TableMannersinChinaandWesternCountries
Asthebasisofallotherceremonies,tablemannersaretheessentialprocedureineveryone’sdailylife.Toanyone’seducation,weusuallystartfromtablemanners.ThenTablemannersareveryimportantsinceitisrepeatedmanytimeseveryday.Itmustbedoneproperlywhethereatingalone,withfamily,orwithfriends.Youshouldtrainyourselfinpropertablemanners,whetheraloneorwithyourfamily.Itwillthenbecomeanaturalpartofyourbehavior,andyouwillbeateaseatthetable.
Tablemannersineverykindofculturearetotallydifferent.Forexample,Chineseusechopsticks,westernpeopleuseknivesandforks,whileIndianusehandswhatevidentlyreflectthedifferencebetweendifferentcultures.Meanwhile,thesedifferencescanactivelyexpresstheconnotationandcharacteristicofdifferentculture.
A.Chinesetablemanners
Chinesetablemannersoffamilieshavenointrinsicqualityeventherearedifferentregionandposition.Nomatterthreemealsadayorguest’sarrival,alwaysbowlswithchopsticks,foodwithsoup.Thereisnoruleforhowtoputthetableware.Whatpeoplecareaboutmorearenotthegorgeoustablewarebutthesumptuousfood.People’sdiningpositionreflectsthemostobviousetiquetteofChinesetablemanners.Inancientsociety,menaresupreme,andwomenarenotallowedtositwithmenonthesametable.Althoughthisismodernsociety,thiskindofancientetiquettestillremains.TodayinChina,thephenomenonthatmensitonthetablebeforewomencanbefoundeverywhere.Themasterofafamilyusuallysitsonthefirst-classseat.Thefirst-classseatisusuallyneartheinteriorofaroomfacingtothedoor.Oncethereisaguest,themasterwillofferthefirst-classseattotheguestpolitely.Ifitisanordinarymealoffamily,familiesshouldstartaftertheelder.Ifthereisaguest,themasterofferthefoodtotheguestisessentialfromthebeginningtotheend.Andthetraditionofurgingotherstodrinkisalsoaspecialphenomenon.
Eventhereisnoofficial“tablemanners’inchina,whilethereis“eatingbehavior”.Oncethereis“eatingbehavior”,theremustbesomeeatingmannersuptostandard.
HerearesomecharacteristicsonChineseeating:
a.Keepyoureyesonthemeal,especiallyatthebeginningofthemeal.
b.Wheneating,keepyourbodiesforward,andfacetoyourfood.
c.Itisallowedtospittheboneonthetables.
d.Whenchewing,itisallowedtomakesomerhythmicalnoisyofchewing.
e.TraditionalChinesemealdoesn’tneedthepublicchopsticks.
f.TraditionalChinesemealdoesn’thavethesweetsnacksaftermeal.
B.Westerncountries’tablemanners
ThebiggestdifferenceintablemannersbetweenChineseandwesternisthedetailsoftablemannerscanbeasclearasthespecificationswhatcanexactlygivepeoplecorrectmannerstoreferto.
HereareseveraltypicalmannerswhatcanillustratetherigorofWestern-stylefood.
a.Thewestern-stylefoodofficialdrinksthesoupposturerequesttoenterinadvancedthesoupwiththeladletooneselffarthatoneside,thentoleavesthedirectionwhichoneselfgoesfarawaytodelimitlightlyabundantly.
b.Whendinesintheprocess,ifyouneedtoputdowntheknife,theedgefacesoneselfassumesintheplateas10o’clockshape.Thetoolbitisthehandofacl