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毕业论文网 > 开题报告 > 文学教育类 > 英语 > 正文

A Cross-cultural Analysis of Chinese and Western Heroism-Based on Jean Christopher 跨文化视角下的中西方英雄主义研究-以《约翰 克里斯朵夫》为例开题报告

 2020-04-18 20:02:50  

1. 研究目的与意义(文献综述包含参考文献)

introduction 1.1research background jean christopher created by the french writer romain rolland in his novel jean christopher is an immortal image in the literary world. he is a hero who boasts inspiring striving spirit and moral power and embodies the author#8217;s dreams and hope. the heroism reflected by jean christopher is profound and multi-faceted. his criticism of the old world and unswerving pursuit of dreams radiate with fresh ideas and consciousness, giving people a deeper understanding of life. as a common cultural phenomenon, heroism closely connects its generation and evolution with a certain historical and cultural background. being two kinds of different culturals, the eastern and western worlds have their own interpretation of heroism, reflecting their own cultural traits. jean christopher is an epitome of western heroism, conforming to the mainstream ideology and values in the western world. 1.2research purpose heroism is an eternal theme of film and television works and literary works in the east and west. all these artistic works have created numerous famous and popular heroes. however, the characteristics and manifestation of heroism are different in eastern and western values. based on jean christopher, this article aims to summarize traits and connotations of heroism in east and west respectively by comparing and analyzing the classic heroes in literature. furthermore, the author of this essay tries to explore the reasons for differences in heroism in order to strengthen people#8217;s understanding of different cultures. 1.3structure of the thesis this thesis is divided into five parts. the first part serves as a general introduction where research background, research purpose and structure of the thesis are included. part two is a review of literature which explains the main content of jean christopher, heroism, the cross-cultural theory and previous researches at home and abroad concerning this topic. the third part is a cross-cultural analysis of heroism based on this novel which contains differences and similarities. part four mainly deals with the reasons which cause the differences and similarities in the interpretation of heroism in the east and west. the last part is the conclusion part, which summarizes the major findings and provides suggestions for further studies. literature review this chapter consists of three sections. section 2.1 summarizes the main content of the book jean christopher. section 2.2 gives an overview of heroism and the cross-cultural theory . and section 2.3 focuses on previous researches at home and abroad. 2.1 overview of jean christopher jean christopher, written by french writer romain rolland(1866-1944), was the winner of noble prize for literature in 1915. romain rolland, a french thinker, critical realistic writer, music critic and social activist, has struggled unyieldingly for freedom and democracy throughout his whole life and thus he is regarded as a famous humanitarian writer in the first half of the 20th century. the most distinctive characteristic of his novels is summarized as ” writing novels with music”. the main character in this book is jean christopher who stuggled to pursue his musical dreams in a vulgar world despite all the obstacles. he was deeply influenced by his family and crazily loved music later. after experiencing the failure of love and career, he still didn#8217;t give up his dreams. he perseveringly criticized the hypocrisy of musicians at that time and insisted on his own artistic creation. in this novel, jean christopher was a civilian artist with firm determination to pursue art, civilization and progress, which gave him a spirit of rebellion and heroism. in his childhood, jean christopher was forced painfully by his father to study piano and music, but this process honed his will to cultivate on a regular basis his ability to adapt to the changing environment, overcome intractable difficulties and stick to his faith. however, jean christopher#8217;s social status made him feel that he was nobler than civilians, rooting a petty bourgeois sentiment in his heart. on one hand, he hoped that the capitalist system could bring further development to europe. on the other hand, he still harbored illusions about the feudal ruling class. at the same time, he ignored and despised the demand of people, and was even tired of the struggle of people when he was in his old age. all of these features made jean christopher a paradox. in fact, he was the most authentic depiction of intellectuals with democratic ideas in social struggles. and the rebellion, vacillation and disillusionment in the depth of his heart were inevitable. to sum up, romain rolland has shown the pursuit, depression and comedown of the democratic intellectuals, and reflected bourgeois humanitarianism, idealism, heroism, and sense of the strong. 