Hospitality and ritual: A discursive study of toasting in Chinese dining contexts

Abstract

The paper aims to explore toasting conventions and strategies in Chinese dining contexts from a discursive perspective by analyzing naturally occurring cases of toasting from Douyin and Haokan Video. Particular attention is paid to how Chinese hospitality, interpersonal achievements through toasting rituals, and the culture behind them are interactively constructed. The findings indicate that toasting conventions in Chinese dining contexts can be metaphorically divided into two stages: the ‘planned economy’ stage, characterized by a high degree of conventionalization, and the ‘market economy’ stage, which highlights relatively high autonomy. During these two stages, toasters adopt strategies centered on Renqing (人情), rooted in Qing (情) and Yi (义) of Confucianism, through which hospitality is fully demonstrated. In this sense, toasting as a ritual is confirmed through the analysis and discussion of its interactive and social nature in China.

Keywords

Hospitality ritual toast toasting convention toasting strategy

Introduction

As an indispensable part of feasts, toasting was initially closely linked to religion and evolved into a social activity that reflects hierarchy and strengthens interpersonal relationships (Li and Chen, 2022). In ancient China, toasting was governed by a complex set of rules related to power, age, identity, and so on (Hu, 2011; Jiang, 2006; Wang, 2008). To some extent, violating these rules was considered improper as they symbolized social order (Wang, 2009). Additionally, toasting rules varied according to the participant’s identity, age, rank, and region, aligning with China’s long-standing tradition of courtesy, deference, and ritualized behavior in social interactions (Pan and Kádár, 2011).

Today, although these rules have been simplified, they still play a significant role in certain dining events. As a typical ritual practice, toasting is an integral part of the Chinese alcohol culture in social communication (Li and Chen, 2022; Liu, 2016a, 2016b). Cultivated by Confucianism, Chinese people fully express their reverence for courtesy and attitudinal warmth through toasting, which is embodied in the highly conventionalized inherited rituals. Toasting, in this regard, is not just a way of drinking but a reflection of their attitudinal warmth, gaining face, and developing Renqing (人情), a concept that will be discussed in detail in the discussion section.

In contrast to research on the history or typical behaviors of toasting (see Huang, 2002; Wang and Han, 2020; Xiao, 2005; You, 2014), toasting has not received sufficient attention in the field of discourse studies, particularly regarding the conventions and strategies of toasts in Chinese dining contexts. Against this backdrop, this paper aims to explore the conventions and discursive strategies of Chinese toasting rituals and further discuss the interaction of toasting, rituals, and culture in Chinese dining contexts. On the one hand, researching toasting conventions and strategies expands the global understanding of Chinese toasting rituals and the characteristics of Chinese culture. On the other, exploring the toasting ritual provides constructive references for exploring rapport management in intercultural communication.

The organization of the paper is as follows. Section two provides an overview of previous studies on ritually-anchored research on toasting. Grounded in the existing literature, Section three presents two research questions and the methodology. Section four illustrates the research findings, including toasting conventions and strategies. Section five discusses the cultural foundations and roots of toasting rituals. Section six provides a summary of the paper.

Literature review

Ritual is characterized by its conventionalized and replicable nature of language use, influencing conventionalized utterances, interactional structures, and co-constructed interactions (Kádár, 2024; Kádár and House, 2020). In this sense, toasting is ritualistic indeed. Ritual is also relationally enforced and emotively invested (Kádár, 2017), with a focus on its interactive and social nature (Driver, 1991). Ritually-anchored research on toasting has received continuous scholarly attention, with many insightful and valuable research findings reported around these two aspects.

For one thing, toasting has been explored through various forms, including expressions and speech acts. Using the drinking-as-ritual interpretation as a theoretical framework, Treise et al. (1999) point out that drinking requires (1) an artifact, that is, the alcohol itself, (2) a script indicating rules about when and where the drinking will occur, (3) a performance role, for instance, how to drink, how many drinks to consume, and how to behave while drinking, and (4) an audience, such as peers in the drinking context, according to Rook’s (1985) four ritual components. Focusing on Chinese toasting, Xiao (2005) respectively demonstrates three ritualized behaviors in Chinese toasting contexts: proposing toasts in a hospitable way, drinking for others and drinking as a punishment.

For another, a functional approach to toasting has also been emphasized in previous studies. For example, Gusfield (1987) proposes three ritual functions for drinking: mood-setting, passage, and sociability. Similarly, Kotthoff (1995) suggests that toasting, as a male speech genre, plays a vital role in Georgian life by communicating emotion, morality, and religious-cultural values through toasts.

Toasting, as one of the most interactional elements of Chinese culture, represents both interpersonally and morally constraining functions (Wang, 2009). In Chinese contexts, toasting is not only a symbol of civility but also performs specific social functions, such as showing respect for the toasted persons (Jiang and Liu, 2010), enlivening the atmosphere at banquets, showing courtesy, and reinforcing relationships (Gu, 2019). From a pragmatic perspective, Mao et al. (2021) explore the major types and main functions of Chinese toasting, paying attention to the interaction of cultural, moral, and emotional characteristics of Chinese toasting. According to the dataset, they find two main types of toasts: courteous toast (non-aggressive toast) and coercive toast (aggressive toast). Furthermore, they argue that Chinese toast is not only a matter of etiquette but also has a very clear practical function. Additionally, toasting intervention in Chinese dining contexts, similar to ritual teasing, is mock moral aggression and is relationally constructive by default (Li and Chen, 2022).

To conclude, most of the relevant ritually-anchored research has outlined toasting behaviors and their functions from a general perspective. Even though some studies have explored toasting in Chinese contexts from a pragmatic perspective, as shown above, these studies have not specialized in the toasting conventions and strategies influenced by toasting as a ritual from a discursive perspective. This leads to an intriguing but underexplored question regarding the conventions and strategies employed in ritualistic toasts in China. Therefore, this paper aims to investigate the toasting conventions and strategies in Chinese dining contexts and further give an insight into their cultural motivations.

