Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior
Chinese Mothers in comparison with the American mothers produce bright and gifted children in the society. Looking at the sociology concepts behind the raising of the Chinese children, there is much to be desired. In sociology, there is greater analysis made on the physical social behavior with emphasis on the origins, organisation, and tradition, as it relates to development of human society. The basic concepts of analysis of sociology are the culture and its social structures. Culture refers to the values, customs, language, and material objects carried down from one individual to another and from one age group to the next. Culture also involves the study of values, beliefs, a society’s norms, symbols as well as technology and activities.
Norms are the set of laws that govern the behaviors by the standards of the society. In the article by Chua, she set laws that defined the social life of her daughters Lulu and Sophia. Her daughters were not allowed to attend a sleep over, watch TV, complain about not being in a school play, play computer games, decide their own extracurricular duties, obtain any grade less than an A, not be the number 1 student in every subject, play a musical instrument other than a piano or violin. These rules were highly intensified that they took the form of their custom.
Values refer to the ideas and activities agreed upon that determine what is right or wrong. This includes the family or individual. Beliefs are the facts of how things work or should work. Western mothers belief that for a child to learn a musical instrument with strictness the child has to learn at least for thirty minutes a day. The Chinese mother, on the other hand, believes that thirty minutes is far too little time for a child to learn in a day. She prefers the child to take two or three hours a day to learn.
The social practices and tradition that make up the society, define the social structure of a society. These are the beliefs and practices, which organized and determined the limits on individual behaviours (Paige, October 23, 2007). Chinese mothers believed in excellence. They believed that whenever a child did not excel in class there was a problem in the parenting trends. Compared to the Western mothers, the Chinese mothers also spent more time approximately ten times more, in drilling their children academically.
Chinese mothers do not care about the psyche of their children. They believe in strength and aggressiveness. Western mothers worry so much about how their children feel. They will always encourage their children to try to work hard when a child has not excelled in an activity. This is contrary to a Chinese mother. A Chinese mother would want to know what went wrong and would scold the child in an event of poor performance. In the event of a substandard performance, a western mother will show discontentment with the results but keep reassuring the child to work harder next time without shouting or calling names. A Chinese mother will punish the child.
They believe in excellence, and where one achieves a substandard result, it means something is wrong somewhere. There is no room for comprise. Chinese parents also believe that they know what is best for their children, so they influence their child’s desires and preferences. They believe they have a role to prepare them for their future. Western parents respect their children’s choices and encourage them to pursue their passions. They thus provide them an environment that is conducive for them to nurture their desires (Kendall, Wadsworth, & Florence, 2007).
In conclusion, the social life of a child is considerably determined by the parenting trends. Different societies have different cultures used in raising their children. Culture refers to the values, customs, language, and material objects carried down from one individual to another and from one age group to the next. The current trends borrow from each other. Chinese mothers use the western trends, and the western mothers use the Chinese trends. Each parent is seeking the best way possible for there is no one ideal way. As long as a child develops with the best values, it should be noted that whichever the path used in the upbringing of the child, none is wrong. We should be free to choose what is best for each one of us rather than strive to seek the best way.
A Chinese mother would be so concerned about the welfare of their children and want to know what went wrong and would scold the child in an event of poor performance. In this, they would follow every progress of the child. On the contrast, in the event of a substandard performance, a western mother will show discontentment with the results but keep reassuring the child to work harder next time without shouting or calling names. This makes a significant difference in the upkeep of the child by the two diverse cultures.
The basic concepts of the, human social, life cannot be determined by a set of laws. We decide the way we want them to be. For example, a society where its members want to live in fury with its enemies will live a life full of enmity. A society where its members learn to live in peace and harmony will turn to be a peaceful place to stay. I would love to be a parent who does not use the scolding and forcing method. In initiating behaviour trends, I would teach and encourage a child to perform.
