Self Reflective Essay

Mainland China has been one of the most self-reflective places that I have visited. The time that I spent within mainland China has allowed me to develop a more holistic understanding of my heritage and the differences that exists between China and the U.S. While I was originally born within the landscape of China, I never became old enough to become fully aware of the culture and the subsequent norms that are present. After growing up in the United States as a Chinese American I noticed many similarities as well as differences between how I was raised in the U.S compared with my experiences in mainland China. The strongest observation that I have made has been the westernization of mainland China especially as the nation undergoes further urbanization.

Even with the censorship, elements of Western culture are emanated through many of the shops and business that exist within these large urban areas. The fascination with western culture stems from the fact that western culture is vastly different from Chinese culture and subsequently perceived as “cool”. The discourse that exists between Western culture and Chinese culture is in my opinion heavily one-sided. Growing up in the United States, I have grown to feel that Americans view Chinese culture as other and their perceptions of them are built upon stereotypes that are borderline racist. Local Chinese living in places such as Beijing and Xian would not be able to understand the negative stereotypes that have been perpetuated by American culture and society. They see western culture as unique and consequently gravitate towards English phrases, western brands such as KFC, and especially western people. In the manner that Chinese people as the members of our group to take photographs, the same gesture is not reciprocated in the United States which is something that I found especially interesting. This is partially due to the fact that our country as a whole is an immigrant nation while Mainland China is predominantly Han Chinese. Unlike the U.S with hundreds of thousands of Chinese immigrants, very rarely do the individuals in mainland China get to interact with a