By Ilias Siakaras,
Broadly speaking, it is claimed by many that Chinese people have an inherent tendency to obedience since they regard it as a trait of their personal selves. However, there are some values across the eastern world, which are the polar opposite to the western world; to name some of these, in Chinese society, modesty and self-deprecation were regarded as admirable traits and anything else was seen as vain, arrogant, big-headed and unattractive.
The values which children draw from their parents are brief adult reflections, which have rarely touched on primary and secondary classroom conscientiousness, where formative educational experiences supposedly take place. As a result, teacher-centered pedagogy in basic education is often identified as the core problem behind the lack of students’ oral participation. Scholars who did not associate Chinese students’ silence with culture, attributed it to a “general genetic tendency to obey”.
Furthermore, membership-based legitimacy faces the challenge of excessive paternalism, which may well disrupt familial ties. Also problematic is that the Chinese party-state may never truly be open and brave enough to learn from other countries, fearing the risk of distorting its own “Chineseness”. This sense of paternalism leaves its mark on their children who have to obey to become responsible adults.
It would be unfair not to mention the fact that the long Chinese tradition of an equating country would not be as emphasized, since state and family also contribute. Calling local governors the “father-mother official” is an old habit that dies hard, while the success of those governors like Mao Zedong, is pointed out as an integral part of China’s history. Hence, every single Chinese citizen over time has embedded their policy of blind obedience to a person who seeks to benefit their society.
To sum it all up, when it comes to determining the causes of affairs, especially when a policy of a state is being informed, the stepping stone to excel, is an analysis, the same way that a sociologist interprets the effects of a cultural norm on a nation. That is what a rational person should do instead of focusing on an unjustified viewpoint, the so-called Chinese inherent genetically-based obedience.
References
Semantic Scholar. Available here.
The Diplomat, Why Chinese obey. Available here.
