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May 2000 Issue 78 |
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May 2000 Issue 78 |
CONTENTS
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Buds of May New breed blossoms in ancient capital McDonald’s, kilowatts, cranes, Rollerblades, obesity, GDP growth, hotels, square meters, website hits, dyed hair, malls “ look about Beijing this spring and once again everything is changing, and changing almost too fast.We live in an exciting place at an exciting time. Surely no society in history has evolved as quickly as Beijing is evolving now and it’s young people’s openness to new ideas, their attitudes that set the pace. Beijing This Month interviewed six young Beijing residents “ three men, three women “ to see what they thought about their society, about change, about westernization and about the future. This is a small sample of what they had to say. Lu Meng “I think young people’s ideas are becoming more westernized. Getting rid of poverty remains China’s great mission and so we have opted for a market economy. Gradually we are realizing this “Western” system does not really differ so much from own culture after all. “We Chinese are adapting to this market economy so quickly, so instinctively, we are finding these values were already deeply rooted in our own culture. “I think the major reason those who go abroad mostly don’t come back is because Western education makes them accept a Western view of life and lifestyle. They then find they can’t adapt back into Chinese life anymore. If you ask why their ideas become so westernized, probably “ although by no means willingly “ I have to admit that the West is more civilized at the moment. “Really? I didn’t know Beijing women have a low opinion of Beijing men. I read some stories about Chinese women who have been abroad criticizing Chinese men. Although they did seem to go overboard, it seems fair to say Chinese men sometimes aren’t so gentlemanly. “Of course all parents want to promote their own ideas of ideal partners into their children’s mind. Like most people, I have no idea about any rules for dating. I hope marriage will last forever. But I know it is very hard now. “The two sides are always changing, evolving. Sometimes nobody can help the distance. The increasing divorce rate means people are paying more attention to the quality of marriage, no longer just making do. “In the city, most young parents just don’t care whether they have a daughter or a son. So attitudes are changing.” Liang Chen “Nowadays, people look to themselves, their own families and their own futures. Compared to our parents” generation, we are better educated and more computer-friendly. This makes us better suited to going abroad.” “I believe there are other elements besides money which decide one’s choice of work, such as management, relationships with colleagues and other incentives. In this, I think the younger generation totally differs from their parents. Our parents always worked in the same place for more than 30 years. For the younger generation, that’s almost unimaginable. “Woman’s status in China nowadays is much higher than in the past. But I think there are still some older people who cannot get used to this change. Women don’t want privileged treatment, just equal treatment. Perhaps after several years, no one will be surprised when they find a young and beautiful lady is actually the manager, not the secretary. “Perhaps parents need to change, and that may mean giving their children more privacy, more freedom. Young people are so much more independent than their parents could ever be. I believe they really want to talk to their parents, but if their parents can’t understand them, won’t trust them, then they will simply never talk to their parents again. This is a common attitude. “But, for example, parents should ask themselves why their daughter doesn’t tell them whom she is dating? Probably because her parents told her the only acceptable son-in-law should be better educated, or richer “ that’s the truth of it.” “For a young girl, the only thing she cares about is whether the man is kind or respects her enough, and whether she loves him.” Wang Yonghui “As far as I know, there are several different reasons for emigrants – “permanent departures”. “Firstly, there is no equivalent research field in China. Many elite scholars are aware of that and decide to stay in the US to further their research.” “Secondly, some people really fail in realizing their American Dream and thereby become embarrassed just thinking about coming back and meeting friends and relatives.” “Thirdly, which I think accounts for most cases, people live much better lives, both materially and spiritually.” “Their experience in the US makes them so individualistic that even though they still love China and feel proud of being Chinese, they decide to stay and go on enjoying the good life. Of course, the relative poverty of China is the most obvious thing that prevents students from coming back.” “In these days of globalization, youngsters are keen to be members of the “international generation”. They want to gain experience in different countries. That is all quite natural.” “It is not very accurate to say, on the basis of what I have been saying, that everyone in China is desperately trying to leave.” “The increasing divorce rates, at the very initial stage, demonstrated a kind of development, or as the interviewer suggested, signs of a sick Chinese society healing its wounds.” “Nevertheless, nowadays, I think, the increasing rate may mean something more negative about society. The only thing I want to say about this private matter is that people should think more before getting married.” Chen Lu “Not all young people want to study abroad, and the fact is that studying abroad is getting more difficult nowadays. Foreign