"Rituals and ceremonies help define a culture. Without them, societies or groups of people have a diminished sense of who they are."
I strongly agree that rituals and ceremonies take an essential role in human culture history, which especially have a basic function in congealing heritages into a distinct culture. However, in this assertion, the speaker neglect other significant factors, such as arts, in retaining an intense sense of identity.
Various kinds of rituals have always been constituent elements of culture history, no matter in the past or the present. They include not only the adoring ceremonies oraganized by religions and cults, as sacraments of Catholic, but also the social rites involving Halloween parties, sports events, marriages and funerals, and so forth.
Not counting the sacred dimension of worship and esteem, rituals operate effectivly to construct and consolidate the shared moral, value, and beliefs of a society. Take Greek as an example, Greeks did not own their uniform ethnic designation in the early tribal era. But in 5th century B.C, the Greek completed the transition to the cultural community, Olympus Gods for their common belief system. Plentiful ceremonies to adore gods like Zeus, Athena, Dionysus come dowm, including the Olympic Games. The original purpose of the Olympic Games, a world-famous symbol of understanding, friendship, solidarity and Olympic spirit of fair competition today, was for honoring Zeus by ancient Greeks. And it rejected aliens to participate. But as long as someone be allowed to attend this competiton, it means an admission to the identity of Greek.
Besides, Ancient rituals like this, did not only reflect and reinforce the sense of cultural identity, but also assist molding modern rites, vote procedure today for instance. Ostracism is one of the previous rituals of vote procedure, settled under the Athenian democracy in which any citizen could be exciled from Athens for ten years by Athenians' vote, though crude but undeniably the primal conformation of vote procedure. The Ostracism was contrived to defuse confrontations that threatened the order of the State, which every Athenians voted the exiles they wish to discipline by pieces of potteries. And till now, Greek ballot for their favorite candidate for President after several eras, which benefits from the spirit of the Ostracism. In brief, it is a truth universally acknowledged that rituals and ceremonies aid in distinguishing their culture from others in the past, recent and even in the future.
Furthermore, I would like to analyze the functions of rituals and ceremonies so as to unclose the magic of the rites and interpret briefly how they effect the cultural identity.
Firstly, rituals and ceremonies provide distinction and prestiage to social members, like a ceremonial bestowal of knightwood describes a debut of new knight. Knight the honor was so particular as only the descendants of knights eligible for this reward, though other young men could indeed become knights, which was nearly impossible. As long as these young men were permitted to be knights, their social status would be respectful permanently. Therefore, ceremonies not only officialize social status, but also demonstrate distinctiveness. On the contrary, the lack of these ceremonies bring social members lost and even others' criticism.
Secondly, the reason for rituals and ceremonies is that as social members accomplish a unique goal, they deserve to high treasure and attentions. The more luxury and complicated the rituals and ceremonies are, the more respect social members pay. Like coronation of the king, which reveal the church's acception, emphasize the divine right of kings ordaining by God. In short, once the ceremony is held, it often means that some of the results or consequences set out a course.
Thus the significance of rituals and ceremonies for cultural identity cannot be overlooked since the rites have these particular phychological and social functions.
However, rituals and ceremonies are not the sole way of preserving cultural identity. Beyond that, art is the other mean to define a culture and establish its identity. Art, such as poems, paintings, music, etc., has been served as a vehicle for representation of ethos, emotions, religious events, epic heros, and so on. Liberty Leading the People, for example, in which Delacroix painted for commemorating the July Revolution of 1830, figured French people the freedom fighters. Whenever and wherever French people recall this painting, they will perceive not only the sense of ethnic identity, but also the feeling of national pride, which making them have a diminished sense of whom they are. Concisely, the weightiness of art in preserving cultural identity cannot be neglected even though rituals and ceremonies also benefits the ethnic identity.
In sum, in order to constitue and maintain the cultural identity, adherence to both elements,rites and arts, is the key to acknowledge who they are and where they go.作者: maraschino1985 时间: 2010-7-8 00:18:12
本帖最后由 maraschino1985 于 2010-7-8 00:19 编辑
7月6日 ISSUE 70
"In any profession--business, politics, education, government--those in
power should step down after five years. The surest path to success for any
enterprise is revitalization through new leadership."
