Source: China News Network
Li Shiwu: How does the fusion of multi-ethnic arts cast a solid sense of the Chinese national community?
China News Service Kunming, January 8 Title: Li Shiwu: How does the fusion of multi-ethnic art cast a solid sense of the Chinese national community?
Written by Chen Jing and Shi Guanglin
China has been a unified multi-ethnic country since ancient times, and all ethnic groups have jointly created brilliant Chinese art. In the process of multi-ethnic art blending, Han art has had a profound impact on the art of various ethnic minorities, and at the same time, the influence of ethnic minority art on Han art and the integration of various ethnic minority art cannot be ignored.
Li Shiwu, a key professor of Donglu of Yunnan University, recently accepted an exclusive interview with China News Agency's "East and West Question" to interpret how the fusion of multi-ethnic art can cast a solid sense of the Chinese national community.
The interview transcript is summarized below:
China News Service: China is a multi-ethnic country, and each ethnic group has its own artistic traditions. How do diverse ethnic arts come together?
Li Shiwu: Ethnic migration, ethnic integration, and national inclusive ethnic policies are the external reasons for promoting the integration of multi-ethnic art. The internal reason for the fusion of multi-ethnic art is the internal convergence of the human level.
On December 22, 2021, the 70th anniversary of the construction of the Oath of National Unity Monument was held in Ning'er Hani and Yi Autonomous County, Pu'er City, Yunnan Province. Photo by Liu Ranyang, a reporter from China News Service
Nationalities are one of the important categories that divide the human community at a particular historical stage. Nations can reflect the diversity of human culture and can also reflect the identity of human beings. Mencius believed that benevolence, righteousness, courtesy, and wisdom are human nature. The myths and epics about the homogeneity of various ethnic groups that are widely sung among the ethnic groups in southwest China are poetic interpretations of the category of "people" that is greater than the category of "clans", philosophical reflections on the "difference" of ethnic groups and the "sameness" of ancestral origins, and also a beautiful wish for the harmonious coexistence of nations. As a powerful national metaphor, this kind of poetic wisdom and philosophical reflection plays a role in guiding people to goodness and propagating the idea of national unity. The common nature of all ethnic groups is the root cause of the cross-ethnic integration of art.
China News Service: What are the characteristics of the integration and construction of China's multi-ethnic art?
Li Shiwu: The concept of national identity nourished by the traditional wisdom of the Chinese nation shows the inclusiveness of "harmony and difference" at the level of respecting cultural diversity; due to the increasing exchanges and exchanges of various ethnic groups, cultural exchanges and mutual learning, and more and more elements of "sameness".
On December 20, 2021, in Tantian Village, Hengjie Town, Luqiao District, Taizhou City, Zhejiang Province, local people and ethnic minority compatriots living in the village made dumplings together to welcome the "winter solstice" festival. Photographed by Jiang You, a relative of the China News Agency
Among them, the "sameness" of art forged by the exchanges and exchanges of various ethnic groups can be understood in two levels: first, the "sameness" expressed by the direct acceptance of one or more artistic traditions of other nationalities; secondly, the "sameness" is expressed by the direct acceptance of certain or more artistic traditions of other nationalities; secondly, the artistic traditions of other nationalities are borrowed, and new art classics are created after injecting the original emotions, artistic themes, and artistic techniques of their own nationalities, forming "similarities in differences, similarities and differences" in the sense of "similarities and differences".
For example, after comparing Dong Yongji, one of the "Dong Yong Story" songbooks circulating among the Yi people, with the Han Chinese songbook "The Great Filial Piety" that may be his mother," Zhu Wanshu found that the two songbooks have more similarities in terms of major plot frameworks and specific contents; the Yi nationality songbooks are rich in plot, details, and descriptions compared with the Han mothers; the Yi songbooks are integrated into the national cultural colors of the Yi people themselves; and the Han and Yi songbooks embody the convergence of cultural concepts from the three aspects of remembering the benevolent teacher, the female morality mother's ceremony, and "filial piety."
In September 2021, students jumped on bamboo poles at Miaojia Town Primary School in Rongshui Miao Autonomous County, Liuzhou City, Guangxi Province. In recent years, the school has vigorously carried out large inter-class activities based on national sports. Photo by Long Tao, China News Service
China News Service: What is the role of the fusion of chinese multi-ethnic arts in forging a solid sense of the Chinese national community?
Li Shiwu: "Ethnic minorities absorb Han art, Han people absorb ethnic minority art, and various ethnic minority art blend with each other" are the three important dimensions of multi-ethnic art integration. Through the fusion of art, all ethnic groups have provided rich nourishment for Chinese art, and in the process of emotional exchange and aesthetic exchange, they have moved towards the wonderful realm of "art and ethnic heart", and have built a common spiritual home in the art world, effectively casting the sense of community of the Chinese nation.
