An Exploration of Wedding Issues in Taiwan-America Cross-Cultural Teaching: Through Movies “The Wonderful Wedding” & “Bride Wars”

Abstract

The wedding preparation process and customs are culturally oriented, but are rarely the subject of cross-cultural discussion. In this study, we used the cross-cultural theory of contrast analysis, textual analysis method combined with media teaching method. Through the plot and lines of the film, it presents different views on marriage and family under different cultural models. Taiwan film “The Wonderful Wedding”, presents cumbersome wedding customs in a humorous way. The American film “Bride Wars”, was even adapted into a Chinese film of the same name. The two films show the differences in customs, expenses, and marriage. Among them, the Eastern bride price, the matchmaker and the western something four rituals are a unique feature of the wedding ceremony. Through these elements, the cultural meanings behind them are dissected.

In recent years, cross-cultural film teaching has gradually risen, and this research intends to focus on the analysis of the wedding theme of movie and derive it to the design of lesson plans. The target audience is adult learners with European and American cultural backgrounds and intermediate Chinese language skills, with a view to integrating their own experiences and life experiences for reflection. Hope that this research can serve as a reference for Chinese teachers in the future teaching of marriage issues, so that second language learners can understand the multicultural differences in different societies.