unprecedented analysis of the main genres the Chinese used to portray Japan—the travel diary, poetry, and the geographical treatise. In his discussion of the practice of “brushtalk,” in which Chinese scholars communicated with the Japanese by exchanging ideographs, Howland further shows how the Chinese viewed the communication of their language and its dominant modes—history and poetry—as the textual and cultural basis of a shared civilization between the two societies. With Japan’s decision in the 1870s to modernize and westernize, China’s relationship with Japan underwent a crucial change—one that resulted in its decisive separation from Chinese civilization and, according to Howland, a destabilization of China’s worldview. His examination of the ways in which Chinese perceptions of Japan altered in the 1880s reveals the crucial choice faced by the Chinese of whether to interact with Japan as “kin,” based on geographical proximity and the existence of common cultural threads, or as a “barbarian,” an alien force molded by European influence. By probing China’s poetic and expository modes of portraying Japan, Borders of Chinese Civilization exposes the changing world of the nineteenth century and China’s comprehension of it. This broadly appealing work will engage scholars in the fields of Asian studies, Chinese literature, history, and geography, as well as those interested in theoretical reflections on travel or modernism.
