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A Comparison Study on Chinese Values and American Values Abstract: In the increasingly wide range of cross-cultural communication activities, both sides of communication between different ethnic groups often feel a strong cultural conflict, such as verbal behavior, will show distinct cultural difference. But both the unique communication mode and a certain code of conduct would be subject to their own national values constraints and restrains, which also reflect the nature of the national value. As Profess or Hu Wenzhong once side: “The concept of the core values of culture and values are not created out of thin air, its emergence and development of historical and cultural traditions inseparable.” Okabe once pointed out that cultural value in the communication plays a vital role in the smooth communication depends on difference in cultural values of both the size of this gap as the difference in cross-cultural communication is often obvious. The values of people as disposable human brain, like speech acts, resulting in a variety of ethnic and cultural difference between the cognitive differences between the values of different nations, is to understand language, social and cultural difference, a necessary prerequisite for the final cross-cultural communication will be laid for the “communication” basis. So it is important to learn the different values between China and America, I will take some thing about it.Key words: China, America, different values1. IntroductionAs we all know, every country in the world has its discipline and laws to guarantee that its social system will function well, and we human beings also have to live under the restraint of these rules, while disciplines and laws cannot be the only element of a social system. Even though we share some general values such as hardworking, honest and loyalty, due to the different environment we live in, each country will have its featured values that are different from any other country. Take Chinese value and American value for example. Both of the two countries appreciate kindness, honest, diligence and some other nice value; however, they have many different values.Americans are very independent, for instance, parents in American family seldom interpose what their children are doing, they prefer to let their children develop themselves freely; on the contrary, and this kind of attitude would be regarded as irresponsible in Chinese society. Besides, American children choose tolive alone without their parents, while we Chinese usually enjoy living with parents or even grandparents in a big family. Americans usually respect other people’s privacy, even between friends they seldom ask” personal question” , such as age, salary and marital status. Yet when we Chinese have a chat, we usually want to have the idea about others’ personal information, which is considered impolite in America.Americans are more go-as-you-easy not only in dress or entertainment, but also in interpersonal communication, despite there maybe a sharp gab between the two people on their age or status. Nevertheless, we Chinese have been thought much about etiquette, we appreciate those who show courtesy in interaction, we are taught to respect the aged and cherish the young since we were children. If we call our parents’ or teachers’ na me instead of their real salutations like western people, we will be considered discourteous and disrespectful.We may be familiar with the situation where a leader or somebody like that in a meeting keeps saying that how many achievements they have achieved during the past years. This often happens in China since Chinese seem to be bound up with our” brilliant, admirable” past. But it will seldom take place in America, where people are usually future oriented. In America, people will not be satisfied with what they have got, instead, they tend to look forward and keep moving. No matter what may happen in the future, they just face it.In conclusion, since there are differences between Chinese and American value, we’d better realize their advantage and disad vantage. And we can adopt its good points and avoid its weak points, so that it may help us to be better men.2. Basic American values and AssumptionsHow does American culture differ from others? “Values” are ideas about what is right and wrong, desirable and undesirable, normal and abnormal, proper and improper. “Assumptions” here are the postulates, about people, life, and the way things are. Most people who grow up in a particular culture share certain values and assumption overlap and support each other. They fit tighter. A culture can be viewed as a collection of values and assumption that go together to shape the way a group of people perceive and relate to the world around them. American culture refers to the dominant patterns of thinking and behaving of mainstream Americans.The United States probably has a greater diversity of racial, ethnic, cultural, and religions groups meant that accepting diversity was the only practical choice. However, many Americans come to see strength in their country’s di versity and there is more recognition of the value of cultural diversity than at any other time in thehistory. The Declaration of Independence reflect Americans beliefs, “We hold these truths to be self-evidence, that all men are created equal, that are endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these are life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness”.The core American assumptions and values organized into form of activity, form of social relations, perception of self and the individual, etc. assumptions and values discussed in this part are the dominant and values commonly associated with the American middle class.2. 