I came here to spend a year finding what exactly I wanted to do with my passion for studying all things China, and to indulge in some serious cultural immersion.
Unfortunately, I was a little too efficient with the former, and now I'm immersed in application essays instead. Seriously. My life is a 24-hour cycle of class, food, class, writing/editing in some café, food, more writing/editing (sometimes in another café), room. I am so thankful to have found an answer about what I want to do with my life, but I will be so glad when my applications have all been completed and I can get back to immersing myself in the world right outside my window.
So close.
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
Thursday, October 11, 2012
(Another) Nobel for China
Well this is awkward.
Today the Nobel Prize for Literature went to Chinese author 管谟业 Guǎn Móyè, who goes by the pen name of 莫言 Mò Yán. This is both awesome and, like I said, somewhat awkward for the CCP. On the one hand, it's an accomplishment to be proud of, as Mo Yan is the first Chinese person to win the prize for literature while still a Chinese citizen. It's an award that validates modern Chinese literature as being able to contribute to the global literary culture. More importantly, at least to China, it signifies the spread of China's cultural influence and prestige to the rest of the world.
China's pride and excitement over the award covered the internet shortly after Mo Yan was announced the winner. Within half an hour of the announcement, Mo Yan's name was mentioned over 30,000 times on 微博 Wēibó (China's version of Twitter). As I check now, another half hour later, the number has climbed to 70,000.
Even the articles published by Chinese newspapers are celebratory in nature, calling on the rest of the country to congratulate Mo Yan for bringing pride to China. For those literate in Chinese, take a look at this op-ed written for the People's Daily shortly after the award was announced. It starts off by congratulating Mo Yan on bringing China its first Nobel Prize for Literature. Then, in a style that seems to criticize China and the West simultaneously, it complains of how China, the land of such a rich literary history, birthplace of Confucius, Lu Xun, and Cao Xueqin, has waited so long for someone to finally receive this award. The article continues to say that finally being able to put a Chinese citizen on the list of recipients is, "comfort, proof and affirmation [of Chinese literature]; moreover, it is a new starting point."
So... why is this awkward?
Remember this, China's first actual Nobel Prize? It's still being categorically denied by the government, and the recipient, Liu Xiaobo, is still locked up. Mentioning the words "Nobel Prize" in China will almost inevitably remind people of this, and the drama that was the Nobel Peace Prize of 2010 (for those who heard about the drama, at least). So every time China celebrates Mo Yan's big accomplishment, it is also tacitly reminding people of two things:
1. This is the second, not the first, Nobel Prize to go to a Chinese citizen.
2. The recipient of the first prize is in prison for the very same reason that he won the prize.
In a way, the Committee's decision to award this second Nobel Prize to a Chinese citizen so soon after the Liu Xiaobo controversy could be construed as a subversive maneuver to embarrass the CCP yet again for its policies and treatment towards Mr. Liu. Or at least, I could see the government saying something that inane if it really wanted to. However I think the government is perfectly happy stoking people's national pride and letting all thoughts of Liu Xiaobo be forgotten.
That's the big news of the day. On a more personal level, did you see how I totally read that op-ed in Chinese with minimal-to-substantial help from my online dictionary? I really do love validation. :)
Today the Nobel Prize for Literature went to Chinese author 管谟业 Guǎn Móyè, who goes by the pen name of 莫言 Mò Yán. This is both awesome and, like I said, somewhat awkward for the CCP. On the one hand, it's an accomplishment to be proud of, as Mo Yan is the first Chinese person to win the prize for literature while still a Chinese citizen. It's an award that validates modern Chinese literature as being able to contribute to the global literary culture. More importantly, at least to China, it signifies the spread of China's cultural influence and prestige to the rest of the world.
China's pride and excitement over the award covered the internet shortly after Mo Yan was announced the winner. Within half an hour of the announcement, Mo Yan's name was mentioned over 30,000 times on 微博 Wēibó (China's version of Twitter). As I check now, another half hour later, the number has climbed to 70,000.
Even the articles published by Chinese newspapers are celebratory in nature, calling on the rest of the country to congratulate Mo Yan for bringing pride to China. For those literate in Chinese, take a look at this op-ed written for the People's Daily shortly after the award was announced. It starts off by congratulating Mo Yan on bringing China its first Nobel Prize for Literature. Then, in a style that seems to criticize China and the West simultaneously, it complains of how China, the land of such a rich literary history, birthplace of Confucius, Lu Xun, and Cao Xueqin, has waited so long for someone to finally receive this award. The article continues to say that finally being able to put a Chinese citizen on the list of recipients is, "comfort, proof and affirmation [of Chinese literature]; moreover, it is a new starting point."
