Family Role in China - Admission/Application Essay Example

Family Role in China Introduction China’s modernization, compared to other countries, came late. Japan instituted major reforms and took its place as Asia’s principal power in the early 1900s.Under the Qing Dynasty, China stalled with little consequence being realized from the rebellions and political capitulations that occurred in the country’s history. For major changes to occur in the China’s social structure a total revolution was needed – something that people in authority at that time were seriously against. Family roles, power balance between gender and class consciousness are controversial issues that have faced China since time immemorial and which need urgent consideration in order for the country to realize greater developments within shorter timeframes. It was in the context of need for an overhaul of the system that Pa Chin published, in 1931, the “Family”. The “Family” presents a clear view of the struggles women and the youth had to go through in order to liberate themselves from the shackles of the family system that was strictly under control of the patriarch and male members of the family. In other words, the book portrays the pains of the country in its struggle to embrace modern ways which are more liberal and development conscious. Chinese Traditional Culture in the 1920s The Traditional culture in China has chiefly been Confucianism, a system ideally created by Confucius (Xinzhong, 2000). This culture is primarily rooted in ancient culture of the Zhou, Shang and Xia Dynasties. Confucianism has remained dominant in China for at least 2000 years and therefore has great influence over the social structure and history of the country. The culture acknowledges that by nature, humans desire to live in other people’s company and hence advocates for living together in large family families. The culture also requires members of society to know how to relate with one another and behave rightly. Confucianism generally establishes a relationship that involves one party having authority over the other except in the case of friends; ruler has authority over subject, father over son, husband over wife, and elder brother over younger brother (Xinzhong, 2000). In more recent times, people across the world view Confucianism more rationally with some even suggesting that the society ought to return to its ideals. On the other hand, opponents of the culture claim that it is responsible for the country’s backwardness in terms of development. Opponents of the culture therefore maintain that this is reason enough not to revive its dominance. Chinese Traditional Family System The traditional Chinese family stereotypically is a large extended family with family members who are immediately related living under a single roof (Chin, Shapiro, and Tan-Chai, 2001). The family which is made up of several generations that are closely linked is a self-help and self-sufficient institution for its members. The family as portrayed by Pa Chin (2001) has a mandate of caring for its elderly and children. In providing for family needs and wants, the wealthy family employs several servants who perform different roles as instructed by family member, and more so offering service to men. The family is strongly bonded together with men dominating in decision making, women primarily being child bearers and home caretakers. In fact, the patriarch is ultimately in control of every aspect of living within the compound while the eldest son decides on daily activities performed by the entire family (Chin et al., 2001). Under such a setting, it would obviously be common for family members to compete for the patriarch’s favor which ultimately leads to rivalry. The patriarch’s power in the family is great to an extent that he has the authority to sell away women as concubines as he rules with an iron fist. Social Class, Governance and Gender Differences Clear lines are drawn between servants and members of the family in a way that depicts a glaring difference in social class. Members of the wealthy family and especially males must be treated with dignity by servants. Women and girls similarly have to be submissive to men, and their loss is not really considered as a loss to the family as depicted in Mei Ping’s case (Chin et al., 2001). With time however, the trend changes as girls and women generally begin to win new rights as they symbolically start attending schools that were previously the preserve of male children. The dispute arising over the school funding system and the military shows the cracks that definitely exist in a society undergoing drastic changes. Conflicts as they occur in this issue reverberate to affect directly or indirectly the citizen at bottom all the way from the government. Generational Gap in the Traditional Family and Society In the family setup, absolute loyalty and obedience to the patriarch is of great value traditionally. Falling in love or marrying women from “unacceptable” families is actually considered a taboo whose repercussions simply cannot be fathomed. The family as portrayed by Pa Chin (2001) hosts deep ideological differences between the older and younger generations. The younger generation demand change and yet to a great extent is bound by traditional obligations which they sometimes have to go against. Despite differences in social status, sons of the wealthy family fall in love with women of lower social class, something that according to the patriarch and other members of the family is something against tradition and therefore totally unacceptable. Even within the family, lines are drawn, restricting members of the family from falling in love with their cousins (Chine et al., 2001). Under normal circumstances, elderly members of the family play a big role in choosing brides for its sons, and grooms for its daughters in line with tradition. Brides traditionally should come from backgrounds that match the social background of their grooms; this implies that a son from a wealthy family had no business falling in love with a servant. This however changes as the younger generations go ahead to marry based on their own feelings and preferences. Conclusion For the last twenty years, the typical Chinese family has undergone serious transformation. Many old values and structural systems of the typical Chinese family have been abandoned and new ways adopted. Today, many Chinese families exist structurally composed of the husband living with his wife and children under one roof, sometimes together with their parents as opposed to the ancient structure that drew many generations under one family roof. The modern family system in China, however, may not match the traditional system in providing mutual care for the elderly and children outside its immediate relation. The “Family” shows how much the servant class and wealthy class can be tormented by Chinese traditional culture. Chueh for instance cannot marry his love and is separated from his wife at a time that she most needs him (Chin et al., 2001). The grip of tradition is so strong that one actually needs to escape from the stifling atmosphere of the “compound” in order to escape from its all-encompassing grasp. Also, the traditional Chinese culture places on every person several restrictions that make it overwhelmingly difficult to break free from. References Bradley J and Fliege L 1999 A family’s conflict retrieved on 24th April, 2009from http://www.prin.edu/college/china/about/reports/family.shtml Chinese Culture - Role of Family (2007) retrieved on 24th April, 2009 from http://www.birmingham.gov.uk/GenerateContent?CONTENT_ITEM_ID=777&CONTENT_ITEM_TYPE=0&MENU_ID=10080&EXPAND=10071 Fairbank K, Feuerwerker A and Twitchett C 1986 The Cambridge history of China Illustrated edition Published by Cambridge University Press Pa Chin, Shapiro S, and Tan-Chai L 2001 The family Published by Foreign Languages Press Xinzhong Y 2000 An introduction to Confucianism Illustrated edition Published by Cambridge University Press, Read More