Author: John Mak
Date: 06-08-02 21:03
Li-Shi,
You are young.
As you grow older,your outlook will change.
Many of us love China and the Chinese culture, at the same time we need
to earn our living,we need to integrate into the host society,if we don't
we will be only able to take the job in Chinatown,not very well paid.
Once we move outside Chinatown,we develop relationship,in my case
I married a European girl, I must admit I have not been successful
to sinicize my children, their Chineseness is only in food,religion is another
factor that leads us away from the fundamental Chinese such as Taoism,
religion is also a motive force that changes culture.
Guan Kim writes how Chinese he is,as an individual ,there is no doubt about it.
he has the luck to live in a country with 75% Chinese,even that there is
a difference between a Chinese from China and a Chinese from Singapore.
Now many of us live in community that has very few Chinese among the population.
On the question on languages,you mentioned in one of your posting,
the Chinese does not converse in Chinese ,here again you need to
understand many of us do not learn putonhua. An example, I work with
a Chinese from Hong-Kong,he speaks Cantonese and I speaks some Hakka
we are like chicken talking to ducks.
As for people who looks down on people who does not speak English is
just arrogant and bad manners.
As for the "banana",they are in difficulty as well,some of them may have
tried to join the Chinese community,they were rejected as "fan-kwei"
or "kwei-low",in the end they come to term to themselves.
The host nation sees you as traitors if you do not swear allegiance to the
flag and the nation.
Once one leaves the Chinese shore, one cannot stay Chinese forever,
Chinese culture will stay for some times, soon or later one will be absorbed into the host culture,this is the natural development of life.
John.
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