Being Or Becoming?

The present study draws on Gordon Mathews' cultural-anthropological theory, combined with other tenets,seeking to look into Chinese father's cultural identity problem in Ang Lee's "The Family Trilogy".The thesis consists of five chapters.The first one is devoted to an introduction, dealing with research questions and theoretical framework.Based on detailed textual analyses,the following three chapters examine respectively Chinese father's cultural identity problem in the process of globalization and detraditionalization from three different aspects.To be specific,Chapter Two explores Chinese father's cultural identity problem in interaction with Western culture based on Pushing Hands;Chapter Three investigates Chinese father's cultural identity problem in conflict with tradition based on The Wedding Banquet;Chapter Four looks into Chinese father's cultural identity problem in relation to women based on Eat Drink Man Woman.Following the discussion above,the thesis comes to a conclusion that in the process of globalization and detraditionalization,the global cultural supermarket supplants the cultural particularism and dissolves Chinese father's cultural identity under patriarchal system; it is the cultural ritual performance and identity negotiation that enable the Chinese father to reshape his cultural identity in the global cultural supermarket.