Stewart Lee Beck's Blog, page 3
September 8, 2015
Mooncake Gifting and Reconnecting with the Warm Traditions of the Mid-Autumn Festival
The modern Mid-Autumn Festival has, to some observers, become yet another example of our world’s rampant materialism, in which the act of gifting an expensive box – with all its inherent social pressures and expectations – begins to overshadow any sincere sentiments prompting the gift itself and render its conspicuously overwrapped, less-often-consumed contents nearly irrelevant, leaving us all to wonder how we ended up so far removed from our ancestors’ original Mid-Autumn traditions....
August 31, 2015
Finding Yin Yang Balance In Your Food Choices
Duck is cooling, chicken is heaty. Green tea is cooling, black tea is heaty. Crabs are cooling, shrimp are heaty. To an outsider, these classifications might seem as randomas the gender of French nouns, e.g. water is feminine, milk is masculine. What’s a hungry human to do?
A Chinese friend shared a classic incident of pantry shock in her cross-cultural work environment. Her non-Chinese colleague, watching her prepare chrysanthemum tea, asked why she loved it so much. She answered, “It...
August 22, 2015
Mozi – The Martin Luther King of Ancient China
This article written by Leo Timm was originally published in Epoch Times on January 19, 2015 and is reprinted here with their permission:
Since 1971, the third Monday of each January has been a U.S. federal holiday dedicated to Martin Luther King Jr., the great American civil rights leader. Today, he is remembered not just for his contribution to the civil rights movement half a century ago, but for the universal values reflected in his accomplishments and sacrifice.
“I refuse to acce...
August 3, 2015
Chinese Inventions: Those You Know, Those You Don’t
China’s prolific history of innovation has generated much debate and speculation. Rather than wade through a long list of Chinese inventions, let’s focus on four major game-changers plus four lesser-knowns still very much impacting our lives.
China’s Four Great InventionsThe Four Great Inventions sì dà fāmíng(四大发明) were actually intended for domestic consumption, their potential value in foreign trade merely an afterthought, as China saw itself as the center of civilization. Most...
July 12, 2015
Learning Chinese For Long Term Success: Top Tips From The Experts
The sheer volume of language learning advice out there is overwhelming, so why not let us streamline it for you into six highly practical and actionable recommendations?
As Typhoon Chan-Hom drenched Shanghai, China Simplified waded through a flood of language material in search of the most useful guidance for busy businesspeople and students of culture alike. We hope the six key points below serve as a powerful catalyst to your long term language success and enjoyment!
1. Learn w...July 3, 2015
The Motion of Emotion
You know that uneasy feeling before interviewing for a job, giving a speech in public, or making a major life decision? The Chinese have a variety of expressions to convey these universal emotions. They also embrace a wider view of the “heart” and its role in our lives.
Here are three phrases which capture aspects its essence:
1. 忐忑 tǎntèMeaning: Nervous, apprehensive, mentally unstable
Example:
我要去面试了，心里感到有些忐忑不安。
Wǒ yào qù miànshìle, xīnlǐ gǎndào yǒuxiē tǎntè bù’ān.
I’m going for...
June 22, 2015
Legendary Chinese Eunuchs – How They Made History
Chinese eunuchs across history belong to a vast, anonymous clan, sharing the same unspoken shame in service to emperor and court. Several of these brave souls, however, rose to such prominence as to have their names revered and/or cursed for centuries.
Here’s part one of the series, just in case you missed it:
Chinese Eunuchs – How They Became “Unnatural Men.”
“To lie or to be castrated.” Some question, huh? This was the unfortuna...
June 10, 2015
“Leaving Home For Good” – Mandarin Chinese Speaking Mistakes
The China Simplified team plays with the story of a foreigner messing up the phrase “let’s go out” with surreal consequences.
Chū means exit. Jiā means home. If language was as rational as math, chūjiā would mean “exit home.” Unfortunately, it doesn’t work like that. Our fearless foreigner meant to say 我们出门吧 wǒmen chūmén ba (let’s go out, lit. exit door) but what came out was 我们出家吧 wǒmen chūjiā ba (let’s become monks).
Every chapter in the book China Simplified: Langua...
June 9, 2015
Chinese Eunuchs – How They Became “Unnatural Men”
The excruciating surgery featured in this post falls outside “normal” medical procedures. Yet it’s far from rare. China’s Ming Dynasty alone produced over 100,000 eunuchs!
The Hippocratic Oath directs physicians to prevent disease and act to the benefit of the sick. For their part, patients seek out surgeons to diagnose, cure, reconstruct, replace, transplant or palliate in the hope that they will stay healthy and feel better. The surgery to create an “unnatural man,” whether performed...
June 8, 2015
“3 Terrible Gifts In China” – Chinese Language & Cultural Superstitions
The China Simplified team explores Chinese gifting taboos and the tragic (albeit slightly exaggerated) consequences of a guy giving his combustible girlfriend the wrong presents.
For example, his first gift 伞 sǎn (umbrella) in Chinese sounds like 散 sàn (to break up). Umbrella gifting on dates is to be avoided, even if it is the most exquisite antique umbrella, or an expensive elaborately laced umbrella, or even a hi-tech-unfold-with-one-click umbrella. Just don’t go th...
