Insights Into Chinese Culture

Featuring the distinctive heights of Chinese culture, the authors share with you their insights into the concepts and passions of the Chinese nation over the past 5,000 years. On reading through this historical range of remarkable creativity and flair for innovation, still evident today in living artistic masterpieces and folk traditions, the reader soon acquires a better understanding of the cultural character, life views, aesthetic pursuits and national spirit of the Chinese people. Through every work of art or architecture, a fascinating story or legend unfolds.

A excellent book to learn Chinese culture.

This book investigates the internationalization of Chinese culture in recent decades and the global dimensions of Chinese culture from comparative and interdisciplinary perspectives. It covers a variety of topics concerning the contemporary significance of Chinese culture in its philosophical, literary and artistic manifestations, including literature, film, performing arts, creative media, linguistics, translations and philosophical ideas. The book explores the reception of Chinese culture in different geographic locations and how the global reception of Chinese culture contrasts with the local Chinese community. The chapters collectively cover gender studies and patriarchal domination in Chinese literature in comparison to the world literature, explorations on translation of Chinese culture in the West, Chinese studies as an academic discipline in the West, and Chinese and Hong Kong films and performances in the global context. The book is an excellent resource for both scholars and students interested in the development of Chinese culture on the global stage in the 21st Century.

Featuring the distinctive heights of Chinese culture, this book presents the readers with authors' insights into the concepts and passions of the Chinese nation over the past 5,000 years. On reading through this historical range of remarkable creativity and flair for innovation, still evident today in living artistic masterpieces and folk traditions, the readers interested in the Chinese culture will soon acquire a better understanding of the cultural character, life views, aesthetic pursuits and national spirit of the Chinese people, through every work of art or architecture, a fascinating story or legend

Picture yourself in China with this fun, graphic-novel inspired introduction to China, its culture and people! Ready to gain insight into Chinese culture in a fascinating way? This comprehensive introduction to Chinese culture lets you peer into what makes China unique—its people. Firsthand tips, background info, and illustrations give you graphic impressions of the real China, and allow you to get a feel for not only what it's like, but how to survive the cultural differences. You'll find out about: Major influences and historical events that guide Chinese behavior Key concepts crucial to interacting with Chinese people Social idiosyncrasies that surprise most Westerners Dealing with culture shock in China Peculiarities of Chinese business culture In It's All Chinese to Me, you'll find the core insights to help demystify Chinese culture for Westerners. "Offers a balanced view of China's cultural strengths and weaknesses and should be required reading for international travelers. Highly recommended."—Midwest Book Review "An excellent job of illustrating many of the common issues people may encounter while in China. Bravo!"—Mark Rowswell, AKA Dashan, performer and cultural ambassador

​With the rise of China in the 21st century, this book offers a trans-cultural and thematic study of key Chinese concepts which influence modern day Chinese thinking across the spheres of politics, economics and society. It reflects on the major schools of Chinese thought including Confucianism, Daoism and Zen Buddhism, providing a historical perspective on the ideological development of China in terms of the relationship between man and nature, social ethics, political governance, poetry education, aesthetic criticism and art theory. It also explores primary aspects of Chinese poetics and aesthetics with reference to the interaction between the endogenous theories and their western counterparts. Written by a leader in Chinese Aesthetics against the background of both globalization and glocalization at home and abroad, this is a key read for all those interested in the cultural, philosophical and aesthetic underpinnings of contemporary China. ​

From Chinese Brand Culture to Global Brands examines branding from the Chinese perspective, and predicts that China's greatest brands are poised for global dominance.

In this learned, yet readable, book, Joseph McDermott introduces the history of the book in China in the late imperial period from 1000 to 1800. He assumes little knowledge of Chinese history or culture and compares the Chinese experience with books with that of other civilizations, particularly the European. Yet he deals with a wide range of issues in the history of the book in China and presents novel analyses of the changes in Chinese woodblock bookmaking over these centuries. He presents a new view of when the printed book replaced the manuscript and what drove that substitution. He explores the distribution and marketing structure of books, and writes fascinatingly on the history of book collecting and about access to private and government book collections. In drawing on a great deal of Chinese, Japanese, and Western research this book provides a broad account of the way Chinese books were printed, distributed, and consumed by literati and scholars, mainly in the lower Yangzi delta, the cultural center of China during these centuries. It introduces interesting personalities, ranging from wily book collectors to an indigent shoe-repairman collector. And, it discusses the obstacles to the formation of a truly national printed culture for both the well-educated and the struggling reader in recent times. This broad and comprehensive account of the development of printed Chinese culture from 1000 to 1800 is written for anyone interested in the history of the book. It also offers important new insights into book culture and its place in society for the student of Chinese history and culture. 'A brilliant piece of synthetic research as well as a delightful read, it offers a history of the Chinese book to the eighteenth century that is without equal.' - Timothy Brook, University of British Columbia 'Writers, scribes, engravers, printers, binders, publishers, distributors, dealers, literati, scholars, librarians, collectors, voracious readers — the full gamut of a vibrant book culture in China over one thousand years — are examined with eloquence and perception by Joseph McDermott in The Social History of the Book. His lively exploration will be of consuming interest to bibliophiles of every persuasion.' - Nicholas A. Basbanes, author of A Gentle Madness, Patience and Fortitude, A Splendor of Letters, and Every Book Its Reader Joseph McDermott is presently Fellow of St John’s College, Cambridge, and University Lecturer in Chinese at Cambridge University. He has published widely on Chinese social and economic history, most recently on the economy of the Song (or, Sung) dynasty for the Cambridge History of China. He has edited State and Court Ritual in China and Art and Power in East Asia.