2024年4月1日发(作者：)

英语畅谈中国文化50主题 第13章 The Importance of Chopsticks

筷子的重要性

A: In the 17th century, when a British businessman heard that there were 100 million

people in China, he was determined to go there and sell spoons. He thought, even

if a spoon would only sell for one penny, he would still make 100 million pennies,

but he didn’t succeed. The Chinese people used chopsticks, not spoons.

B: Some people did some research on the origin of China’s chopsticks compared to

the knife and fork in the West. One theory is that China was an agricultural society

and relied on vegetables for food. Chopsticks were very convenient tools for eating.

The Westerners, on the other hand, were nomads and lived on meat. The knife and fork

were more practical. Others believe that China did not have much industry, and

therefore people used chopsticks. The West was an industrial society, so their eating

utensils were made of metal.

A: Sounds interesting! When I first learned that the Chinese use a pair of sticks

to eat with, I was curious how they would drink soup. Just like the Indians who use

their fingers to eat, do they also use their fingers to drink soup?

B: Whatever the reasons why the Chinese use chopsticks and Westerners use knife and

fork, it is a result of their respective cultures. Chinese culture is developed

around collectivism which stresses communion and harmony. Western culture

emphasizes individualism. In terms of eating customs, chopsticks and knives and

forks are two desperate expressions of this cultural difference. The Chinese like

to have communal meals where everybody eats out of the same bowl of food. Chopsticks

were used in order to discourage people from eating more than others. This was not

only a good way to preserve collectiveness, but also to limit individualism. It is

more straightforward in the West. People eat their meals on their own, and there

is no restriction on how to eat.

A: That sounds quite reasonable.

B: In addition, table manners are very strict during the Chinese meal. Respect has

to be given to the elderly. Each time a dish is served, everyone has to wait until

the elder person starts or, “to cut the ribbon,” as it is now called. The Westerners

will simply say, “Help yourself,” to start. The food is brought to the table all

of the same time so everybody is on the same starting line. This lacks the warm

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atmosphere which prevails at a Chinese dinner.

A: This may be the reason why it is always very noisy at the Chinese dinner but quiet

in a Western restaurant.

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