1991 Fiscal Year Final Research Report Summary
A Study of Expressions of Respects and Taboos in the Verbal and Non-Verbal Behaviors of the Chinese
| Project/Area Number |
02045011
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for international Scientific Research
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| Allocation Type | Single-year Grants |
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| Section | University-to-University Cooperative Research |
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| Research Institution | Tokyo University of Foreign Studies |
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Principal Investigator |
KOSHIMIZU Masaru Professor, Faculty of Foreign Studies, Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, 外国語学部, 教授 (60014437)
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| Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha) |
王 宏 上海外国語学院, 日本語学部, 教授
HIRAI Kazuyuki Instructor, Faculty of Foreign Studies, Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, 外国語学部, 助手 (10199028)
KOBAYASHI Tsugio Associate Prof. Faculty of Foreign Studies, Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, 外国語学部, 助教授 (10107831)
YORIFUJI Atsushi Associate Prof. Faculty of Foreign Studies, Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, 外国語学部, 助教授 (80014520)
TAKAHASHI Hitoshi Professor, Faculty of Foreign Studies, Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, 外国語学部, 教授 (40015392)
ARITA Kazuo Professor, Faculty of Foreign Studies, Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, 外国語学部, 教授 (70011301)
KANAMARU Kunizo Professor, Faculty of Foreign Studies, Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, 外国語学部, 教授 (70014438)
WANG Hong Professor, Department of Japanese Studies, Shanghai International Studies Univer
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| Project Period (FY) |
1990 – 1991
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| Keywords | toboos in everyday life of the Chinese / Chinese proprieties / expressions of respect of the Chinese / propitious pictures and embodiment of good luck |
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| Research Abstract |
In this two-year project we have researched through fieldworks on the taboos and the proprieties, both verbal and non-verbal, in the Chinese society.
in the first year, through interviews with informants we were fully informed of facts on taboos and polite behaviors in everyday life, among which are the cases concerned with homonyms ; apples are suitable for gifts because the Chinese word for "apple" is homonymous with the word for "peaceful", while pears are unsuitable because "separate" and "pear" are homonymous in Chinese. Besides, we accumulated more information on the rules of, behaviors in dining, gift-giving, hospitality, wedding and funerals, and traditional seasonal activities. We also noticed the recent drastic change of honorifics ; honorifics such as "xiaojie Miss", "taitai Madam", which have been tabooed since liberation, have now revived. In addition, we collected various books on the subject published in rapid succession recently, and analyzed their contents.
In the second year, we researched into New Year's pictures, i. e. propitious woodcuts attached to the gates and the walls of private houses on Spring Festival, which reflect Chinese' idea of good luck, the other aspect of taboo sentiment. We consulted some researchers for the further understanding of the subject, and visited the printing houses of New Year's pictures to collect the originals. Most of New Year's pictures symbolize the conception of good luck by means of homonomy. For instance, a picture of a boy holding a big fish with some lotus flowers behind him is a symbol of "to have enough and to spare year after year", for "fish" and "spare", "lotus" and " (in) succession" are homonymous respectively. The same method of symbolism is applied to other cases. A decorated wall with drawings of bats is propitious for the reason that the Chinese words for "bat" and "happiness" are homonimous.
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Research Products
(6 results)