Research design

Research questions

The aim of this paper is to explore toasting rituals to facilitate the understanding of Chinese toasting culture. For one thing, this study uncovers toasting conventions and strategies. For another, it provides insights into the cultural motivations behind toasting. Accordingly, there are two research questions to be addressed:

What are the toasting conventions in Chinese dining contexts?

What strategies do toasters frequently employ during their toasting?

Data collection

The dataset for the current paper was collected from two short videos: Douyin (douyin.com) and Haokan Video (haokan.baidu.com), both of which are widely popular in China. Douyin is dedicated to providing a shared platform for self-expression and recording beautiful moments in our lives, attracting more than 600 million daily users as of August 2020 (http://news.sohu.com/a/539268977_350221). It is also the most commonly used short video platform today. Haokan Video, supported by Baidu, has 110 million daily users who upload, watch, and share videos, with over one million vloggers offering a variety of videos to Baidu ecosystem users (https://baike.baidu.com/item/好看视频/20726860?fr=aladdin). Both platforms are open to the public for free and feature a wide range of content, including naturally occurring videos, original videos, and TV works about daily life, culture, society, and more. Uploaded by users under their platform names, all videos can be searched for by entering keywords.

This paper focuses on videos titled ‘toasting’ retrieved from Douyin and Haokan Video. Naturally occurring cases were then selected by the first author, excluding descriptive cases to guarantee the validity of the data. To ensure that these naturally occurring toasting behaviors are closely related to the topic of this paper, two other researchers independently repeated the identification of the cases. The selected videos do not involve private information, and the videos analyzed in the paper are used solely for academic research. Each case is marked with its source, while the usernames of the uploaders are omitted (Ren and Guo, 2020), ensuring openness and ethicality (Sugiura et al., 2017). Additionally, all videos analyzed involve both verbal and nonverbal features. Their combinations ensure a multidirectional observation of cases to validate the analysis and discussion.

Data analysis

After each case was transcribed word by word with references to the subtitles on the screen, and the transcriptions were proofread by the authors to ensure accuracy, we adopted the bottom-up approach to explore toasting conventions and strategies in naturally occurring Chinese toasting contexts. The process of data analysis involved four steps. First, the first two authors observed all collected cases and coded each either the ‘planned economy’ stage or the ‘market economy’ stage based on the degree of conventionalization. The degree of conventionalization is set according to the normality and illocutionary force of toasting discourse and the host’s autonomy in proposing toasts. Second, they focused on the toasting strategies performed by the host at each stage. From the dataset, it was found that toasters primarily propose toasts by expressing their emotions and recognition explicitly, emphasizing their close relationships, and showing politeness. The two authors summarized these four types of toasting strategies: emotion-driven strategy, approval-driven strategy, relation-driven strategy, and politeness-driven strategy. Third, the third author carefully checked the coding and inconsistent identifications, and the remaining cases of disagreement were reassessed by three authors through discussing relevant information about the context and other related indicators until an agreement was reached. In the final step, an analytical conclusion was drawn based on the confirmation of all three researchers.

This paper presents four typical cases as the foundation for research findings and detailed analysis. To guarantee the persuasiveness and validity of the research findings, each case is strictly presented according to the following formats and requirements: (1) each conversation, accompanied by brief background information, is followed by transcriptions in Pinyin Romanization; (2) each conversation is faithfully translated into English to provide a more precise and more sufficient understanding of interactions (He and Zhang, 2011); (3) each conversation includes no fewer than one turn to provide convincing evidence for the research findings and further discussion. By adhering to these strict requirements, each case is presented more clearly for the reader.

Findings

Toasting conventions

In the toasting context, the most important guest is called the guest of honor, followed by deputy and other guests. The chief host is the one who invites the guests or holds the banquet. Deputy hosts, generally heavy drinkers, help the chief host serve the guests with toasts. Besides, side hosts (hosts other than the chief and deputy hosts) are dedicated to enlivening the atmosphere of the banquet. In the investigation of ritual practices of toasts, the toasting ritual is mainly presented in two stages: the first stage is called the ‘planned economy’ stage due to its high conventionality from the opening to the warming-up phase of the banquet; the second stage is called the ‘market economy’ stage, where toasters feel much freer to perform toasts with a variety of strategies.

The ‘planned economy’ stage: From the opening to the warming-up phase

The ‘planned economy’ stage is characterized by high conventionalization, where the banquet begins, and the atmosphere gradually warms up. The chief host generally proposes the first toast, warmly welcoming all guests. Typically, the chief host proposes three toasts, followed by another three from the deputy host. Then, the side hosts take turns proposing toasts. The number of toasts is not random but follows certain rules, and the number of toasts and the number of sips for each toast are also highly conventionalized. Different numbers indicate different wishes (Yin and Yin, 2012). For instance, two toasts with ten sips for each mean ‘shíquán shíměi’ (perfect in every respect), combining two tens. Here, ‘shí’ is the pinyin for the Chinese character ‘十’, which means 10 in English.

Some auspicious blessings within toasting words mainly connect with the first word, which corresponds to the number of toasts, such as ‘yīxīn yīyì’ (single-mindedly, wholeheartedly) for one, ‘liǎngquán qíměi’ (achieving both perfection) for two, ‘sānyáng kāitài’ (three goats bring prosperity) for three, ‘sìjì fācái’ (prosperity throughout the four seasons) for four, ‘wǔfú línmén’ (five blessings come to your door) for five, ‘liùliù dà shùn’ (everything goes smoothly) for six, ‘qīxīng gāo zhào’ (blessings from the seven stars) for seven, and ‘bāfāng lái cái’ (wealth comes from all directions) for eight. Alternatively, toasters often use puns with homophones, such as ‘wànshì rúyì’ (everything goes as you wish), where ‘yì’ sounds like ‘one’ in Chinese, and ‘tiāncháng dìjiǔ’ (everlasting and unchanging) where ‘jiǔ’ sounds like ‘nine’ in Chinese.

