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CulturaldifferencesbetweenChinaandAmerica---differenceincultureoffoodGeTianyuAbstractfoodistheheaventothehuman.Sincehumanbeingsappearedontheearthmillionsyearsago,wehavehadfoodeverydaytosatisfytheneedofenergy.Becauseoftheinfluenceofreligion,climate,andregion,differentcountrieshavedifferentdietarycultures.China,whichhasahistorylongerthanfivethousandyears,isoneofthebiggestcountriesintheworld,andtheUnitedStatesisthesupercountrythathasagreatinfluencetothewholeworld.Westudythesedifferencesandthenfindoutthepointsthatcanbedigested,inordertofacilitatethecommunicationaboutculturesbetweenChinaandtheUnitedStates.BytheanalysisofthedifferencesbetweenChineseandAmericandietarycultures,wecancomprehendtherespectiveculturaltraditionsofChinaandthewestandwecanalsoimproveandcreatethenewcultureofChina.Inmypaper,Iwouldliketodiscussthedifferenceoffoodbetweenthetwocountries.KeywordsChinaAmericafoodIntroductionBecauseofthelongdistance,theisolationofhundredsofyearsmakestheUnitedStatesandChinabetoomuchdifferentintheircultures.Althougheverycountryandsocietymustevolvebyfood,foodcultureisnotthesameandthepositionsoffoodindifferentculturesarealsodiverse.Chinahasbeenevolvingmorethanfivethousandyears.Itisthecountrywithalargepopulation,soitisanlargeagriculturalcountryandhasplentyoffoodresourcestofeeditspeople.So,inChina,foodhasalwaysbeingputatthehighestpositionofthecountry.Differently,theUnitedStateswasbornandbredbypolityandeconomy.Itenjoysaexcellentreputationofthehighlevelofitspolityandeconomy.TheAmericansdidnotpaytheirwholeattentiontofood.InthecultureofAmerica,foodisjustasmallpartofpeople’sdailylife.Thedifferentdegreesthatpeoplefocusonfoodleadtodifferentfoodcultures.Receivingtheinfluenceofrespectiveculturaltradition,theChineseandwesterndietaryculturehashaddifferentcharacteristics.Thedifferencesinconcepts,patterns,attributionandnaturereflectthedifferentdietaryculturesinthedifferentstatecharacteristics;suchcharacteristicsenrichedtheresearchvalueoffoodculture.Studyingtheseculturaldifferences,wecanfindoutajointtoenhancethecommunicationbetweenChinaandAmerica.ItmaybeagreathelptothecommunicationoftheChineseandwesterncultures.Body1.dietidea1.1AmericandietideaWesternpeopleusuallypayattentiontothecalories、vitamins、proteinsandsoonwhentheyenjoytheirmeal.Intheiropinion,oneshouldchoosehisfoodonlyaccordingtohisneedasanindependentindividualandthebalancedrequirementofallkindsofnutrientsforeachpartofhisbody.ComparingwiththeChinesediet,westerndiettastesstereotyped,assimpleaschewingthecandle,butthesensetellsthem:Wemusteatthemallbecauseofthenutrition.1.2ChinesedietideaWhenthewesternpeoplepaymoreattentiontothebalanceofnutrition,WhatChinesepeoplecareaboutisthedeliciousnessoffood.Chineseoftenusethesewordssuchascolor、smell、flavorandshapetodescribethefood.InChina,Chinesepeopleregardmealasakindofartoftheirlife.Thequalityandthequantityoffoodrepresentthesocialstatusofafamily,somanypeopleusecolorfulandtastyfoodtoshowoffwhentheyhaveaparty.2.dietpatterns2.1dietpatterninChinaInChina,acelebration,nomatterwhat,therewillbeonlyoneform,assittingtogether,sharingonefeast.Banquetusesroundtable,whichhascreatedaunityofform,whichiscourtesy,comityatmosphere.Dishesareinthecenterofthetable.Theyaretheobjectsforpeopletoappreciateandtaste,andtheyarealsoanintermediateofcommunication.Peopledrinktogetherandsharethevegetables,whichreflectthemutualrespectamongthem.Itcanalsoshowthevirtuesofcomityandharmony.Althoughinthehealthyrespect,thisapproachhasseveraldeficiencies,itisournationalhappymentality.ItreflectstheclassicalChinesephilosophycalledharmonyanditishelpfulforChinesepeopletofacilitatethecollectiveemotionalexchanges.2.2DietpatterninAmericaThemoreobviousdifferencebetweenChineseandAmericandietarypatternsisbuffetdinnerwhichispopularinAmerica.Thismethodistodisplayallfood,andeverybodypicksnotfixedinhisorherplacestoeat.Theywalkfreely.Thisapproachcanprovidetheemotionalinteractionbetweenindividuals;theyneverneedtoputeverywordonthetable.Thisalsoshowsawesternpersonalityandself-respect.However,alltheeatingwithoutjamminglackstherealaffectivetoneliketheChinesepeople.SomepeoplewanttoputthebuffetintheChinesefood,butIthinkitisnotfeasible.TheChinesepeopledrinkandeataroundthetabletoshowharmonyandunity,butthebuffethasbrokensuchpattern.Itraisesthepersonalindependenceandself-mentionedatthefirstplace.ThisistheoppositeofthescaleofthegreatunityofallChinesetraditionalculture.3.DietAttributionAmericandiettendstobescientificandrational,buttheChinesediettendstobeartandsentimental.Duringtheunderdevelopederaofdiet,thesetwotrendshaveonlyoneaim–toliveandneverbehungry.Andwhenthedietarycultureisfulldeveloped,thetendencyisshowninthisdifferentpurpose:theformerisinthedevelopmentofnutrition,thelatterisexpressedasthestressontheflavor.Therefore,thefocusofAmericandietisonlytheextensionoftheoriginaldietpracticality.TheemphasisontheflavorofChinesecuisinecatersthediettotheartsfield.InChina,eatingisnotmeanttohaveenough.Sometimesweeatthoughwearefull.Weareoverloadedwithfood.Why?Sayingbluntly,itistoappreciatetheartofcooking.Comparedtother