Chinese Civilization Essay

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Intra-group harmony is another value that affects Chinese concern for face. This value ensures that Chinese people emphasize the maintenance of good relationships within their groups (family, friends, colleagues, neighbor, etc.) and avoidance of confrontation (Hu, Grove and Zhuang, 8). Chinese people are linked with each other through different “guanxi”, which means relationship, connection, obligation and mutual dependency among people. Maintaining face therefore is important in maintaining “guanxi”. To do business or to negotiate business contracts in China, it is necessary to develop and maintain good “guanxi” apart from having a strong company profile. If a Western company wishes to do business with a Chinese partner, it is essential to invest in the development of “guanxi” with the Chinese partner company. Good “guanxi” can be developed through both formal and informal meetings/social occasions/meals, in which face-saving behaviors can ensure the group harmony. The concept of “guanxi” means that the Chinese will not tolerate anger, because anger can undermine the integrity and well-being of the group. It is an action that people do not consider to be worthy of respect, and it would lead to a serious loss of face (Hu, Grove and Zhuang, 67). For example, a company staff should avoid express anger with his or her supervisor or manager because that would make both of them lose face. Following the hierarchical order, the staff will lose face for not respecting his/her superior while the supervisor/manager will lose face for being humiliated by an inferior. This will lead to the loss of “guanxi” between these two and affect the intra-group harmony of that company.

By understanding Chinese concern for face, foreigners who usually interact or work with Chinese people should take in mind some suggestions below in order not to offend Chinese people and to maintain each other’s face. Giving face to your Chinese counterparts/friends/colleagues should be considered in all aspects of your daily interactions. Direct confrontations and rejections should be avoided while indirect responses are more appropriate. So when a Chinese person gives such as response as “Kaolu, kaolu” (We need more time to consider this), it can be translated as a soft or indirect rejection without causing any face loss. Pointing out someone’s weaknesses or mistakes directly is therefore not encouraged in Chinese culture, because that can lead to loss of face and affect the relationship. In numerous Chinese TV reality shows, unlike other versions in Western countries, judges rarely use harsh words to criticize contestants to avoid shaming them. So it is recommended for foreigners to avoid aggressive remarks or criticism. Or in daily interactions with others, Chinese people can give compliments out of politeness or when they want to improve the relationship, and if a Chinese person receives a compliment, even when the compliment is true, he or she usually denies it out of politeness or responds with a modest answer. Similarly, Chinese people can sometimes resort to ‘white lies’ to save face and to maintain harmonious relationships. Foreigners should pay attention to the conversation to identify face-saving patterns. Lastly, foreigners should bear in mind the hierarchy in relationships among Chinese people to have proper conducts i.e. respect for superiors.

To conclude, although face in its idiomatic sense is a universal human concern, Chinese concept of face bears its unique characteristics and traits due to cultural implications of collectivism, large power distance and intra-group harmony. Those who are not familiar with Chinese culture should look into Chinese concept of face and its importance in the Chinese society in order to get along with Chinese people.