Introduction
Use of colors is vast and are applied in a different field for various purposes. The uses of color did not come into existence in the near past, but its use began centuries ago. There is a different example where colors are useful like in medical therapy, and it is critical in assisting the patient depending on the problem the patient is having. However, the use of the color is not universal as each and every community has different utilization and understanding of different colors. However, there is a global phenomenon denoted by individual colors worldwide. For instance, red is associated with blood in many communities and thus it implies danger. According to (Jin & Cao, 2014, p. 34), a sure demotion of color cannot be applicable in all places. Some areas value certain colors than others, and they have a deeper meaning to their history. China has a rich history in art and thus colors were used as early as the 17th century (Hu, 2014, p. 23). Therefore, the red color because it was one of the primary colors had a great significance that time. The purpose of the paper is to identify how the red color enriches our understanding of the Chinese Society and History. It will be achieved by use of case studies, the ethnographic example, theories, and the methodological point of view.
Discussion
As China is a country with a rich history in art, the use of the red color began a long time ago. There is a period around 17th century called China Ming dynasty in China history. During this time, the red color was used to denote the positive things. At the same time, black was used to present negative things as these were the only two primary colors during those times. The people’s deeds during these times were recorded in the books of account whereby the use of red color denoted the positive actions and, on the other hand, the black was used to show the adverse effects. Therefore, for this use, the red color meant positivity. The paper will help to identify whether the red color represents positivity in China.
The other most notable use of color in China is during the revolution that was influenced by Mao and Lu Xun. The group of the Mao and Lu Xun used different branches and colors to denote different things. The most important instrument that used with these bunches was “little red book” which was used to indicate that the mission of the group was active and not with evil intention. The color was used to show positivity. The revolution took place in the year 1978 meaning that positivity is still present with the red color even today.
Further discussion on the proposal shows red was so significant to them. Having understood the role of the color in this part will help us understand how the road was used during the time of the revolution. The group was made by youths from the University of Tsinghai University and Beijing University. This group, which made the revolutionary group started after their Mao’s called for Cultural Revolution. Although they used the red color to show that their revolution is active, it was ignored by the administration of the two universities.
Another ideology was that the color in China is used to represent fire. Unlike in the ancient times when red color only symbolized positivity. In this case, fire accounts for different new meanings. It shows good fortunes for the people of China (Feistner & Reed., 2013, p. 15). For Example, the New Year, in China everyone is flanked by the red color. Not only the in the New Year but all the holidays are franked with the red color to show good fortunes. However, the use of red color is not common to the positivity here, but they are interrelated. Good chances are positivity, and they cannot be termed as negativities. This another example shows the how the red color is important to the society of China. It further supports the idea that the red color is used to represent the positive things.
Also, the celebration is marred by red color everywhere to show happiness to the people involved in the celebrations. The example can be obtained from the case study varied by in the second chapter about the type of the clothes worn in parties in China. The parties in the case study include marriage ceremonies, birthdays, and life passage celebrations such as initiation. In these parties, the people are given which are wrapped with red envelope to show how happy is the provider of the price. Again, the red envelope revealed that the provider of the amount intended to make the person in question happy. The red color in the prize symbolized good luck. Therefore, in China receiving a red envelope meant that the person was receiving a good luck.
The other example that can be used to show the significance of the red color in China was that anything with the red color is prohibited in the burial. This is because the red color in China traditionally meant happiness. They said that one should not have anything red because there is no way you can celebrate the burial of someone. However, the funny bit about this scenario is that the names of the dead were written in red. It was signed that the dead were going to have a happy life after death. Writing another color like black which shows negativity would mean that the dead people will have antagonizing life in their next stage of living. Therefore, in summary, the red color was used to support the belief that there is life after death and that the dead were going to happy life franked with red representing the happiness (Albers, 2013, p. 34).
Another scenario where the red color is used in China is by the government. Currently, the government of China uses red seals. In China, unless the seal is Red, it cannot be considered as official. Today, the sitting government of China is the communist type and uses the red color throughout all its activities. For this reason, the red color remains the most popular color in the country.
