从当幸福来敲门-看美国文化价值观

摘要文化价值观，就是人们关于文化的利害、善恶、美丑等问题的总看法和总观点，反应文化对人的意义。

整个人类社会都有文化价值观，它是随着人类社会的发展而不断发展，完善。

纵观美国社会，一个高度发达的国家，是什么样的文化价值理念指导它前进，使它从产生之日就开始慢慢强大，至今都是世界的霸主。

本文将从电影《当幸福来敲门》分析美国的文化价值观。

当幸福来敲门影片所反映的整个社会背景是在美苏冷战后期，美国与苏联进行大规模的军备竞赛，消耗了大量的人力物力，财政紧张，失业率增加。

但人们依然为自己的幸福生好好努力着。

这部电影取材于真实故事，主人公就是当今美国黑人投资专家克里斯•加纳。

成功诠释了一位濒临破产的落魄业务员，如何成为知名的金融投资家的励志故事。

本部影片很好地展现了美国当今社会的文化价值观，美国社会为什么会这么发达？因为他们所认同的文化价值观在支撑着他们的生活，在指导着他们前进。

只要人们愿意奋斗，他们都会成功。

美国的文化价值观已经产生了一个强大的美国，他也必定推动着美国继续向前发展。

关键字: 文化价值观、美国、幸福、个人主义、行动、努力和乐观AbstractThe cultural values, are the total ideas of people caring about the cultural problems of the advantages and disadvantages 、kindness and badness、beauty and ugliness., reflecting the meaning of culture to people. There are cultural values at the society of human beings, developing with the developing of the society. Looking at the American society, one high developed county, what cultural values guide her go forth, making her become strong gradually, and let her become the powerful country. So this paper will analyze the American cultural values from the movie The Pursuit of Hapyness.The Pursuit of Happyness, reflected the social background at the last period of the cold war between the America and the Soviet Union which they competed with each other on arms race at large dimensions, expending much manpower and material resources, resulting the financial strain and unemployment rate increase. However, people still did everything hard for happy life. This movie based on a true story, and the actor is the black American investment expert-Chris Gardner. Successful annotating an inspirational story of how a nearing bankrupt salesman became the famous investment expert. This movie showed the American cultural values well. Why the America is so developed well? Because the cultural values of they identified support their life and lead them go forth. Only if they are willing to do their best, they are able to success finally. The American cultural values have born a strong America, and these cultural values will promote the America develop sequentially.IntroductionThe American cultural values were formed and developed gradually after the European emigrants arrived in America, proposalling the freedom、equality、individualism, promoting people do their best for their happiness. The American cultural values drive the development of the USA. These values are deserved to study for us.The American cultural values have emerged the powerful aspects, and there are a lot of modes of transmission, for example: TV、movie、book……, and so on. The movie The Pursuit of Happpyness told a story about how a almost bankrupting salesman became an investment expert through his own hard-work. The Pursuit of Happyness explained the American core value-individualism, and the values of orientation to action、effort and optimism, also the spirit of hard-working for one’s own happiness through the struggle of the actor-Chris Gardner who were not afraid of the difficulty and held an optimistic attitude at the difficult circumstances. The American cultural values backboned the life of the actor, when the medical instruments were stole, the wife was gone, he could not afford the rent, he just thought the writings of the declaration of independence about the happiness. What we can learn is no matter how the life is hard, we should strive for our happy life by our all power and pursuit the happy life constantly.Chapter 1The Movie The Pursuit of HappynessThe movie the pursuit of happyness was a true story, finished shooting at 2005 in San Francisco and Auckland. The American cultural values in this movie is deserved us to learn.1.1 The Social BackgroundAt the last period of the cold war, the America and the Soviet Union competed with each other on arms race at large dimensions, expending much manpower and material resources, and the USA had pushing Keynesianism in the economic field(the government intervenes the economics) in the last of 70s could not catch the trend in time. In addition, the west Europe and Japan had rised sharply,making the tendency strengthen gradually . So the America lost the overlord status slowly.1.2 True StoryChris Gardner known little about the knowledge, he just graduated at high school, but he was a diligent salesman, and he was hard-working. so he took care of his wife and child well. However, he could not let the family live happily, so Linda could not stand the pressure of poor and left him, leaving the 5 years old son with him live together. Fortunately, he got a internships at Dean Witter, but there were not salary and he could not be hired by other complies. Thus, he did not have the money to pay the rent, so he slept at hospice、subway station、bathhouse、park in which he could rest; and he queued up at relief center, ate the awful food, lived at an inferiorperson's life. But in order to give the son a beautiful future and his religion, he sent his child to school, then he went to work in industriously. For saving time, he never drank water, and he never put the telephone receiver down. After he finished his work, he needed to pick his son up, then he ran crazily to line up at the penitentiary. Day after day, where there is a will, there is a way. When then internship finished, he was hired. So he began to do his business, then he opened brokerage company and became a millionaire, finally he was an investment exert successfully.Chapter 2The American Cultural Values in The Pursuit of HappynessThe American cultural values in the pursuit of happyness lead the America go forth.2.1 the definition of the cultural valuesThe values, are the principles of the social members evaluate the behaviors、objects and from choosing one’s fitful goals of all the possible. It is the core of the world outlook and the inner driving force of making people act, through the behavioral approaches of people and the evaluation or attitude of things reflect out. And the cultural values, are the total ideas of people caring about the cultural problems of the advantages and disadvantages 、kindness and badness、beauty and ugliness., reflecting the meaning of culture to people.2.2 the American cultural values and the contentsAmerican cultural values oriented from 300 years ago, when the British Puritan went acrossthe Atlantic Ocean by mayflower to America- this “Pure Land”for escape persecution. The Puritanism thought began to