A Shanghai professor's alleged suggestion that the dragon should
no longer symbolize China has aroused strong objections from the
public.
"Westerners see the dragon as a symbol of arbitrariness and
offensiveness. It may lead people who know little about Chinese
culture to have a negative impression of the country," Wu Youfu,
Party secretary with the Shanghai International Studies University,
was quoted by Shanghai media as saying last week.
Though Wu said last week that the report was untrue, it has
still stirred heated debate.
Ninety per cent of the 100,000 people who responded to a survey
on sina.com, the most popular Chinese Internet portal, said the
dragon is a traditional Chinese icon and should continue to
represent the country.
Experts say that Chinese conceptions of the dragon are different
than Western ones.
"In Western countries, dragons are a combination of several
small animals. They mainly represent evil and are usually seen as a
symbol of arbitrariness and aggression," said Pang Jin, director of
the China Research Centre on Dragon and Phoenix Culture.
"However, dragons in China are supernatural animals that are
always good and not aggressive," Pang added.
"The world has diverse cultures. We shouldn't use one standard
to judge all others," said Pang.
Some experts have also suggested that China should do more to
promote Chinese dragons through more effective trans-cultural
communication.
"If the ogre Shrek can become a famous and beloved image in the
United States, I think our country could also do something, like
making movies, to demonstrate the Chinese understanding of dragons
around the world," said Yu Guomin, professor of the Journalism
School of Renmin University.
"This is a multi-cultural, global community, and we have to take
into consideration how people respond to our culture.
Over-emphasizing our own culture will hardly lead to harmonious
co-existence," said Yu.
(Xinhua News Agency December 12, 2006)