Hissing Dragon-Squirming Tiger:

Comparisons, Negotiations

and Attitudes continues....

3. Confucian values form the basis of Chinese morality, and are

expressed in practice by the beliefs in duties and behaviour towards

society, towards an individual’s kinships, and towards friends.

Individuals are expected to subjugate personal desires in the observance of their duties towards their family, their village, and beyond towards the state. The two central themes of Chinese philosophy are ‘li’ (propriety) and ‘kh’ (harmony), which are supposed to determine the proper order of things and the individual's own role in it, extending downwards from the head of the state to the

individual.

These deep-rooted norms of Chinese social behaviour influence the Chinese public to support their Government’s policies

and actions whole-heartedly and without question, even more in war

or in a near-war situation. This attitude stands out in stark contrast to

the varied responses to similar situations within Indian society. In India many classes of urban society and certain occupational castes do not believe they have any responsibility towards the state’s response to foreign military pressure or in combating foreign-sponsored internal

security threats.

4. All Han Chinese have a firm belief in the superiority of Chinese thought and culture, when compared to all others. Believing themselves to be ‘The Middle Kingdom’, the Chinese generally see people of all other societies as uncultured, uneducated barbarians.

This also leads to a feeling of contempt for ‘backward and undeveloped’ countries such as India, which are seen to be weakened by religion and superstition. By contrast, a significant section of

India’s urban populace have no pride whatsoever in India’s indigenous

thoughts and traditions, or even in anything Indian, believing

everything Western, or more specifically, American, to be better.

To be continued....