For the longest time I have been trying to figure out the difference between English and Chinese. I have pondered this question repeatedly, eventually it became something that refused to leave me alone unless I really think it though.
I was born in Taiwan and lived there till 2001; While I was growing up the pressure of learning English never ceased. When I was little my mom invested a lot into buying the teaching materials that's partnered with the Sesame Street; we had a private teacher who came to our house every week and taught us English. I don't remember anything about the lessons, the only thing I remembered is that one time she hit me in my hand with a hanger because I made some kind of "mistakes". In middle school and high school, we were introduced to basic grammars and vocabularies. I remember going to cram school for English after school, and spent many afternoon between school and cram school memorizing vocabularies before the quizzes of the evening.
For some reason my English was one of the best in my class during high school, but I suspect that it was only because most of my classmates hated English, or don't remember too many vocabularies. They would score close to nothing for exams only to let me, who did just mildly better to stand out.
I never imagined myself using English the way I do now; needless to say that I ever thought I would actually enjoy writing in English much more than my own language. this brings me to the point that I am trying to make: what is it about English that I like better than Chinese?
when I look back to the way the two language was taught to me, and the environment of which I used them, perhaps i could sort through some of the clues to say a thing or two about the distinctions. First, Chinese is a very pictorial language; from the individual characters, to the way phrases are put together, to the sentences and expressions, Chinese seems to be always drawing a picture, capturing a feeling, making an analogy. Rarely in Chinese could you find direct expression encouraged; it seems like everything has a skin around it when you use Chinese...there's this distance, this indirect reference going on all the time. In literature it's even so. In Chinese poetry, poets express their feelings through analogy by describing landscape or the color of the sky; though expressions of emotions do exist, but there's always seem to be a lot of "mist" around it in the poem. though being so pictorial has it's benefits, and Chinese does do a great job capturing the ambiguity and the delicate feelings, it suffers a great pitfall. The non-specific way of constant referring to things is a great disadvantage when use the language in science. This is when English comes winning.
In English, when encounter a need for a new meaning, we could make it up by combining two or more words together, if we were to sound intelligent, one would combine the word through Latin roots, but in cases where we just need to get the job done, we would put less thought, more creativity into it and spin it like "Brangelina" or "Bennefer". But this is not why I enjoy it. I think for the most part, English provides a clarity that I didn't experience before but had in some way missed it. I really like the fact that in English one can make clear argument about things that's ambiguous yet make no one misunderstood because one can structure the language to exactly what one wants it to mean. I feel most frustrated in Chinese in this aspect. Since each character can have so much meaning behind it, even when you combine words together in an attempt to point out certain things, there's still too much room for imagined meanings to come in. One of the pitfalls in the structure of the language is the the lack of S+V+O rule in Chinese. One can start talking about what one did yesterday all day and only refer to himself as "I" once in the beginning of the whole conversation. This creates much confusion and rooms for suggestions that eventually could lead the original intended meaning astray. Too often in conversations now with my mom, I have to ask her for the "subject"---exactly who she was referring to when she started talking.
I found the fact that after turning 20 and started learning English in strictly academic institutions has it's role on shaping the way I use English. For starters, only the proper ways were allowed; I must pay attention to tenses, and always be mindful of minor details in both writing and speaking. But after about three years in the States, when I started to fly with it, I was not only enjoying having a foreign language rolling out of my tongue, but also the much needed friendships that developed and the expending social circle. That's when street talks start to come in; things like "hook-up", "yo-all", "ain't", etc, started to contaminate my English. But such imperfections are what i am willing to compromise if I could decrease distance between others and myself and develope friendships!
