Abstract

Family is one of the most important places for children to carry on the enlightenment education. Thus, family education has a very important role in the development of good habits and intelligence in the future. With the rise of the modern education quality, nowadays, family education causes more and more attention of society. This paper intends to analyze the difference between Chinese and American family education in the Joy Luck Club by using Edward Hall’s theory on high-context and low-context culture. This essay consists of five parts. Chapter one describes briefly the conflicts between mothers and daughters in The Joy Luck Club, and introduces the difference between Chinese and American family education .Chapter two introduces the basic concept of family education and the historical and cultural background of China and the United State. Chapter three keeps eyes on the conflicts between Chinese and American family education. These conflicts reflect three aspects —— education purpose, education content, and education method. Chapter four analyzes the development direction of Chinese family education. Finally, chapter five summarizes these differences, and gets the conclusion. By comparing Chinese and Western family education, author wants to carry out cultural complementary, and find the new development direction of Chinese family education.

Key word: family education, conflict, The Joy Luck Club