Cultural diversity

Replies: Respond to two (2) classmates about how your assigned culture differs/compares from/to theirs in relation to issues that are family, social, personal and/or professional in nature.

Cultural diversity

Muslim Culture:

According to the Kashmir Observer (2020), “ Muslims by and late extremely high standard of personal hygiene, because Islam places great emphasis on both physical and spiritual, cleanliness and purification.’’ Cleanliness and hygiene is very important to the Islam culture. For instance, they are required to take care of their personal hygiene by assuring that both men and women are well groomed, and that their bodies, clothing, and surroundings are clean. According to Wayne, (2020), Muslim participate in ritual washing, personal hair grooming including public hair, armpit hair, and mustaches, as well as cutting the nails. The Kashmir Observer (2020)  stated that Prophet Muhammad informed his companions and thus all of us, about the importance of cleanliness when he said, “ cleanliness is half of faith.” The Quran is more specific and says “ Truly, God love those who turn unto Him in repentance and loves those who purify themselves.’’ (Quran 2:222) In the Muslim culture when women go out in public she must cover her entire body except for the face and hands when not in the company of males, their clothing must be loose, so the shape of their body is not seen, should not resemble men clothing and should not be perfumed around unrelated men. The men in this culture must conceal whatever is between the naval and knee, clothing must be loose, and not see-through , all garments must be above the ankle bone, and should not resemble the women clothing. As I learned doing the culture project women wear certain clothing for their religions and not for the men in their culture. Women in this culture show respect to their religion  by wearing hijab, khimar, jibab, and niqab.

Author, G. (2020, March 13). Why Islam Has Laid Emphasis on Personal Hygiene. Retrieved November 12, 2020, from https://kashmirobserver.net/2020/03/11/why-islam-has-laid-emphasis-on-personal-hygiene/amp/

Wayne, L. (2020, September 08). Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry. Retrieved November 12, 2020, from https://carm.org/what-is-islams-teaching-on-hygiene

Chinese Family

Introduction

According to Leung, Shek, and Li (2016), the family unit is considered one of the most central institutions. To most Chinese, their family provides them with a sense of identity and a strong support network. The family is primarily understood through Confucian thought. In Confucian thinking, the family contains meaningful relationships for individuals and forms the foundation of all social organization. For instance, the roles of a husband and wife, parent and child, elder brother, and younger brother are defined clearly. A husband or father is expected to exhibit dominance and kindness to his wife in return for obedience and love and offer guidance and protection to his children for respect and obedience.

Confucian Roles

Confucian roles are not strictly adhered to anymore. Nevertheless, children are expected to obey their parents and honor their elders. According to filial piety, the Confucian tenet stresses the importance of age (Lee, 1994). For instance, in most China traditions, the entire family is expected to consult family elders on big decisions. Moreover, children are expected to care for their parents as they age. Sending elderly parents to an aged care facility is considered shameful. Families are perceived to have a collective identity and reputation in China. The interest of the family is expected to supersede the interests of the individual. According to Mavis (2014), family members are also likely to receive preferential treatment in return for their family loyalty.

Gender Roles

Within the traditional Chinese household hierarchy, the father or the eldest son is considered the family’s head. He was upheld as the ultimate decision-maker, though some families may have deferred to consulting their elders (Costello, 2008). Traditionally, the mother’s role was to fulfill domestic duties and care for the children. The extended family also commonly lived with the immediate family. Nowadays, this household model is common only in very rural areas. As gender equality has been embraced, women can now work and exercise authority in family matters. In some metropolitan areas, like Shanghai, women can be more dominant than men in the household. Nevertheless, there is still a gender gap in politics and business. Women are also often expected to care for the children and the home.

Marriage

Most Chinese expect to be married, mainly because family is considered an essential facet of one’s life. As affirmed by Ching (2015), marriage is often seen as a step towards reaching adulthood. Socioeconomic status is an important consideration for many Chinese when choosing a spouse. The permitted age for marriage is 22 for men and 20 for women. The Chinese government encourages people to marry later in life to reduce population growth. It is also becoming more popular for young people to cohabit before marriage; many will hide it from their more traditional parents; when they decide to marry, they sign a legal contract at the local government office without a ceremony. Afterward, there is a large reception with both the groom and the bride’s family and friends.

To conclude, while China has increasingly adopted Western influences, the traditional family structure is still highly valued and holds a prominent Chinese cultural position. Both traditional and modern Chinese families have similar values and morals to one another, which has been part of daily life for many centuries.