Though not directly related to the distinctions between Chinese and English, I found psychologically and in emotional expressions, English opened up a whole new ways of communication that i never experienced before with my family and friends. Perhaps it's just that American are better at talking about, addressing their feelings in general, I found the way i express myself in English is something I couldn't really do in Chinese. however, I need to rule out exactly why I could not express my emotions clearly in my own language? is it a culture issue? or it's a language issue? For whatever the reason, sometimes I cought myself thinking about making a difficult conversation with my mother in English, even though I NEVER have conversation with my mom in English. I could only guess that, since it's not my "mother tongue", there's also a lack of emotional impact on my very raw psyche! In some cases, it's almost like impersonal in a way, because I was speaking a foreign language that has yet to merge with me. It's like when you are insulted in a foreign language, it wouldn't really hurt because not only do you not know the meanings of the specific words, but also there's no emotional association or meanings to those words. But when I want to make the expressions so common in everyday American life, such as "I am so happy for you", "this hurts my feelings", or "he's a really good kisser", the Chinese translation would always be something watered-down, less direct, and not so much "ZING". This is what I means that everything has a skin around it, it's like you can't point at it, say exactly what it is. this could be a culture issue or just a habit of how people use the language. i mean, if you really want, you could try to speak chinese in the way you use English in America, only be mindful about the trouble you would get yourself into.
If you were in Taiwan and you are to say in Chinese "I am good at cooking; I am a good cook" to a roomful of friends, let's just observe how your arrogance could quiet down a party and people will change how they think about you completely. I have also tried to talk "American" to my mom about being more positive, and not to hurt my sister's feelings by saying, "she really cares about your comments, and what you said could really hurt her feelings". You have no idea how big a deal it was that I spoke so directly about "feelings" to my mother. The phone went dead; it was too much to deal with.
Even though I have put a lot of thought into this, I could only speak from my own experiences. I believe much more could be learned about exactly what characteristic distinctions made Chinese and English so different, inevitably there will also be the task of ruling out culture issues and habits of how the language is used. Before I become wiser and such, I will make clear that as the years go by, and English becoming one of my own languages, it starts to "get to me" more as time goes. This gives me less room for psychological advantage and distance, but defiantly more clarity and hopefully, less troubles! by the way, how do you say, "you drive me nuts" in Chinese?
(you don't.)
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
keep the dream alive
Sometimes as children we knew what we want, and had the vision for our lives, but find ourselves lack the ability to verbalize it or express it to others. Sometimes as adults, our dreams don't fall into the existing category of things that others do, we try to keep it secret because we loathe the looks from those who don't know us well enough to validate our visions.
But the great moment of our working life comes when it merge with our soul and in tune with the purpose of why we were made, only the little tingle in our stomach knows, that we have got it. It's the moment that make solid of our existence, and nothing feels better; we can skip meals, neglect phone calls, and other socially defined important stuff. Only we know what is truly real to our soul, and sometimes such private victory could only be celebrated with the increasing heartbeats that inject each and every cell of our body with vital force that rushes us to the finishing line. We know we are going to matter and that our dreams that grew from the little seed planted in childhood will one day blossom and shadow those who never came close to envision the impossible.
But the great moment of our working life comes when it merge with our soul and in tune with the purpose of why we were made, only the little tingle in our stomach knows, that we have got it. It's the moment that make solid of our existence, and nothing feels better; we can skip meals, neglect phone calls, and other socially defined important stuff. Only we know what is truly real to our soul, and sometimes such private victory could only be celebrated with the increasing heartbeats that inject each and every cell of our body with vital force that rushes us to the finishing line. We know we are going to matter and that our dreams that grew from the little seed planted in childhood will one day blossom and shadow those who never came close to envision the impossible.
Friday, May 16, 2008
artists' craft
I love talking to artists of all kinds and find out about what they do for their craft.
Today after watching a Flyers game, my neighbor and I went to have a drink with his band buddy Ryan. Ryan is getting a classical guitar degree at the Temple University here in Philadelphia. He was talking about how much care he puts into his nails for his music.
Because one plays classical guitar with one's nails, he files his nails everyday to keep it in a certain shape. "I have to keep it in certain roundness for the sound to be good; and it takes some experiments too." said Ryan. Some of his teachers went through periods experimenting not only music styles but also nail shapes. "the more you do it, the better you know what shape works for you. " he said.
but there's a draw back with this naturalistic craft with music. "some people just have brittle nails, and it breaks all the time, that's when you are really f*ed. I remember one time I broke the nail on my middle finger, and that's when I was about to go for the audition for transferring from Uarts to Temple. I called up my teacher about it and ask him what to do."
there I was, talking to this dedicated musician, and never did i know that a man can talk about his broken nail without the obligation to justify.
"My teacher said to put a piece of toilet paper on it and glue it together with Super Glue, I guess that's why I see his thumb was covered in Super Glue all the time."
