How to Effectively Carry Forward the Contemporary Value of Chinese Traditional Festivals

The traditional festival is an important part of the intangible cultural heritage of our country， and it has unique status and values. While under the background of globalization， it has inevitably been impacted by the western festival culture. Therefore， it is urgent to carry forward its contemporary value in China.

1. The contemporary value of the traditional festivals

Firstly， traditional festivals are the common memory of the nation and they can warn people not to forget the good roots of their ancestors. In the process of celebrating the festival， people can not only enrich their spiritual world， but also can make these festival traditions pass on， so as to support the inheritance of national culture with vivid cultural power.

Secondly， they are important ways to improve national self-confidence. In recent years， Chinas economic achievements have attracted worldwide attention， however， the traditional festival culture has not yet gained an equal status. Therefore the traditional festivals can serve as warnings to the cultural identity of the nation and strengthen the value and function of national cultural confidence in the fast-paced modern peoples life.

Thirdly， they are the cultural driving force for bringing up a harmonious society. First of all， they can regularly regulate peoples spiritual needs by adjusting and relaxing peoples spirit through festival entertainment， and can help people to cope with the future life with a good attitude. Whats more， holiday customs can coordinate family and social relations by linking each family together， and hlpe to build a harmonious society.

2. The challenges of Chinese traditional festivals

Firstly， the cultural connotation of traditional festivals gradually drains away， the most obvious is the peoples sense of reunion tends to be weak. Take the Mid-Autumn Festival as an example， with the quickening of the pace of life， more people going out to work for their families， which makes it difficult to realize the reunion，so the “reunion dinner” gradually become a vulgar social arena that requires money to spend to maintain relationships.

Secondly， the commercialization of traditional festival activities is serious. The merchants make use of the holiday to create a commercial atmosphere thus to make the cultural connotation of traditional festival dilute day by day. The Mid-Autumn Festival becomes a mooncake show， and the Spring Festival turnes into a fireworks show. This behavior undoubtedly will mislead people and hinder the inheritance and development of traditional festival culture.

Thirdly， young students who have mental confusion are seriously impacted by the “Foreign Festival” and forgot the traditions. Investigation shows that they know very little about such festivals as Qixi and La Ba， but they are familiar with Christmas and Halloween in the West.

3.The way to carry forward the contemporary value of Chinese traditional Festivals

Firstly， school should attach importance to the moral education function of traditional festival culture and promote the inheritance of patriotism. For example， during Ching Ming Festival organizes students to visit the tombs of martyrs， to guide them to cherish peace and their happy life， and to love and serve their motherland， consciously improving their cultural literacy and enhance patriotism.

Secondly， the government should promote the daily practice of collectivism with traditional festivals. Nowadays the interaction between people become less and less， collectivism are weakened， especially for young people. Therefore， the government or social organizations should organize some thematic activities， such as boat competition， which not only create a platform for students to practice the concept of collectivism， but also is conducive to national unity.

Thirdly， young students should focus on the protection of intangible cultural heritage， strive to promote the organic combination of traditional festival culture and contemporary advanced culture construction， consciously contribute our own strength to the inheritance and promotion of traditional festival culture.

4. Summary

Traditional festivals are an effective way to inherit national culture and to improve national self-confidence， and a cultural motive force to bring up a harmonious society. Therefore， schools， governments and young students should work together to carry forward the contemporary values of traditional festivals in order to promote the inheritance of patriotism and collectivism among young students， and to encourage them to consciously contribute to the heritage and innovation of traditional festival culture.

【作者簡介】刘梓怡，女，汉族，湖南衡阳人，长沙外国语学校。