TOK Practice- Objects Exhibition

Does some knowledge belong only to particular communities of knowers?

 

Tung Shing is a Chinese traditional calendar that is made based on the Chinese lunar years primarily. It is a divination guide and also an almanac so people constantly use it to find a suitable date before attending and holding important events. Wedding ceremonies and funerals could be use as an example that most of the Chinese would use Tung Shing to choose a suitable date for them. This represents the belief of Chinese people in divinations and it has gradually become a custom now.

Tung shing shows certain distinct knowledges and belief that doesn’t shared among all the population. It is only applicable to particular Chinese native speakers who has a deep understandings on Chinese culture, which is a small range of people has been severed to. Starting from the language, these types of knowledges are less open to interpretations to foreigners. People started to use Tung Shing from the ancient China and as a guide for agriculture at the time so it is still popular in the rural areas of China but not in the city nowadays anymore. It is also commonly used for Feng shui practitioners and destiny diviners so it is also limited to the communities who has the knowledge on this particular area. The knowledges of feng shui is very limited to particular population.

This is a Chinese authentic snack called spicy gluten sticks that is made of bean curd and flour. The price was really low in the past that one pack only costs 5 cents SGD, so it is popular among the student population. The rich tastes is another reason why it is popular in schools and is able to represent many of the Chineses’ childhood and school life, including mine. This snack goes to extremes that almost every Chinese know it but is rarely known by the foreigners and people who doesn’t live in China. It is well known to Chinese because everyone had school life and the taste and price made it popular. It is very unhealthy at the same time so usually it is not the product to export. It is the knowledges that particularly belongs to the Chinese community.

In the other hand, Spicy gluten sticks was first debuted in the 1990s, hence it is a knowledge that doesn’t belong to the elders who doesn’t have the accessibility to it in their childhood at the time. It belongs to the younger generation as Millennials and generation Z.

 

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