Monday, June 26, 2006
Comments from ChinaLawBlog, plus Peter Hessler
I just got a few comments from one of the guys at ChinaLawBlog, which is like hitting the big time in my insular world, so I thought I'd put in a plug for that excellent blog and also second their endorsement of Peter Hessler's Oracle Bones. As Dan Harris observes, Hessler is neither a "panda-hugger" or "Red China" hysteric. He just writes beautiful, knowledgable vignettes on China. I think he's one of the best writers on China today, on a very short list. Check out his work in the New Yorker if you get a chance.
Sunday, June 25, 2006
Da Shan
And Da Shan. I want to hate him so badly! Like the Shanghai guy says, everybody says, oh so you speak Chinese, but not as well as Da Shan! And yes, there was his foreigner minstrel routine that he alludes to. But, I have to admit, the guy's attitudes and outlooks are all in the right place. He really is trying to break down barriers and misunderstandings between the cultures. I have to applaud that. Damn it.
Chinesepod.com
What is the biggest mistake that people make in learning a language? Without a doubt, it is learning from non-native speakers. I'm reminded of this because I just signed up for a 7 day free trial of Chinesepod.com. I was very interested to see the dialogues. Looking at the .pdfs, I could see that a lot of the vocabulary in the advanced lessons was new to me and I even looked forward to strengthening my fluency in some of the more basic lessons. Unfortunately, Chinesepod.com isn't just disappointing, it's shocking. First, what does Chinesepod.com do right:
1. They craft interesting dialogues with at least some real world basis.
2. The pdf files provide good support. Not great: they are not accurate transcripts, more of a kind of background material-but since you can replay the dialogue to your heart's content, this is not a problem.
3. Funny, well produced intros.
4. Several of the advanced dialogues feature two real Chinese people who are fluent in Mandarin discussing topics in a very natural real world, non-dumbed down fashion. Invaluable. But the savvy reader has already probably put together the pieces of the big problem with Chinesepod.com:
Unbelievably, most of the dialogues feature heavily accented foreigners interacting with a native speaker!!! Crazy! Objectively speaking, my own Chinese is probably only a handful of grades better than the main character. But the point is that I would never, never, never teach someone else Chinese! Even after another five years learning Chinese, I would never do something like that. This is an unfathomable linguistic malpractice. No wonder then, so many people never manage to speak a foreign language with any fluency. The worst part is that what Chinesepod.com has done is destroy the best advantage of learning from audio and video: the opportunity to learn from a pure source without having your accent, idiom, and stresses tarnished by fellow students.
Once on Peter Hadley-North (author of The Silk Road and ornery bastard)'s email list, someone cheerfully (and stupidly) opined that Da Shan, the famous Canadian foreigner, can speak Chinese better than "99% of the natives." This powerfully stupid sentiment, if really believed, might account for thinking that it is ever a good idea to learn from a foreigner. Let's get it straight. No one can ever speak a second language as well as a native speaker. There are perhaps a few rare geniuses in history of whom this was not true. The Pole Joseph Conrad whose novels are justly in the canon of English literature, the Indian savant who reportedly learned Chinese at age six and in a few months was composing classical Chinese poetry. Unless you've written the great novel in your adopted language, that ain't you. Of course, this should not discourage us from trying to speak a language as well as possible, but it is the height of hubris and poor judgment to teach someone a language that is not your own.
Da Shan, nevertheless, has a great series of VCDs, the collected broadcasts of China's CCTV series Learning Chinese. Da Shan speaks very little and when he does, with effectively no trace of accent. I recommend this series to anyone learning Chinese. The four part set is more than fifty hours of material, comes with a book, and costs about $20 a set. It's great value. And you won't forever damage your speaking ability by using it.
Chinesepod.com has a good idea. And it has an easy fix: just eliminate the foreigners. Why they haven't, I don't know. The idea may be to make the lessons more inviting for beginners. But if so, it's a poisoned chalice. In the future, we may be able to tell Chinesepod.com consumers by their mangled accents. Chinesepod people! That would be a shame. Ditch the foreigners, Chinesepod.com.
1. They craft interesting dialogues with at least some real world basis.
2. The pdf files provide good support. Not great: they are not accurate transcripts, more of a kind of background material-but since you can replay the dialogue to your heart's content, this is not a problem.