1 Individual Freedom and Self-RelianceThe belief in the freedom of the individual is probably the most basic and most strongly held of all American belief. The most important thing to understand about Americans is probably their devotion to “individualism”. They have been trained since very early in their lives to consider themselves as separate individuals who are responsible for their own situations in life and their own destines.The earliest settlers came to the North American continents to establish colonies that were free from the controls that existed in European societies. They wanted to escape the controls placed on their lives by kings and governments, priests and churches. To a great extent, they succeeded. In 1776 the British colonial settlers declared their independence from England and established a new nation, the United States of America. In doing so, they overthrow the original control and declared that the power to govern would lie in the hands of the people. In 1789, when they wrote the Constitution for their new nation, they separated Church and the state so that there would never be a government-supported church. This greatly limited the power of the church. Also, in writing the Constitution they expressly forbade titles of nobility to ensure that an aristocratic society would not develop. There would be no ruling class of noblemen in the new nation. The historic decisions made by those first settlers have had a profound effect on the shaping of the American character. By limiting the power of the government and the churches and eliminating a formal aristocracy, they created a climate of freedom where the emphasis was on the individual. The United States came to be associated in their minds with the concept of individual freedom. This is probably the most basic of all the American values.Perhaps the word “freedom” is one of the most respected popular w ords in the United States. By “freedom”, Americans mean the desire and the ability of all individuals control their own destiny without outside interference from the government, a ruling noble class, the church, all any other organized authority. Thedesire to be free of controls was a basic value of the new nation, and it has continued to attract immigrants to this country. We can see this in the way Americans treat their children. Even very young children are given opportunities to make their own choices and express their opinions: the child’s preference will normally be accommodated. Through this process, Americans come to see themselves as separate human beings who have their own opinions and who are responsible for their own decisions.However, there is a price to be paid for this individual freedom: self-reliance. Americans believe that individual must learn to rely on themselves of risk losing freedom. This means achieving both financial and emotional independence from their parents as early as possible. It means that Americans believe they should take care of themselves, solve their own problems, and stand on their own feet. They are apt to imagine that their whole destiny is in their own hands. This strong belief in self-reliance continues to today as a basic American value. Americans believe that they must be self-reliant in order to keep their freedom. If they rely too much on the support of their families, of the government or any organization, they may not be free to do what they want.Self-improvement and Self-help seem at the core of American ideology. Americans are trained to convince of themselves as separate individual, and they assume everyone else in the world is too. When they encounter a person from abroad who seems to them excessively concerned with the opinions of parents, with following traditions, or with fulfilling obligation to others, they assume that the person feels trapped or is weak, indecisive, or overly dependent. They assume all people must resent being in situations where, they are not free to make up their own minds. They resume that after living for a time in the United States people will come to feel liberated from constraints arising outside themselves and will be grateful for the opportunity to do their own thing and have their own way. It is this concept of themselves as individual decision makers that blinds at least some Americans to the fact that they have independently made up their own minds about the values and assumption they hold. Americans consider the ideal person to be an individualistic, self-reliant, independent person. Americans admire people who have overcome adverse circumstances and succeeded in life. The blind and deaf author and lecturer Helen Keller is an example.The individual that Americans idealize prefers an atmosphere of freedom, where neither the government nor any other external force of agency dictates what the individual does. For Americans, the idea of individual freedom has strong, positiveconnotations. Foreigners who understand the degree to which Americans are imbued with the nation that the free, self-reliant individual is the ideal kind of human being will be able to understand many aspects of American behavior and thinking.It is not unusual for Americans who are beyond the age of about twenty and who are still living with their parents to pay their parents for room and board. Elderly parents living with their grown children may do likewise. By being dependent, not only do they risk losing freedom, but they also risk losing the respect of their peers. Even if they are not truly self-reliant, most Americans believe they must at least appear to be so. In order to be in the mainstream of Americans life, individuals must be seen as self-reliant. Although receiving financial support from charity, family, all the government is allowed, it is never admired. Many people believe that such individuals are setting a bad example that may weaken the American