Comparing Egyptian Chinese Cultures through Literature 2 PDF

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Comparing the Egyptian & Chinese Cultures through Literature

In this essay, my main purpose is to identify the concept of love from the point of view of two different cultures – Egyptian and Chinese. Based on the sixth stanza of the ancient Egyptian poem “I Passed Close By His House” and the classic Chinese poem “Zhongzi, Please!,” the stark cultural differences in accepting love as a readily accepted concept between the two cultures are visibly evident [ CITATION Puc \l 16393 ]. “I Passed Close by His House” is an ancient Egyptian poem where the writing style is in the form of an internal monologue that the main character is having with herself when she passes by the house of her lover. She talks about how she feels deep love for the guy and that she longs to be with him if it were not for the judgment of the society. “Zhongzi Please” is a classic Chinese poem where the main character, a woman, sees her lover pass by and is trying to tell her lover to stay away from her as her parents do not approve of him. Detail 1: The Held Back Tone of the Two Poems I wish to start with the held back nature with which the two different cultures look upon the fact that they are in love. The two leads talk about how they are afraid of judgment. In the Egyptian poem, the poet says “If only mother knew my heart,” when she longs to declare her love for her lover. This shows that ever since ancient times, the Egyptians have respected the opinion of parents in their choice of lover. However, the Chinese poem has a final tone to it instead of a hopeful one. The poet writes “but I dread my father and mother” which shows that the protagonist is terrified that her love will surface in front of her parents. The perception of how others view your relationship, especially family members, is an apparent obstacle to love as the both poem shows that love can be tragic because lovers begin to compare themselves and their importance to things of regular life, which cause jealousy

and selfishness. Overall, the moral of the both poems is that love is beautiful, but beauty always comes with flaws. Detail 2: The Longing Nature of the Two Poems In both the poems, the protagonists want to go to their respective lovers and meet them. However, one contrast that can be seen in both the two poems through “Then I could hurry to my beloved and kiss him in front of everyone, and not be ashamed because of anyone.” in the first poem and “Zhongzi, please don’t cross my village wall” is that in the Egyptian poem, the culture of Egypt is reflected upon as being more forward and open when it comes to display of affection in public. The Chinese poem underlines the fact that public affection is not accepted socially, which is a fact that stands true even in the modern times. The ideas of love in the Egyptian poems are almost similar to Chinese’s idea of love, but there is a difference in the way they approach it. Detail 3: Societal Pressure and Dominance on an Individual’s Choices Both the poems have a tone with respect for their parents and the society in general with quotes like “not be ashamed of anyone” and “but when people talk too much.” This shows that both the protagonists care about what their elders think. However, the Egyptian poem talks about respect from an open point of view where the society is accommodating of individual’s choices. The Chinese poem, however, shows that the society is not accommodating of an individual’s choices. However, the ancient Egyptian poem is open to change and as a result, the culture developed as a more accepting one than the Chinese culture where literature portrayed protagonists dreading the opinions of their family and the society in general. Based on these two poems, we can establish the fact that literature is extremely powerful in its essence and

how love – one of the basic human feelings can be socially accepted or rejected due to the tone of literatures being used in the region. Based on these two poems we can not only understand the contrast in the two cultures today but also understand how literature often reflects and develops the premise to an entire culture. This premise to cultures can be carried forward through literature and the theme that it follows. Additionally one of the main things that were highlighted in both the poems was that the protagonists both were in love but bound by societal pressures. Over time, thus, there exists a need for literature to grow with time and circumstances of the society.

Works Cited Puchner, Martin. The Norton Anthology of World Literature. 3. Vol. A. n.d....