On April 28, 2018, the Chinese Miao Sisters' Day Costume Parade was held in Taijiang County, Qiandongnan Prefecture, Guizhou Province. The Hmong Sisters' Day is known as the "oldest Oriental Valentine's Day". China News Service reporter Qu Honglun photographed
First of all, ethnic minorities have absorbed Han art and forged a solid sense of community for the Chinese nation. Objectively speaking, Han art does provide rich nutrients for the development of ethnic minority art with its strong radiation force. This is related to the inclusiveness of Han art, the endless vitality, the demographic advantages of the Han nationality, the friendly way of living between the Han and ethnic minorities, and the long-term use of the Chinese language as the national common language. There are countless cases in which Han art has influenced the aesthetic consciousness and national spirit of ethnic minorities, and the artistic heritage of Liao Sancai (Khitan), Dabenqu (Bai), Zizishu (Manchu), and Wuligel (Mongolian) are typical examples of ethnic minorities absorbing Han art. In the process of developing their own art, ethnic minorities often absorb, learn from and recreate the high-quality components of Han art, so as to enhance the artistic character of their own ethnic groups and enrich their own artistic styles.
Secondly, the Han nationality has absorbed the art of ethnic minorities and forged a solid sense of community of the Chinese nation. As the main ethnic group, the Han nationality is extremely inclusive, and in terms of blood, language and culture, it has widely absorbed the genes of ethnic minorities. The relationship between Han art and ethnic minority art is not a simple relationship of assimilation and assimilation, but a relationship of mutual appreciation, mutual exchange and mutual reference. Without the original spirit, absorption spirit and transformation spirit of the Han nationality, and without the diversified convergence of the art of various ethnic minorities, it will not be possible to form a broad and profound Han art, vivid and profound artistic conception.
In October 2020, primary school students of the Second Nationality Complete Primary School in Zaduo County, Qinghai Province, performed the art of Gesar epic rapping. The Gesar Epic is a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage. It is reported that the school has set up a Gesar cultural inheritance class since 2016. Photo by China News Service reporter Sultan
Finally, the art of various ethnic minorities blends with each other to forge a solid sense of the Chinese national community. The art of various ethnic minorities blends with each other, occurring both among ethnic minorities of the same ethnic origin and between ethnic minorities of different ethnic origins. For example, Yunnan is a typical multi-ethnic area, under the premise of being highly conscious of their own artistic traditions and making great efforts to innovate, all ethnic minorities can transcend ethnic boundaries and be good at accepting and absorbing the artistic traditions of other ethnic groups. National artistic heritage such as Lusheng music dance, elephant foot encouragement, peacock dance, playing song, thangka, Gesar story rap, enamel silver ornaments and so on, are all co-created, co-transmitted and shared by multiple ethnic groups, and have strong vitality. Artistic co-creation, co-transmission and sharing are conducive to integrating the emotions of relevant ethnic minorities, promoting mutual identity, and playing an irreplaceable and important role in forging a solid sense of the Chinese national community.
On November 24, 2020, the annual Lusheng Festival was held in Longli Village, Xiajiang Town, Congjiang County, Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture, Guizhou Province, with Miao and Dong compatriots dressed in costumes and singing and dancing. Photo by Wu Dejun, China News Service
China News Service: What kind of experience can the mutual learning and integration of China's multi-ethnic art provide for other countries?
Li Shiwu: Only in the dynamic development of exchanges and mutual learning can the art of all nationalities highlight their own characteristics and find a variety of possibilities for the innovative development of their own national art. The more extensive and in-depth the artistic integration of various nationalities, the more profound the emotional and aesthetic exchanges between various ethnic groups. All ethnic groups in China are well versed in the philosophy of respecting cultural diversity, are good at being tolerant and absorb the advantages of different ethnic groups. "Inclusiveness" is the internal driving force for Chinese culture and Chinese art to flourish and flourish.
On August 13, 2018, the Lhasa Racecourse, a traditional Tibetan sport - equestrian performance debuted at the Snowton Festival. China News Service reporter He Penglei photographed
By studying the role of multi-ethnic art blending in the process of forging a solid sense of the Chinese national community, it can provide Chinese experience for the development of national art in multi-ethnic countries outside the region, thereby promoting the construction of a community with a shared future for mankind. The historical experience of the fusion of multi-ethnic art and the identity of the Chinese nation can be used as a reference and reference for multi-ethnic countries outside the region, so as to build harmonious world ethnic relations and contribute to the construction of a community with a shared future for mankind. (End)
Respondent Profiles:
Li Shiwu is a key professor and doctoral supervisor of Donglu of Yunnan University, and the chief expert of the "Art and Mental Health" Studio of Yunnan University. Mainly engaged in ethnic art research, he is a director of the Chinese Art Anthropology Society and a director of the Chinese Ethnic Minority Literature Society. He has published monographs such as "Examination of Chinese Craftsmen's Folk Customs in Building Houses", "Research on Witchcraft Anxiety and Art Therapy", "Anthropology of Art: Reflection and Practice", etc., and presided over the completion of the National Social Science Foundation project "Research on the Traditional Interpretation of yi epic "Mei Ge"". He has won the first prize of Outstanding Achievements in Philosophy and Social Sciences of Yunnan Province.