How traditional Culture is Destroyed in China

Chinese are very proud of their long history and 5,000 years of civilization. But when they leave China, the bad behavior by Chinese tourists often leaves them embarrassed and the outside world dumbfounded. Many attributes Chinese tourists’ poor manners to a lack of education, worldly experience, or proper breeding. But that’s not the case. Chinese people are not the problem. They are the victims of the regime having systematically destroyed traditional culture and disconnected its people from their cultural roots.

How did the Chinese Communist Party turn an ancient civilization following propriety and respect into a troubled nation plagued by mistrust and indecorum? And is there any hope?

One of the essential components of a culture is art. Whether it's Western or Eastern culture, art is traditionally linked to religion and faith. When the Communist Party came to power in China, it first went about to destroy Chinese people's faith in Buddhism, Daoism, and Confucianism––and changed the meaning of art by turning it into a political tool. This is best illustrated in the Australian movie, Mao's Last Dancer. The film is based on the real-life story of Chinese ballet dancer Li Chunxin, who was taken from his peasant home at a young age by the government and chosen to study ballet in Madame Mao's ballet school in Beijing. The movie depicts Madam Mao inspecting the school and giving directions for the arts.

Traditional ballet was dead, and a violent political dance drama called the "The Red Detachment of Women" was born. Beautiful princes and princesses were cast out, and revolutionary gangsters became the idols. Beauty, refinement, and propriety were replaced by rogue manners, violence, and disrespect. Any artists who fought against this artistic direction or who tried to hold on to traditions were persecuted. In the film, Li and other young dancers are watching authorities taking away one of their favorite teachers for being a “counter-revolutionary." Later, Li secretly watched a tape given to him by this teacher. It was the first time he saw Russian dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov dance.

It was a turning point in Li’s life. Years later, Li defected when he visited the United States as a performer. Today, he lives in Australia with his family. Not just ballet and Western art forms, traditional Chinese performing arts, such as Peking Opera, were also used as tools by the CCP to brainwash people. During the Cultural Revolution, eight performances were officially declared as "Revolutionary Sample Shows" that included ballet, Peking Opera, and a symphony. Later, a piano concerto was added.

The Red Lantern, a Peking Opera, was one such revolutionary production. Take a look at this aria by a 17-year-old girl mourning her communist father who was a spy and killed by the Japanese. With this onslaught of propaganda, the five cardinal values taught by Confucius, which the Chinese had followed for thousands of years––kindness, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and faith––were gone. They were replaced with the CCP culture that promotes class-struggle, fighting, hate, and violence.

The impact on Chinese people's mentality and behavior is still present today. We may be wearing designer clothes from Chanel and Dior and carry Louis Vuitton bags, but the marks of an aggressive mentality and indecorous attitude are still underneath it all. Some well-educated Chinese like to believe that they don't have this problem. Based on what I've seen, unless you've lived in the free world for a long time or you consciously make an effort to get rid of it, it's very hard for mainland Chinese to have their behavior and mentality not to be tainted by the CCP’s culture. And education or income don’t have much to do with it.

When Deng Xiaoping opened up China in the 1980s, pop culture from the outside also seeped in. The star who helped Chinese rediscover the joy of music was Taiwanese singer Teresa Deng, the "queen of Asian Pop.” She was so popular in China that she was nicknamed "Little Deng," and Deng Xiaoping was "Big Deng." In the beginning, "Big Deng" and the CCP considered "Little Deng" a "decadent" and “demoralizing" interference. But they were more or less helpless about stopping it. Teresa's soft voice and sweet music took China by storm because it warmed Chinese people's hearts after being cold from decades of brainwashing.

Since the 1990's, the CCP has rebuilt or restored many cultural relics destroyed during the Cultural Revolution, primarily for purposes of tourism. But it restored only the hardware, the software and the essence of traditional Chinese culture, its values and beliefs, are still mostly missing in China. That's why we continue to see poor-mannered Chinese tourists. Nobody could do anything about it. But then, a group of overseas Chinese artists decided to make a difference. In 2006, a group of North America-based artists established Shen Yun Performing Arts, and they made it their mission to revive the 5000 years of traditional Chinese culture through music and dance. Every year, they tour around the world. I’m sure you’ve seen their colorful billboards and ads. Some people mistakenly think Shen Yun is from China, but it's based in New York and is an American company.

Many of Shen Yun’s artists are Falun Gong practitioners, some of whom have fled China because of the persecution, and some have families being persecuted there. In their dances and songs, they also tell the real-life stories of today's human rights atrocities in China. As a result, Chinese embassies and consulates around the world intimidate their sponsors, threaten theaters, and sabotages Shen Yun properties. But despite the CCP's efforts to discredit and bring down Shen Yun, the organization has grown into seven touring companies that simultaneously tour worldwide. This year, Shen Yun's tag line is "See China before Communism," which I think is accurately describes what Shen Yun is about.

There is Chinese folk music, but it’s not exciting now. Peking opera is a small production, and the singing style is hard to understand. As far as dancing is concerned, there’s nothing that could be compared to ballet. However, Shen Yun proved it wrong. It showed that China does have a lot to offer in the performing arts arena. Shen Yun's staging, music, dance, and overall artistic merit are totally comparable to Western ballet, opera, and symphony. It's very Chinese but has a universal appeal. It's also very traditional yet feels exciting and new.

There is Chinese culture, such as the Chinese instrument called Erhu. It's a big irony. The Chinese people that Shen Yun portrays on stage are beautiful, kind, courageous, and they even have a sense of humor. They make Chinese proud as an ethnic Chinese. When Shen Yun goes to China to perform one day, it will reconnect Chinese people with their cultural heritage and help them rediscover who they really are. So, if Shen Yun comes to your city, go watch it! Don't miss it! You’ll learn a lot about China, the real China.

It is also highly recommended the movie Mao's Last Dancer. It's a great movie. BTW, she is a cultural icon who refused to perform in the mainland and said she would go only when China became a democracy. Unfortunately, she passed away before that happened. It has an American connection as it was written by a Taiwanese songwriter in Boston when he attended the Berkeley School of Music in the early 1970s.

Generally, it can be said that the cultural and political changes in China have changed the behavior of their society while people did not particularly choose that.