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Thursday, December 18, 2008
CULTUREEEEEE The Chinese are very rooted in their culture and have a strong sense of identity. Though China is modernising, the Chinese are trying hard to preserve their historical sites. For example, they retained the Forbidden City, Summer Palace, hutong and many other ancient places for the future generations so they will not be deprived of China’s rich and vibrant history. These historical places are a reminder of China’s struggle towards independence and are symbols of grandeur and majesty of ancient China. Hence these sites will make the Chinese will feel proud of themselves and of their magnificent dynastic past. They are also a symbol for the Chinese to identify with, like how one will easily associate China with the Great Wall. Therefore, the Chinese have a strong sense of identity and sense of closeness due to their long shared history. Traditional Chinese festivals are also treated with high regard in China, as many Chinese labourers in other parts of the country or other parts of the world will rush back to their hometown to celebrate Chinese New Year every year. Similarly, though it is said that the China is undergoing rapid development and westernisation, some of the Chinese values have remained unchanged. One example is that the Chinese do not really celebrate Christmas as there are hardly any Christmas decorations in China. Even international shopping malls have very little Christmas decorations. Hence though skyscrapers are sprouting like mushrooms now, the Chinese are still relatively rooted in their culture.
On the other hand, Singapore has very little historical places due to our short history and we had also during some point in time, sacrificed some cultural places for the development of the country due to limited land space. Singaporeans are also apathetic to the Singapore’s history and our places of interest. For example, how many know about the origins of the Merlion? Hence we are relatively confused with our identity. Lesser and lesser people are celebrating Chinese New Year in the traditional way while more people are using the long holiday to go overseas. In Singapore, westernisation is eroding our culture fast. But perhaps we do not even have a distinct culture and heritage to start with since Singaporeans come from a mixture of races and it is difficult to identity each other as one people, one nation.
Another aspect is the Chinese respect their leaders a lot. The people in Mao Memorial Hall are actually locals and security is very tight there since we have to scan our bags before entering. The sight that greeted us before we enter the place itself was amazing already as there were huge amount of people queuing up to enter on a weekday morning right before work. In the hall itself, many gave him flowers and some even prayed to him, which showed he almost had a god-like figure in the locals’ hearts. Many parents also brought their young children to educate them on his contributions towards modern China. Mao’s face is also always printed on T-shirts and on souvenirs. It is evident that the locals hold him in high regard. However, though Lee Kuan Yew is Singapore’s famous founding father, he did not receive as much respect and adoration by Singaporeans as compared to what Mao received from the locals. Similarly, for the reputation of their country, the Chinese worked together under the government’s instructions to transform China into more environmentally-friendly for the Beijing Olympics. There are lesser people smoking and more people are recycling to create a civilised image of China during the Olympics. This again shows that the locals respect the leaders to heed their instructions and love their own country to be able to work together as a whole big nation to make the Olympics a success. Will Singaporeans do the same thing for our Youth Olympics in 2010? We will wait and see…