Chinese virtue

Chapter 14
Many Westerners who travel to Guangzhou for the first time do not know that China has traded with Europe for more than 360 years.There is nothing European in this to be proud of.Regardless of the purpose of foreigners coming to China, the Chinese will regard each other as "barbarians" just like the ancient Greeks did to people of other nationalities.In official Chinese documents, foreigners are also referred to as "barbarians" instead of "foreigners".It was not until 1860 that there was a treaty prohibiting foreigners from being called "barbarians."

Since ancient times, China's neighbors have been some very poor countries.The Chinese are used to being flattered, which is why they look down on Westerners so much.The Chinese have found that if they are threatened, or coaxed a little, the foreigners they come in contact with will do what they want.Before Beijing was occupied by foreigners, the Chinese always felt that their status and advantages were lofty, and they always treated foreigners with this attitude.But this advantage only lasted for one generation, and finally the Chinese finally realized the foreign civilization and recognized the value of foreigners.Even so, we still face such a dilemma: Chinese people do not respect foreigners.Whether it is civilians or officials, although they no longer look down on foreigners, they still look aloof.

Our clothes are very novel to the Chinese.Our clothing is short and light, which is very different from the dragging robes of the Chinese.We think Chinese people are very suitable for wearing this kind of oriental style clothing, but Chinese people think our clothing is ridiculous.They believe that clothing should loosely cover the lines of the whole body.In the Chinese concessions, foreigners always wear short and tight tops when they go out, which is unimaginable to the Chinese, and they would never dress like this when they go out.The jackets and tuxedos of foreigners are unacceptable to the Chinese. In their opinion, the double buttons on the back of the tuxedo are both ugly and useless.

In the eyes of the Chinese, foreign women's clothing surprises them more than men's clothing.This inappropriate dress is in serious conflict with their culture.Westerners pay attention to the freedom of communication between men and women, while the Chinese try their best to restrict such communication.Chinese people act completely according to the rules of their "ancestors". They cannot understand this kind of foreign culture, and even reject it as a matter of course.

Foreigners who do not understand Chinese will give Chinese people a sense of superiority.Even if this foreigner is proficient in all European languages, as long as he cannot understand Chinese, he will be looked down upon by the Chinese, even an illiterate Chinese coolie.Although the coolie is ignorant, he really feels his superiority.If a foreigner wants to adapt to this environment and learn Chinese, he must learn to endure this kind of contempt.Even his servants would whisper, "Oh, he doesn't understand!" In fact, if the Chinese speak clearly, foreigners can understand.

But the Chinese feel that they have made it very clear, even if they find that they have not made it clear, this sense of superiority will not disappear.

No matter how much a foreigner who learns Chinese knows, there is always something he doesn't understand.After a long time, foreigners will clearly realize that it is not a shame to know less.The Chinese comment on foreigners learning Chinese as Dr. Johnson commented on women's nagging: "It seems ridiculous that a dog walks on two hind legs, but it is amazing!"

Another reason why the Chinese feel superior is that foreigners do not know Chinese customs.

They feel that there is no one who does not know these things that they have known for a long time.

Chinese people often neglect foreigners, but foreigners don't know about it, and as time goes by, Chinese look down on foreigners even more.We should be punished for ignoring how the locals treat us.

Many Chinese would make jokes about foreigners, the kind of slightly contemptuous jokes that Littimo did when he saw David Copperfield seeming thoughtful.Not every foreigner has such an experience, only some sensitive foreigners have experienced these.Everyone has things he doesn't know, and things he hears for the first time or the details of certain things cannot be understood by knowledge and experience.

There are many things that are easy for the Chinese, but we cannot do them.This makes us look down upon by the Chinese.For example, we can't bear to sleep in a noisy place, we can't swallow the food that the Chinese eat, and we can't stand the sun exposure.We know not how to row a boat with oars, nor command a mule.There is such an example: in 1860, when the British artillerymen were going to Beijing, they were thrown by the coachman on the roadside of Hexiwu Town, Tianjin. Can't do it any further.

