[i习作temp] Issue207 =美丽G程小组=小组第2次作业 by petric [复制链接]

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电梯直达

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发表于 2009-11-23 23:25:36 |只看该作者 |倒序浏览

本帖最后由 petric 于 2009-11-24 23:14 编辑

Issue 207
Rituals and ceremonies help define a culture. Without them, societies or groups of people have a diminished sense of whom they are.
1.礼节和典礼确实有助于定义一个文化
2.但是礼节和典礼并不是唯一的定义文化的方面，因此也不会因为没有这些，社会和团体就会逐渐迷失自我，因为还有很多其他的方面，比如：穿着，语言，习惯，艺术等等
3.此外，有些礼节和典礼可能是不太好的方面，应该逐渐被取代，有时候这些礼节的消失不会不会让社会和团体迷失自己，反而还代表着社会的一种进步。
I agree with the speaker insofar as rituals and ceremonies are somehow in favor of further acknowledge the spirit of a nation，since they are concentration of value and willingness, from which culture is better defined. However, even some of them are forsaken by new generalization, people’s feeling about identity and pride of their nations will not fade easily.

Rituals and ceremonies play a role as a culture reminder to reflect their unique and prosperous culture and civilization. That is the reason why Chinese Constitution rescheduled holidays, adding up several for Chinese tradition Festivals in order to have the young generations be familiar with the history and Chinese culture, not just celebrate some Western holidays while forsaking their own. Although we people have right to choose beliefs, whether to be homogenized by viewpoints of other civilization, at the same time, culture and civilization invasion will have a negative effect-- threatening the independence and integrity of culture. In fact, globalization prompts this procedure, spreads, and maximizes the invading beliefs. Gradually, the original culture and civilization will be substituted, diminished even lost. Taking the Second World War as an example, the Japanese intruder brought not only massacre to Chinese innocent people, but forced the young to speak Japanese, to learn Japanese rituals and ceremonies instead of their own. The ambition was apparent--to take the Chinese as their slaves, not only to seize their bodies but most importantly, to dominate their ideas to obey the Nazism. Thus in order to be far away from assimilation and to distinguish with each other, people often try hard to protect their own rituals and ceremonies, not just for fun, but in a long run, for identity of their nations.

However, other forms to identify people's identity still exist besides rituals and ceremonies, not as what the author asserts to be the only methods. Evidentially, language along with its different presenting forms- poetry, songs, tales, paintings, architecture, sculptures and so on are the messengers to deliver civilization and culture. Although rituals and ceremonies are the focuses of people's attention, much formally to act, they are actually the derivations of stories in history, not quite familiar for current generations who are more rebellious to challenge the precedence. Nevertheless, classical songs such as Blues, which style was firstly created by the black in remembrance of their ancestors and miserable lives as slaves in depression with a low voice, pass down so successfully and deep into every heart as whoever appreciates the style, will share the same spirits of the tradition.

On the other hand, not every ritual and ceremony is effective to better acknowledge a people's identity and spirituality, since more or less, there are some negative factors against humanity and prohibiting the development of civilization. Superstition delivered in some rituals and ceremonies covers a mysterious atmosphere to certain nature phenomena without the explanation of science and technology. Moreover, religious believes severely punished people who cast doubt on their authorities in the Medieval in any form which was set for consolidating their rules and power. For example, barbaric rituals such as burial servants and beloved treasure and people alive with the dead emperor still existed in Qing Dynasty in China. Widows who sought for another marriage should be killed but men can remarry without any control. These absurd, inhuman but real rituals may still have some influences on illiterate people in the countryside. Admittedly, all the civilizations leave us a mirror, from which we can take into a sight of history and be proud of the feeling of identity. Yet, not all of them are the treasures which should be remained and passed down. They should evolve, with the positive part to be kept otherwise abandoned without any hesitation. From this point of view, the diminishing of certain rituals and ceremonies, on the contrary, will not have people themselves lost, but better help them get rid of the defects from the elites.
In sum, we cannot live without rituals and ceremonies which provide precious resource for us to learn where we came from; we cannot leave rituals and ceremonies to the corner of old memories, since without them a civilization will be easily assimilated in globalization murdering cultural variability. Nevertheless, they should not keep still but evolve to meet human’s need. If they are blocking stones to prevent culture optimization and in danger of diminishing, then let it be.