Culture of the People's Republic of China
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The Culture of the People's Republic of China is a blend of traditional Chinese culture with communist influences, and lately, Western consumer culture.[citation needed]
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[edit] The early years of the People's Republic of China
For some years after the establishment of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in 1949, traditional Chinese culture was tolerated to some extent. The main changes concentrated on attempts to remove traditional social inequalities, such as sexism, racism, and serfdom. A form of Standard Mandarin known as Putonghua was promoted by the Central People's Government in Beijing as the lingua franca in a continuation of the Kuo-yü of the Republic of China (ROC), but the various local spoken variants and the languages of the numerous ethnic groups of China were tolerated.
As the Soviet Union was an ally of the PRC at the time, the culture of Russia, especially the Russian language, was quite popular; but this trend was halted when a border dispute ended the Sino-Soviet alliance in 1961 - the Sino-Soviet split.[citation needed]
[edit] The Cultural Revolution
When the Cultural Revolution began in 1966, all forms of traditional cultures, be it Chinese or Western, were suppressed. Temples and churches were vandalized by the Red Guards; Confucian morality was frowned upon; and a cult of personality surrounding Chairman Mao Zedong was actively promoted. The Quotations from Chairman Mao Zedong (or the "Little Red Book") achieved sancticity equivalent to a holy text as part of Maoism, or "thoughts of Mao Zedong", which became the national ideology. Simplified Chinese ideograms were also officially introduced at the time, though many such simplified characters have existed for hundreds of years.
The artistic community was particularly affected by the Cultural Revolution. Initially only eight "Sample Acts", or propaganda performances, were allowed, along with the "Loyalty Dance", posters that deify Chairman Mao, and a large number of revolutionary songs such as The East Is Red.
[edit] The era of economic reform
After the end of the Maoist era, the Chinese society was quickly transformed into a form of market economy. This has brought about a renaissance of traditional Chinese culture and values, such as hard work and thrift. Local religions including Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism have flourished. These are not mutually exclusive, and many people practice a combination of the three, and at the same time incorporate elements of various folk religions. These religions survived the Cultural Revolution remarkably intact, although some ceremonies in memory of Confucius in Shandong, where his home town was located, had to seek help from South Korea for guidance on the traditional Chinese procedures.[citation needed]
There has also been a revival of Chinese Islam and in particular Christianity, even though religious institutions remain under the control of the government. The Christian churches (Three-Self Patriotic Movement (TSPM) and the China Christian Council (CCC) are Protestant groups, and the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association (CCPA) while the Chinese Catholic Bishops Council (CCBC) for Catholics) are subordinate to the government in Beijing, instead of to the Holy See.
Traditional Chinese arts have also re-emerged from the Cultural Revolution, but their developments have been hampered by the Chinese society's ready acceptance of outside cultural influences,[citation needed] particularly the popular culture of Hong Kong, which has a huge following inside the PRC. Nevertheless the television stations in the PRC have in recent years produced numerous quality drama series, covering everything from imperial history to modern-day police actions, and gaining immense popularity in mainland China.
The official enforcement of the One-Child Policy has created a generation of "Little Emperors" doted upon by their parents, made more so by the development of a Western-style consumer culture within the PRC. This initially revived a sense of xenophilia among the mainland Chinese population that originated in the colonial days of the late 19th century. However, as mainland China became an economic power in its own right, the PRC government has intentionally fostered a sense of patriotic pride amongst the mainland Chinese population, which some critics see as a resurgence of Chinese nationalism. [citation needed]
