中國(guó)人心中的家

導(dǎo)讀：父母在，恒言不稱(chēng)老。在他們面前，我們永遠(yuǎn)是孩子。春節(jié)回家的日子，父母用他們的愛(ài)告訴我們，外面的世界就算再殘酷，家永遠(yuǎn)是可以提供庇護(hù)的港灣。

回家過(guò)年
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父母在，恒言不稱(chēng)老。在他們面前，我們永遠(yuǎn)是孩子。春節(jié)回家的日子，父母用愛(ài)告訴我們，家永遠(yuǎn)是那個(gè)可以提供庇護(hù)的港灣。

Chen Yuhang doesn’t know why, but every year when Spring Festival arrives, the 25-year-old civil servant feels a natural impulse to go home. Not to the one he rents in Beijing, but the old apartment back in Jiangxi province. It’s not an easy ride.
不知為何，每年一到春節(jié)，25歲的公務(wù)員陳宇航（音譯）就禁不住想回家——那個(gè)江西老宅，而不是這個(gè)他在北京租來(lái)的家。雖然回家的路途并不輕松。

“It’s like a seasonal spike of emotions. You go through all that toil of taking three trains to get home because you just know you have to go back, no matter what,” said Chen.
“就好像是一次季節(jié)性情感爆發(fā)一樣。縱使需要乘坐三次火車(chē)，你也無(wú)論如何都要回去，”陳宇航說(shuō)。

It’s a feeling Chen shares with most people in China at this time of year.
每年的這個(gè)時(shí)候，很多中國(guó)人都有著和陳宇航一樣的感受。

What makes home so unique in the Chinese value system, and how its definition is changing according to social values, serves as a key to understanding the character of China as a nation.
那么，到底是什么讓“家”在中國(guó)人的價(jià)值體系里如此無(wú)可取代？“家”的定義又是怎樣隨著社會(huì)價(jià)值觀(guān)發(fā)生改變的？這是了解中華民族品質(zhì)的關(guān)鍵。

Family with social functions
家庭的社會(huì)職能

Ye Tao, a researcher specializing in folklore at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, says the deep roots of family culture come not only from the warmth of being with relatives, but also because the family, as a unit, has long been regarded as an important part of the social mechanism.
中國(guó)社會(huì)科學(xué)院民俗學(xué)專(zhuān)家葉濤（音譯）說(shuō)，家文化之所以根深蒂固，不僅僅是因?yàn)榕e家歡聚的溫情，更源自于一直以來(lái)，家作為一個(gè)整體被視為社會(huì)體系的一個(gè)重要組成部分。

“As Confucius said: ‘cultivate the self, regulate the family, govern the state, then lead the world to peace’,” explains Ye. “The family has been an integral part of the social order since the very beginning of China’s cultural development and extends its impact to the present day.”
葉濤解釋道：“孔子云：‘修身齊家治國(guó)平天下’，中國(guó)文化發(fā)展從始至今，家一直是社會(huì)秩序不可分割的一部分。”

That’s why China’s long history of a communal and collective lifestyle is so fundamental in shaping people’s attitudes toward home: it is not only a place to live, but also a social responsibility.
這就是為何在塑造中國(guó)人家庭觀(guān)念方面，這種歷史悠久的集體社會(huì)生活方式會(huì)如此重要。家不僅只是一處居所，更是一份社會(huì)責(zé)任。

Challenged norm
受到挑戰(zhàn)的傳統(tǒng)

With the growing mobility of the population, young people are leaving home to pursue better education and career opportunities. This trend is challenging family-based traditions.
隨著人口流動(dòng)性的與日俱增，年輕人走出家門(mén)去追求更好的教育和工作機(jī)會(huì)。這個(gè)趨勢(shì)正在挑戰(zhàn)中國(guó)以家庭為基礎(chǔ)的傳統(tǒng)。

Shi Jiepeng, a researcher at the Institute of Chinese History at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, explains that with horizontal kinships becoming weaker, the urge to reunite with close, or vertical, family members — siblings, parents and grandparents — is becoming stronger.
中國(guó)社科院中國(guó)歷史研究所研究員史杰鵬（音譯）表示，隨著旁系親屬關(guān)系日漸淡薄，和直系家庭成員——兄弟姐妹、父母、祖父母團(tuán)圓的欲望也就變得越來(lái)越強(qiáng)烈。

“The family planning policy has forged strong emotional bonds in smaller families,” said Shi. “It is an inevitable process of society.”
“計(jì)劃生育政策使得小家庭成員間的情感紐帶更加堅(jiān)固，”史杰鵬說(shuō)，“這是社會(huì)發(fā)展不可避免的一個(gè)過(guò)程。”

Finding escape
心靈港灣

In defining the function of homes for Chinese people, especially the young, Ye Tao says that finding an escape from the rushing tempo of their daily lives serves as the primary incentive for people to go back home today. “Young people are under mounting pressure from all sides,” said Ye. “Home is a shelter where they can return to a simple lifestyle, although only for a brief period of time.”
說(shuō)到家對(duì)中國(guó)人，尤其是年輕人所起到的作用，葉濤表示，現(xiàn)如今，想要逃離飛快的生活節(jié)奏、尋找一處心靈港灣是人們想要回家的主要原因。“年輕人面臨著方方面面、與日俱增的壓力，”葉濤說(shuō)，“家可以讓他們返璞歸真，回歸簡(jiǎn)單生活，盡管這樣的生活很短暫。”

“The warmth of home is the best chicken soup for the soul,” added Shi Jipeng.
史杰鵬補(bǔ)充道：“家的溫暖才是最好的心靈雞湯。”