Expert: Jennifer - 5/6/2002

Question
I would like some good reading material on the Chinese culture, because I need some way to rationalize the strange things that I see here.I am just now living in China, and I have heard the phrase "We Chinese," and "our 5,000 year history" about one billion times as of this afternoon.

I have noticed a couple of things: The Chinese people are in the habit of labeling EVERYTHING as having been created by them. So Japan is a country of horrible people, but they are "really" Chinese, since every civilization in Asia is really an "offshoot" of China.

This raises several questions that you might be able to give me some nice, handy references to answer:

1. Some people to whom I have spoken have suggested that there is a lot of revisionism going on in the use of the 5,000 year number. And that all the civilizations that have existed before have been retroactively labeled as part of the Great Middle Kingdom. This may lower the age of China to 3,0000 years. Also: There have been quite a few invasions. If I don't miss my guess, the Manchu empire was established by people that are now a national minority. And some things that I have read speak of the wholesale extermination of indigenous cultures here in the Mainland. (That is surely the case in Taiwan, where there are only a very few of the aboriginals left). Where is the question in all this? It is: Can you give me some comments/ REFERENCES on the tendency toward overly optimistic revisionism as may be the case in China?

2. The people here have quite a wounded sense of superiority, it seems. They want to argue on the smallest points about certain things. When asking a girl why the Chinese people don't create new words out of the existing 214 radicals, she said to me "It is because we Chinese have such a long history that we have created every imaginable word." Ok. Or, the way that everyone here attributes certain failings of the culture here to every places else. ("Your government lies to you, too."/ "American people avoid taxes the same way Chinese people do when they are in the USA.") Any references that discuss the Chinese psyche and why it is so "different?"

And this place is full of some VERY VERY VERY stubborn people. More than any place that I have ever seen. So then will reinterpret things in a way that they want to hear them. For example: Every single person in the country knows the Roman alphabet, but they insist on translating everything on the menu at McDonalds into Chinese characters and using the characters for SOUND and not MEANING. If you are going to do all that, it seems like the easiest thing to do would be to just use the alphabet or the phonemes that everyone already knows very well. But of course, phonemes/ letters are not 'Chinese' and therefore not useful. Does this come from some dynasty that they have had that inculcated them with this idea?

Thanks for any references that you might be able to give me.

There are many more questions that need explaining, but we'll see how you do on these before I give you any more.

LPM  

Answer
Hello!

The questions raised by you are actually very subjective. I will still answer your question, but please note that they may not be all that you would like to hear.

1. There are actually evidence to prove that civiliazations existed more than 3000 years ago. However, this is pre-history period, that means writings are not fully develped yet. So, for most Westerners, the use of the term "3000 years" seemed more apporiate. The Manchu empire is established by a national minority. The Hans never liked being under the Manchu people and have always wanted to revolt against them. They successful did it in 1911. So now, they are ruled by their own people and this may explain for the overly optimistic revisionism as may be the case in China.

2. You must understand that China is ruled by the communist party before. If you know Russian history or Germany's history during the period under the rule of Stalin and Hitler respectively, you would understand why the Chinese are like so loyal to their country. That is because they are taught to do that.

You seemed very annoyed by what you have seen. Chinese are really proud of the chinese characters. It is very unique and the one and only kind in the world. Understand the Sino-US ties. It's not very good. Bush once said that the Chinese are US's competitor. Naturally, the Chinese would not want to use the English alphabet. (Though it's stupid : English words are invented by the English)

Anyway, not all the people in the country know the Roman alphabet. The rural people doesn't. Please don't sterotype.

Hope it helps.
Thanks for the question.