Where Are We Going, Dad? presents a new generation of men who, in a break from Chinese tradition, now take an active role in their children's lives.
《爸爸去哪儿》这档节目代表着中国的新一代父亲打破传统,积极参与照料孩子的生活。
Five celebrity fathers and their children traipse around China, riding camels through the western deserts, fishing off the east coast, and selling vegetables for their bus fare home in remote southwestern Yunnan province. One dad doesn’t know how to do his daughter’s hair, but give him a couple of episodes—he’ll figure it out. Another one must survive with his son for three days in the desert, where, because neither can cook, the two only eat instant noodles.
节目中五位名人爸爸和他们的孩子到大江南北“闯荡”,他们到西部沙漠骑过骆驼、到东部海岸捕过鱼,甚至到过云南省偏远的西南地区售卖蔬菜积攒回家路费。在节目中,有一位爸爸不知道怎么给自己的女儿梳头,旅途中制造了不少小插曲,他以后会慢慢学习的。另外有一对父子按节目组安排须在沙漠求生三日,因为在沙漠中父子两不能做饭,只好靠吃方便面充饥。
These story lines are part of Where Are We Going Dad? which, since its debut in October, has become one of China’s most popular television shows, averaging more than 600 million viewers each week (and more than 640 million downloads online). Sponsorship rights for the show’s second season sold for 312 million yuan (about $50 million), more than ten times higher than the rights to the first season. And searches for Where Are We Going Dad? turn up over 40 million hits on Sina Weibo, China’s Twitter.
这些情节只是《爸爸去哪儿》节目的一部分。自十月份开播以来,《爸爸去哪儿》已成为中国最受欢迎的电视节目秀之一,平均每周观众超过6亿人次(在线下载次数超过6.4亿人次)。第二季获得赞助费人民币3.12亿元(约5,000万美元),超过第一季的十倍之多。在新浪微博(一家中国微博网站)上搜索《爸爸去哪儿》的搜索结果竟达4,000万条之多。
What accounts for the show’s popularity? The show features a new generation of Chinese fathers, who, as part of the country’s burgeoning middle class, have faced more exposure to modern child-rearing techniques such as taking an active role with their children.
是什么让这档节目如此火爆?这档节目标志着中国新一代的父亲,作为国家新兴一代的中产阶级在孩子的现代化教育方法中面临更多挑战,如怎样积极引领孩子的生活。
“In traditional Chinese culture, the conventional conception of parenthood is that the father is stern and the mother is kind. But on the show, we see fathers who are much gentler on their kids and more involved in their upbringing,” said Li Minyi, an associate professor of early childhood education at the leading Beijing Normal University. “This show raises an important question for modern Chinese society—what is the role of fathers in today’s China?”
北京师范大学教育学部学前教育研究所副教授李敏谊表示:“在中国的传统文化中,对父母的传统观念是严父慈母。但在节目中,我们看到的父亲对他们的孩子都是非常温和的,而且更多地参与了孩子的成长过程。这档节目为中国现代社会提出一个重要问题—父亲在现代中国中扮演着什么样的角色?”
Confucian tradition dictates that there is no human trait more important than filial piety: obeying your parents’ wishes and looking after them in their old age. But Chinese parents increasingly realize that discussing and respecting their children’s choices may be a more appropriate way to prepare them for modern society. “As they raise their children, parents are growing up at the same time,” said Wang Renping, a popular education expert, in an interview with the Qianjiang Evening News. “They cannot use parenting styles from 20 years ago to guide the development of children born 20 years later.”
传统儒家思想认为“百善孝为先”,为人子女应遵从父母的意愿,到父母老后要好好照料他们。但中国父母逐渐意识到,多和孩子沟通,尊重孩子的选择,可能会使孩子更加适应现代社会。育儿专家王人平接受《钱江晚报》采访时表示:“父母在养育孩子的同时,也在一同成长。他们不能再用20年前的教育方式来引导20年后出生孩子的成长。”
Part of the appeal of Where Are We Going Dad? is the chance to peek into the lives of popular Chinese celebrities and their children. Audiences revel in watching the failed attempts of celebrity dads making dinner, braiding hair, and disciplining children—tasks often left to mothers in a society still influenced by the notion that “men rule outside and women rule inside.”
《爸爸去哪儿》也让我们有机会看到中国名人和他们孩子的生活是什么样子的。名人父亲们在节目中一次次地尝试做饭、扎辫子、管教孩子,观众看到父亲们的一次次失败后不禁失笑,在受“男主内女主外”观念影响的社会中,往往这些事情都是交给母亲来处理的。