# How does On a Chinese Screen develop the theme of Cultural Clash and Misunderstanding?

> On a Chinese Screen by W. Somerset Maugham

## Answer

On a Chinese Screen by W. Somerset Maugham develops Cultural Clash and Misunderstanding across the chapters the companion marks for this theme.

The book repeatedly contrasts Western and Chinese values, customs, and worldviews, highlighting the mutual incomprehension, prejudice, and often absurd attempts to impose one culture upon another, as seen in the transformation of a temple into a Western-style home or the disdain for Chinese language and art among expatriates.

The chapter illustrates the deep misunderstandings between Westerners and Chinese, from language barriers to differing worldviews.

The narrator's perspective as a foreigner observing the city and its inhabitants highlights the gap between Western expectations and the reality of Chinese life.

The lady's renovation erases the temple's original religious and cultural significance, replacing it with Western aesthetics.

## Evidence

- [on-a-chinese-screen](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/on_a_chinese_screen_se/chapters/on-a-chinese-screen.md): The chapter illustrates the deep misunderstandings between Westerners and Chinese, from language barriers to differing worldviews.
- [i-the-rising-of-the-curtain](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/on_a_chinese_screen_se/chapters/i-the-rising-of-the-curtain.md): The narrator's perspective as a foreigner observing the city and its inhabitants highlights the gap between Western expectations and the reality of Chinese life.
- [ii-my-lady-s-parlour](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/on_a_chinese_screen_se/chapters/ii-my-lady-s-parlour.md): The lady's renovation erases the temple's original religious and cultural significance, replacing it with Western aesthetics.
- [iii-the-mongol-chief](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/on_a_chinese_screen_se/chapters/iii-the-mongol-chief.md): The Mongol chief's proud, aloof demeanor contrasts with the diverse traffic of the pass, hinting at cultural and historical tensions between the nomadic steppe and settled Chinese civilization.
- [v-the-cabinet-minister](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/on_a_chinese_screen_se/chapters/v-the-cabinet-minister.md): The minister and narrator discuss the persistence of historical dress codes, revealing a mutual awareness of cultural symbols but also a deeper clash between Eastern and Western values.
- [vii-the-altar-of-heaven](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/on_a_chinese_screen_se/chapters/vii-the-altar-of-heaven.md): Untermeyer's act of carving his name on the sacred altar contrasts sharply with the Chinese caretaker's erasure, highlighting a clash between Western individualism and Eastern reverence for tradition.
- [viii-the-servants-of-god](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/on_a_chinese_screen_se/chapters/viii-the-servants-of-god.md): The two missionaries, despite their shared faith, represent different cultural and national backgrounds, highlighting the subtle clashes and misunderstandings within the colonial missionary context.
- [xiii-her-britannic-majesty-s-representative](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/on_a_chinese_screen_se/chapters/xiii-her-britannic-majesty-s-representative.md): The consul's aggressive assertion of British norms clashes with Chinese revolutionary authority, highlighting mutual incomprehension.

## Links

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