1. Can you think of any other important family events in China, besides weddings?
Spring festival is a very important day to all Chinese families because it marks the lunar New Year. The festival traditionally begins on the first day of the first lunar month in the Chinese calendar and ends on the 15th; this day is called Lantern Festival. Chinese New Year's Eve is known as Chúxī. It literally means "Year-pass Eve". It is celebrated in areas with large populations of ethnic Chinese, Chinese New Year is considered a major holiday for the Chinese and has had considerable influence on the new year celebrations of its geographic neighbors, as well as cultures with whom the Chinese have had a lot of interaction. On that day, all the family members get together, making dumplings and eat “tuan yuan fan”. This means ‘family gathering meal’ and it symbolizes that in the next year all the members in the family will stay together. At mid-night, kids will play with fire crackers which are thought to scare monsters away, and everyone will have a good year. Lately the old generation will give “hong bao” (the little red lucky bag) to the young generation, to wish them the good luck and to make them rich. Most families stay up late until the next day, which in old Chinese is “shou sui”.
2. Do you like family reunions?
For the most part I do. It’s great being able to see everyone again and enjoy one another’s company. It’s a great way share the love everyone has for the family and bring us closer together. Despite that, they can also be a pain in the neck. People say ‘You can choose your friends, but you can’t choose your family’, which means that even if your family members are annoying you can’t change the situation. Sometimes there can be arguments and the atmosphere can turn sour. It’s also difficult to get away and do your own thing if there’s so much pressure to be together as a family during these occasions.
3. In general, how important are special family events, compared with public events?
Family events are more personal you’re your particular family, and so they’re more private and special. At major public holidays every man and his dog is doing the same thing. That’s fine, but it does make the occasional less unique and maybe even less enjoyable. There often crowds of people at parks and on the trains, which can put a damp cloth on things. It’s good that we have public events though as they let everyone come together as a people, not just a family. Families are important but they’re not the be-all and end-all of our lives. It can be nice to celebrate public events too as they bring everyone together.
4. Do you think society as a whole has a responsibility towards maintaining the strength of the institution of 'the family'?
In many ways society is based around the idea of the family as a building block. Families raise children and support them as they grow up, and continue to provide a ‘safety net’ for people throughout their lives. They provide not only material needs but emotional comfort and encouragement. When someone gets old and unable to work, they often rely on their family to look after them. I think that in China the family unit is especially important because of the strong traditions based around families, and the need for a group of people to support you when life is hard. Society as a whole had its best interests at heart when it maintains the strength of the family as an institution.
