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Xiao San – Empowerment of Chinese women or keeping them 'small'? |
06-09-2012 |
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Among several slang terms that mean 'mistress', xiao san (小三, 'little third') has caught most public attention in recent years. While Chinese society regards 'xiao san' as a negative modern development, it also accepts it as nature outcome of the expansion of the market economy. The vocabulary of xiao san also indicates an impossible adaptation of traditional values to the new structural social conditions in China.
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China sums up its Olympic performance in a sweet & bitter flavor |
18-08-2012 |
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While the Olympics are always good fuel for national pride, mixed emotions take over the Chinese hearts when looking back at the London Olympics: Great medal achievements, yet inferior to the US; complete dominance in several sports, but uncertainty whether these competitions would remain Olympic events in the future; glorious moments but some extraordinary failures (Liu Xiang?). Above all a bitter taste of victimhood seems to fill to mouths of politicians, athletes and netizens, particularly when discussing the refereeing in London 2012.
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Jianbing Ren, 'pancake people' – A Chinese version of a global phenomenon |
28-05-2012 |
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Named after the popular street-food, the slang term 'jianbing ren' presents the impulsiveness and shallowness of the modern capitalist minds. While it is definitely not a phenomenon unique for China, it is interesting to see how it is interpreted and discussed in the contemporary Chinese landscape.
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70hou, 80hou, 90hou - The growing generation gap in China |
07-11-2011 |
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Great attention is given in China to the sharp differences between the 70hou (Chinese born in the 1970's), 80hou (Chinese born in the 1980's) and 90hou (Chinese born in the 1990's), as these stereotypes serve as a radar that reflects shifting values. The hard-working 70hou, the capitalist 80hou and the selfish 90hou are not only contrasting each other, but also evolving as we speak.
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The 'Xiao Yue Yue' incident as a source of complete despair and a glimpse of hope |
25-10-2011 |
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The chilling video of little YueYue being run over and ignored by passengers should not be overlooked, but while some Western journalists are linking the event to a corrupted regime and Chinese personage are promoting Good Samaritan Laws, the widespread emotional response to the incident throughout China is also worth acknowledgment and discussion.
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The Dilemma of Quality Education in China |
10-10-2011 |
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Allowing kids to enjoy so-called liberal values of creativity or measuring one's abilities through stressful exams? China's education system is choosing to shift towards the first option, but when a child's 'quality' is called in question, aren't exams the only valid measurement?
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Fighting rumors: A new way to supervise the Chinese internet sphere |
03-10-2011 |
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The Chinese government is adjusting to the growing Cyberspace, while it is adopting new precautions against some forms of political expression. Chinese social networks and the Sina Weibo in particular, are being referred to as a tool to spread 'false rumors', in an attempt to prevent the public from giving too much power the social-internet realm.
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The Chinese Middle Class - Agents of Change or Harmony? |
27-09-2011 |
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There are different predictions among scholars concerning the prospects of the Chinese political system, though most people agree that the Chinese middle-class is a good representative of present and future trends. While some see the growing autonomy of the middle class as an indicator of the limitation of state power and the rise of a civil society, other scholars regard the middle-class as an agent of political stability and a loyal partner of the Chinese state.
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Anquangan 安全感 – What women want, and other people as well... |
16-09-2011 |
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Anquangan (安全感 'sense of security') is a term that spans across physical security and well being to economic stability, as well as a broader sense of direction and prospect. Although its linguistic meaning is quite identical to the English counterpart ('sense of security'), in the socioeconomic reality of rapidly changing China, anquangan has a deeper and more emotionally-charged significance.
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裸婚, Naked Marriage - Surrendering to romantic love, not anticipating a pink future |
22-07-2011 |
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裸= nude, 婚=marry; 'marrying naked', without money, an apartment or whatever necessities a new family requires... The 裸婚 luohun couples manage to promote romantic love, oppose some traditional concepts, while still avoid much of the criticism directed at the Chinese post-80s generation, as it is acknowledged that the conditions of 21st century China often do not provide them with better alternatives.
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13-07-2011 |
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While social changes are in their favor, some 21st century conditions actually add pressure on gay-female Chinese who wish to come out of the closet.