The Chinese think we are very rude, because we can't understand their concepts, and we don't understand the rules and etiquette at all, which makes them look down on us even more.Foreigners also bow, but the Chinese way of bowing is very difficult, which makes foreigners physically and psychologically unacceptable.Wild and frivolous, foreigners never waste a lot of time in small talk, or even in slow walks when they have the time.For a foreigner, time is money, which makes the Chinese unable to understand, although some of them have no money, but they have a lot of time.The Chinese don't realize the value of time, and they don't realize that what they waste is not other people's time, but their own time.

The cumbersome etiquette of the Chinese is disgusting to foreigners, because the time can be used for many things.In fact, foreigners themselves know how lacking in etiquette they are.Compared with the elegant demeanor of Chinese officials, foreigners appear very blunt and stupid.On such occasions, although the Chinese despise foreigners very much, they will not show the slightest out of politeness.Chinese people attach great importance to etiquette, so they look down on foreigners who are not polite.What would they think if they saw Commander-in-Chief Grant walking down the street in civilian clothes, smoking a cigarette, or "the emperor from America"?Just imagine, a high-ranking foreign consul went to meet the governor of China in order to resolve international disputes. Hundreds of Chinese people climbed the city wall, but only saw some irrelevant people.In this case, contempt will soon replace curiosity and rise to the hearts of the onlookers.

We feel that in some places, Westerners are much better than Chinese people, but they cannot be valued by Chinese people.They don't have a high opinion of Western inventions of machinery, thinking that these things are impractical, and they are magic tricks that Confucian scholars ignore.Many foreign businessmen are disappointed by the indifference of the Chinese.The Chinese do not approve of foreign scientific models, and have no interest in physiology, sanitation, or ventilation.They'd rather enjoy the outcome than the method.

If they have to learn these methods, they will even give up the results.They long for a "powerful country" but cannot stand reform.Some Chinese scholars are well aware of how backward China is compared to the West, but they believe that the so-called science and mathematics in the West are things left by their ancestors long ago, but they have been embezzled and developed by Westerners.

The pragmatic spirit of foreigners has not attracted the attention of Chinese people.The Anglo-Saxons admired powerful men, whom Carlyle liked to call "Kings."The Chinese find the skills of foreigners interesting, and in some cases quite surprising.The Chinese will always remember these skills if they are useful, but they will never imitate them.For the Chinese, being well-informed, eloquent, and highly titled, they will not do anything except sleep and forget to eat and sleep, this is the highest state of a scholar.

Chinese don't think their country is worse than western countries.The reflection of Mr. Guo, the former Minister to the UK, is a good example.Dr. James Legge said: "The British are more cultivated than the Chinese." Mr. Guo thought for a while and replied lightly: "This really shocks me."

This superficial comparison is very detrimental to the diplomacy of the two countries.It involves too many things, such as an in-depth understanding of the life of the other country, and the exchange and analysis of experience.So we don't currently do such comparisons.We know very well that Chinese scholars are the most powerful force against Western culture.No matter how great the mechanical technology of foreigners is, they cannot understand the so-called "morality" in China.Although these scholars are modern people, they have the thoughts of Song Dynasty people.They are not only jealous of the development of foreigners, but also show contempt for the technology of foreigners.With such entangled feelings, they wrote a large number of articles repelling foreigners, and these articles quickly covered the land of China.

Some people think that China will gradually be assimilated by Europe, and as British knives, forks, stockings and pianos are shipped to China, Western inventions will surely conquer China.Although China was invaded in this way, it was a long time ago, and an invasion like that will never happen again.China will not be slaughtered by others, and the Chinese nation will not be assimilated by any nation.

We will be respected by the Chinese people only if we prove that Christian civilization is superior to Chinese civilization, which is beyond the reach of the current Chinese civilization.Otherwise, we still have to put up with this contemptuous attitude.

(End of this chapter)