Wang Xin

In the report of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, General Secretary Xi Jinping made an important deployment to "promote cultural self-confidence and self-improvement and forge a new glory of socialist culture", emphasizing the need to "adhere to the position of Chinese culture, refine and display the spiritual identity and cultural essence of Chinese civilization, accelerate the construction of Chinese discourse and Chinese narrative system, and tell Chinese stories well. Spread the voice of China and show a credible, lovely and respectable image of China." The newly held National Propaganda Ministerial Conference emphasized the need to "strengthen international communication capacity-building". The 7th of the 22 points in the Key Points of the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League for the Work of the People's Republic of China in 2023, which was reviewed and adopted a few days ago, is "serving the overall situation of the Party and the country's external work". How to "spread Chinese culture and promote multi-level civilization dialogue" in a more three-dimensional, diversified and universal way has become the core issue of international communication. According to the author's participatory observation and in-depth interviews in recent years, overseas Chinese students, Chinese businessmen and other overseas Chinese, as "walking cultural symbols", can subtly influence the communication, collision and integration between different cultures in daily life and work. They not only play the role of "envoy" of Chinese culture, but also become "boosters" to enhance the transmission and influence of Chinese civilization.

Carry the road with "people" and promote the "entry into the countryside" of Chinese culture with local experience

Thanks to the promotion of transportation technology, "mobility" has become an intertwined behavior of individuals, institutions and countries. Some transnational migrants and local Chinese, as "ordinary communicators", integrate into local daily life, which can imperceptibly promote Chinese culture from "going out" to "going in".

The remarkable characteristics of youth, openness and inclusiveness of the overseas students make it easier for them to become a channel to establish cultural connections. In 2019, the number of foreign students in China reached 703500, making it the country with the largest number of foreign students in the world. Although the main purpose of most international students going abroad is to learn, as "walking symbols" and "mobile cultural carriers", they have objectively become the connectors and communicators between different cultures. The author found that young students have generally accepted local cultural education well, have a certain understanding, understanding, commitment and love of the symbols and patterns of national culture, and will further clarify their sense of identity and cultural subjectivity in the cultural collision, and improve their understanding of the particularity of national culture. Therefore, in the external dissemination of Chinese culture, special attention should be paid to mobile "people", especially "ordinary communicators" such as foreign students, to fully exploit and make use of their cultural portability and do a good job in the external dissemination of Chinese culture.

The daily nature and lifestyle of "Chinese Americans" promote the integration and integration of culture. Most of the overseas Chinese live in similar or adjacent neighborhoods, and these areas gradually become the distinctive "others" embedded in the local culture. Those Chinese-style shops, food and daily living habits have become "blogs" for the external dissemination of Chinese culture. The author has interviewed many Chinese who have settled in the UK, including scholars, doctors, writers, company staff, Chinese restaurant owners, etc. They generally said that they are more concerned about protecting and inheriting the contents of their own culture in the culture of others, and pay special attention to traditional Chinese festivals, languages, customs, etc. For example, the Spring Festival Cultural Parade held by Chinese businessmen in London and the Dragon Boat Race held at the local Dragon Boat Festival are all performances of Chinese traditional culture in the other culture.

The practice of "entering the countryside" in the process of cultural collision and adaptation is often ignored in previous studies. Instead, in the blank space of media and text, it provides a new idea of "breaking through" in cultural communication: not only understand the rules and procedures of the host country, but also understand the local customs and human feelings, and find the effective connection between self and other cultures. Making full use of the language advantages and local experience of overseas Chinese can not only promote the positive spread of Chinese culture, but also provide an important path for them to find a better "entry strategy".

Convey feelings with "people" and promote the "scenario-based" integration of Chinese culture with physical practice

As foreign students, international tourists and Chinese immigrants are constantly "thrown" into unfamiliar cultures, it is necessary to constantly establish the relationship between "self" and others. They enter specific scenes and realize cross-cultural communication and communication through experience, thinking, feedback and interaction.

"Body presence" can arouse "empathy" between different cultural subjects. Physical presence is the premise for people to establish communication based on common sense, which can better realize the possibility and feasibility of different cultural exchanges. For example, people will feel and experience the communication with each other through shaking hands, hugging, smiling, etc., and realize the multi-dimensional communication of the natural language and body language of both parties, as well as the effectiveness of the scene to achieve the communication effect. The author once talked with a British mother and learned that her daughter suffered from congenital heart disease and was often hospitalized. She shook hands and hugged to express encouragement and comfort at the right time. The other side also felt this kindness. The giving of this emotional energy makes the collision between different cultures easier to understand and respect, and also helps to transcend the limitations of natural language expression and achieve richer information transmission.

"Body presence" establishes a ceremonial communication scene. The body itself is not only the "transmitter" of information, but also the "creator" of ceremonies, including appearance, clothing and speech. This way of communication is not only the embodiment of individual cultural accomplishment, but also the manifestation of a national culture. For example, the girls who walk in the streets of London in Hanfu show their identity and aesthetics through clothing; The robes and turbans of the Arab nation, the pigtails of Latin America and Africa are also the embodiment of their national culture. The presence of the body is like a live demonstration of the "walking culture" of a nation-state, which jointly constructs a dialogue and communication situation with other nationalities.

These mobile individuals or walking "cultural carriers" have imperceptibly entered another culture. In the process of cultural shock, adaptation and integration, they have achieved cross-cultural communication through dialogue, noise and even silence. It is the so-called "unspoken words" that tell their own stories in the way of "unspoken words".

Take "people" as "mirror" and enhance the recognition of Chinese culture through interactive ceremony

The promotion of the recognition of Chinese culture cannot be separated from the exchange and mutual learning among cultural subjects. Although people from different cultures have their own understanding of truth, goodness and beauty, the differences in cultural cognition will gradually be bridged in the interaction of ritual and daily life. During my visit to Manchester, the author took the initiative to give some Chinese style bookmarks to European friends, and wrote their names on the bookmarks according to transliteration. These foreign friends are surprised at the appearance of their names in different languages, and are also willing to listen to the stories of Chinese characters, and are interested in understanding the culture and history of bookmarks. This not only helps to enhance the emotional communication between the two sides to a certain extent, but also helps to achieve the connection that transcends other differences and generates human empathy.

Some scattered ethnic groups have further penetrated the content and temperament of Chinese culture through their daily life, internal communication and the display of traditional Chinese culture and customs. Tens of thousands of people attend and watch the Spring Festival celebration held by the British Chinatown Chamber of Commerce in London every year. This exhibition of traditional Chinese culture held by overseas ethnic groups reflects the "cultural fluidity", shows the material form, totem and ethnic identity of their own culture, and can be retained and transmitted in other cultures. It also provides an important path for seeking cultural identity and enhancing the identity of Chinese culture.

The concept of civilization of "equality, mutual learning, dialogue and inclusiveness" is "transcend the gap of civilizations with civilized exchanges, transcend the conflict of civilizations with civilized mutual learning, and transcend the superiority of civilizations with civilized coexistence". The external dissemination of Chinese culture should go beyond the simple "external export" model and melt it into the exchange and dialogue of "one porridge, one meal, one word, one action, one taste". We should integrate the individual's sense of life and life experience with the national cultural values, endow the transnational and diaspora with the status of "cultural envoy", and promote the exchange, mutual learning and identification between different cultures through "people" as the medium, so as to provide dynamic support for improving China's international communication power.