In banquets, toasting words connect the hosts with the guests as an interpersonal bond (Kotthoff, 1995). Chinese toasts have strict requirements for the toasters’ eloquence and communicative competence, necessitating that the toaster possess outstanding eloquence and deliver blessings in a refined manner. This reflects the fact that the etiquette of Chinese drinking culture originates from the literati as archetypes (Jiang, 2009). At this stage, the more toasts the host proposes and the more refined the toasting words are, the more enthusiastic and hospitable the hosts will appear.

After the chief host has greeted the guests at the opening of the banquet, toasting moves into the warming-up phase, where the chief host and the deputy host generally propose toasts to guests in sequence. They typically propose two toasts each and ensure that all guests are toasted. Given that the guests are always the focus of toasts with respect (Jiang and Liu, 2010), the hosts repeatedly confirm that every guest is well cared for. From the opening to the warming-up phase, the ‘planned economy’ stage comes to an end, and toasting moves into the next ‘market economy’ stage.

The ‘market economy’ stage: From the climax to the coda

As the banquet moves from the ‘planned economy’ stage to the ‘market economy’ stage, it reaches its climax. At this stage, the host and guest converse much more casually, and they begin to propose toasts to each other, gradually deepening their relationship. Therefore, the host generally proposes toasts to the guest with some appropriate coercion, which can also be called mock intervention (Li and Chen, 2022). Toasts, as a bond of brotherhood, are proposed not to force the guests to drink but to entertain and serve the guests as well as possible (Shen, 2020).

After the climax of the banquet, it begins to approach its end. Although the host may continue to propose toasts to the guest, toasting becomes less conventionalized than during the ‘planned economy’ stage. Since the guests have already drunk a lot, the hosts do not insist on proposing toasts after the guests have explicitly declined several times. Clearly, courtesy, sincerity, and care from the hosts are highlighted from the climax to the end of the banquet.

Strategies for toasts

Chinese toasting is viewed as an upgraded request to some degree, which is reflected in two ways: firstly, the toaster generally persuades the toastee to accept toasts by reinforcing illocutionary force; secondly, performing toasts is not intended to force the guest into drinking against their will. As a non-typical directive, toasting is much more culturally, morally, and emotionally involved (Kotthoff, 1995). At the ‘planned economy’ stage, the host generally gives the guest a warm welcome, making it difficult for guests to refuse these toasts, and they generally accept the toasts willingly. By contrast, at the ‘market economy’ stage, the atmosphere becomes more relaxed, and guests may refuse the host’s toasts because they have already drunk a lot. Thus, at this stage, the hosts gradually increase the imposition of toasts to persuade the guests to accept them. Based on the data analysis, toasting is mainly realized through the following strategies.

Emotion-driven strategy: Expressing emotion on record

The toasting ritual is essential in banquets for welcome, farewells, and gatherings of friends (Wang, 2007), indicating that toasting is emotionally invested. At the opening of a banquet, the chief host generally stands up and raises their cup to express a warm welcome and greetings by proposing the first toast. The hosts generally employ explicit strategies to help the guests establish a sense of belonging and participation through toasts, thereby shortening their psychological distance. Consider Example (1):

Example (1)

[Context: The chief host offered to propose the initial toasts in delight after the guests were seated.]

01 Zhǔ péi: . . . dì yīgè jiǔ shì huānyíng, gǎowán le, dì èrge jiǔ shì zhùfú, zhùfú wǒmen zàizuòde xiōngdì jiěmèi shēntǐ jiànkāng wànshì rúyì. Lái. Chief host: . . . The first toast is for welcoming everyone. Now that we’ve had some fun, the second toast is for blessings. Here’s to wish all our brothers and sisters good health and success in everything. Come on. 02 Zhòng rén: Gān. The others: Cheers. 03 Zhǔ péi: Zǒuqǐ a. Dì sāngè jiǔ kāishǐ. Chief host: Cheers. Let’s propose the third toast. 04 Fù péi: Zài jiā yīdiǎn jiǔ. Deputy host: Add a bit more wine. 05 Biān péi: Bǎjiǔ dàoshàng. Side hosts: Pour the wine. 06 Zhǔ péi: Lǎodà, dì sāngè jiǔ, gāngcái dì yīgè jiào huānyíng. Dì èrge jiào zhùfú. Dì sāngè jiào gǎnxiè, gǎnxiè zàizuòde xiōngdì jiěmèi, wǒmen rènshi yǒu yuánfèn. Nǐmen bāngzhù wǒ Dàliú yǒngshēng nánwàng. Chief host: Bro, the third toast, the first one was for welcome. The second one was for blessings. The third one is for gratitude. Thank you, brothers and sisters here. We are destined to know each other. Your help is something I, Da Liu, will never forget. (From Douyin)

Toasting in Chinese dining contexts is motivated by expressing and enhancing pleasant emotions (see Chen et al., 2022). At the beginning of the banquet, the chief host generally proposes the first toast to express a warm welcome. The number of toasts is related to various blessings with different lucky words (as introduced in 4.1.1), and each toast is generally proposed with explicit corresponding toasting words. In Example (1), the chief host proposed three toasts: the first toast was for welcome; the second was for blessings; and the third was for gratitude. Correspondingly, the first toast was proposed to welcome all the guests for attending (L01). The second toast was proposed to offer the chief host’s warm blessings to the guests (brothers and sisters) present (L01). The third toast was proposed to show the toaster’s gratitude to all the guests, thanking everyone for their continued support (L06).

