Newsletter (2017-2018) January 2018 Newsletter | Page 9

The Differences Between
Western Culture and Eastern Culture
in Celebrating Festivals
By Blair Shen
Having studied in many countries, I made a lot
of jokes as well as mistakes due to the cultural
differences. In response, I wanted to write some-
thing about the differences between Western
culture and Eastern culture that may confuse
Asian people while they are abroad. This article
includes real examples from my own experienc-
es. After reading this article, it will be as if you
stayed with me in the USA and UK and watched Despite the strange welcome, Blair was still able to
me go through a period of confusion caused by enjoy her stay by visiting some of the state’s most
famous sites, like the Golden Gate Bridge.
cultural differences.
pen, especially when you have a guest. For ex-
The first day I arrived in California, I thought ample, if we go out to celebrate festivals and a
that my host mother, Susan, would give me a guest drops by without calling, we usually invite
welcoming party, but I was totally wrong. After the guest to join our celebration instead of leav-
picking me up at the airport, she drove rapidly ing them alone, even if the festival is a wedding
towards her home and dropped me off in front anniversary. Considering that it is impolite to
of the gate with a curt explanation: “I will be reject the guest and leave him or her alone, we
celebrating my wedding anniversary with my often change our plans if we do not want others
husband tonight. You can stay at home and find to join this private date. But for the Americans I
something to eat in the fridge.” Then, she drove encountered, they would not necessarily change
away and left me standing in the sunshine. This the date of a romantic celebration for a guest. In
was my first impression of the USA.
their culture, the festival should be celebrated
with close family members and should not be
At the time, I was a little bit heart-broken, be- disturbed by other things and individuals.
cause in China, this situation would never hap-
This phenomenon always appeared on TV as
well. My favorite TV show is Modern Family.
There are some scenes which are relevant to my
own experience with Susan. When Cam and
Mitchell, a gay couple on the show, decided to
celebrate the 100-day anniversary of their first
kiss together, a friend of them came around and
hoped to join the celebration. The couple felt
uncomfortable and even became angry. When I
saw this scene for the first time, I felt quite con-
fused about why Cam and Mitchell got angry.
I thought the couple was as narrow-minded as
Jay, a character who always got angry and yelled
at others when they interrupted dates with his
wife. After watching for eight seasons, I under-
stand that this reaction is due to culture.
Blair visiting Stanford University.
9
JANUARY 2018