传统美圣诞节和中汉族春节的比较
摘要：圣诞节是美国最重要的节日,而春节是中国最重要的节日,它们都有着深厚的历史文化内涵,同事又代表了人们的期望与希冀.本文从它们的起源,庆祝方式比较了春节和圣诞节的异同,指出了两者的共同点.同时值得注意的是现在越来越多的人庆祝圣诞节,而忽视了春节,我们应该重视这个问题,以免传统节日的淡化.
关键词：春节 圣诞节 异同 比较
1.引言
圣诞节与春节是不同民族、不同文化的产物, 两者都在那寒冷的季节里创造了一种温馨气氛, 在辞旧迎新中寄托着感恩和希望.本文就两个节日的来源、庆祝方式进行了对比,比较了两种节日的异同.
2．起源
2.1圣诞节的起源
12 月25 日的圣诞节是一个令人快乐的宗教性节日, 是基督徒庆祝基督教创始人基督出生的日子,爱、家庭和归属感是重要的主题.据基督教徒的圣书《圣经》上说,上帝决定让他的独生子耶稣基督投胎人间,在人间生活,以便人们能更好地了解上帝,学习热爱上帝和更好地相互热爱.耶稣出生的具体日期已不得而知.早期的罗马日历（公元336 年）把圣诞节定在了12 月25 日,这是首次提到的耶稣出生的特殊日子.到了12 世纪圣诞节成为基督教最重要的庆典, 他开始成为一项严肃的宗教庆典,后来非宗教性质的装饰、赠送礼品,盛宴开始流行[1].
2.2春节的起源
春节大约有四千多年的历史.把农历正月初一定为春节只是从1913年才开始的.春节是一年中最热闹、最隆重的传统节日.春节又称“年”.传说太古时代有一个叫“年”的怪兽,头上长着触角,凶残无比,每到寒气将尽,新春快来之时,就要出来残害人畜,毁坏家园.人们为了防御它,就聚到一起,利用“年’,泊红怕响的特点,用贴“桃符”(春联),“爆竹”的办法把它吓走.长期以来习以为俗.并且每逢春节,人们总对新的一年寄托着无限的希望.
3.庆祝方式
圣诞节和春节在庆祝方式上的一个共同点,就是两者持续时间都比较长.圣诞节节期虽然在12月25 日和1月6日之间,但一般来说,Christmas season从感恩节后就开始了,一直持续到1月份.从广义上看,春节从腊八就初露端倪,腊月二十三就已经进入日程,一直持续到正月十五元宵节,有的地方还要庆祝正月二十五填仓节和二月初二,来祈求一年风调雨顺,五谷丰登.虽然两个节日都要持续一个多月,但由于文化习俗的差异,春节和圣诞节的庆祝方式上,各有特点.
3.1圣诞节的庆祝方式
圣诞节在西方是一个非常重要的节日,和春节一样,各地都有自己独特的庆祝方式.一般来说,在圣诞节时,人们要装扮圣诞树,互赠圣诞卡,吃圣诞大餐,给小孩子送圣诞礼物.
圣诞树一般是用杉柏之类的常绿树做成,象征生命长存.树上装饰着各种灯烛、彩花、玩具、星星,挂上各种圣诞礼物.圣诞之夜,人们围着圣诞树唱歌跳舞,尽情欢乐.
圣诞卡是祝贺圣诞及新年的贺卡,上面印着关于耶稣降生故事的图画,以及“庆祝圣诞”、“新年快乐”之类祝愿的话.
正像中国人过春节吃年饭一样,欧美人过圣诞节也很注重全家人围坐在圣诞树下,共进节日美餐.圣诞大餐吃火鸡的习俗始于1620年.这种风俗盛于美国.英国人的圣诞大餐是烤鹅,而非火鸡.奥大利人爱在平安夜里,全家老小约上亲友成群结队地到餐馆去吃一顿圣诞大餐,其中,火鸡、腊鸡、烧牛仔肉和猪腿必不可少,同时伴以名酒,吃得大家欢天喜地.
小孩子们最期盼的就是圣诞老人带来的礼物了.据说圣诞老人原是小亚细亚每拉城的主教,名叫圣尼古拉,死后被尊为圣徒,是一位身穿红袍、头戴红帽的白胡子老头.每年圣诞节他驾着鹿拉的雪橇从北方面来,由烟囱进入各家,把圣诞礼物装在袜子里挂在孩子们的床头上或火炉前.所以,西方人过圣诞节时,父母把给孩子的圣诞礼物装在袜子里,圣诞夜时挂在孩子们的床头上.第二天,孩子们醒来后的第一件事就是在床头上寻找圣诞老人送来的礼物.
3.2春节的庆祝方式
燃放鞭炮的传统源于一个叫“年”的怪兽.这个怪兽青面獠牙,非常可怕.每到腊月三十晚上就要窜到各个村庄,残害生灵.有一次三十晚上“年”跑到一个村庄,恰逢两个孩童正在燃放爆竹,“年” 不知其为何物, 只听到噼里啪啦的响声,看见刺眼的亮光,于是吓得落荒而逃.人们由此摸清了“年”怕爆竹的亮光和响声的弱点,每到腊月三十都要燃放鞭炮, 后来逐渐演化成一种习俗[2].
贴春联、换门神是过春节的一个重要习俗.每到大年三十,无论城乡,家家户户都要张贴红纸春联和威武的门神,春联、门神是用来辟除不祥和保护一家安全的,它们源远流长.