"I know this guy who never got his nail to work for him, so what he did was he cut and glue a piece of ping-pong ball on his nail, and file it down to the exact shape that he wants, and that's how he gets the sound."
I was and have always been intrigued by the uncanny things musicians and artists do privately in order to reach the perfection for their craft. I remember my neighbors, Lisa and Anna, a pair of twin girls who attended Curtis institute. Anna plays oboe, and Lisa is a viola player. while they spend much of their time practicing, Anna spend a considerable amount of time dedicating herself to another form of craft that could surprise some people. In their apartment, next to the music stand, there's a table that's usually covered with scraps of wood chips. I was so puzzled by the sight that I usually only see in the wood shops in my college. one day finally i asked.
Besides practice, Anna spend a considerable amount of time shaping the reed that goes into her oboe. "It sucks," said Anna. "Its like i have to not only learn how to play oboe, but also crafting the reed to make it work. It's a craft all by itself. sometimes I spend hours shaping the reed and it broke because it's too thin, so i have to start all over again. But when you leave it too thick, it just doesn't sound good, it just doesn't work."
these are the aspect of the musicians' life that most people would never know about, most people probably don't care, either. yet these are the things that interest me greatly. Who would have known the shape of their nails are so critical, who would have known the musician sits at a table with a tool box for hours shaping a piece of wood before she could really play? Ryan added, "I never zip my pants with my right hand, because it could break the nails so easily."
the only thing that I could think of off top of my head that's relevant to this and comes close to that would be what i did when i started learning web design. there are so many things to keep track of when designing a website, especially if you are trying to incorporate different programs and merge them seamlessly into a page. that's what I was trying to do for one of my very first real web design projects. everyday in that semester, I woke up in the morning and made myself a cup of tea with the mix of green tea and ginkgo tea, and for breakfast, I would eat only raw, uncooked food. The reason for this is to get the maximum amount of blood flood into the brain for the highest possible level of concentration, and use the least amount of energy to digestion while keeping the energy. When you use three or four programs simultaneously, and the two programs out of the four are completely new to you, some concentration will be needed; Besides, those things in web design and programming are so complicated, it's not like you could just keep making notes about it, because that will only slow down the process even more.
I got such a kick out of Ryan and Anna's story that i felt i could make it into a project. I am sure there's plenty of similar things out there to be discovered. What do the drummers do? What do the writers do? What about painters? Piano players? conductors? actors? dancers? I am in awe not just for the beautiful music and art these people produce, it's the amount of detailed dedication and mind that goes into it that really touches, intrigue and inspire me.
Today after watching a Flyers game, my neighbor and I went to have a drink with his band buddy Ryan. Ryan is getting a classical guitar degree at the Temple University here in Philadelphia. He was talking about how much care he puts into his nails for his music.
Because one plays classical guitar with one's nails, he files his nails everyday to keep it in a certain shape. "I have to keep it in certain roundness for the sound to be good; and it takes some experiments too." said Ryan. Some of his teachers went through periods experimenting not only music styles but also nail shapes. "the more you do it, the better you know what shape works for you. " he said.
but there's a draw back with this naturalistic craft with music. "some people just have brittle nails, and it breaks all the time, that's when you are really f*ed. I remember one time I broke the nail on my middle finger, and that's when I was about to go for the audition for transferring from Uarts to Temple. I called up my teacher about it and ask him what to do."
there I was, talking to this dedicated musician, and never did i know that a man can talk about his broken nail without the obligation to justify.
"My teacher said to put a piece of toilet paper on it and glue it together with Super Glue, I guess that's why I see his thumb was covered in Super Glue all the time."
"I know this guy who never got his nail to work for him, so what he did was he cut and glue a piece of ping-pong ball on his nail, and file it down to the exact shape that he wants, and that's how he gets the sound."
I was and have always been intrigued by the uncanny things musicians and artists do privately in order to reach the perfection for their craft. I remember my neighbors, Lisa and Anna, a pair of twin girls who attended Curtis institute. Anna plays oboe, and Lisa is a viola player. while they spend much of their time practicing, Anna spend a considerable amount of time dedicating herself to another form of craft that could surprise some people. In their apartment, next to the music stand, there's a table that's usually covered with scraps of wood chips. I was so puzzled by the sight that I usually only see in the wood shops in my college. one day finally i asked.
