The Transnational History of a Chinese Family - Assignment Example

The paper "The Transnational History of a Chinese Family" is a wonderful example of an assignment on culture.
What were some of the most interesting aspects of the Chang family history to you and some of the most interesting characteristics of their village in China?
The Chang family has an interesting history because the family’s history allows the reader to visualize life in nineteenth-century China. The close family ties, as well as the commitment to education, are some of the interesting aspects depicted in the Chang family. The level of volatility exhibited by the Chang family, and characterized by success ad decline of their economies presents a realistic picture of rural China in the nineteenth century (Liu 6). The family’s migration into the United States and the maintenance close family ties to their cultural home, China, is also an intriguing aspect. A close analysis of family history reveals much about the life of immigrants in the United States.

What was the inheritance system in Chinese family culture?
A close analysis of the Chang family helps in understanding the inheritance system in Chinese family culture. Worth noting is the fact that the people had a strong family and kinship network comprising of families sharing a similar family name and from a similar ancestral line. Some families in Chinese culture were polygamous. However, the eldest son belonging to the legal wife had the privilege of inheriting his father’s responsibilities as well as identity (13). Many families were patriarchal, a factor that meant that only males had the responsibility of leading the family. Children of other wives also had the privilege of inheriting their father’s property, although their privileges did not measure up to those of the first-born son.

What were some of the most important family values described in this chapter?
From the history of the Chang family, it is evident that the Chinese culture had important family values. One of the family values was filial piety, which compelled all the family members to exhibit high levels of respect for their elders, parents, as well as ancestors. Filial piety was defined by respect, obedience, and remarkable love for ancestors and kinship networks (18). Moreover, hard work was a critical family value as evident from the Chang family. All the family members were expected to contribute positively to the success of the family by working hard. Every Chinese family held strongly in the Chinese culture, giving special attention to the strong family ties promoted by the culture. It was wrong for an individual to abandon family members, a factor that explains why members of the Chang family in the United States had an attachment to their relatives back in China.

What was the Chinese civil service examination system?
The Chinese civil service examination system denotes the civil service exams that young men undertook to qualify for government positions. The young people were placed in prestigious academic institutions so that they would have better chances of excelling in the civil service exam. Only individuals who passed the exam had the opportunity to work for the government. However, the civil service examination system was later abolished in 1905. The abolishment of the civil service examination system led to a transition to a new system of education in China. Only scholars had the capacity to pass civil service exams (5). Therefore, youths who did not prove to be scholars lacked the opportunity to hold government positions.