3. Funny, well produced intros.
4. Several of the advanced dialogues feature two real Chinese people who are fluent in Mandarin discussing topics in a very natural real world, non-dumbed down fashion. Invaluable. But the savvy reader has already probably put together the pieces of the big problem with Chinesepod.com:
Unbelievably, most of the dialogues feature heavily accented foreigners interacting with a native speaker!!! Crazy! Objectively speaking, my own Chinese is probably only a handful of grades better than the main character. But the point is that I would never, never, never teach someone else Chinese! Even after another five years learning Chinese, I would never do something like that. This is an unfathomable linguistic malpractice. No wonder then, so many people never manage to speak a foreign language with any fluency. The worst part is that what Chinesepod.com has done is destroy the best advantage of learning from audio and video: the opportunity to learn from a pure source without having your accent, idiom, and stresses tarnished by fellow students.
Once on Peter Hadley-North (author of The Silk Road and ornery bastard)'s email list, someone cheerfully (and stupidly) opined that Da Shan, the famous Canadian foreigner, can speak Chinese better than "99% of the natives." This powerfully stupid sentiment, if really believed, might account for thinking that it is ever a good idea to learn from a foreigner. Let's get it straight. No one can ever speak a second language as well as a native speaker. There are perhaps a few rare geniuses in history of whom this was not true. The Pole Joseph Conrad whose novels are justly in the canon of English literature, the Indian savant who reportedly learned Chinese at age six and in a few months was composing classical Chinese poetry. Unless you've written the great novel in your adopted language, that ain't you. Of course, this should not discourage us from trying to speak a language as well as possible, but it is the height of hubris and poor judgment to teach someone a language that is not your own.
Da Shan, nevertheless, has a great series of VCDs, the collected broadcasts of China's CCTV series Learning Chinese. Da Shan speaks very little and when he does, with effectively no trace of accent. I recommend this series to anyone learning Chinese. The four part set is more than fifty hours of material, comes with a book, and costs about $20 a set. It's great value. And you won't forever damage your speaking ability by using it.
Chinesepod.com has a good idea. And it has an easy fix: just eliminate the foreigners. Why they haven't, I don't know. The idea may be to make the lessons more inviting for beginners. But if so, it's a poisoned chalice. In the future, we may be able to tell Chinesepod.com consumers by their mangled accents. Chinesepod people! That would be a shame. Ditch the foreigners, Chinesepod.com.
Friday, June 23, 2006
Everything turns out for the best in this best of all possible worlds
I never update this thing but I thought it could use a touch of Panglossianism. Things are working out pretty well for me. I got on Law Review, I'm doing an exciting and interesting summer internship in a Chinese law firm, and my personal life is just fine too.
That's boring. Bring back the depression and angst.
Oh ok, how about the US losing to Ghana, who have officially lost their charm for me, having gotten a ridiculous call resulting in a penalty. I'll probably root for them against Brazil, though with their playmaker Essien gone due to getting a second yellow against the US, they won't win. On the other hand, the tepid and uninspired play by the US really didn't warrant advancing either. With luck, Bruce Arena will be replaced by someone who can whip these players into line and who has a better sense of tactics. The excellent recent article in the NYT on the US's human resources blinders in recruitment for the national team really hit home: why, with the talent in every park, is the US team exclusively composed of suburban college kids? Dumb, dumb, dumb. Bring on a mean German coach who will teach these guys how to win in Europe.
When I was leaving the bar last night at half time, a digusting human being got their child to beg for money from me. Nothing has sickened me as much my entire time in China. I gave the woman a good cursing in Chinese, which from her reaction, I doubt she expected from a foreigner exiting a Westerner bar. I don't regret a minute of it, but I wish I had had a candy to give the child. Poor sweet little girl.
That's boring. Bring back the depression and angst.
Oh ok, how about the US losing to Ghana, who have officially lost their charm for me, having gotten a ridiculous call resulting in a penalty. I'll probably root for them against Brazil, though with their playmaker Essien gone due to getting a second yellow against the US, they won't win. On the other hand, the tepid and uninspired play by the US really didn't warrant advancing either. With luck, Bruce Arena will be replaced by someone who can whip these players into line and who has a better sense of tactics. The excellent recent article in the NYT on the US's human resources blinders in recruitment for the national team really hit home: why, with the talent in every park, is the US team exclusively composed of suburban college kids? Dumb, dumb, dumb. Bring on a mean German coach who will teach these guys how to win in Europe.
When I was leaving the bar last night at half time, a digusting human being got their child to beg for money from me. Nothing has sickened me as much my entire time in China. I gave the woman a good cursing in Chinese, which from her reaction, I doubt she expected from a foreigner exiting a Westerner bar. I don't regret a minute of it, but I wish I had had a candy to give the child. Poor sweet little girl.