Normally, the hosts directly use the imperative sentence ‘Huānyíng/Zhùfú/Gǎnxiè + NP’ (Welcome/Wish/Thank + NP) to propose toasts, followed by blessings and gratitude. As indicated in Example (1), the host said, ‘Here’s to wish all our brothers and sisters good health and success in everything’ (L01), accompanied by non-verbal signals, such as picking up the glass of wine, with brief directive utterances, ‘Come on’ (L01) to call everyone to join in. These explicit directive utterances are short but punchy, filled with joy and excitement due to the friends’ presence. In other words, the hosts’ pleasant emotions were explicitly demonstrated through sincere welcome and blessings at the same time.

Approval-driven strategy: Expressing recognition and appreciation

After the guests have been warmly welcomed, the closeness between the host and the guest is strengthened. The hosts propose toasts to guests sequentially, while the guests may express an attitude of moderateness in their drinking. At that time, the hosts attempt to propose toasts with more illocutionary force. The hosts may express their recognition of the guests, underlining their importance, as illustrated in Example (2):

Example (2)

[Context: The guests were warmly welcomed, and the chief host made efforts to make them feel at ease.]

01 Zhǔ péi: Nǐ jìrán láile, zán jiùděi hēhǎo. Jìng gè jiǔ, Lǎotáng, Hántāo xiōngdìmen liǎng bēi. Wǒ jìng sìgè jiǔ sìkǒu. Sìkǒu zài wǒmen jiāxiāng jiào shìshìrúyì. Wǒgē lǐngle liùbēi, wǒ jìng sìbēi, zhè jiào shíquánshíměi. Jiù suàn yígè zhànyì xiàláile. Chief host: Since you’re here, we must enjoy drinking. Let me propose a toast to Laotang and Hantao, two glasses for you brothers. I’m gonna propose four toasts, finishing each in one sip. In our hometown, four sips mean everything goes well. My elder brother proposed six toasts, and I’ll take four, making it perfect in every way. It’s like a battle won. 02 Zhǔ bīn: Xiàlái le jiù bùhē le, Wánggē. Guest of honor: Once we’re done, no more drinking, Bro Wang. 03 Fù péi: Zhè liǎngbēi hēle, hái nà liǎngbēi. Deputy host: Finish these two glasses, then another two. 04 Zhǔ péi: Lái shì gàn shénme de? Chief host: What are you coming for? 05 Biān péi: Lái hējiǔ de. Side hosts: For drinking. 06 Zhǔ bīn: Lái kànnǐ Wánggē de, wǒ búshì lái hējiǔ de. Guest of honor: I’m here to visit you, Bro Wang, not to drink. 07 Zhǔ péi: Dào zhège niánlíng le, néng jiāo sānliǎng zhījǐ zài yīkuàier hēgè jiǔ, wǒjué de zhíle. Chief host: At this age, having a few close friends to drink with is totally worth it. 08 Zhǔ bīn: Wánggē juéduì shì hǎohàn. Guest of honor: Bro Wang is absolutely a stand-up guy. (From Haokan Video)

In Example (2), after proposing four toasts, the chief host declared, ‘Jiù suàn yígè zhànyì xiàláile’ (It’s like a battle won) (L01). At this time, the guest of honor responded to the chief host, ‘xiàláile jiù bùhē le’ (Once we’re done, no more drinking), meaning that this is also the final battle (L02). However, the deputy host responded, ‘Finish these two glasses, then another two’ (L03). To persuade the guest to continue drinking, the chief host questioned the guest in a bantering way, ‘What are you coming for?’ (L04). Combining the chief host’s initial statement, ‘Since you’re here, we must enjoy drinking’, it can be inferred that the host is conveying the intention that ‘we’ have not enjoyed drinking yet and, therefore, ‘we’ should continue drinking. The guest of honor responded jokingly, ‘I’m here to visit you, Bro Wang, not to drink’ (L06), which implied not only the guest’s intention but also his implicit refusal of more toasts.

The chief host’s following remark, ‘At this age, having a few close friends to drink with is totally worth it’, seems like a heartfelt sentiment (L07). Meanwhile, it also indirectly emphasizes the close friendship between the host and guest, trying to persuade them that drinking more is worthwhile. This emphasis on the close relationship between the host and the guest also enhances the guests’ positive face to some extent, as recognizing and acknowledging them is an explicit way to boost their positive face (Brown and Levinson, 1987). Face, based on positive social values, also includes claims to social group membership, according to Spencer-Oatey (2005). The chief host’s recognition of the guests’ being his close friends underlines his claim that the guest is in his group. Thus, expressing recognition for the guest is an efficient way to show warmth and respect, thereby strengthening the illocutionary force.

Relation-driven strategy: Emphasizing the closeness

Toasting is sometimes not realized by direct command but tactically realized through facts and evidence (Wang and Han, 2020) at the climax of the banquet. During this stage, the guest feels more relaxed and may refuse the following toasts to varying degrees. Therefore, the host employs more persuasive strategies. Unlike the individualism valued in Western culture, Eastern culture advocates collectivism (Gu, 1990; Mao, 1994), emphasizing the ‘social self’ and its connection with others. Relationships, as one of the distinguishing characteristics, play an extraordinary role in Chinese culture and the toasting ritual. Thus, the closeness of the relationship is emphasized, as indicated in Example (3).

Example (3)

[Context: At the climax of the banquet, the host made efforts to persuade the guests to accept the toast.]