So... why is this awkward?
Remember this, China's first actual Nobel Prize? It's still being categorically denied by the government, and the recipient, Liu Xiaobo, is still locked up. Mentioning the words "Nobel Prize" in China will almost inevitably remind people of this, and the drama that was the Nobel Peace Prize of 2010 (for those who heard about the drama, at least). So every time China celebrates Mo Yan's big accomplishment, it is also tacitly reminding people of two things:
1. This is the second, not the first, Nobel Prize to go to a Chinese citizen.
2. The recipient of the first prize is in prison for the very same reason that he won the prize.
In a way, the Committee's decision to award this second Nobel Prize to a Chinese citizen so soon after the Liu Xiaobo controversy could be construed as a subversive maneuver to embarrass the CCP yet again for its policies and treatment towards Mr. Liu. Or at least, I could see the government saying something that inane if it really wanted to. However I think the government is perfectly happy stoking people's national pride and letting all thoughts of Liu Xiaobo be forgotten.
That's the big news of the day. On a more personal level, did you see how I totally read that op-ed in Chinese with minimal-to-substantial help from my online dictionary? I really do love validation. :)
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Day Trip
One of the perks of living in Nanjing is that there are high-speed trains to Shanghai leaving every 30 minutes, most of which will get you to the western edge of the city within an hour of boarding the train. From there, you can catch one of two metro lines that will give you access to the city's expansive metro system, making logistics easy even for the most directionally challenged of us (not that I would ever label any of my friends as directionally challenged).
I took advantage of this perk the other weekend when Barney was in Shanghai taking care of business. I spent the lunch hour and early afternoon wandering Nanjing Street (somewhat like Fifth Avenue, except not really), and then met up with Barney around 2:30. After a brief discussion of our options, we decided to check out this shopping area in Shanghai called 田子坊 tiánzǐfāng. I didn't really take pictures because I was so caught up, but here are some Google Images that might be of interest. It was the coolest shopping area I've ever been to in China. For people familiar with Beijing, it's somewhat of a hybrid between 798 and Nan Lougu Xiang. It had art. It had crafts. It had old-school hipster glasses. It had kitsch. It had jewelry. And oh my goodness did it have food. Barney and I didn't have a lot of time, so we didn't explore as thoroughly as we could have, but from the various cafés, Thai restaurants, and New York pizzerias that I did see, Tianzifang is definitely a place for people craving international cuisine. I guess Shanghai in general is a good place for that too.
I took advantage of this perk the other weekend when Barney was in Shanghai taking care of business. I spent the lunch hour and early afternoon wandering Nanjing Street (somewhat like Fifth Avenue, except not really), and then met up with Barney around 2:30. After a brief discussion of our options, we decided to check out this shopping area in Shanghai called 田子坊 tiánzǐfāng. I didn't really take pictures because I was so caught up, but here are some Google Images that might be of interest. It was the coolest shopping area I've ever been to in China. For people familiar with Beijing, it's somewhat of a hybrid between 798 and Nan Lougu Xiang. It had art. It had crafts. It had old-school hipster glasses. It had kitsch. It had jewelry. And oh my goodness did it have food. Barney and I didn't have a lot of time, so we didn't explore as thoroughly as we could have, but from the various cafés, Thai restaurants, and New York pizzerias that I did see, Tianzifang is definitely a place for people craving international cuisine. I guess Shanghai in general is a good place for that too.
Harry Potter and a Chicken
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Sorry for the excessive amount of time that has elapsed since my last post. Applications, Chinese National Holiday, and the world's most fickle internet connection conspired to keep me from doing anything more complicated than reading the home page of the New York Times.
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The evening started off normally enough. I was restless (as usual) and tired of shuffling back and forth between the coffee house and my room every day. In trying to figure out what to do cure my restlessness at least for a while, I realized that I had never finished an old goal of reading Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in Chinese. I had intended to bring the book with me to Nanjing to read in my spare time, but somehow it didn't make its way into my suitcase. And suddenly, I really very much needed to have it.
I obviously wasn't going to buy the book again when I had a copy at home, but I couldn't shake the need to read some form of juvenile Western literature in Chinese. The Hunger Games wasn't going to work because it had a bunch of strange words that I didn't want to deal with translating. I know, I know, wingardium leviosa and expecto patronum aren't exactly ordinary either, but to be totally honest I really really want to be able to discuss Harry Potter in Chinese, and what better way to do that than to read the books?
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