IT'S ALL ABOUT WHAT'S BEST FOR SOCIETY

In trying to describe this Chinese culture that shuns individualism, I think a story one of Dave’s students shared the other day is perfect:

This student tells how he was raised in a small apartment with his parents and grandmother. Quarters were definitely tight. He was a part of a group hosting an English-speaking contest and his teacher asked if he could host one or two students at his family's apartment. He was embarrassed to tell her there was simply no room for any guests.

Frustrated about living in such small, cramped quarters, he complained to his parents and asked, “Why can’t we live in a bigger place where there’s room for me to invite friends over?” His parents responded, “We do not live in a bigger apartment because we are saving all the money we can for when you marry some day, we can afford to buy you a big apartment to live in with your wife and children.” (Chinese parents usually buy their child’s first apartment for them.)

This story is so typical of the Chinese mentality. Students attend the university and study the major their university and parents select for them. (University and majors are also strongly determined by the government as a result of test scores.) Chinese have a deep sense of duty to their families and commonly let parents, university and government make their decisions for them. For example, the university selects their dorm mates, their major, class schedule, and their selection of professors during their entire college education.

For a debate topic in class the other day, we proposed the topic, “Students should be allowed to choose their own majors.” We divided the class into debate teams of four; two in each group had to argue in favor, and two against. Then students were to write an essay on the topic. Some students got into very heated debates about this proposal. Although many agreed that students should study what they choose to study, their arguments against the proposal included the ideas that, it would cause disorder in the university, our country’s needs are a higher priority than our own interests, and we are too inexperienced to know what we favor. Let our superiors make those decisions for us.

The Chinese culture teaches students to think in terms of what’s best for the society, rather than what’s best for the individual. (We Americans could take, to some degree, a lesson in this.) They are trained to memorize; to learn and act by rote. Creative thinking is difficult. At times a student will lament, “There has never been a Pulitzer Prize Winner from China.” Well, it’s not because the Chinese lack in brains, determination, discipline and hard work. Individualism, which brings with it creative thinking, is what they’re not accustomed to. And I really don’t know if that will ever change.