Legend of the Dragon 

Dragon in Chinese Culture

 

  What exactly does a dragon mean in Chinese culture? Dragons are deeply rooted in Chinese culture. In fact, we consider ourselves “龙的传人” or “the descendants of the dragon”. Our parents will always “望子成龙” and hope we will grow up to amount to something in society. The Dragon is also one of the 4 celestial guardians in Chinese culture. It brings the essence of life in the form of its celestial breath, known as "Sheng Chi”, and bestows its power in the form of the seasons, bringing water from rain, warmth from the sunshine, wind from the seas and soil from the earth. In essence, in Chinese culture, the Dragon is the ultimate representation of the forces of nature.   When two dragons are placed together in opposite directions, they symbolize the famous Yin-Yang symbol, which represents perfect balance and harmony. We can also see how people hold the dragon in high regard in Chinese culture. 

 

  We used the chinese dragon as firstly, dragons usually attract people's attention and we want people to view our dragon to realise the importance of recycling plastics. We used the chinese dragon as the chinese dragon is associated with bringing relief and help to the people, compared to its western counterpart, which is usually associated with destruction and bringing harm to people. We have also decided to leave it in its original colour  which is transparent, with green "scales" as we have decided on a "water element" dragon, which is symbolised by transparency and the colours green and blue. In the chinese culture, the water dragon is known to be more benign and the wise dragon. We have used this aspect to symbolise how the water in the seas are polluted and that we will have to be able to make a wise choice and stop this pollution. At the same time, since most of us in Hwa Chong are chinese, we would also be better able to relate to a chinese dragon, thus it is the best medium for us to send our message.

 

  Since the chinese dragon is held in respect in the chinese culture, by stuffing plastic wastes in it, we are also able to show how plastics can and will damage every creature, no matter how respected they are. When people see the mighty dragon destroyed by the plastics, it will also remind them about the consequences of simply throwing away their plastic thrash.