Besides practice, Anna spend a considerable amount of time shaping the reed that goes into her oboe. "It sucks," said Anna. "Its like i have to not only learn how to play oboe, but also crafting the reed to make it work. It's a craft all by itself. sometimes I spend hours shaping the reed and it broke because it's too thin, so i have to start all over again. But when you leave it too thick, it just doesn't sound good, it just doesn't work."
these are the aspect of the musicians' life that most people would never know about, most people probably don't care, either. yet these are the things that interest me greatly. Who would have known the shape of their nails are so critical, who would have known the musician sits at a table with a tool box for hours shaping a piece of wood before she could really play? Ryan added, "I never zip my pants with my right hand, because it could break the nails so easily."
the only thing that I could think of off top of my head that's relevant to this and comes close to that would be what i did when i started learning web design. there are so many things to keep track of when designing a website, especially if you are trying to incorporate different programs and merge them seamlessly into a page. that's what I was trying to do for one of my very first real web design projects. everyday in that semester, I woke up in the morning and made myself a cup of tea with the mix of green tea and ginkgo tea, and for breakfast, I would eat only raw, uncooked food. The reason for this is to get the maximum amount of blood flood into the brain for the highest possible level of concentration, and use the least amount of energy to digestion while keeping the energy. When you use three or four programs simultaneously, and the two programs out of the four are completely new to you, some concentration will be needed; Besides, those things in web design and programming are so complicated, it's not like you could just keep making notes about it, because that will only slow down the process even more.
I got such a kick out of Ryan and Anna's story that i felt i could make it into a project. I am sure there's plenty of similar things out there to be discovered. What do the drummers do? What do the writers do? What about painters? Piano players? conductors? actors? dancers? I am in awe not just for the beautiful music and art these people produce, it's the amount of detailed dedication and mind that goes into it that really touches, intrigue and inspire me.
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Same bed, different dreams
I had a weird dream. I was dating this funny looking guy who has a smile so board that it looks like he thinks everyone likes him. What bothers me the most was that he really believes that I have great affection towards him. This reminded me of years ago that I was in the same situation where I trapped myself in a relationship that developed under panic and misunderstanding. I remember the frustration and anger of hearing the other person told me that he thinks we were soul mates and we were made for each other. I found myself revisited by the same feeling of disgust. Sometimes it’s a wonder how people manage to get their worst enemy into bed with themselves. In my dream I was shaking my head in disbelief that I repeat the one thing that I regret the most in my life, trying to figure out who I got to that point again. I thought hard for a moment and realize the funny looking person in my dream was the hairstyle guy Peter Ishkhans on TV. Instantly, it was as if I discovered my dream’s trick on me that it losses it’s charm. The nightmare relationship was no longer effective and I was released from the curse of this bound. And then I woke.
It’s 11 am on Saturday morning, I jumped out of the bed and get ready to do an interview with my friend Susan. I have completely forgot to check the election result. After return from the interview and went straight to another date with my neighbor Michele, I realize at that moment the decision had been made; whatever it might be, it will be too late to change anything; for better or for worse, Taiwan has decided where they want to go for the years to come.
Upon entering my apartment, I realize I have not been so aware of myself and my actions for a long time. I took off my shoes, washed my hands, took some grapes from the fridge and rinsed them under running water. I felt I was preparing for a ceremony; in my mind I envisioned myself sitting in front of my computer and type in the web address, knowing in the next second, the headline will appear on the front page of Yahoo Taiwan. I was seeing it as if hearing an announcement of a sentence.
My family has a deep tie with the "green party" in Taiwan. One of my second cousin served as the mayor of a major city in Taiwan years ago; my folks are green alright. However when I look at the result, it wasn't even so much about the parties as to their agendas. The dynamic between Taiwan and China seem to trigger much more intense emotion as one sees it a distance away. Nothing regarding Taiwan worries me more. Growing up in Taiwan and recognize it as my only home and country, I am pro-independence as soon as I could understand anything about politics. I don't care what "other countries" have to say about this notion, at the end, I really think Taiwanese' business isn't anyone else's business.
I hit the ENTER key, the screen went blank as it refreshes it's display to the website, and, there it is. Stab one, Ma and Shauo won the presidential election of 2008. stab two, Ma annouce that he will work towards "better tie" with China.