2.2 overview of heroism and the cross-cultural theory 2.2.1 heroism heroes are promoters and builders of history, and heroism is an important part of national culture and spirit. each step forward in world history is closely related to heroes and heroism(liu ting, 2018). heroism is a value judgment at the ideological level gradually developed in the human society in the process from barbarism to civilization. it represents the most lofty and most perfect pursuit in a particular period of time. heroism has distinct national characteristics, a strong sense of history, sense of the times and the power of personality. it is the highest form of the overall thinking of social groups during a period of time. heroism is characterized by proactive, tenacious, and self-sacrificing spirits and behaviors that are demonstrated to accomplish missions of great significance. heroism must be embodied in specific events and characters, but the core of its value can surely transcend history, time and space with eternal charm. heroism has two different types: collective heroism and individual heroism(li jie, 2017). collective heroism is the most distinct in chinese culture. compared with people in western countries, chinese people have interpreted heroism in a totally different way since ancient times. it is the imperial authority but not the religion that has dominated the long-standing feudal system in china. as a result, the heroism, in chinese people#8217;s opinion, has almost nothing to do with religions or mythology. the mainstream view on heroism is the loyalty to the country in confucianism(pan tianqiang, 2007). to put it simply, the interests of the nation are far more important than the interests of the individual. putting it first, the national justice is completely above personal feelings. this pure belief and the values are people#8217;s code of conduct. therefore, the chinese heroes are often closely related to the country and the masses. individual heroism means that individuals exert their abilities, strengths and wisdom to reverse unfavorable conditions, overcome intractable obstacles, and finally benefit people, groups or even the country. different from the chinese culture which attaches great importance to group work or collaboration, the realization of personal values and the freedom of humanity are supreme and inviolable. furthermore, individual heroism plays an important role in western cultures, which is firmly connected with the development of western culture and unique cultural attributes. western culture is mainly based on commercial civilization that is extraverted in nature and emphasizes the exploration of the outside world. therefore, the pioneer spirit in individual heroism is more appreciated in western cultures(wang junsheng, 2018). 2.2.2 the cross-cultural theories the author of this research mainly refers to the cultural onion theory(geert hofstede, 1980). regarding cultural differences, hofstede suggests that culture is composed of different levels. like onions, each layer is not independent and interacts with each other. when analyzing the cultural levels, he believes that the core part of culture is values, such as values and beliefs in people's minds. although they are not perceived, they do exist in the mind and affect people's behaviors at any time. when people in different regions behave in certain ways, the role of values is to explain to us what the internal reason for doing this is, why they think so, and why this is done. as a person from a different cultural background, if you understand the intrinsic values behind the other's behaviors, you can understand the different way of behaving, and you can treat different ideas, behaviors, and beliefs in different cultures more appropriately (wang jingjing, 2017). according to geert hofstede(1980), culture is actually composed of four parts-- symbols, heroes, rituals and values. the outermost layer is the ”symbols”, such as language, works of art, film, painting, food, clothing, architecture, etc. they, just like the skin of an onion, can be easily perceived and are the most intuitive expression of different cultures. the second layer is the heroes. different heroes have different personalities. now that a hero can be worshipped by people in a culture, their characteristics must have a certain representativeness, which represents features of this ethnic group. this is like the flesh of onion. the third layer is the rituals. etiquette is a social norm, manifested in the unique expression of different cultures treating people and nature. for example, in a social group, what everyone will do under certain circumstances is reflected in the handshake, veneer, etc. in terms of behavior, lifestyle, and whether this behavior conforms to social norms, it is related to the norms common to the group. this, a collective activity that practices culture, can be compared with the taste of onions. the core layer is the values. values are the deepest thing in the human mind and the core of a culture. for example, the innate rights of people, the relationship between people and others, the value of human existence, and so on. in this cultural onion model, values are at the heart of it, and involve the most ingrained and unquestionable things in the society. the three layers outside the cultural onion have an inseparable relationship with the core. the core layer drives the outer layers, and the outer layers affect the core layer. 