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07-07-2011 |
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Immense changes have taken place in the Chinese society throughout the Mao and Deng regimes up to present days, though in many domains the State in China is still quite effective in taking hold of the society and initiating behavior changes.
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Approaching the 'Second Child' – Future plan, motives and public demand |
17-04-2011 |
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Speculations are becoming more and more concrete, as the 12th Five Year Plan of the Chinese government indicated that the second child (ertai 二胎) might be allowed in the near future. While government officials to abolish birth control completely, they also know that many families won't necessary rush to have their second child.
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Red posters with capitalist content – Funny merchandise in big Chinese cities |
10-04-2011 |
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In touristic and artistic gift stores in big Chinese cities there is a new trend of products: Communist images with capitalist content. A nostalgic desire, an acknowledgement of the current money-making frenzy within the Chinese society and a humoristic view of the sharp gap between the two epochs, are all embedded in these not-so-innocent products.
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Where the youngest child becomes an emperor – Does filial piety exist in 21st century China? |
21-03-2011 |
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Reverse filial piety or maintaining the value of xiao in the only possible manner - What is a more accurate description to the spoiled, though full of high expectations, lifestyle many young Chinese experience? Although the 'little emperor' phenomenon would probably leave Confucius speechless, perhaps such conducts are in fact the only way to preserve filial piety under the conditions of modern Chinese society.
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Filial Piety – Tradition, Social Stability and TV Rating |
06-11-2010 |
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Appreciating and supporting one's parents seems to be an emotional theme and an essential value, appearing frequently in the Chinese media and entertainment content. Why is filial piety such a concensus and how does the media and commercial TV use it for their own interests?
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China's Brand-Name Rush |
27-09-2010 |
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China's recent history and fast development hold some explanations for the prominent position of brand name products within the local economy, as well as the issues which lead so many Chinese consumers to well recognized logos.
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Linglei – The Possibility to Oppose the Mainstream |
13-08-2010 |
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The lìnglèi youth can be classified as 'alternative' to the mainstream Chinese culture and even 'rebellious', but their self expression is perhaps an opposition to the conditions in pre-1980 China and a celebration of new opportunities in present days, more than truly resisting a modern Chinese culture.
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Romantic Materialism |
11-08-2010 |
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Are couples in China nowadays less into romantic love and are more focused on material benefits? Were the early days of the PRC filled with romance or rather suppressing sexuality? Here are some key events in the in the development of the marriage institution and related norms in China in the last several decades.
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Chinese Singletons - Basic ‘Spoiled’ Related Vocabulary |
25-07-2010 |
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There are many interesting topic related to the new generations of China's single children 独生子女 (dúshēng zǐnǔ). Leaving a side the emotional pressure they experience and China's demographic concerns, here are some basic terms that describe the 'spoiled' character of Chinese singletons.
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Ermo (二嫫) - Women’s Independence, Men’s Impotence |
21-05-2010 |
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The fascinating 1994 movie 'Ermo' 二嫫, discusses the story of a peasant woman, Ermo, in her quest to join the modern capitalist race. Ermo's initiative is induced by her veteran husband's metaphoric and physical impotence.
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Fuerdai - The New Agents of Value Deterioration |
21-05-2010 |
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In China's popular discourse associates several moral and social problems with the fuerdai 富二代, the descendents of wealthy Chinese who became rich during the reform era. What is unique in the environment of the fuerdai that makes them the target of public criticism?
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Guanxi and Amauru, the Driving Force of Social Interactions in China and Japan? |
10-05-2010 |
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There some common features in the Japanese sentiment amae and the Chinese practice of guanxi. However, while guanxi is often linked to a collectivist Chinese society, amae is a more universalistic concept that can perhaps be understood better in the west. Through amae the emotional root of guanxi can perhaps also become more comprehensible.
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Preference of a Son - A tendency preserved mainly by women? |
06-05-2010 |
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While women's status in China is improving, in some households parents still prefer male offspring. More suprising is the fact that women who have experienced discrimination in the past and wish to create a different reality for their children, often, in fact, preserve the attitude of prefering a son over a daughter.
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Confucianism – New Agent of Modernity? |
01-04-2010 |
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Confucianism (儒家思想) nowadays isn't being revived only in a nostalgic fashion, but is also being modified into a value system justifying China's unique form of capitalism.
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