A look at traditional Chinese food culture in "Dream of Red Mansions"

"A Dream of Red Mansions" is a human love novel with world influence, and is listed as the first of the four classic Chinese classics. The story tells the people and things that happened in the ancient feudal aristocratic family. "A Dream of Red Mansions" has extremely distinctive features in its writing techniques. The description of various events can help readers understand the social customs of the time. Since "A Dream of Red Mansions" is a novel that mainly describes the life of aristocrats, there are certainly many descriptions of banquets. Taking up a large amount of space in the book, the detailed and exquisite descriptions in the book enable readers to feel the grace of the aristocrats of that era, feel the essence of Chinese food culture, and at the same time feel the Chinese spirit reflected in the food culture. Traditional etiquette and traditional culture.

1. Table manners reflected in family banquets

In the third chapter of the book, Lin Daiyu’s first meal in Jia’s house was at Jia’s mother’s house. One of the rules on the table is It was so big that Lin Daiyu, who was new to the company, was careful to avoid making mistakes and causing jokes. The book describes it this way: Entering the back door, there are many people waiting here. When Mrs. Wang arrives, tables and chairs are set up. Jia Zhu's wife, Mrs. Li, brought the rice, Xifeng put down chopsticks, and Mrs. Wang brought in the soup. Jia Mu sat alone on the couch in front, with four empty chairs on both sides. Xifeng quickly pulled Daiyu to sit on the first chair on the left, and Daiyu refused. Jia Mu smiled and said, "Your aunt and sisters-in-law are not eating here. You are a guest, so you should sit like this." Dai Yufang said her seat and sat down. Jia Mu ordered Mrs. Wang to sit down. The three sisters Yingchun came up after taking their seats. Yingchun sits first on the right, Tanchun sits second on the left, and Xichun sits second on the right. The maid next to her was busy whisking dust, rinsing bowls, and handkerchiefs. Li and Feng stood beside the case and made concessions. Although there are many wives and maids waiting outside, they don't even cough. After the meal was finished, each maid brought tea in a small tea tray. On that day, Lin Ruhai taught her daughter to cherish blessings and maintain her health. She said that after eating, she should wait until the rice is gone and drink tea after a while, so as not to hurt the spleen and stomach. Now Daiyu saw that many things here were not in line with her family's style, and she had to adapt and at least change them one by one, so she accepted the tea. The person who had seen her earlier brought a rinsing bowl to her, and Daiyu also rinsed her mouth. After washing his hands, he brought tea again. This is the tea for eating.

There are so many rules in a family dinner, from which we can read the traditional table manners.

It can be seen from the order of seating during meals that Jia Mu always sits down first, followed by Mrs. Wang’s generation, and then in turn. It reflects the family rule of giving priority to elders.

From the description, we can see that after Jia Mu sat down, Wang Xifeng took Lin Daiyu, who was a guest, to sit next to Jia Mu; then others took their seats one after another according to their seniority. Reflects guest-first demeanor.

It is always the two granddaughter-in-laws who are busy waiting for the elders to eat, and the granddaughter-in-law must stand while waiting. Reflects strict family tradition.

As sisters-in-law, Li Wan and Sister Feng stood waiting, while as sisters-in-law, the three ladies of the Jia family welcomed the spring, Tanchun and Xichun sat down to dine. It reflects the custom among the common people that unmarried people are given priority over married people.

The order of meals is also very particular. Eat first, then rinse your mouth, and then drink tea. It reflects the exquisite life requirements.

From table manners, we can see the rigor of traditional family rules. The elders have absolute authority at home. The Chinese tradition of respecting the elderly, caring for the young, and being courteous to guests is truly reflected in the table manners of the Jia family. Such table manners reflect the connotation of traditional catering culture.

2. The connotation of traditional Chinese food culture

1. The principles of etiquette and filial piety

In traditional culture, food culture is not just the pursuit of delicious food; It also showed the idea of ??etiquette and filial piety in the society at that time, and this idea has become the core of today's food culture. The traditional values ??conveyed in the food culture are extremely rich. In this food culture, food is not the focus, but one of the ways to express etiquette and filial piety. In fact, etiquette is to entertain guests by treating others with courtesy during the banquet. Behind it is the display of traditional Chinese etiquette culture in food. Filial piety is based on elders, and traditional Chinese culture is demonstrated through a series of regulations such as elders eating first. The daily diet and some large banquets mentioned in "A Dream of Red Mansions" all demonstrate this idea in detail. For example, there are many detailed descriptions in Lin Daiyu's first meal in Jia's house. As an important part of Chinese culture, food culture also reflects a person's cultural accomplishment and even the cultural connotation of a family.

2. Aesthetic concept

The pursuit of beauty in "A Dream of Red Mansions" has a new realm. In catering, it not only involves traditional color and fragrance, but also involves ingredients, workmanship, Containers, serving order, etc. There are extremely strict regulations on the selection of ingredients. Only high-quality ingredients can produce high-quality food. The workmanship of the food is also very particular, especially in the shaping of the food's appearance. Only by making an attractive appearance can it attract the attention of diners. The utensils are a beautiful scenery on the dining table. Only by ensuring the exquisiteness of the utensils can the food be better set off. Make reasonable arrangements for the order of serving dishes to stimulate the appetite of diners. Eating in a pleasant mood is a beautiful enjoyment in itself.

3. Ways to maintain health

While describing food culture, it also conveys strong thoughts on health maintenance. In "A Dream of Red Mansions", a lot of words are used to exaggerate the content of dietary therapy and health preservation. Jia's family has always paid more attention to health preservation and achieved health goals by eating ingredients with health value. In addition to traditional health-preserving methods, it also involves food therapy and disease treatment methods, such as using hunger-clearing methods to treat colds and coughs, etc. By elaborating on the different effects of various diets, the dietary and health-preserving ideas in "A Dream of Red Mansions" are demonstrated.

4. Advocating refinement

As representatives of the aristocratic class, Rongguo Mansion and Ningguo Mansion’s pursuit of sophistication is also evident in their food. For example, when Grandma Liu entered the Rongguo Mansion, she was served "eggplant". Although it had a bit of eggplant flavor, it was not like eggplant. When asked about how to make it, Sister Feng also fully demonstrated the craftsmanship through her verbal description. of exquisiteness. The dishes or snacks displayed at many types of banquets all show this exquisite production process and highlight the traditional food culture concept that advocates exquisiteness.

To sum up, we can see that the reason why "Dream of Red Mansions" is called a classic is that its profound content is indeed a wonder in the history of literature. It seems to be a novel about love. , but has a large amount of space to display food culture. The author uses banquet descriptions as the narrative theme of the novel, describing the colorful banquet activities of many characters. Through this series of banquet activities, we not only truly outline the life scenes of ancient feudal aristocratic families, but also create vivid characters in this group activity. Thus, we can truly understand the connotation of traditional Chinese food culture, and embody Chinese traditional aesthetics and Chinese traditional culture from one side. Chinese food culture has been mentioned in many classical literature from ancient times to the present. Perhaps, "A Dream of Red Mansions" is the most mentioned.