universities only seem interested in students from Beida or Qinghua. They seldom pay attention to other universities. Even when students get higher scores in the GRE or whatever, they still select students from the key universities.” “At my primary school, middle school, then university, girls always played the leading role in my class, not only for study, but in everything. Boys often bark far more than they bite. They like to brag and show off, but faced with real challenges, some back away.” “I face my last year in my university soon, and if I can’t go on with my study as I expect, I have to find a “good” job by then. I looked through some ads in the newspapers and I was very upset to find some jobs actually say “zhi xian nan xing” men only, although any women can do it just as well. A friend also told me some companies would prefer a stupid man over an excellent woman.” “My parents worry a little bit about me for that reason. They know it’s not easy for a modern girl in this modern society. As to my parents” generation, they had no choice but to accept their fate. But I won’t surrender. I will choose my future.” “Fortunately, I was born to a family where I enjoy “freedom and democracy”. I can tell my parents everything, even some things about boyfriends. My parents always regard age a key factor, but I couldn’t care less about that. I will accept a man even 20 years older than me as long as I really love him.” “In these days of globalization, youngsters are keen to be members of the “international generation”. They want to gain experience in different countries. That is all quite natural.” “My parents worry... They know it’s not easy for a modern girl in this modern society. As to my parents” generation, they had no choice but to accept their fate. But I won’t surrender. I will choose my future.” “In the city, most young parents just don’t care whether they have a daughter or a son. So attitudes are changing.” “Women don’t want privileged treatment, just equal treatment. Perhaps after several years, no one will be surprised when they find a young and beautiful lady is actually the manager, not the secretary.” Bi Sheng “We have bars, we have clubs, we have everything here. If my friends or I talk about going to bars or clubbing, I think a lot of parents don’t understand it. They can’t understand it. “But they know if they don’t want to lose their child, they should accept it. Which is really sad, but we just can’t expect their generation to understand every single thing we do. “Personally, my parents have no problem with my lifestyle. But most of the parents of the last generation are not that open-minded. They struggled pretty hard. They got hurt pretty bad. “We missed out on everything that was going on in the West. If you look back in the “50s or the “70s, what was happening in China? Revolution, revolution, revolution. In the West, you had Elvis Presley, the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, the Sex Pistols and so on. What did we have? Revolution. It’s taken us this long just to catch up. It’s very sad for a lot of people. “We still have some way to go. At my high school, for example, it was absolutely forbidden to have a girlfriend or a boyfriend. I can’t imagine that has changed today. Of course, they can’t control what goes on outside of school. “My grandparents” generation, I won’t say 100 percent, but over 90 percent didn’t choose their own partner. Even 10 years ago in Beijing, it was parents who made the decision whom their children would marry. “Not even 20, but maybe in the last 10 years, children have finally been allowed to choose for themselves. At least, most of them. I don’t mean this happened overnight. Even fast changes like this are incremental, gradual. Even now today for young people in China, not all of them can choose their own partner.” Wang Zheng “As a Beijing woman, I know many good Beijing men, who have both merits and demerits. Generally speaking, I don’t think there are any absolute winners or losers. I heard some women think lowly of Beijing men, but the problem is that even as they talk about equality of the sexes, they expect too much of their men. “Sometimes women are unjustly treated. But this is not my own personal experience. I think discrimination against women is declining. When some work units came to my university, their first requirement was often “Beijing male student”. I think that this practice is patently unfair. “Ironically, in spite of this or perhaps because of it, the women in my class ended up getting better jobs than the men, probably because women work much harder than men. “I am not sure what you mean by “dating”. I have very good foreign male friends. Sometimes we go out to eat, watch shows or go to the disco together. I think friendships and romance aren’t decided by nationality. “Actually, when I am hanging out with foreign friends, I don’t really think about the fact they are foreigners. I don’t think it’s a big deal if a Chinese dates a foreigner. As long as both sides are sincere, they love each other, they deserve our blessing. “I keep no secrets from my mother, and discuss with her about almost every problem. I think it’s good for me. My parents are more experienced, wiser, and more rational. They are the only people who set their whole mind and heart on me, and they will be sincere, straightforward and will keep secrets for me forever.” I don’t think it’s a big deal if a Chinese dates a foreigner. As long as both sides are sincere, they love each other, they deserve our blessing. “In the West, you had Elvis Presley, the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, the Sex Pistols and so on. What did we have? Revolution. It’s taken us this long just to catch up. It’s very sad for a lot of people.” Words: Feng Yuan, Guo Meng, Ma Pu’an |
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