2.3 previous researches at home and abroad 2.3.1 researches on heroism previous studies have analyzed heroism in western and eastern countries in a detailed way. western heroism is the representation of individualism. the essence of its transformation is the development process of personal pursuit for a safe and orderly social environment. many western literature and films reflect heroism or the influence of individualism on heroism. it can be said that western heroism comes from individualism and paves the way for individualism(ji wen, 2015). many scholars choose jean christopher as the research object, discuss in detail what this tragic hero has done in the book, analyze his quality, and thus extend to the heroism that westerners all agree with. contrary to western heroism is the eastern heroism, typically the chinese heroism. collective heroism is the most distinct feature of the eastern heroism(li jie, 2017). many studies have chosen to illustrate heroism in eastern countries with an oriental heroic film. oriental heroism praises the heroic image of sacrificing self for the sake of national justice and the people. this is obviously different from western heroism. according to the cultural onion theory, values are the most inner factor and the most fundamental cause of cultural conflicts. the difference in heroism is also due to differences in values. studies in the past seldom make use of the cross-culture theory to analyze heroism. this research uses this book as a breakthrough to explore different heroism in a pioneering way and to study the deeper causes of this difference. 2.3.2 researches on the cross-cultural theories most of the existing studies start from two angles: the values orientation theory(kluckhohn strodtbeck, 1961) and the cultural onion theory(geert hofstede, 1980). the former one is ambitious, for the authors set themselves the task of developing a conceptual framework and a method of analysis which will enable the behavioral scientist to explain variations in value orientations (1) from one culture to another, (2) within a given culture, and (3) through time( w. g. steglich, 1962). the latter one is commomly used to analyze cultural differences between different companies, regions or countries. when geert hofstede analyzed cultural levels, he believed that values are the core of a culture, and they may affect people#8217;s actions at any time(geert hofstede, 1980). the role of the value is to explain why people behave in a certain way and what people are thinking of. as people from different cultural backgrounds, they can better understand each other as long as they truly absorb the values behind(wang jingjing, 2017). previous studies have elaborated on these two theories, including their definition and origin. however, they rarely combine specific research objects, and rarely compare two or even multiple cultures. in other words, previous researches are more likely to be pure theoretical analysis without adequate examples. based on jean christopher, the author of this study strengthens the contrast between different cultures and uses the cross-culture theory as a tool to analyze its role in cross-cultural researches. outline abstract introduction 1.1 research background 1.2 research purpose 1.3 structure of the thesis literature review 2.1 overview of jean christopher 2.2 overview of heroism and the cross-cultural theory 2.2.1 studies on cross-culture theory 2.2.2 studies on heroism 2.3 previous researches at home and abroad 2.3.1 researches on heroism 2.3.2 researches on the cross-cultural theories a cross-cultural analysis of heroism- based on jean christopher 3.1 differences 3.1.1 imperfections and perfections 3.1.2 individualism and collectivism 3.1.3 viewing politics as a starting point and regarding politics as an ultimate aim 3.2 similarities conclusion reference reference [1] allison, scott. (2010). heroes: what they do and why we need them. virginia: oxford university press. [2] fisher, david james.(2003). romain rolland and the politics of the intellectual engagement. new jersey: transaction publishers. [3] franco, z. e., blau, k., zimbardo, p. g. (2011). heroism: a conceptual analysis and differentiation between heroic action and altruism. review of general psychology, 15(2), 99-113. [4] grinin, leonid. (2010). the role of an individual in history: a reconsideration. social evolution history, 9(2), 95-136. [5] hein, david. (1993). the death of heroes, the recovery of the heroic. christian century,110, 1298#8211;1303. [6] hofstede, g.(2013). cultures and organizations: software of the mind. intercultural cooperation and its importance for survival. southern medical journal, 13(3), 219-222. [7] hook, s.(1955). the hero in history: a study in limitation and possibility. boston: beacon press. [8] khan, sharif. (2004). psychology of the hero soul. toronto: diamond mind publishing. [9] price, john. (2014). everyday heroism: victorian constructions of the heroic civilian. london: bloomsbury. [10] 申辰瑜(2015). a warrior as well as idealist:an analysis of jean christophe in jean christophe. course education research, 36(10), 27-27. [11] w. g. steglich. (1962). a review of variations in value orientations by florence rockwood kluckhohn and fred l. strodtbeck. the southwestern social science quarterly, 42(4), 410-411. [12] 戴晓东(2011),《跨文化交际理论》。