01 Zhǔ péi: Ná kuàizi? Zěnme yòu ná kuàizi ne? Wǒ shì nǐ biǎogē. Chief host: Chopsticks? Why are you grabbing chopsticks again? I’m your elder cousin. 02 Fù péi: Gūjiù biǎoxiōngdì zuìqīn le. Deputy host: Cousins are the closest. 03 Zhǔ bīn: Gūjiùqīn, bèibèi qīn. Zhēnshìer, yǒushù de zhèshì. Guest of honor: Aunts and uncles are close, generation after generation. It’s true, no doubt about it. 04 Zhǔ péi: Tā yǒu xuèyuán guānxì, shìba? Chief host: We have kinship, don’t we? 05 Zhǔ bīn: Suīrán bú jiànmiàn, tiāntiān xiǎng a, nénggòu fàngde kāi. Guest of honor: Even though we don’t meet very often, we think about each other every day and feel at ease when we do. 06 Zhǔ péi: Yǒudiǎn shìer jiù xiǎng qǐlái le. Chief host: Whenever something comes up, we think of each other. 07 Fù bīn: Méiyǒu wàirén, hǎole hǎole, xíngle. Deputy guest: No outsiders here, all right, all right, that’s enough. 08 Biān péi: Lái, zán yīqǐ hē, láiláilái. Side hosts: Come on, let’s drink together. Come on, come on! (From Haokan Video)

Relationships play a role in interpersonal communication and in banquets. In Example (3), the chief host proposed a toast upon noticing the guests were eating instead of drinking. To encourage the guests to drink more, the chief host used a questioning tone, ‘Chopsticks? Why are you grabbing chopsticks again?’ and deliberately emphasized their closeness by using identity metadiscourse, ‘I’m your elder cousin’ (L01). According to the guest of honor’s responses, ‘Even though we did not meet very often’ (L05), it can be inferred that they are not very familiar with each other and do not meet often, despite being relatives. They are distant relatives, but the chief host emphasized, ‘I am your elder cousin’, which implied that ‘because I am older than you, you are supposed to accept the toast I proposed’. It is evident that the host was using identity metadiscourse to emphasize both their familial ties and his elder status relative to the guest, in order to persuade the guest to drink more. In addition, the deputy guest’s response, ‘No outsiders here’ (L07) to identify with the host, echoed their closeness and emotional connection (Yang, 2023).

Politeness-driven strategy: Offering repeatedly for confirmation

Guests in China are generally modest and reserved (Liu, 2016b), profoundly influenced by Confucianism. This drives the host to repeatedly offer to serve the guest until they confirm that the guests have enjoyed drinking, as highlighted in Example (4).

Example (4)

[Context: After the climax of the banquet, the host tried to confirm whether the guests enjoyed their drinks.]

01 Zhǔ péi: Zánmen zhèngshì jìnrù dì sān chéngxù, kěyǐ zìyóu fāhuīle. Zhège wǒ jìngguò le, zánmen suǒyǒu de xiōngdì dōu kěyǐ jìng nǐjiǔ. Nǐ kàn zhège zánmen jiēzhe hē, hǎobu? Chief host: We’re officially into the third stage, so feel free to let loose. I’ve toasted you already; now all the brothers can toast you. How about keeping drinking, okay? 02 Zhǔ bīn: Yǐjīng yījīn le, yǒudiǎn gēn búshàng le. Jīntiān wǒ yě gǎnshòu dào nǐmen zhè rèqíng le, shìba. Wǒ dài yígè, zán zuìhòu yīkuàier hē gè tuányuán jiǔ. Yě suàn wǒ huíjìng dàjiā le. Guest of honor: We’ve already drunk one catty, and I’m starting to feel it. I’ve really felt your warm hospitality today. Let’s have one more, a final drink for togetherness. This is my toast to all of you. 03 Fù péi: Nà nǐ hē jìnxìng le ba? Xiānshuō. Deputy host: So, did you drink to your heart’s content? Tell us. 04 Zhǔ bīn: Méi wèntí le, gēn búshàng le, dōu hē yījīn duō le. Guest of honor: Yeah, that is enough. We’ve already drunk more than one catty. 05 Zhǔ péi: Nà nǐděi hē yī zhěngbēi. Chief host: Then you have to drink a full glass. 06 Zhǔ bīn: Zuìhòu wǒ zài zuìhòu zhè yībēi tuányuán jiǔ. Wǒ gān le, nǐmen dàjiā suíyì, hǎoba? Guest of honor: I’ll have this final glass for togetherness. I’ll empty it, and you guys can drink as much as you want, okay? 07 Zhǔ péi: Nà bùxíng. Wǒ xiōngdì gānle, jìrán tuányuánjiǔ le, yīqǐ gān le yìqǐ gān le. Chief host: No way. My brother downed his, and since it’s a togetherness toast, we all have to finish ours together. (From Douyin)

As shown in Example (4), the chief host suggested continuing with the toasts by asking, ‘How about keeping drinking?’ (L01), leaving the decision to the guests. However, the guest of honor tried to decline the host’s proposal, stating that he was already feeling the effects of the alcohol. At the same time, since refusing the host is a face-threatening act, the guest showed appreciation for the host’s service in the following remarks to mitigate the degree of face threat and finally suggested that everyone have a togetherness toast (L02). Considering the guest’s modesty and reservedness, the deputy host replied, ‘So, did you drink to your heart’s content?’ (L03), followed by the guest of honor indicating that they had had enough (L04). Thus, we can observe a clear conversation pattern of ‘inviting-refusing-offering again for reconfirmation’. After ensuring the guest has enjoyed enough drinks, the chief host would stop suggesting more but still insist that the guest finish the drink in their glass (L05). Given the host’s sincerity, the guest of honor offered to have the last togetherness toast, saying, ‘I’ll empty it, and you guys can drink as much as you want’ (L06). The chief host responded, ‘No way. My brother downed his, and since it’s a togetherness toast, we all have to finish ours together’ (L07).

