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Face and Networks in Urban Hong Kong
Author(s) -
Moore Robert L.
Publication year - 1988
Publication title -
city and society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.308
H-Index - 25
eISSN - 1548-744X
pISSN - 0893-0465
DOI - 10.1525/city.1988.2.1.50
Subject(s) - embarrassment , shame , face (sociological concept) , psychology , vulnerability (computing) , face to face , literal and figurative language , pride , key (lock) , linguistics , social psychology , computer science , political science , epistemology , computer security , philosophy , law
The Concept of Face has been described and analyzed by observers of Chinese culture since the 19th century, but none of the definitions of face published thus far have been based on data derived from informant interviews aimed specifically at isolating key semantic features. Through such interviews the Cantonese word mihn ("face" in both the physical and the figurative sense) is shown to include two important semantic elements: sentiment or, more specifically, vulnerability to embarrassment and shame, and influence gained through network building. Of these, the latter has not been emphasized in previous discussions of the face concept. [face, networks, shame, Hong Kong]