菊与刀英文读书报告.docVIP

PAGE 1 Book-report of The Chrysanthemum and the Sword China is not the only country in the east. When the sun arises, the first country to see it is Japan, our neighbor. Most Chinese are ill disposed towards Japanese because of their invasion in history, their denial of history, their ambition in Diaoyu Island. It seems that out of these reasons, between Japanese and Chinese, there is ice that will never melt and oceans cannot be crossed. However, do we genuinely know well about this neighbor? As Chinese, have we ever tried to observe and analyze this country objectively? Actually, answers to these two questions are the same: no. Consequently, we choose a classic book studying Japanese culture and character, hiding behind their lifestyle, entitled The Chrysanthemum and the Sword written by a well-known American anthropologist Ruth Benedict. Introduction of the author Ruth Benedict (June5, 1887-September17, 1948) was an American anthropologist and folklorist. She was born in?New York City, and attended?Vassar College?and graduated in 1909. She entered graduate studies at Columbia University in 1919, receiving her?PhD?and joining the faculty in 1923.?Benedict held the post of President of the?American Anthropological Association?and was also a prominent member of the American Folklore Society. She became the first woman to be recognized as a prominent leader of a learned profession. Among her works, Patterns of Culture and The Chrysanthemum and the Sword are the most famous. Background In June of 1944, America has captured Okinawa. World War II was approaching the end, but American politicians not fully understood Japanese culture and the way Japanese think. So Americans didn’t know how to deal with Japan. In reality, two major questions appeared at that time. Would Japanese government surrender? Should the US government abolish the Emperor and then reform Japan into a democratic country? So they needed detailed information about Japanese’s instinct, value orien