上海:上海外语教育出版社。

[13] 党群(2016),美国文化中的个人主义英雄与中国文化中的集体主义英雄,《大众文艺》,(4):179-179。

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2. 研究的基本内容、问题解决措施及方案

Methodology This chapter will be divided into three parts. The first part elaborates the research topic. The second part is about the research material. And the third part introduces the methods that are adopted to solve the questions. Research topic The title of this research is ”A Cross-cultural Analysis of Heroism- Based on Jean Christopher”. This research mainly deals with the following two questions: (1)What kind of heroism is reflected in this book? (2)What are the differences between western and eastern heroism especially Chinese heroism? Research material All the research is based on Jean Christopher. This book is written by Romain Rolland. The protagonist's actions reflect the western heroism and are a great source of understanding of western heroism in this research. Heroism in eastern countries is studied based on previous researches. Research methods The method of literature study will be used to conduct this research. Through the collection of a large number of literature, the author of this research can understand the status quo of researches of this subject, research contents and the existing deficiencies. At the same time, through consulting a large number of literature, the author of this research integrates the research ideas of other scholars and determines the research steps of this topic. A cross-cultural analysis of Heroism- Based on Jean Christopher In this part, three main differences and one similarity between western and eastern heroism are discussed. The author of this essay chooses four typical Chinese heroes or heroines to compare with Jean Christopher. 3.1 Differences 3.1.1 Imperfections and perfections Western heroism tolerates imperfections. People call Jean Christopher a hero not because he has done something chivalrous or he has unparalleled strength, courage and wisdom. Quite on the contrary, he is weak and pale. In other words, he is totally inconsistent with people#8217;s imagination of a ”hero”. As the author Romain Rolland said: ” I write down the tragedy of the generation that is about to disappear. I have no intention of hiding the defects in their characters or virtues. The main character Jean Christopher is a man who thought he himself knew nothing other than music. This gives the hero a wisdom deformity , and is also the far-reaching cause of his other deficiencies. Jean Christopher is both a ”superman” who called for the liberation of human nature in an unconventional way and a mortal who had his own lust, weaknesses and faults. But thanks to these imperfections, the image of Jean Christopher can be more authentic and comprehensive(Liang Yanjun, 2011). Eastern heroism prefers perfections. Zhu Geliang is a typical hero in the eyes of Chinese people who combines wisdom, integrity and loyalty into one. In the famous novel The Romance of The Three Kingdoms, the author praises Zhu Geliang from the beginning to the end without any ill comments on him, which shapes Zhu Geliang into an almost perfect character and contains a tint of idealism(Zhu Yanping, 2008). In that novel, Zhu Geliang becomes the embodiment of loyalty who gains trust of a sage king and can fully display his talents. He represents wise men who are sagacious enough to predict enemies#8217; plans. More importantly, he has extraordinary abilities of controlling the forces of nature and foreseeing the future. As a result, Lu Xun describes him as a ”half-demon” that can know literally everything without any mistake(Huai Ming, 2006). Although Zhu Geliang fails to unite the country for Liu Bei, his perfection is not influenced because the author uses an idealist view of destiny to exculpate this hero. For example, the author attributes Zhu Geliang#8217;s death and failure to Wei Yan#8217;s destruction of the main light. Another method used to protect the perfection of the hero is to keep the character away from the environment which is in severe contradiction with his images. The most obvious example is that the author creates the absence of Zhu Geliang from the war in Changban. The reason behind this phenomenon is very simple. The failure of the war is common for a king who has experienced many ups and downs, but is uncommon or even unbearable for a wise man who can almost predict the future and is famous for his wisdom. To sum up, the heroes in China always bear perfect images. That means, eastern heroism, especially Chinese heroism prefers perfection(Lin Luncai, 2006). 3.1.2 Individualism and collectivism Western countries advocate individual rights and freedom, encourage their people to follow the creeds deep in the heart, and attach great importance to the realization of self-worth. This has been deeply rooted in westerners#8217; hearts and souls. Therefore, as one of the mainstream values in the west, individual heroism has also been fully demonstrated and publicized in its works of art. In the novel written by Romain Rolland, Jean Christopher always bears an image of a lonely hero. After witnessing the degeneration of the French art field and even the whole society, he resolutely criticized the art field in order to maintain the purity of art and the dignity of humanity. However, he has always been on his own in the process of resistance with his friend Olivier the only supporter. His social status made him feel sympathy for the lower class, but the individual heroism