从《喜福会》看中西方差异_英语论文

The Difference between the East and West in The Joy Luck Club 

摘要

喜福会是谭恩美的代表作，这部作品被广泛认为是研究东西方文化差异的重要作品之一，也因此常常被列为最具影响力和最伟大的作品之一。小说主要讲述四位移民母亲和她们美国女儿的故事。四位母亲在中国出生；成长；教育；她们很难忘记中国传统文化尽管她们现在生活在美国。她们希望女儿们有耐心，听话会服从听命父母，完成她们未能完成的目标。但她们的女儿是土生土长的地道美国人，她们强调独立自主自强。由于东西方文化的差异，中国母亲和美国女儿之间有了误解和矛盾。

本论文从小说《喜福会》中四位东方移民母亲及其女儿的故事出发，重点分析东西方在以下几个方面：婚姻态度、教育理念、家庭成员关系、性格特征方面存在的差异性，探求产生这种差异的原因，旨在揭示中西方在文化方面冲突和融合。

关键词：文化差异；喜福会；东西方

Abstract

The Joy Luck Club is Amy Tan’s magnum opus, is widely considered to be one of the most significant works to study the cultural difference between the east and west, and it is thus often included on the list of the most influential or greatest books. The novel mainly tells the story about four immigrant mother and their American-born daughters. Four mothers are born, raised and educated in China, so they can hardly forget their traditional cultures although they are in America. They hope their daughters have patience, submission and be obedient and can complete the goal they can not realize. But their American daughter  emphasize independence and self realization and want to strive on their own. Due to the difference between the East and West, American-born daughters and their immigrant mothers have misunderstanding and conflict. 

This thesis begins with the story of four Chinese immigrant mothers and their American daughters in The Joy Luck Club. The paper will mainly analyze the difference between the east and west in the following aspects: attitudes towards marriage; educational philosophy; characters difference and finally explore the reasons for this difference. It aims to reveal the cultural conflicts and integration between the east and west.

Keywords:  cultural difference; The Joy Luck Club; east and west

Contents

1. Introduction 1

2. Literature Review 1

2.1 Amy Tan and the work The Joy Luck Club 1

2.2 Relevant researches on The Joy Luck Club 2

3. Differences of the West and East 3

3.1 Attitudes differences towards marriage 3

3.2 Attitudes differences towards education 3

3.3 Relationship differences among family members 5

3.4 Character differences between the East and West 7

4. Reasons for the Differences 9

4.1 Educational reasons 9

4.2 Cultural reasons 9

4.3 Economical reasons 10

5. Conclusion 10

Works Cited 12