Chinese Architecture——All Is About Life
Introduction:
Architecture is the concrete reflection of a culture. It’s not surprising that architectures can truly embody many cultural characteristics of a nation. In historical research, architecture is a vital tool to understand the traits and spirits of the ancients. Architecture not only reflects the level of technology and science, traditions and aesthetic perception of an era but also records verily the living habits and values of people at that time. Chinese architecture is no exception.
Cultural difference between the east and the west
For a nation, the style of architecture can be traced up to the origin of culture, which, in the case of China, is based on life. This sense of life is much more important than anything else, even eternity. Chinese ancient culture is fresh with the word “materialism”. In contrast, western culture puts more emphasis on idealism besides the materialism part, and even supports sacrificing own life for the spiritual values. In the west, love spiritualizes sexual desires. Westerners exaggerate the importance of love with the invention of monogamy. The fundamental idea behind monogamy is to maintain social harmony and stability, preventing nonhuman behaviors resulting from battling for mates. This morality represses sexual desires and the natural development of human personality, leading to complex changing in characters, which in turn produces many tragedies, such as those in western literatures and arts (Han, 20-23). One god example is Hamlet.
On the other hand, although Chinese ancestors create profound, colorful cultures and try to maintain social harmony and stability as well, their basic idea is “follow you heart”. Accordingly, there’s no concept about love or monogamy in ancient China. As long as you have enough money and social status, you can have as many wives you want. Ancient Chinese regard polygamy a pure method to carry the family on. Sex simply becomes...