root in the America, so the Puritanism thought had deep effects in American cultural values. So the mainstream cultural values are the Puritanism thought, also the traditions of white nation of Anglo-Saxon. the values of the Puritanism expressed are orientation to action、work and play、time and money、motivation and measurable achievement、effort and optimism、man and nature、individualism and equality、obligation、confrontation、informality, formality and friendship、material well-being and humanitarianism、competition and desire for success、cooperation and “fair play”. These cultural values have permeated every aspect of the American life. and the core of the American cultures is individualism, also the main part of the American spirit. According to the explanation of the American scholar-Samuwa, the individualism includes autonomous motivation、autonomous chose、self-dependence、respect for people、freedom of personality、respect of privacy, and so on. In the culture, it emphasizes the Personal independence, creativity, and stressed the personal development of freedom not or a little influenced by the society、the force of the politics and religion. It is the philosophy of life in the center of person, the human beings are the main body of the values, believing everyone has his own values, attaching importance to personal self control and personal self development. We can see individualism is the essence and core of the American cultural values, it motivates America go fort2.3 The American Cultural Values in The MovieIn the movie the pursuit of happyness, there were some American cultural values. What the audiences need to do is to learn the American cultural values.2.3.1 IndividualismIn the American cultural context, the notion of individualism has a powerful strength. The individualism has emphasized the American as a self-reliant, self-dependent individual, controlling his own life, and responsible for anything he dose. Also, it put stress on his insistence on his rights as an American- his right to challenge government in the courts, through organization and electoral activity, through referendum, initiative, and recall. At least, there are three essential elements in individualism: its opportunity for the individual, its grant of freedom, and its encouragement of diversity. The portrait of individual tries to convey the message that it was the collective efforts of numerous individuals like this one that America has been created as it is now. In this movie, when the Chris Gardner were at the desperate circumstance of the wife was gone，the selling was failure, the money was short for rent, and there is a child needed to be cared. But he still insisted on his beliefs and pursuit the goals and happiness of his own. When he got a dream, he tried his best for it, and he never gave up anyone chance of selling and showing himself. During the period of the internship of Dean Witter, he also worked very hard. In this mo vie, its’ showed up spirit was the perfect interpretation of the American core value.2.3.2 Orientation to actionFor anyone who has been to the United States, or who has worked with Americans, one thing he cannot fail to notice about Americans is their orientation to action. Orientation to action is one of the American values, also the key point of the American. Phrases such as “on the run,”“on the move,”“on the go,”and “on the rode”may well explain the fact that American have an undeniably strong inclination toward action. The orientation to action is not meant to do something just for the sake of action. It is frequently conceived of as decision making. This concept has two meanings in American culture. In everyday life, the idea of decision making is used to justify a wide range of behavior, like casual conversations about goals, summer jobs, or extended travel may all be justified as part of efforts to make a decision about one’s career. In this movie, after Chris Gardner heard about the stockbroker said the job is easy, he wrote an application form. And he took the taxi with the manager. Then he got the success. This revealed the orientation to action well in America.Chapter 3T he enlightenments of the American values in The Pursuit of Happyness The movie the pursuit of happiness demonstrated a true story. Through this true story, it spread the main American cultural values for the audiences, hence it gave a lot of the enlightenments to audiences,. Thus, this is what the audiences should learn.3.1 Pursuit the happyness bravelyIn this movie, no matter how the life of Chris Gardner was poor, the pressure of life was so heavy and the burden of life made them not breathe, but he still insisted on his own beliefs and pursued his dream and happiness. When he faced the difficulties, he would remember the passages of the pursuing of happiness in the declaration of independence. Finally, he got his own happiness.3.2 Hold the high spirit an do the best in the difficultiesIn this movie, when Chris Gardner marketed his instrument unsuccessfully and he was kicked out the house for no money to pay, also he sold his blood because of no money. While he was in this bad situation, he yet did his best at work and was optimistic to the future. Finally, he defeated the difficulties and succeeded. What the audiences need to learn is we should hold the optimistic spirit to face the bad time. This is the valuable spirit.ConclusionThe movie The Pursuit of Happyness told us a real story that happened at Chris Gardner. The story happened at 1981 in San Francisco, at that time, the America was at the period of economic depression. The actor was a losing salesman who open selling failure and wife abandoned him, could not afford the rent, but he was hard-working and positive. Finally, he set up his own brokerage firm.Through the actor, this movie expressed the main American cultural values, and the core value-individualism-it proposals self-hardworking and diligence to change one’s life letting them become the actor of one’s own life. And the orientation to action、effort and optimism. These values guide the America become strong, making she get overlord status. So our audiences should learn the American cultural values, and then get the positive energy. What we should do is do our best for one’s life better! Everyone should pursuit the happiness belonging to him, everyone should live well![摘要] “美国梦”文化是被大多数美国人所敬仰的信念。