in Jean Christopher stopped him from integrating well with people and finding spiritual power from them(Li Jie, 2017). In this book, Jean Christopher once left his mother behind and went to France to pursue his artistic dreams until his mother was about to die. In Chinese tradition, the younger generation should never be far away from their home when their parents are still healthy. In comparison, Jean Christopher attached more importance to the realization of his own dream than his family. Collective heroism is the most obvious and prominent feature in Chinese people#8217;s view on heroism. The interests of the collective, the state, and the nation are far more important than the personal interests, so they are placed in the first place. The national justice is completely above the personal feelings. This pure belief or value is filled with heroic thoughts and finally becomes the code of conduct for heroes. Therefore, the Chinese heroes are often closely connected with the nation, the country, and the war, showing the righteous cause of super-ego. Due to the strong collective heroism with Chinese features, it is typical to sacrifice personal interests for collective welfare. As a result, the fearless spirit of sacrifice is an indispensable part of Chinese heroism(Li Jie, 2017). Hua Mulan is an ideal image of ancient heric warriors. She disregards her identity as an ordinary woman and joins the army for her father instead, showing her great love for the family. She has no fear of sacrificing and takes pity on soldiers, showing her great loyalty and care for the whole country and the people. She is not pretending to be a heroine, but she is actually worthy of the name as she attaches great significance to the benefits of the country and has a distinct national consciousness(Hu Mu, 2011). 3.1.3 Viewing politics as a starting point and regarding politics as an ultimate aim The western heroism underlines the people-centred thought which views politics as a starting point. The greatness of Jean Christopher is manifested in his loyalty to love and friendship, in his great hope that people from all countries can live in harmony with each other without being disturbed by war, and in his deep sympathy for oppressed, kind masses. By describing the struggles of Jean Christopher, the author displays the pursuit, depression and pain of the intellectuals with democratic ideas. Furthermore, the author praises the bourgeois humanitarianism, idealism, heroism and consciousness of the strong. Heroes like Jean Christopher are reluctant to linger in the dark political system. Instead, they call for a brand new system which can liberate humanity and spirit. In contrast, heroism in eastern countries especially China views politics as the ultimate goal. The heroism reflected in Water Margin is closely related to the politics at that time with all the plots centred on political struggles. The whole novel propagates the official standard thought. Song Jiang is a core hero as well as a character with the most obvious political complexion in Water Margin. His heroic image is mostly relected in his attitudes towards people in his country. As long as someone went to him for shelter, he would accept willingly regardless of the economic position or social status of the help-seeker. He would generously give money and food to those in need, exclude the difficulty and anxiety for them and even save their lives. As a result, the common people at that time called him ”timely rain” who could always be there in time when something bad happened. However, his family background, social status and life experiences determine that he is a loyal vindicator for the feudal system. Therefore, as a junior officer in that sociopolitical structure, being an emperor is no doubt his ultimate aim. What he really wanted is to completely release his incarcerated humanity in the officialdom when he realized his political ambition(Zhao Yanmei, 2014). The underlying driving force behind all these was his desire to maintain the feudal system and become a real king in this system. 3.2 Similarities Romain Rolland once said in the preface of Celebrity Biography: ” Those heroes, in my opinion, are not famous for their ideology or strength, but for their great heart. Only mercy makes them much holier than common people.”(Romain Rolland, 1903) Obviously, Romain Roland believes that heroes must be noble and not necessarily successful in real life. In his view, even if a person is lowly in social status or economic position , he is a hero as long as he is fighting for justice and freedom(Liang Yanjun, 2011). In the era of materialism, Jean Christopher chooses to discover the path to freedom of the nation and liberation of humanity rather than power, fame and wealth. On one hand, he criticizes social realities bravely and sharply. On the other hand, he constantly pursues lofty strength of personality and humanity. This also suits eastern heroism. No matter for the heroes mentioned above or other heroes who are famous in eastern countries, they either prefer a noble soul to material comforts, or strive to create a brighter society to replace the dark one. They all have a strong and great heart which can energize the hero and bring hope to the whole society. All in all, the heroism in eastern and western countries is fundamentally the same regardless of some minute differences: it is a spiritual power which can promote social progress.

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