Lesson 2: Forces of Culture

  Culture is quite a complex concept, especially when it comes to understanding how the forces of culture are able to affect a country. Examples of Singapore's forces of culture are Kiasu-ism, Kan Chong-ism and the most iconic Singlish. These forces, I feel, are what define Singapore as a country.

  Now, on to China's forces of culture, which are classified into 2 types: "scratching-the-surface culture" and "deep" culture. The 1st type is about the forces which can be observed or researched by anyone, such as, Food, Language, Festivals, Traditional Costumes, Flags and Holiday Customs. The 2nd type is about the forces which can only be experienced by the locals, something belonging to them, which nobody is able to understand but them. Such examples are, Nature of Friendship, Learning Styles, Expectations, Gender Roles, Concept of Fairness, Approaches to Problem Solving, Religious Beliefs, Values and Attitudes. Reflecting on and understanding the "deep" culture can help us understand China's culture.

  Take Gender Roles for example, as we all know how females are treated less important than males, even in modern days. Women are expected to have lower positions in a family. Girls are considered less important than their brothers because they will move out of the family after marriage. Some parents even have this way of thinking that they are 'raising daughters for others'. I'm sure there are still people who would expect a husband to be richer, smarter, older or even taller than a wife, even in current egalitarian societies. I also know that there are still people who would be shocked to hear of a family, in which the father is the house husband, and the mother is the sole breadwinner. In addition, it is usually the father's surname their children take after, hardly the other way round. Knowing this helps me understand more about the culture of China, because I would be able to understand how Gender Roles shaped China to perhaps, become a country with preference for males over females.

  In conclusion, it is the understanding of the forces that helps me understand a particular country. However, the "deep" culture is difficult to be shared by foreigners, as culture is part of our cultivation. We would only understand the culture of China if we had grown up in China or lived there for a long period of time until we have fully integrated into their culture.