一年中最重要的一顿饭就是年夜饭了,又叫团圆饭.尽管各地的年夜饭的菜品不尽相同,但各菜都有一定的寓意,如鸡谐音“吉”,即吉祥如意；鱼谐音“余”,即年年有余；豆腐谐音“斗富”,即丰裕富足；年糕象征“一年比一年高”；杏仁象征“幸福人”；饺子谐音“交子”,即更岁交子之意,饺子馅也五花八门,有的加入糖块、花生等,吃到糖则寓意生活甜如蜜,吃到花生则表示长生不老[3].
正月初一,新年来到,人们开门燃放炮竹,俗称“开门炮”.吃过早饭,人们要相互拜年、祝福,共贺新春.拜年的通常顺序是：先拜天地,次拜祖先,再拜高堂尊长,然后全家按照尊卑长幼顺序相互拜,最后出门拜.随着电话、网络和手机的普及,人们给亲戚朋友拜年可以打电话,发e-mail,近些年来更是兴起了手机短信拜年的新形势.
4.圣诞节与春节的相同之处
春节与圣诞两者不同的起源和庆祝方式,作为各自节日文化中的领军,春节与圣诞有着相同的地方.节日文化不仅是展现一个民族文化生活图景的窗口,更是一种象征和意义的体系[4],这就是对幸福的企盼,对仁爱的向往和对未来的祝福.
5.圣诞节的盛行,春节的淡化
城市里,校园间,圣诞节的气氛越来越浓.舶来的“洋节”是否会取代中国传统的春节呢? 春节是中国传统节日之根,不论圣诞节有多么盛大,作为东方人的中国人归根到底还是离不开春节的.年轻人和商家的行为对于圣诞节来说只是一个借口而已.过圣诞节的大多不会在家里过,而是呼朋唤友去到酒店餐馆里过,也没有外国人那么多繁琐的仪式.就是找个惜口吃喝玩乐一番罢了.而且很多人连吃喝玩乐都不屑,只是跟风似地说一声“圣诞快乐”,这样的一股风,当然成不了什么气候.
Reflection
From a semester of learning about communication between cultures,now I know an important aspect of communication is the level of context in which the message is passed. Linguists and anthropologists use the terms 'high' and 'low' context to indicate how much information is required for successful communication. High-context communication is one in which most of the information is either in the physical context or internalized in the person, while very little of the message is actually in words . Couples often can communicate with a look, or a nod of the head at most. Low-context communication is just the opposite: most of the information is verbalized. Twins who have grown up together can and do communicate more economically (high context) than can opposing lawyers in a courtroom during a trial (low-context).
In the Far East, high-context communication is much more common than in North America. This can lead to serious misunderstanding. A businessman was invited to lunch with a Japanese friend atop one of Tokyo's new skyscrapers with all of the city spread out below them. The Japanese host chose the occasion to give an overview of some of the sticky points in US- Japanese relations. In his own way, indirect but very clear, he said there were certain things that the Americans had missed in Japanese culture. For the Japanese to show anger is tantamount to admitting loss of control (and face), unless, of course, things have gone too far. No warning signs are given and Westerners as well as Europeans will unconsciously push and push - looking for structure, pattern, and limits. Because they are unfamiliar with the system, they will go too far. With the Japanese culture, one must make haste slowly and engage the most skilful, subtle interpreter of the culture you can find.
The greater the cultural distance, the more difficult the interface. An example of easy-to-interface communication would be Germany and Switzerland. The cultural distance in this case is not great since both cultures are low context as well as monochronic, a concept discussed in the following section. A difficult-to-interface communication would be France and the United States. If you're communicating with a German, remember they are low-context and will need lots of information and details. If you're communicating with someone from France, they are high-context and won't require as much information.
Context is the information that surrounds an event; it is inextricably bound up with the meaning of that event. The elements that combine to produce a given meaning -- events and context -- are in different proportions depending on the culture. The cultures of the worlds can be compared on a scale from high to low context .
Japanese, Arabs and Mediterranean peoples, who have extensive information networks among family, friends, colleagues and clients and who are involved in close personal relations are high-context. As a result, for most normal transactions in family life they do not require, nor do they expect, much in- depth background information. This is because they keep themselves informed about everything having to do with the people who are important in their lives.
Low-context people include Americans, Germans, Swiss, Scandinavians and other northern Europeans. They compartmentalize their personal relationships, their work, and many aspects of day-to-day life. Consequently, each time they interact with others they need detailed background information. The French are much higher on the context scale than either the Germans or the Americans. This difference can affect virtually every situation and every relationship in which the members of these two opposite traditions find themselves.
"Contexting" performs multiple functions. For example, any shift in the level of context is a communication. The shift can be up the scale, indicating a warming of the relationship, or down the scale communicating coolness or displeasure--signalling something has gone wrong with a relationship.
High context people are apt to become impatient and irritated when low- context people insist on giving them information they don't need. Conversely, low-context people are at a loss when high- context people do not provide enough information. One of the great communication challenges in life is to find the appropriate level of contexting needed in each situation. Too much information leads people to feel they are being talked down to; too little information can mystify them or make them feel left out. Ordinarily, people make these adjustments automatically in their own country, but in other countries their messages frequently miss the target.
Americans, to some extent, and Germans, to a greater extent, rely heavily on auditory screening, particularly when they want to concentrate. High-context people reject auditory screening and thrive on being open to interruptions and in tune with what goes on around them. French and Italian cities periodically bombard you with noise但好像回答中的英文部分与中文不太对应的样子……英文是错的吧？唉，请你修改修改，谢谢……