A more restricted, and also more common sense interpretation of the word, points to artistic and intellectual activities, including the traditional arts and forms of intellectual production. Cultural ideals and institutions in the ROC draw on the wider as well as narrower senses of the term.
As soon as the government moved to Taiwan in 1949, it began a series of construction programs to develop the island into a model province—a living demonstration of how Dr. Sun Yat-sen's Three Principles of the People could be translated into effective, concrete action. Following and interpreting this guideline, Taiwan's cultural programs are firmly based on ethics long observed by the Chinese people.
There is more than simple nostalgia involved in this process. The cultural programs have the very practical aim of maintaining the continuity of a time-honored legacy. This involves both preserving the past and building upon it in creative new ways.
The necessity for cultural preservation and advancement became even more urgent in the late 1960's when Communist China launched its so-called Cultural Revolution, a mass movement that was actually anything but cultural, for it was geared to uproot and destroy the ancient cultural legacy of China. At that time in Taiwan, Chiang Kai-shek, the late President, urged that a Cultural Renaissance Movement be initiated with the goal of saving and nurturing, not destroying, the great legacy of things Chinese.
In response, a committee for promoting the Chinese Cultural Renaissance Movement was formed in November 1966. Its programs included teaching of the basic traditions, such as etiquette, and sponsoring various awards for good works-activities undertaken with the aim of enhancing the ethical foundation of the Chinese cultural heritage. Moreover, these programs also funded research in regional literatures in an attempt to foster a more thorough understanding of the rich diversity of Chinese culture.
An important landmark following the Chinese Cultural Renaissance Movement came in 1981 when the Council for Cultural Planning and Development was organized under the Executive Yuan. The Council has three major functions: planning national cultural development, expanding Chinese cultural awareness, and enhancing the general cultural life of all citizens. Under its auspices, local cultural centers have been built in major cities and counties throughout the island.
The Council has made it a priority to work for the adoption of laws that deal with the preservation of cultural estate and property. It has completed, at the request of the Ministry of the Interior, overall evaluations of cultural sites such as Chihkan Tower in Tainan, Fort San Domingo in Tamsui, and the Matsu Temple in the Pescadores.
The laws now in force regarding the preservation of cultural estate and property are unique for their inclusion of articles stipulating the preservation and maintenance of natural landscape. To fully implement these objectives, the Ecology Association of the Republic of China was formed in 1983.
The Council, in collaboration with local governments, has helped preserve arts and crafts by installing various small local museums for collecting and exhibiting relics and objects of folk interest. To help prevent the loss of folk crafts and artistry, it also has promoted the demonstration and sale of folk handicrafts on occasions of major festivals according to the Chinese lunar calendar. One popular instance of this occurs around the Dragon Boat Festival with the art of making perfumed sachets, and with classical lantern-making on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month.
Puppet-show artistry never fails to attract crowds.
Local cultural centers, which have been built as part of the ROC's overall development programs, supply facilities for regional cultural activities as well. Each of these centers has a library, a gallery for the exhibition of art works, and a concert hall of moderate size to stage performances by both local and other artists.
Moreover, the National Central Library was moved from its original site on Nanhai Road to spacious new quarters on Chungshan South Road (See FCR, January 1987). It was reopened to the public in October 1986. Construction of a national concert hall and a national theater is now well under way adjacent to the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall in Taipei. Both buildings have traditional facades, but are provided with the most modern facilities possible; they will be focal points for major cultural events throughout the year, playing much the same role as the JFK Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C.
Traditional wood-carvers receive government support.
Among the programs planned for the new cultural complex is an annual cultural festival, scheduled to begin this year under the auspices of the Taipei Municipal Government. The festival will feature various performances of folk dance, Chinese puppet theater, Taiwanese folksong concerts, traditional Chinese opera, and local dramatic productions. The municipal authorities have also invited world famous ballet troupes, opera stars, and other internationally known performers from overseas to participate. The cultural programs will promote expanded performance opportunities for featuring local talent and an additional venue for cultural interchange between the ROC and its global neighbors.
Residents of Taipei have in recent years become increasingly "culture conscious" and have fostered the growth of all forms of cultural development. The explosion of new art galleries alone has been phenomenal, and is but one indication of the impressive expansion of both local artistry and public interest in international cultural forms.
The growing sophistication and cultural ambience of Taipei are benefiting residents and visitors alike. The city's Fine Arts Museum and Cultural Center regularly sponsor public lectures, symposia, and performances that appeal to all people. Even the bus tours originally geared for tourists and official guests have been expanded to accommodate the demands from native travelers who are interested in the museums, exhibition halls, and other cultural stops in the greater Taipei area.
Chinese knot tying, once nearly lost, has made a popular comeback.
Another major stimulus for expanding cultural awareness is an active media. The growth and development of the ROC's mass media is now approaching another major plateau. For years there has been a rich variety of newspapers and magazines, plus television and radio networks. Following the recent lifting of the Emergency Decree, there has been even greater expectations for an explosion in the number of publications available for public consumption—a sign of a healthy environment populated by an educated public.
To date there are approximately 30 newspapers published in Taiwan. Two of them, the China Times and the United Daily News each have a circulation of over a million copies. The total circulation of the daily papers amounts to four million copies—roughly one copy for every four to five persons nationwide.
Unlike the weekly literary supplements of the major dailies around the world, such as The New York Times or the Times Literary Supplement, local newspapers have a daily "cultural section" that covers literature, arts, and analytic articles on current events and issues. Moreover, conventional newspaper editorials have gradually been replaced or at least significantly augmented by public voices and expert opinions from scholars.
Since the 1970s, local radio networks have offered 24-hour services; many target their broadcasting to specific audiences such as cab drivers and housewives. Now that virtually every household has a TV set, and a growing number have two or more, television is becoming more influential than radio among the various popular media. This will be even truer as the quality of programming continues to improve.
A traditional sport popular in elementary schools requires acrobatic skills.
The three TV networks are on air for about 80 hours per week. Most of the programs are self-produced, while only a small portion such as children's cartoons or weekly program series are purchased from foreign networks. Public television programs have become more popular, and recently the ROC's National Open University has begun broadcasting on TV.
The whole field of cultural preservation, development, and cultural institution-building poses complex yet exciting challenges. Opportunities also raise concerns, for efforts undertaken in cultural production and reconstruction have in the past encountered some difficulties. As can be expected, conflict and conciliation occur between new, imported cultural elements and traditional forms already in place. This is a common phenomenon throughout the world and, of course, in China as well. One only has to recall the problems with the introduction of Buddhist philosophy and art into China in the 4th Century A.D. What was first seen as "foreign" and undesirable eventually led to the flowering of Neo-Confucianism and the glories of Sung landscape painting.
Today, the majority of the people in Taiwan-and not just those familiar with the history of cultural contact—are optimistic about the accommodative nature of contemporary Chinese culture. They are confident they will be able to assimilate and adapt "foreign" cultural elements without undermining the rich legacy of their own. The achievements that the ROC has made so far in the area of culture are expected to be highlighted even more due to the opportunities now possible because of its spectacular economic growth in recent years. Citizens look forward enthusiastically to new cultural vistas with wider-ranging pursuits and greater achievements in the realm of national cultural excellence. — (Dr. Yuan-huang Tsai is a· professor of critical theory and cultural analysis at National Taiwan University).