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Chinese scholars, like Xu Zhulin, Sun Wenzhong and so on, whose data analysis and quantitative study also have confirmed that study the cultural difference is of great meaning for language learners, and the more we learn about their culture, the better we learn their language.
3.The differences between Chinese and British marriage customs
3.1 Procedure
China is a vast country with various marriage customs in different areas. But in general Chinese people follow basic step of Three Letter:Request Letter ,Gift Letter and Wedding Letter. Six procedures in traditional marriage, namely, proposing, asking the name, asking for fortune, sending betrothal present to girl’s family, discussing date of marriage and meeting the bride.
Request Letter confirms the formal arrangement of a marriage. It is sent by the groom’s family to the bride’s family. This letter is normally presented with the initial gifts for the bride’s family. Gift Letter accompanies the formal gifts for the Bride’s family. It is actually a gift list that records the description and quantity of the gifts. Wedding Letter is presented to the bride’s family on the day of the wedding. It confirms the act of bringing the bride into the groom’s family. In the old days, marriages were arranged by the parents. When the groom’s parents found a potential daughter-in-law, they will hire a matchmaker , a spokeswoman, who will communicate their wish to the potential bride’s family. (The matchmaker is usually an elderly woman who acts as midwives or spokeswoman for the groom’s family).This lady will persuade the potential bride’s family to accept the offer from the groom’s family. Both sides will negotiate certain terms like the“Bride’s price”. If the proposing was accepted by the girl’s parent, the next process is birthday matching. Birthday matching means that asking for girl’s name and birth dates. The family of the groom will ask for the bride’s birthday.They would ask a fortune teller to predict whether that could match their son’s and whether there would be a happy marriage. The Chinese zodiac would be surely taken into consideration.If the match was predicted to be auspicious, the matchmaker would take gifts to the girl’s parents and tell them that the process could continue.This was the grandest etiquette of the whole process of engagement. Prolific gifts were presented again to the girl’s family, symbolizing respect and kindness towards the girl’s family as well as the capability of providing a good life for the girl.Selecting the Wedding Date is that the boy’s family asked the fortune-teller to choose a date according to the astrological book when it would be proper and propitious to hold the wedding ceremony.文献综述
Compared with Chinese marriage, British marriage is simpler and there are a few standard customs acknowledged as being traditional:proposal,engagement, choosing the day and holding the wedding.Marriage is usually initiated by a proposal of marriage, simply called "a proposal". In a heterosexual relationship, the man traditionally proposes to the woman and the actual proposal often has a ritual quality, involving the presentation of a ring (an engagement ring) and the formalized asking of a question such as "Will you marry me?" The man may even go down on one knee before proposing. If the proposal is accepted, the couple become engaged.In the United Kingdom, the engagement ring is worn, by the woman, on the third finger of the left hand (the ring finger).In the UK the 29th of February (in a leap year) is said to be the one day (coming round only once every four years) when a woman can propose to her partner.
It is usual for a couple to be engaged for a while before they get married. An engagement is actually an agreement or promise to marry, and also refers to the time between proposal and marriage. During this period, a couple is said to be affianced, engaged to be married, or simply engaged.A man who is engaged to be married is called his partner's fiancé; a woman similarly engaged is called her partner's fiancée.Once a wedding date has been set the banns of marriage, commonly known simply as "the banns" (from an Old English word meaning "to summon") are announced. This is a notice,usually placed in the local parish church or register office, which tells everyone that a marriage is going to take place between two people.The purpose of banns is to enable anyone to raise any legal problems as to why the two people shouldn't get married, basically it is to prevent marriages that are legally invalid. Impediments vary between legal jurisdictions, but would normally include a pre-existing marriage (having been neither dissolved nor annulled), a vow of celibacy, lack of consent, or the couple's being related within the prohibited degrees of kinship.In England, a marriage is only legally valid if the reading of the banns has taken place or a marriage licence has been obtained.