How to treat the differences between Chinese and American cultures?

First of all, the cultural differences between China and America.

1 China culture

China is a big eastern country with a civilization history of 5,000 years, with a long history and culture.

Over the past five thousand years, the Chinese nation has nurtured a long and splendid oriental civilization and formed a mysterious and quaint oriental culture.

It is a unique cultural system deeply rooted in Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism.

China culture involves all aspects of man and nature, man and society, material and spirit. It is a highly humanized culture from goodness to beauty.

The core of China's culture is the cosmology of harmony between man and nature, the philosophy of harmony but difference, the vigorous and enterprising outlook on life, the values of taking the world as one's duty, and the ethics of respecting ceremony and valuing morality.

It is characterized by introversion, gentleness and composure.

According to China's traditional values, an individual's value is reflected by his contribution to society.

Individuals should be responsible not only for themselves, but also for others and society.

China people emphasize collectivism and believe that collective interests are higher than individual interests.

When the two conflict, individual interests should make necessary sacrifices to protect collective interests.

China's traditional culture, with Confucianism as its core, has always advocated the distinction between seniority and inferiority, and the order of seniority, especially the communication between people, is bound to be restricted by their respective status and roles, otherwise it is impolite.

For example, when the younger generation meets their elders or subordinates, they should take the initiative to say hello to show respect.

When talking, senior officials or elders are often the dominant party in the conversation, while the other party has to show humility in listening.

2. American culture

The relatively short-lived American culture is a multi-culture influenced by many cultures, and its cultural characteristics are influenced by Anglo-Saxon colonial culture and many other immigrant cultures.

Early Puritanism dominated, and with the passage of time, American native religion sprouted and became an influential cultural factor.

American society is a relatively open society, and its citizens are eager to achieve their personal goals, that is, the cultural characteristics of the "American Dream" are also very obvious.

In addition, there are "materialism" and "individualism" under the deep-rooted capitalist democracy in American cultural characteristics.

Americans believe that all men are born equal and have the right to pursue freedom and happiness.

In America, there is no difference between father and son, teachers and students, and people in different positions.

The concept of equality permeates American life and ideology. Their behavior, work, entertainment, language and politics all embody the concept of equality, and all kinds of relationships in real life are not restricted by this concept.

In American culture, people communicate with each other informally.

When acquaintances meet, they greet each other with an equal "hello", regardless of rank.

Second, the reasons for cultural differences between China and the United States

The culture of any nation is deeply influenced by the natural environment, such as climate and geographical location, which provides the initial possible framework for cultural development.

In different natural environments, people choose different lifestyles.

As a social phenomenon, culture is conceived in the whole process of human life, and is also influenced by political, economic, regional and historical factors. Culture is regional, super-regional, epochal and inherited.

China culture, which originated in the Yellow River basin, is a typical farming culture in Chinese mainland. Its geographical environment and mode of production determine that China culture pays attention to collectivism rather than individuals.

Its historical and cultural traditions emphasize group consciousness, collective function, mutual assistance, interdependence and interpersonal harmony.

China is also a tradition-oriented society. For thousands of years, Confucianism has been dominant. Since Qin Shihuang established a unified feudal empire, in order to safeguard their own interests, rulers of past dynasties need to teach people to be loyal to the monarch (parents), abide by their duties, observe etiquette and live in peace, so as to consolidate their political rule and maintain the stability of social order.

Traditional ideological rules and methods have continued to this day, and have been recognized by everyone, becoming a collective consciousness and regulating people's behavior.

The influence of Confucian culture has always been dominant, and the cultural concept influenced by it is the basis of China's traditional cultural concept.

Confucian ethics has always paid attention to the distinction between the young and the old, which is the fundamental reason for the strong hierarchical concept in China culture.

American culture is an authentic coastal commercial culture, and Greece and Rome are the cradles of this culture, which are located in coastal and offshore islands respectively.

Numerous islands make interpersonal communication less convenient than plain, so it emphasizes giving full play to the role of individuals, forming today's American culture that pays attention to individualism.

This individualism includes individual function, individual independence, independent choice, paying attention to self-reliance and independence; Attach importance to highlighting individuals and pursuing individual differences.

The United States is deeply influenced by Christian culture, with strong egoism, individualism and full enjoyment of individual rights and freedoms.

American culture has inherited European culture (western culture) from the beginning, and the concept of human rights is the product of western ideological tradition.

Human rights first appeared in 1628 British Parliament's power letter to the king. /kloc-In the 8th century, Rousseau, a French thinker, put forward "natural human rights" and theorized it.

1776, the American Declaration of Independence declared in the form of a platform: "All men are created equal." American culture emphasizes human rights, so the hierarchical concept is weak.

Third, the conclusion

Sociologists tell us that all cultures are unique and different from each other.

There must be cultural differences in communication between people with different cultural backgrounds, and cultural differences will cause communication obstacles.

The cultural differences between the East and the West cannot be changed, but they can be understood.

The formation of Chinese and western cultures is a process of multicultural struggle, integration and development.

With the acceleration of globalization, in order to enter the western society and open the western market, we must be familiar with western culture and understand the root causes of differences in order to know ourselves and ourselves.

Therefore, understanding the cultural differences between China and the United States will not only help us communicate with the United States, but also help us communicate with the world, especially the western developed countries.

The study of cross-cultural communication helps us to compare our national culture in a global environment in an all-round and multi-level way, so that we can not only spread our excellent cultural traditions around the world, but also find that our national culture needs healthy development, which can not only broaden our horizons, but also promote cultural exchanges.