I knew my disbelief was only based on my desire for Taiwan's independence and the fear of losing it's stand, I still took a moment to let the shock set in. the decision has been made, like we say it in Taiwanese---it's like water that's splashed to the ground, you can't take it back. I sat in silence to digest the news. Moments later, emerged in my mind was a mix of understanding and worry. I guess I could be objective and see the 58% people's view point when we take into account the president's family and financial scandles. I know little of the enconomical situations, but it's been reportly affecting all areas of Taiwanese' everyday life. I try to disengage myself from thinking about the crucial issues between Taiwan and China under the leadership of KMT, yet I have hard time not preparing for the worst. I imagine myself years later, sitting in my room in front of my computer, and receive the news online that my country has gone. I never knew how deeply I fear that day to come till now it has officially became a possibility. my head starts to swell, and I took it as my biological response of stopping myself from thinking any longer; our body knows there's better things to do before we could comprehend the notion under emotionally charging situations.
the feeling was so heavy that I decided, against my usual habit, to go to the gym.
Changing an environment seemed to work, however this issue was too much of an pressure I felt over my head to be ignored completely. In my mind, I see Ma's smiles, his perfectly combed hair, and his grin that seems to imprint in so many Taiwanese' mind. As I back away from the close up image of his face, I saw him shaking one of the Chinese official's hand. I backed away a little, I saw that he wasn't only shaking this other person's hand, but his also using his other hand to cover their hand shake---a body language that displays great affection. 'It's a done deal' he smiles, 'It's all yous' he says. I speed up my treadmill try to shake off this image; I took out my ipod and turn the music louder; I needed to numb myself with charging stimulations. Still, I was not aware of my body. If there's any down side to fitness, this would be it: what was painful physical activity years ago have become so much part of my life that it could no longer challenge me, and in situations like this, failed to take my mind off the things that bothers me. In my mind's eye, I could still see Ma's smile, his grin and the brightness of his teeth seems to reflect lights that is now shinning on him from all directions. In all the busy chaos, my mind was surprisingly quiet. I felt the field of my vision has diminished to a darkened stage, in the distant spot light, his grin was stabbing my heart, again and again.
Sometimes when I think about the relationship between KMT and DPP in Taiwan, it seems to me like two people fighting in the same bed. A couple who had come into the situation under the illusion that they can change the other person's idea and have the other person agree with what they thought is important and true, only later find out, after the excitment of honeymoon subside, that they have completely opposite value and desires. Sadly the bound between KMT and DDP can't be simply resolved as singing a divorce paper, not could they really afford kicking the other person off the bed. I wonder what kind of marriage therapist could work their magic to solve this knot.
It’s 11 am on Saturday morning, I jumped out of the bed and get ready to do an interview with my friend Susan. I have completely forgot to check the election result. After return from the interview and went straight to another date with my neighbor Michele, I realize at that moment the decision had been made; whatever it might be, it will be too late to change anything; for better or for worse, Taiwan has decided where they want to go for the years to come.
Upon entering my apartment, I realize I have not been so aware of myself and my actions for a long time. I took off my shoes, washed my hands, took some grapes from the fridge and rinsed them under running water. I felt I was preparing for a ceremony; in my mind I envisioned myself sitting in front of my computer and type in the web address, knowing in the next second, the headline will appear on the front page of Yahoo Taiwan. I was seeing it as if hearing an announcement of a sentence.
My family has a deep tie with the "green party" in Taiwan. One of my second cousin served as the mayor of a major city in Taiwan years ago; my folks are green alright. However when I look at the result, it wasn't even so much about the parties as to their agendas. The dynamic between Taiwan and China seem to trigger much more intense emotion as one sees it a distance away. Nothing regarding Taiwan worries me more. Growing up in Taiwan and recognize it as my only home and country, I am pro-independence as soon as I could understand anything about politics. I don't care what "other countries" have to say about this notion, at the end, I really think Taiwanese' business isn't anyone else's business.
I hit the ENTER key, the screen went blank as it refreshes it's display to the website, and, there it is. Stab one, Ma and Shauo won the presidential election of 2008. stab two, Ma annouce that he will work towards "better tie" with China.
