Urban Chinese And Japanese Mate Selection Views From The Perspective Of Cross-Cultural Adaptation Of TV Series

As a type of value guiding Chinese and Japanese men and women to select future partners,the cultural view of mate selection has a profound impact on the Chinese and Japanese family structures and societies.These views and attitudes toward mate selection not only are influenced by the Chinese and Japanese societies and cultures respectively but also reflect the cultural-social criteria of different periods.The research takes the Chinese and Japanese mate selection view as research objects.Specifically,it analyzes and compares the Chinese and Japanese mate selection views reflected in four selected Guides series,including the original Japanese version Tokyo Women's Guide(2016),the Chinese adapted versions Beijing Women's Guide(2018)and Shanghai Women's Guide(2018),and the Japanese adapted version Tokyo Men's Guide(2019).The two research questions are:(R1)How are the Chinese and Japanese mate selection views reflected in four Guides from perspectives of mate selection criteria,models,and methods? And as a sub-question,what are the similarities and differences between Chinese and Japanese mate selection views reflected in Guides in three aspects of criteria,models,and methods? Then,(R2)What kinds of cultural resemblances and disparities are reflected by the mate selection views demonstrated in Guides in cultural aspects of the social relation,gender relation,family structure,aesthetic viewpoints,and so on?The research is guided by mate selection theories,whose introduction is categorized into three branches based on the research contents,they are,(a)evolution-oriented mate selection theories(Darwin,1871;Trivers,1972;Buss,1989;Berry&Diane,2000;Buss& Schmitt,2016)and social exchange theory(Winch,1958;Edwards,1969),both of which testify intercultural similarities in mate selection,with the former advocating the “preference for the better one” and “sex differences” in mate selection and the latter supporting the “resource exchange” nature of mate selection;(b)the gradient mating theory(Bernard,1972;Veevers,1988;Pyke &Adams,2010;R.Chen,2016),the assortative mating theory(Buss,1985;Goode,1986),and the structural powerlessness hypothesis(Buss& Barnes,1986),all of which are utilized to analyze different gender power relations(men-superior relations,equal relations,and women-superior relations)in three different mate selection models;and finally,(c)the game theory of mate selection factors and “four key factors”--external appearance,internal quality,economic condition,and personal education(Fan,2018)to analyze the mate selection criteria.Moreover,the thesis also touches upon cultural concepts like “family”,“mianzi”(face),“guanxi”(relationships),collectivism,individualism,social gender roles to analyze and compare Chinese and Japanese mate selection views and cultures.This research adopts a textual analysis approach utilizing semiology.Elements are analyzed and compared with the assistance of audio-visual languages in four Guides,including the narrative,plot,characters,lines,music,and representative cultural symbols among them,showing some similarities and differences between mate selection views of China and Japan and cultures at large.The research is presented in four parts: starting by introducing mate selection concepts,theories,and the theoretical framework,and reviewing the existing research on Chinese and Japanese mate selection views;then introducing the methodological approach of textual analysis combining the theory of semiology and the concept of audio-visual languages;next conducting textual analysis on the characters' mate selection view in four Guides from perspectives of criteria,models,and methods combining mate selection theories and semiology(analyzing the audio-visual languages)and comparing Chinese and Japanese mate selection views reflected in Guides;and finally,analyzing and comparing sociocultural contexts behind Chinese and Japanese mate selection views,especially referring to cultural concepts like“family”,“mianzi”,“guanxi”,collectivism,individualism,and social gender roles.This study finds that:(1)there are similarities between Chinese and Japanese mate selection views mainly in the shared traits of preference for the better and the gender distinction in criteria;the preference for a traditional gradient mating model,the belief of an ideal result for the assortative mating model,and the emergence of thestructural powerlessness model;and an inclination to self-introduction in methods;(2)yet there are also cultural differences in varies emphases on men's economic conditions between Chinese and Japanese women,in the preference for women's external appearance and inner quality between Chinese and Japanese men,and in a greater number of methods used for Chinese mate selection compared to Japanese;(3)and the patterns of mate selection views reflect Chinese and Japanese cultures in aspects of the traditional and modern gender roles,family structures,collectivism,individualism,mianzi,guanxi,etc.Thus,this study lays foundations for further cultural or media analysis of attitudes or practices in similar cultural groups.