How to be the qualified leaders in the age of information explosion to
assist the enterprises surivive or even succeed? It is a great challenge,
which is a truth universally acknowledge, for any person to grab the trend
of information and guide the enterprise to prosperity. So chose an
appropriat bellwether, who is inspirational, creative, experienced, and so
forth, should be really conscientious, rather than elect the new-blood
without evaluation based on fact.
However, the speaker's assertion that after certain years the senior
bellwethers should abdicate and the new leadership will assure the success
of a enterprise, is reasonalbe, insofar as these situations mentioned
behind.
First is that the senior bellwethers tend to abuse their power. There exist
the possibility that the senior bellwethers misusing their privilege as they
have no fear of losing their power. Even once senior bellwethers exert power
long enough, they will probably form a cabal for conspiracies, which may
ruin the enterprises' profits. Take Joseph Stalin, the autocrat of the
Soviet Union, as an example. During the Great Terror of the 1930s, Stalin
disposed his enemies by the name of "enemies of the people", resulting in
the execution of thousands and the the exile of millions to the gulag system
of slave labour camps. In sum, if an abusive senior bellwether abdicates
earlier, there will be no damages to the enterprise and its members.
Secondly, if the senior bellwethers have physical, mental or phychological
incapability in leading and inspiring the enterprise to conquer new
battlefield. The era of exploding information leave the senior bellwethers
thousands of information to deal with, which requires efficient long-time
working under enormous pressure. The longer bellwethers' terms extend, the
more pressure they have, and the less benefits their physical, mental and
phycological situation. Thus if the pressure weigh the senior bellwethers
down, even drain their crativity and enthusiasm for work, indeed they should
step down.
Except the situations before mentioned, expeling an senior bellwether frome
the leading state just because he have been in charge for five years? That
is ridiculous. Since when the longevity of leadership becomes rational
excuse for demanding to someone's abdicate? On the other hand, not every
senior leaders who takes in charge over five years should be removed, as
long as he obtains wealth of experience in the pofessional area, or the area
necessitates stable strategies provided by stable leadership.
To some extent, which kind of leadership an enterprise or a field needs
depends on many considerations, such as the nature of business, the stage of
development, the political policy, and so forth. A five years may be long
enough for a freshman to graduate from college, but not enough for vibrating
a certain industry or a developing enterprise. Some industries need steady
leadership for stable policies and financial support, such as heavy or light
industry. China Business Weekly once interviewed a Chinese government
minister in charge of textile industry, and he said that the stable
leadership play the crucial role in taxtile development,which guarantee the
steady policies textile companies hightlight. Furthermore, some certain
professional fields cannot prosper with bellwethers obtaining little
experience or social network, for instance, law firms or public relations
companies. Usually, the senior bellwethers always owns more experiences than
the new ones about how to accumulate immense fortune and how to operate
enterprises normally. Especially when enterprises fall in a quandary or face
unpredictable conditions, they conduct enterprises out of dilemma by
absorbing the assistance of erstwhile experiences or social connections. In
brief, without full-scale evaluation about the enterprises and the concrete
person, I mean the senior bellwether, deposing a leader with rich experience
and rich resources would potentially harm the enterprises.
So far, an apparent bifurcation comes, one senior bellwether and one new
bellwether bringing new fresh, blood and ideas. Abandon any side would not
be perfect, which means using the experience and social network of the olds
to fetch up the news' absense, and combining with the inspiration of the
news' is definitely a good access. Besides, labor unions or supervision
organs will support preventing abuse of power, and concils will assist
bellwethers with business.
There is an aphorism said," Noblesse Oblige", which means with wealth, power
and prestige come responsibilities. Neither should the senior nor the new
bellwethers forget this. Whoever incompetent for being a leader should step
down, but not by the reason of his five-years tenure. Finally a leader will
step down in any profession, but how and when to alter will be determinant
factors that influence the future of enterprise. Moreover, different
situations will suit different solutions, depending on the concrete analysis
of concrete problems.作者: maraschino1985 时间: 2010-7-9 23:24:14