This dialogue segment vividly showcases the Chinese people’s warm hospitality. Although the imposed offer may threaten the addressee’s negative face and thus be considered impolite (Brown and Levinson, 1987), continuing to propose toasts, especially when the guests refuse them, is not a face-threatening act at all but very appropriate in this context. Specifically, the host’s repeated offers of wine fully reflect that such behavior is highly conventionalized in China (Chen, 1996) and aligns with the concept of warmth outlined by Gu (1990). After all, toasting is not about drinking for drinking’s sake but about entertaining guests well, reflecting the host’s sincerity and hospitality (Gu, 1990; Mao, 1994).

As seen above, the whole toasting convention, from the ‘planned economy’ stage to the ‘market economy’ stage, demonstrates a trend from a single ‘guest-host’ pattern to a two-way interaction of the ‘guest and host’ pattern. During the process, the willingness of guests gradually decreases. Accordingly, the host may employ more imposing toasting strategies to persuade the guests to accept the toasts. In both the ‘planned economy’ and ‘market economy’ stages, guests have always been the focal point of the toasting convention. Through this practice, the host’s hospitality is fully demonstrated.

Discussion

According to the data analysis as shown above, it is revealed that toasters generally employ emotion-driven, approval-driven, relation-driven, and politeness-driven strategies to propose toasts at both the highly conventionalized ‘planned economy’ stage and the relatively free ‘market economy’ stage, highlighting the interactional and social nature of toasting. These research findings prove that toasting in Chinese dining contexts is ritualistic. According to Kádár (2024)’s specific explanation of rituals, toasting as a ritual is interpreted in two senses: (1) toasting as a form realized in a ritual context; (2) toasting as a ritual context itself.

The toasting ritual characterizes its popularity and characteristics in Chinese dining contexts. Influenced by ancient drinking culture and rituals, modern toasting rituals are simplified, but some conventions remain time-standing, still carrying much implicit intention (Cui, 2023; Wang, 2016). It is revealed that toasts are influenced by Qing (情), related to the disposition and feelings of humans, and Yi (义), personal loyalty with kindheartedness, both of which are rooted in Confucianism and Chinese culture.

Grounded on Qing (情)

Renqing (人情) is highly valued under the influence of the Confucian culture (Wang and Han, 2020). Renqing, composed of Ren (人, human) and Qing (情, emotion), is understood in this paper as Qinggan (情感, emotional connection or feelings) constructed in interaction and Xingqing (性情, disposition) of persons. Toasting strategies in the ritual context focus on Renqing, a concept highly valued in China. Qing (情) is emphasized in the Chinese toasting context, where the emotional connection between the toaster and the toastee is strengthened. Specifically, at drinking gatherings, the amount of alcohol consumed is linked to the depth of feelings among the participants, as the famous Chinese saying goes, ‘Gǎnqíng shēn, yī kǒu mēn; gǎnqíng qiǎn, tiǎn yī tiǎn’ (Deep feelings, bottoms up; shallow feelings, just a sip.) During the toasting process, Chinese characters also play a significant role in enhancing the atmosphere. As shown in Example (2), the emotions of the host and guest and the use of Chinese characters go hand in hand, mutually reinforcing each other. In this regard, toasting facilitates emotional exchanges among participants and deepens their emotional connections (Fang, 2024).

Toasting, as the carrier of drinking culture and social behavior, is highly conventionalized, according to Kádár and House (2020, 2021)’s explanation of ritual.

The entire banquet process is filled with Renqing (人情), in other words, the nuances of human relationships and social etiquette. In the beginning, toasters generally warmly welcome the toasted persons with refined toasting words for welcome, blessings, or thanks. As shown in Example (1), the chief host proposed three toasts to welcome, bless, and thank the guests. Meanwhile, each toast performed a different, relationship-enhancing expressive speech act: welcoming, blessing, and thanking. At the warming-up stage, the toasted person’s face was enhanced by the toaster’s recognition of their close relationship. At this moment, the host’s expression of recognition and appreciation serves as a toasting strategy, encouraging the guests to accept the proposal to continue drinking by acknowledging and affirming their relationship, as shown in Example (2). This embodies an ancient Chinese saying, ‘Jiǔ féng zhījǐ qiān bēi shǎo’ (A thousand cups of wine are not too many when drinking with close friends.) (Yang, 2023). Similarly, as displayed in Example (3), the toaster emphasized their closeness with the guest, which implicitly strengthened the illocutionary force, making it difficult for the guest to refuse the toast. Proposing toasts is an explicit way to express sincerity and forge a deep bond. Conversely, the host’s genuine expression of emotion also helps encourage the guests to accept the proposal to continue drinking. During the transition from the climax to the end of the banquet, the host generally offers to repeatedly confirm whether the guest has drunk well, as shown in Example (4), reflecting the host’s generosity and warm hospitality.

From the ‘planned economy’ to the ‘market economy’ stage, the guest could feel the host’s hospitality through a warm welcome (Example 1), recognition (Example 2), emphasis on closeness (Example 3), or repeated offers (Example 4). The characteristics of generosity and sincerity of Chinese people, as well as the image of the hospitable Chinese, are fully demonstrated in the toasting ritual discussed above.

Grounded on Yi (义)

Yi (义, righteousness), one of the traditional Chinese virtues of Confucianism (Chen, 2012; He, 2023), is generally accompanied by Ren (仁, benevolence), and together they are referred to as Renyi (仁义). Ren (仁) is the highest moral doctrine (Zhang, 2024), and Yi (义) is the realization of Ren (仁), understood as the principle all speech acts should follow. In this paper, Yi(义) mainly reflects Lita (利他, altruism), which is generally followed by the host when proposing toasts to the guests.

