Cao Xueqin’s The Story of the Stone, gives the reader a vivid and descriptive glimpse of life and culture back in ancient China. The readers are introduced to the elaborate and extravagant lifestyle of a wealthy Chinese family in ancient China. The activities that the Jia family enjoys, are eloquent and sophisticated. For instance, the emphasis on literature and art is evident, since the Jia family hold poetry contests to pass time. The author vividly depicts many aspects of ancient Chinese culture such as religion, cuisine, clothing and much more. Of the many aspects of ancient Chinese culture portrayed in Cao Xueqin’s The Story of the Stone, one aspect that caught my eye was the family hierarchy.
After reading the novel and watching the drama version in class, I was in astonishment by the differences between the modern Chinese-American family today, and the family in Cao Xueqin’s novel. Although some values and philosophies of Chinese family hierarchy are still engraved in today’s Chinese culture, it is evident that there has been a huge change to the family hierarchy structure in Chinese culture. In the novel, one of the biggest cultural shock that I discovered was the caution and restraint the younger generation must have in the presence of an elder. During class when we watched the scene of Jia family eating dinner, I felt as if the family had no sense of a true family. The Jia family’s dinner seemed very distant and dull, instead of the lively and warm dinner a family usually share. The children could only eat if they were invited to the table by the elder and even while eating dinner, they had to follow strict procedures. There were rules on how to eat, how to drink tea and even how to rinse your mouth! After watching this scene, I realized the amount of freedom and independence we get to enjoy today. In today’s society, we are always arguing that our parents have too much control over us, but the children in ancient Chinese culture had no free will and were firmly confined to their roles in society. Cao Xueqin’s novel made me realize that although Chinese culture now may still seem strict, I am grateful that many of ancient Chinese practices have since been discarded.
–Amy Wang
I agree with you. We should feel grateful because our families now are way less strict compared to the families in The Story of the Stone. I feel bad for children in that time because they need to be absolutely submissive to the elders in the family and especially girls have no say on their lives. The children’s future are designed by their parents at birth as if they’re the toys or tools of their parents. I’m very glad that we are able to marry who we love today instead of a stranger who would possibly bring good reputation to the family.