MATERIAL

每年的五月初五是“端午节”，这一天的主要活动是吃粽子，赛龙舟，挂菖蒲，喝雄黄酒等。吃粽子和赛龙舟源于纪念古代爱国诗人屈原。屈原因为愤恨当时腐败的政府而投江自尽，人民爱戴他，不想看到他真的死去，所有大家划龙舟去追赶他；又把粽子投到江中，希望水里的鱼吃粽子而不去吃他。挂菖蒲和喝雄黄酒是为了辟邪。

On the fifth day of the lunar calendar, there is the Dragon Boat Festival. The main activities of this day include eating zongzi (a traditional Chinese food made of glutinous rice and filled with different fillings such as eggs and meat), dragon boat racing, hanging a special plant, and drinking special wine. Eating zongzi and dragon boat racing is to celebrate the memory of the ancient Chinese poet Qu Yuan. Qu Yuan resented the corrupt Chinese government and so jumped into the river to commit suicide. However, the people really loved him and did not want to see him die, so they raced boats out onto the river to try to rescue him. They threw zongzi into the river in hopes that the fish would eat them instead of the body of Qu Yuan. Hanging the special plant and drinking the special wine is to ward off evil spirits.

ANALYSIS

My informant did a great job in explaining the symbolism of the different aspects of the Dragon Boat Festival in her retelling of the tradition to me. She grew up in America, but her family still makes zongzi during the Spring Festival to pay homage to the tradition. Although she had visited China once and observed the dragon boat racing tradition, she was very young and barely remembers it. She would like to go back to see it again. However, growing up, her mom had always told her the story of Qu Yuan, so eating zongzi always reminds her of his story and of the reason why zongzi and dragon boat racing is so important to the Spring Festival holiday season.