Westernization of Chinese People. Literature & Language Assignment.

Westernization of Chinese People
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Culture is broadly defined as a way of life for a certain group of people. Therefore, culture dictates the various aspects of life including food, clothes, entertainment, religion, language, and other personal identity traits. The Chinese culture is one of the oldest in the world dating back thousands of years. The Chinese people have embraced their culture and often carry their cultural practices where they go. The interaction between the West and China has been long which has resulted to change of cultures between the two (Affairs et al., n.d.). However, Due to the influence of western culture on the world, some Chinese people living in Western countries have adopted the Western culture due to the extensive exposure. Therefore, some aspects of Western culture such as education system, religion, festivals, and food have been adopted by the Chinese people and are practicing them.
China has one of the most traditional forms of education systems in the world, yet its modern form is greatly influenced by different western educational systems (Niu, 2007). Shortly after the Cultural Revolution ended in the late 1970s, the Republic of China opened doors to the western world. This action led to thousands of students and scholars entering China. The introduction of the foreign education system from the west led to more than 60,000 Chinese students going abroad to further their studies in 1998. The majority of Chinese students went to the United States as others went to the other European countries. Chinese education encourages obedience and memorization as the only two things that matter (Affairs et al., n.d.). However, with the introduction of western education into the Chinese system, there have been drastic improvements where students are encouraged not just to memorize but to learn and become pro-active thinkers who can initiate new and constructive ideas.
The Chinese religion was mainly divided into three; Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. These coherent systems of religion of the Chinese people are still in application to some majority members who still practice the three forms of worship. Besides, people’s allegiance to various religions and worshipping communities was not opposed in the modern world until the discovery of Christianity as the modern religion from the westerners. The most common form of worshipping was with a temple dedicated to a local saint (Goossaert, 2005). This form of worship was not among the Chinese religions of Buddhist, Confucian, or Taoist, but rather a link of the three. The introduction of Christianity by the westerners was not restricted, rather it was considered as a powerful ideological tool that was used to shape and motivate some of policies that existed in China. Chinese intellectuals who adopt...