The other usage of colors is China is in the association of the five of the Chines beliefs and Feng Shui (Nezhad & Kavehnezhad, 2013, p. 1450). It is also called color symbolism. It had the five primary colors also five Elements. Before the development of the five element theory, the China people only used a few colors, but they did not attach great importance to color. However, the book they were split into two into five colors which are black, white, red, green, yellow, which composed of five primary colors. Under this five trips where the red present, it had a significant role. It had much old representation, traditional bridal color. It also represented enthusiastic, reaching upwards to the right things, and represented good luck. In general, it was a sign of joy and excitement.
It is also easy to say that red even today represents the happiness and joy. The homes of the loyal people in the government are decorated with red colors. The red wall, even surrounds them. This is to show the significance of the red color. However, nowadays there are changes in the construction of the houses of the loyal. They are currently using the blue and black tiles and white walls. There is a need for more study in this field to identify why the significance of the red color is diminishing.
The interesting point is the theory of symbolism in Chinese culture. In this theory, there are five elements just like in the five elements theory. They are five elements, including water, wood, air, and the metal and finally the fire. These five components have different roles which they play in the life of Chinese people. They are all represented by the colors of the Five Elements Theory. However, our interest in the paper is the red color. Therefore, we are going to narrow our discussion to the red color in this theory. Just as stated before, red color represents fire. Just like the other theory, it shows the red color is the most important in the context of Chinese life. This red color according to the theory states that it symbolizes the joy and happiness. Also, the red color represents the southern direction which is associated with luck, and the summer season which represents the celebrations. It is a red color which is also known the color of fire in this theory.
It is crucial to note that the significance of this theory is diminishing due to the invention of the western culture. It has led to a reduction of the importance of the red color and also brought other meanings of red color as opposed to the happiness and celebration which was the initial purpose. To be precise, westerners consider red color as the representatives of the revolution in China. It is because the China used the red color in their revolution which brought changes and to the way government used to use to rule. If you are doing the marketing in China, you will realize that the importance of red color. It is advisable to do the marketing of your products in red color in China because in China red color is viewed as royal. This case study was carried out by Jade cases studies on the impact of color in advertisements in China.
The red color is important in the religion of the Chinese. It was critical in the imperial China with its representation of fire. Red was considered noble during those times and could be easily found in all the worship places of China. All the sacrifice areas were painted red to show the respect to God. The gates of the worship places were painted red. It was not limited to worship places because it also was also found in the gate and the walls of the imperial homes to shoe nobility. The Chinese artisans had developed a method of making the china red by use of Cinnabar, which would eventually produce the famous and influential vermillion commonly known as Chinese red.
The other significant use of the red color is in the masks. The case study carried out by showed there are different types of the covers based on religion. The Chinese origin of masks is associated with the religion of the China called religious shamanism. This faith will show the significance of different colors in the covers and how it has been passed to many generations in China. Today, the colors of the masks show the emotion or the character of the person behind the mask. At these times, their red color is mainly used to present the positivity. Alternatively, a red mask can represent the character such as the courage, loyalty, and heroism. It can also show intelligence and also bravery. Red could also at some time be presented by the purple, which was used to represent justice and superiority.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it is noticeable that the red color was very significant in the society and the history of China. The color was used to represent the positivity. It was a color used to describe the life and was used everywhere in the celebrations to show nobility. There is a need for more study on the topic to identify different concepts concerning the issue of color in China. One of the issues that require further research is to know why the significance of the red color is diminishing. In my opinion, there is a rich history in the red color in China and its nobility should be conserved.
References
Albers, J. (2013). Interaction of color. Yale University Press.
Feisner, E. A., & Reed., R. (2013). Color studies. A&C Black.
Hu, X.-F. (2014). Color variations of the Quaternary Red Clay in southern China and its paleoclimatic implications. Sedimentary Geology, 15-25.
Jin, Y., & Cao, Z. (2014). The Application of traditional art color in Chinese Graphic Design." 3rd International Conference on Science and Social Research (ICSSR 2014). Atlantis Press.
Nezhad, M., & Kavehnezhad, K. (2013). Choosing the right color: a way to increase sales. International Journal of Asian Social Science, 1442-1457.