character as a whole.2.2 Equality of opportunity and competitionEquality of opportunity and competition is another basic American value. Americans believe in the ideal, as stated in their Declaration of Independence, that” all men are created equal”. Although they sometimes violate the ideal in their daily lives, Americans have a deep faith that in some fundamental way all people are of equal value, that no one is born superior to anyone else. This is the second important reason why immigrants have traditionally been drawn to the United States, which is the belief that everyone has a chance to succeed in the United States. Generations of immigrants from the earliest settlers to the present day have come with this expectation. They have felt that because individuals are free from excessive political, religious, and social controls, they have a better chance for success. Particularly important is the lack of a hereditary aristocracy.Because titles of nobility were forbidden in the Constitution, no formal class system developed in the United States. In the early years of American history many immigrants chose to leave the older European societies, believing that they had a better chance to succeed in America than in “the old country”, where their place in life was determined largely by the social class into which they were born. They knew that in America they would not have to live among noble families who possessed great power and wealth inherited and accumulated over hundreds of years. The hopes of many of these immigrants were fulfilled in their new country. The low social class into which many were born did not prevent then from wishing to a higher social position. Many found that they did indeed have compete with others. If every personhas an equal chance to succeed in the United Stated., then it is every person’s duty to try. Americans match their energy and intelligence against that of their neighbors in a competitive contest for success.The pressure to compete cause an American to be energetic, but it also places a constant emotional strain on him. When he retires at age sixty-five, he is at last free from the pressures of competition. But then a new problem arises. He tends to feel useless and wanted in a society that gives so much prestige to those who compete well. This is one reason why older people in the United States do not have as much honor and respect as they have in other less competitive societies. In fact, any person who does not compete successfully for whatever reason does not fit into the mainstream of American life as well as those who do.2.3Material wealth and Hard WorkA main reason that immigrants have come to the United States is to have a better life. That is, people wanted to raise their standard of living. For the vast majority of the immigrants who come here, it was probably the most compelling reason for leaving their homeland. Because of its incredibly abundant natural resources, the United States appeared to be a” land of plenty” where millions could come to seek their fortunes. Of course, most immigrants did not get rich overnight, and many of them suffered terribly, but the majority of them were eventually able to improve upon their former standard of living. Even if they were not able to achieve the economic success they wanted, they could be fairly certain that their children would have the opportunity for a better life.” Going from rags” became a slogan for the great American dream. The dream come true for many of the immigrants. They achieved material success; they became very attached to material things. Material wealth became a value to the American people.Placing a high value on material possession is called “materialism”. Americans are often criticized for being so “materialistic” so concerned with acquiring possession. Americans do not like to be called materialistic because they feel that this unfairly accuses them of loving only material things and of having no religions values. In fact, Americans do that is hard work. The North American continent was rich in natural resources when the first settlers arrived, but all these resources were undeveloped. Only by hard work could these natural resources be converted into material possession and a comfortable standard of living. Hard work has been both necessary and rewarding for most American throughout their history. Because of this, they have come to see material possession as the natural reward for their hard work.In some ways, material possessions are seen not only as tangible evidence of people’s work, but also of their abilities. The difference in material possession reflected a difference in personal abilities. Most Americans believe that if a person works hard, it is possible to have a good standard of living. Over 90% of young Americans think they will achieve what they want in life, and almost eight out of ten think they can get what they want through hard work. They have been taught that it is a good thing to work hard and acquire more material badges of their success, and that means a better future for them.3. ConclusionDiscussion of these points is from the different values of Chinese and America; we can not forget a very important question: the characteristics of each nation have its leading side and revealed some different phenomenon in the same time. The traditional values and moral are still the main characteristic, especially in the vast rural areas, people still urgent need to improve the living condition, and the media need should be strengthened, their openness of the degree of awareness in people’s mind and ideas is also not deep enough, the basic of the cultural level need further increase, so the knowledge of many things still remain in the original level, and it is different to achieve lots of things in the object and comprehensive degree.。