The Chinese Way of Life
The Chinese Way of Life
The Chinese Way of Life
The Chinese Way of Life is quite unique and very different from that of
Western cultures in both Traditional and Modern China.
familites sometimes sold their daughter to be servants of the rich. Even in good
times, farmer kept little of their crops. Their work helped feed everyone else in
society. When crops failed because of drought or floods, farmers risked losing their
land.
In Northern China, the poor ate wheat noodles, steamed bread, and bean
curd. In the south, rice was the staple of the diet. Meals that included meat were
rare. The poor ate their food in small bowls. Along with their meals they drank green
tea. In the dry, colder north, the farmer's main crops were millet, wheat, and barley.
In the warmer, wetter south, farmers grew rice in flooded fields called paddies.
While a rich person's house was often made of wood with a tiled roof, the
poor made do with mud and straw. A sunken pit in the center of the house held a
heating and cooking fire. Many built their houses partially underground to keep
them warmer in the winter.
Workers did not have to worry about getting enough exercise. With few tools
to help them with their chores, they did most jobs by hand or by foot. Some spent
long hours pushing pedals which turned a large wheel that brought water up a
wooden channel and into the fields.
As for clothing, women wore simple wool garments in winter and cotton in
summer. They never wore silk. Peasant men wore baggy pants made of hemp with a
loose cotton shirt. Both wore shoes made of straw. Once children were old enought
to walk, they wore child-size versions of their parents' clothes.
Traditional Values
Family life has always been extremely important to Chinese culture as
Chinese lived in large family units. As many as 100 or more relatives lived together
under the rule of the oldest male. The ideal was "five generations under one roof."
However, those who lived this way were mainly families of rich rural landowners,
wealthy merchants, and government officials. Among the common people, most
households consisted of only parents and children, but some also included
grandparents and uncles.
Chinese families traditionally valued sons far more than daughters. A
husband could divorce his wife if she failed to give birth to sons. In some cases,
daughters were killed at birth because they were considered useless, for females
could not continue the family name. Only men were expected to work outside the
home as wives stayed home to do housework, cook, and attend to the children.
Relationships within families were extremely formal in Traditional China. Family
honor was emphasized greatly as members of the family, especially of the younger
generation, were expected to "know their place" in society and to give the family
name a good reputation. Parents also expected their children to show unquestioning
obedience. A father could legally kill his children if they disobeyed him. Marriages
were arranged by parents, much of which were decided when the children were
infants. Most brides and grooms did not see or know each other until the wedding
day.
areas. Any couple today would at least consult their parents about such a major
decision.