Lita (利他) is mainly reflected in ‘guest-orientation’; that is, the guests are always the center of the toasting ritual (Liu, 2016a). Chinese people entertain guests enthusiastically and hospitably, ensuring that the guests can enjoy drinking and food in the ritual context by employing appropriate strategies. In Example (1), the host proposed three toasts for welcome, blessings, and thanks, respectively, to show his great respect for the guests. Acknowledging and recognizing the guests as close friends of the host was to enhance the guest’s face in Example (2). The relationship between the toaster and the toastee, especially the toaster’s status as the elder, was highlighted, allowing the host to exert more illocutionary force on the toastee to persuade them to accept the toasts, as indicated in Example (3). It can be inferred that strategies, either by recognizing the guests as close friends or emphasizing the toaster’s seniority, are employed by the host to care for the guests, ultimately benefiting them. In Example (4), the chief host employed the conventionalized strategy of repeatedly offering to break the guests’ reservedness and modesty. Thus, reconfirming that guests have thoroughly enjoyed drinking embodies the ‘guest-orientation’ of the toasting ritual (Fang, 2024).

It is worth noting that Lita (利他), as discussed in this paper, is not the same as the ‘other-favor’ concept described by Leech (1983). Instead, Lita (利他) is interpreted as a means to achieve Zili (自利, self-favor) in the toasting convention. On the one hand, Zili (自利), achieved by being recognized by the toastee through enthusiastic entertainment, refers to the potential and subsequent interpersonal effects. This means that the relationship and emotional connection between the host and guest have been built and will be further strengthened (Cui, 2023). This dual relationship of ‘altruism – self-favor’ is reflected at various stages of the toasting process.

At the beginning of the banquet, as the chief host gave the toast, he also asked the guests to fill their glasses, and everyone willfully accepted the toast, as shown by the guest’s body language in the dialogue excerpt in Example (1). In Example (2), the chief host treasured his brotherhood with Laotang. To echo the host’s recognition, the guest of honor replied, ‘Bro Wang is absolutely a stand-up guy’, which was not only reciprocal recognition of the toaster but also a way to deepen their relationship. This dual nature of ‘altruism – self-favor’ is also reflected in Example (3), where the host, as the elder cousin, attempted to persuade the younger cousin, with whom he was unfamiliar, to drink another. The deputy guest recognized their close relationship by responding, ‘No outsiders here’. It is evident that through toasting, the familial relationship between the participants, though somewhat distant, was emphasized, and the toasting also helped to reduce the psychological distance between them. In Example (4), this mutually beneficial practice is reflected in the host and guest’s toasting each other (Wang, 2024) and the guest of honor’s response to the chief host, ‘I’ve really felt your warm hospitality today’, which demonstrates the guest’s appreciation of the host’s efforts.

It is implied that Qing (情)and Yi (义) are closely correlated: Qing (情) embodies Yi (义), and Yi (义) contributes to Qing (情). Qing (情)and Yi (义) interact throughout the toasting rituals. Yi (义) implies Qing (情), which is highlighted in the toasting conventions and the use of toasting strategies. Chinese enthusiasm, hospitality, and the importance placed on emotional connection are prominently emphasized at both the ‘planned economy’ stage and ‘market economy’ stage.

Conclusion

This paper proves toasting to be a ritual, focusing on toasting conventions and strategies in Chinese dining contexts. It is found that toasting in Chinese dining contexts follows certain conventions, which can be divided into two metaphorical stages: the highly conventionalized ‘planned economy’ stage and the relatively free ‘market economy’ stage. Even though these two stages differ somewhat in the degree of imposition when proposing toasts, the guests are always the center of the toasts. Additionally, the toasters may: (1) express a warm welcome, sincere blessings, or deep gratitude (emotion-driven strategy); (2) express their recognition of the guests (approval-driven strategy); (3) emphasize their close connection (relation-driven strategy); and (4) show their generosity and hospitality (politeness-driven strategy) to persuade the guests to accept their toasts. Furthermore, Qing (情) and Yi (义), which are highly valued in Confucianism, have a profound effect on proposing toasts at these two stages. Specifically, Qing (情) is reflected in Renqing (人情) between the toaster and the toastee, and Yi (义) is embodied in Lita (利他), which is guest-oriented.

This research has filled the gap in the study of toasting culture to some degree and has contributed to understanding Chinese toasting rituals from a discursive perspective, especially the cultural pragmatics behind toasting discourse. We believe that understanding this knowledge is crucial for readers, particularly those unfamiliar with Chinese culture, to grasp the relevant cultural pragmatic behaviors. Moreover, the toasting ritual, correlated with Confucianism, represents a research practice in cultural pragmatics, further contributing to the development of cultural pragmatics (He, 2007). It should be noted that this study, being qualitative, is limited by the amount and richness of its data. Future research could benefit from collecting more extensive and richer data and adopting both qualitative and quantitative research methods to further enrich the current findings on toasting. Additionally, it is worth mentioning that factors such as the formality of the context and geographical region were not examined in this study; these could be explored in future research to expand our understanding of toasting rituals.

Footnotes

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank the anonymous reviewers for their comments and suggestions during the peer-review process. Any remaining errors are our own. We also thank the support for the second author’s research, which was funded by the Postgraduate Research & Practice Innovation Program of Jiangsu Province (KYCX24_0068).

Declaration of conflicting interests

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Funding

The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: The second author’s research was funded by the Postgraduate Research & Practice Innovation Program of Jiangsu Province (KYCX24_0068).

