Introduction
Current problem: Cultural dilution across the globe continues to affect the cultural practices and elements. However, there are those elements which continue to stand out in various cultures.
Areas of focus: Chinese culture, the dragon and modern day representation.
Thesis statement: Dragons’ nature and symbolism made it possible for it to stand out in China and orient the whole world around it.
Background
Despite being imaginary representations, dragons became instrumental elements in the Chinese culture, representing various symbols.
Its early adoption during the emperor of China led to its assimilation in the Chinese culture and stood out as a god to them.
The Dragons’ symbolisms played a major part in identifying the ranks of people especially the emperors.
Major Point 1: Dragons influenced the representation of China across the globe.
Minor point 1: The Western countries use the dragon as a symbol in representing the country in most of the occasions both formal and informal.
Minor point 2: It stands out in most of the painting and arts made by Chinese people and artists that visited the country.
Major Point 2: Dragons became a major symbol in international cultures
Minor point 1: Tattoos, a western culture, adopted the dragon in its art to represent superiority and fierceness.
Minor point 2: It inspired the art of most people in the west especially in cars.
Major Point 3: Dragons continue to play a major part in modern Chinese culture
Minor point 1: The Dragon boat race attracts international and local cultures as they observe fusion of art and sport.
Minor point 2: The Chinese New Year celebrations performed in major cities across the globe, act as a representation of Chinese culture.
Conclusion
Restatement of thesis: Dragons’ nature and symbolism made it possible for it to stand out in China and orient the whole world around it.
Chinese Dragon
Culture is a unique feature of a particular race or religion and makes them stand out among other nationalities. The Asian countries are one of the most cultural nations, who continue to practice most of their old culture. With globalization and industrialization, most of these cultures made it to other religions, while others trickle into the Asian regions, diluting their rich culture. However, not all these cultural characteristics lose their value in time, since they are a fundamental piece of the culture and seem to integrate well with other cultures. One of these cultural elements in China is the dragons. They are legendary creatures found in most Chinese folklore and mythology. Its nature and symbolism made it possible for it to stand out in China and orient the whole world around it. The paper looks into the history of dragons, its symbolism, and integration in the modern world.
Just like fairy tales in the American culture, dragons are imaginary representation of animals that exist for the sole purpose of creating symbolism and make correlations of particular elements in the society. According to historical books, most of the Chinese dragons had many animal-like forms, for instance, fish, turtles, and snakes. They carry great cultural significance in the Chinese culture, with depictions of power, good luck, and strength. Dragons featured in various Chinese practices such as Kung-Fu, performing arts, festivals and army regimes. Growing up in China showed me the various importance and objectives of dragons, through the several festivals and carnivals attended. Its popularity gained ground across the globe with people emulating some of the dragons in their culture such as the American culture of tattooing. Tattoos are permanent and temporary art done on the body, most of them symbolizing a certain trait in a person. Dragons became a popular art, just like tigers and lions as they symbolized strength and agility. Hence, its worldwide adoption became a major influence on people’ perspective of life and future.
Symbolism in the Chinese culture tends to stand out as the main element in most of its items. The dragon represented outstanding and excellent people in the daily language of China. Hence, most of the successful people created certain representations of themselves through dragons and acted as their mark. Those that could not match up to such people used other disesteemed creatures as their symbols such as a worm. Despite the fact that dragons were imaginations, most of the literature in China made them sound real as indicated in most of their idioms and proverbs. It is a common feature for people to have dragon pieces or art in their houses and businesses as it helps them keep and practice their tradition. It became an instrumental tool to highlight a person’s ability to overcome the hardships in life.
Historical books date the dragon symbolism began during the Emperor of China, whereby the Zhou dynasty created a variety of them to represent most of the people in power. The Son of Heaven’s Dragon had five claws, the nobles’ dragon had four claws, and the ministers’ dragon had three claws. As indicated, the three representations showed the presence of power and hierarchy in the dynasty. The same scenario is present in the Qin dynasty, where the emperor used a four-clawed dragon while the commoners used a three–clawed dragon. Moreover, the flag of China previously had a four-clawed dragon before its change in 1912. In modern times, the dragon acts as the nation’s emblem especially in the Western countries, showing its significance on its international imagery.
Apart from representing power, strength, and national pride, the dragon is a symbolic tool in the Chinese culture. It acts as benevolent and has the power to cause hurricanes and floods. It acted as a god to the Chinese people, just like the Indian culture and their different representations of gods. It was an instrumental element in their culture, with most of the ancient people showing their loyalty to them. Dragons featured in cultural festivals such as the dragon boat racing, which occurred every fifth lunar month on the fifth day. The Dragon Boat festival continues to attract visitors from across the globe due to its color and competitive spirit. The boats had different carved heads of dragons, each having a meaning behind it. Moreover, it acted as a clan representation of the teams.
Another infamous festival is the Chinese New Year. Apparently, China is one of the few countries that have their personal calendar, whereby most of the events are different from the global calendar. However, it does not disrupt its international relations. In the festival, different performers arrive with their dragons to entertain the guests and citizens as they mark another year of prosperity. Businesses close on the day as the owners seek good luck, fortune, and prosperity from the festive. In the Western countries, the celebrations cause a stir in various cities such as China town, as the locals participate in the celebrations and learn a few things about the culture. Hence, these festive influence the modern culture of these regions, with most of the people orienting their cultural practices towards it.
In conclusion, the dragon plays an instrumental part in Chinese culture and help in its continuance. Moreover, it helps unify the Chinese people across the globe and pass on most of their practices from generation to generation. As stated in the beginning, globalization and industrialization led to the dilution of culture in most countries, which affects a nation’s cultural perspective. Such strong elements become fundamental to the history and future of a nation and help it gain ground across the globe. It would be hard to eliminate the dragons’ believes with time since it established itself quite well in the society.
Bibliography
Hinsbergh, Gavin Van. 2014. The Chinese Dragon: a Symbol of Strength and Power. Accessed May 30, 2016. http://www.chinahighlights.com/travelguide/article-chinese-dragons.htm.
Laszlo, J. 2012. Interesting Facts About Chinese Dragons. February 29. Accessed May 30, 2016. http://hubpages.com/education/Interesting-Facts-About-Chinese-Dragons.
Origin of Chinese Dragon. September 24, 2003. Accessed May 30, 2016. http://www.chinaculture.org/gb/en_aboutchina/2003-09/24/content_22934.htm.