I knew my disbelief was only based on my desire for Taiwan's independence and the fear of losing it's stand, I still took a moment to let the shock set in. the decision has been made, like we say it in Taiwanese---it's like water that's splashed to the ground, you can't take it back. I sat in silence to digest the news. Moments later, emerged in my mind was a mix of understanding and worry. I guess I could be objective and see the 58% people's view point when we take into account the president's family and financial scandles. I know little of the enconomical situations, but it's been reportly affecting all areas of Taiwanese' everyday life. I try to disengage myself from thinking about the crucial issues between Taiwan and China under the leadership of KMT, yet I have hard time not preparing for the worst. I imagine myself years later, sitting in my room in front of my computer, and receive the news online that my country has gone. I never knew how deeply I fear that day to come till now it has officially became a possibility. my head starts to swell, and I took it as my biological response of stopping myself from thinking any longer; our body knows there's better things to do before we could comprehend the notion under emotionally charging situations.
the feeling was so heavy that I decided, against my usual habit, to go to the gym.
Changing an environment seemed to work, however this issue was too much of an pressure I felt over my head to be ignored completely. In my mind, I see Ma's smiles, his perfectly combed hair, and his grin that seems to imprint in so many Taiwanese' mind. As I back away from the close up image of his face, I saw him shaking one of the Chinese official's hand. I backed away a little, I saw that he wasn't only shaking this other person's hand, but his also using his other hand to cover their hand shake---a body language that displays great affection. 'It's a done deal' he smiles, 'It's all yous' he says. I speed up my treadmill try to shake off this image; I took out my ipod and turn the music louder; I needed to numb myself with charging stimulations. Still, I was not aware of my body. If there's any down side to fitness, this would be it: what was painful physical activity years ago have become so much part of my life that it could no longer challenge me, and in situations like this, failed to take my mind off the things that bothers me. In my mind's eye, I could still see Ma's smile, his grin and the brightness of his teeth seems to reflect lights that is now shinning on him from all directions. In all the busy chaos, my mind was surprisingly quiet. I felt the field of my vision has diminished to a darkened stage, in the distant spot light, his grin was stabbing my heart, again and again.
Sometimes when I think about the relationship between KMT and DPP in Taiwan, it seems to me like two people fighting in the same bed. A couple who had come into the situation under the illusion that they can change the other person's idea and have the other person agree with what they thought is important and true, only later find out, after the excitment of honeymoon subside, that they have completely opposite value and desires. Sadly the bound between KMT and DDP can't be simply resolved as singing a divorce paper, not could they really afford kicking the other person off the bed. I wonder what kind of marriage therapist could work their magic to solve this knot.
Saturday, March 22, 2008
...
I am really bumbed out because of the election result in Taiwan. What I worried about the most is how the relationship between Taiwan and China is going to change now??? The future doesn't look too bright. At this point, it feel as if Taiwan has fell into the enemy's hands already. this really sucks.
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Eu council and Taiwan
My friend in Taiwan sent me a news link published by "the Liberty Time" in Taiwan stating that the EU council recognize Taiwan as an independent, democratic, liberal country with strong economy. It stated that many EU member countries support and considered the necessarty of Taiwan becoming a UN member, and urge Taiwanese to vote for such resolution of it's identity.
Everytime I read such news, I always do my research on BBC news and Yahoo news as well as Times (of UK) in order to find out if the same information appears in the media from other parts of the world. Sometimes news like this will delay for a day or two, even if it's on BBC, it's usually extremely brief.
Again and again, this is a confrontation of our situation that even Taiwanese feels sluggish to struggle for. Growing up in Taiwan under constant war threat from China, i have profound resentment towards the Chinese. I have friends who have taught English in china and it's a common perception concerning Taiwan-China relation in the eyes of Chinese civilian that "Taiwan will sooner or later belongs to us". It always makes me sick to my stomach.
The damage of constant war threat to the Taiwanese society can be observed when one sees the whole operation and progression of the society with the notion of collective unconscious. It is my hypothesis that war threat prohibited Taiwan from progress toward higher functioning, since the individual Taiwanese is reminded of the possibility of losing one's basic survival needs---safety, shelter, food. Under such condition, Taiwanese in the past 50 years has strive towards the construction of basic functioning, and stuck with this material achievement. Scientific research is equal to non-exist in Taiwan---why? when you are worrying about the loss of your safety and property, why would you invest into subjects that appear to be consist of ambiguous ideas? why would any one believe in researching to prove something that doesn't appear to exist? though Taiwan's achievement in trading and technology aspects cannot be denied, yet I doubt stuck with an obsession of pure material refinement is enough to bring Taiwan forward.