ORCID iD

Zepeng Wang

References

Brown

Levinson

(1987) Politeness: Some Universals in Language Usage. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Chen

Zhang

, et al. (2022) Descriptive peer drinking norms and binge drinking: Enhancement motives as a mediator and alcohol resistance self-efficacy as a moderator. Frontiers in Psychology 13: 876274.

Chen

(1996) Food-plying and Chinese politeness. Journal of Asian Pacific Communication 7(3&4): 143–155.

Chen

(2012) Between benevolence and righteousness. Philosophical Research (11): 32–40.

Cui

(2023) Chinese alcoholic beverage culture asserting Chinese custom, elegance, demeanor and style. Liquor Making 50(6): 127–131.

Driver

(1991) The Magic of Ritual. New York, NY: Harper Collins.

Fang

(2024) Business etiquette in the dining context: An integration of communication arts and professionalism in the workplace. China Wine (2): 72–73.

(2019) Ancient and modern views on drinking etiquette. Adolescent Health (12): 62–65.

(1990) Politeness phenomena in modern Chinese. Journal of Pragmatics 14(2): 237–257.

10.

Gusfield

(1987) Passage to play: Rituals of drinking time in American Society. In: Douglas

(ed.) Constructive Drinking: Perspectives on Drink from Anthropology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp.73–90.

11.

(2007) The cultural speech act. Contemporary Rhetoric (6): 16–20.

12.

(2023) “Yi”: A moral fact in ancient Chinese society. China Social Science Review (4): 57–68.

13.

Zhang

(2011) Re-conceptualizing the Chinese concept of face from a face-sensitive perspective: A case study of a modern Chinese TV drama. Journal of Pragmatics 43(9): 2360–2372.

14.

(2011) The Chinese Alcohol Culture. Beijing: China International Broadcast Press.

15.

Huang

(2002) Pouring wine, refusing wine, proposing a toast, and drinking wine. Modern Communication (2): 10–11.

16.

Jiang

(2006) The Study of Chinese Alcohol Culture. Changsha: Hunan Normal University Press.

17.

Jiang

(2009) Wine and Chinese culture. Study Monthly (18): 47.

18.

Jiang

Liu

(2010) On the difference between Chinese and Western drinking culture. Journal of North University of China (Social Science Edition) 26(4): 33–38.

19.

Kádár

(2017) Politeness, Impoliteness and Ritual: Maintaining the Moral Order in Interpersonal Interaction. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

20.

Kádár

(2024) Ritual and Language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

21.

Kádár

House

(2020) The pragmatics of ritual: An introduction. Pragmatics 30(1): 1–14.

22.

Kádár

House

(2021) Interaction ritual and (im)politeness. Journal of Pragmatics 179: 54–60.

23.

Kotthoff

(1995) The social semiotics of Georgian toast performances: Oral genre as cultural activity. Journal of Pragmatics 24(4): 353–380.

24.

Leech

(1983) Principles of Pragmatics. London: Longman.

25.

Chen

(2022) The performance and relational role of toast intervention in Chinese dining contexts. Pragmatics and Society 13(4): 625–643.

26.

Liu

(2016a) The culture of drinking etiquette in modern China. Tong Hang (5): 161+167.

27.

Liu

(2016b) Chinese nation’s cultural world grounded on modern Chinese drinking etiquette. Yangtze River Series (19): 125+127.

28.

Mao

(1994) Beyond politeness theory: ‘Face’ revisited and renewed. Journal of Pragmatics 21(5): 451–486.

29.

Mao

Tian

Wang

(2021) I will empty it, be my guest: A pragmatic study of toasting in Chinese culture. Journal of Pragmatics 180: 77–88.

30.

Pan

Kádár

(2011) Politeness in Historical and Contemporary Chinese. London: Continuum.

31.

Ren

Guo

(2020) Self-praise on Chinese social networking sites. Journal of Pragmatics 169: 179–189.

32.

Rook

(1985) The ritual dimension of consumer behavior. Journal of Consumer Research 12(3): 251–264.

33.

Shen

(2020) Chinese drinking culture. China Wine (1): 57.

34.

Spencer-Oatey

(2005) (Im)politeness, face and perceptions of rapport: Unpackaging their bases and interrelationships. Journal of Politeness Research 1(1): 95–119.

35.

Sugiura

Wiles

Pope

(2017) Ethical challenges in online research: Public/private perceptions. Research Ethics 13(3–4): 184–199.

36.

Treise

Wolburg

Otnes

(1999) Understanding the “social gifts” of drinking rituals: An alternative framework for PSA developer. Journal of Advertising 28(2): 17–31.

37.

Wang

(2007) Business etiquette: On dinner manner (part two). Financial Management and Research (8): 76–77.

38.

Wang

(2016) On the etiquette of toasting. Appreciation (11): 395.

39.

Wang

(2008) The Appreciation of Chinese Alcohol Culture. Jinan: Shandong University Press.

40.

Wang

(2009) The Review of Ancient Chinese Alcohol Culture. Harbin: Heilongjiang People’s Publishing House.

41.

Wang

(2024) Interpretation of the Chinese liquor words from the cultural perspective. Journal of Hengshui University 26(1): 5–10.

42.

Wang

Han

(2020) Ethical dilemma of Chinese toast culture and its solutions. Culture Journal (7): 54–57.

43.

Xiao

(2005) The etiquette of toast. Applied Writing (8): 10.

44.

Yang

(2023) The cultural significance of wine. Journal of Guizhou University (Social Sciences) 41(6): 114–120.

45.

Yin

(2012) Drinking should follow proper etiquette. Openings (27): 78–79.

46.

You

(2014) Chinese drinking culture. Jiao Shi Bo Lan (4): 23–26.

47.

Zhang

(2024) A study of Confucius’ benevolence and righteousness in Chinese traditional culture. Xin Chu Culture (4): 7–9.