The effect stated above has prevented some of the most excellent Taiwanese people to go back to his home country. Since the scientific community is almost non-existant, these talents could only chose the secondary option of staying in the country for which he was educated in. As a result, Taiwan suffer from a serious brain drain.
when one looks at the history of successful and powerful countries such as the Roman empire, United Kingdom or the Chin Dynasty, Tung Dynasty, what accompanying a country's success in politics and foreign policy is blooming development of the artistic community and expression. Taiwan, for as long as I can remember, has a struggling art community, surviving against all fear and pressure of losing the ground to grow. It is apparent to me that art is a right for all people to exercise, however the priveledge to progress in this arena only belongs to those countries which enjoys a consistent awareness of it's safty.
As long as Taiwan doesn't gain a sense of safety and away from war threat, the Taiwanese people will never get to see the artistic potential and brilliant minds that's capable of making scientific discoveries which strengths embodies the capacity of leading Taiwan forward.
Everytime I read such news, I always do my research on BBC news and Yahoo news as well as Times (of UK) in order to find out if the same information appears in the media from other parts of the world. Sometimes news like this will delay for a day or two, even if it's on BBC, it's usually extremely brief.
Again and again, this is a confrontation of our situation that even Taiwanese feels sluggish to struggle for. Growing up in Taiwan under constant war threat from China, i have profound resentment towards the Chinese. I have friends who have taught English in china and it's a common perception concerning Taiwan-China relation in the eyes of Chinese civilian that "Taiwan will sooner or later belongs to us". It always makes me sick to my stomach.
The damage of constant war threat to the Taiwanese society can be observed when one sees the whole operation and progression of the society with the notion of collective unconscious. It is my hypothesis that war threat prohibited Taiwan from progress toward higher functioning, since the individual Taiwanese is reminded of the possibility of losing one's basic survival needs---safety, shelter, food. Under such condition, Taiwanese in the past 50 years has strive towards the construction of basic functioning, and stuck with this material achievement. Scientific research is equal to non-exist in Taiwan---why? when you are worrying about the loss of your safety and property, why would you invest into subjects that appear to be consist of ambiguous ideas? why would any one believe in researching to prove something that doesn't appear to exist? though Taiwan's achievement in trading and technology aspects cannot be denied, yet I doubt stuck with an obsession of pure material refinement is enough to bring Taiwan forward.
The effect stated above has prevented some of the most excellent Taiwanese people to go back to his home country. Since the scientific community is almost non-existant, these talents could only chose the secondary option of staying in the country for which he was educated in. As a result, Taiwan suffer from a serious brain drain.
when one looks at the history of successful and powerful countries such as the Roman empire, United Kingdom or the Chin Dynasty, Tung Dynasty, what accompanying a country's success in politics and foreign policy is blooming development of the artistic community and expression. Taiwan, for as long as I can remember, has a struggling art community, surviving against all fear and pressure of losing the ground to grow. It is apparent to me that art is a right for all people to exercise, however the priveledge to progress in this arena only belongs to those countries which enjoys a consistent awareness of it's safty.
As long as Taiwan doesn't gain a sense of safety and away from war threat, the Taiwanese people will never get to see the artistic potential and brilliant minds that's capable of making scientific discoveries which strengths embodies the capacity of leading Taiwan forward.
Thursday, December 27, 2007
happy day
Nothing to report, just want to say I am happy in Taiwan!
I am yet to hit Kariokie (spelling???) and night markets. I have been seeing friends everyday and enjoying the city. I wonder how this saying come about but people seem to share this anxiety about going home (the closer to home the more anxious)...I am glad that's gone now, I can't wait to see more and enjoy more Taiwan--!!!!
I am yet to hit Kariokie (spelling???) and night markets. I have been seeing friends everyday and enjoying the city. I wonder how this saying come about but people seem to share this anxiety about going home (the closer to home the more anxious)...I am glad that's gone now, I can't wait to see more and enjoy more Taiwan--!!!!
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