In the same lecture on the rules of speech acts in which my professor quoted Confucius, he talked quite a bit about race. His point was that the rules of speech acts govern what we can and can’t say about race in society.
According to him, the rules depended on who “the weak” (弱者) were. The weak could be spoken of positively by the rest of society, but if they were spoken negatively of, there would be …
In a lecture on the rules of speech acts, one of my professors recently quoted Confucius. Believe it or not, I have seldom run into this kind of thing. The only other time I can recall Confucius coming up was in a discussion on sex back in Hangzhou. (The quote then was “食色性也.”) Anyway, this time it was:
质胜文则野，文胜质则史。
Now I’m no scholar of ancient Chinese, but seeking to better understand the teacher’s point …
I just started using Google Calendar, and I’m liking it. Previous calendar apps had never had quite enough to hook me, but I think Google has finally done it. It also helps that my ChinesePod co-workers are using it. Micah is too, and maybe Brad and John B will too?
Here are some tips to get you Shanghai dwellers started:
Obviously you need to go to Google Calendar and open an account first.
In the left sidebar you’ll see
satellite dish = beer
Thanks to Dan of Shanghaiist who spread word of my “satellite TV for beer” deal, yesterday I successfully traded a satellite dish with box for 4 cases (96 bottles) of Sol beer. Lenny and John B can verify that the Sol is much tastier than the satellite dish could ever be. Thanks also to Peter for his generous bid.
I’m leaving for the States tomorrow for a two week visit. Will there be any …
I am a visual learner. I want to see new words written down. I like to see concepts diagrammed. I understand more easily and remember much better that which I see.
So far, this seems like a handicap for me at ECNU. With only one exception, none of my classes this academic year have made much use of visual aids. (And when I say “visual aid,” I use such a loose definition as to include just writing anything…
谢老师在研究如何利用Blog, Wiki, Podcasting来学习中文。以下是他的问题和我的回答。
你是如何想到利用博客练习中文？你在上海华东师范有很多练习的机会，为什么还要利用博客？
我2002年开始写英文blog，认识了许多写博客的朋友。其中有一位刚刚开始写英文博客的中国女孩，网名叫Leylop。可能是她启发我了。虽然在生活中我认识不少的中国朋友，但是跟他们交流并不能代替写博客的经历。首先博客是写的。我写得比较非正式，但是话语和文字本来就有很大的区别。写文章我可以慢慢找最恰当的词汇，（够耐心的话）可以改改所有的错误，可以不怕说错、不怕别人插嘴。其次写博客的观众基本上是无限的，跟平时说话有很大的不同。通过博客我可以看到各界的意见，不限于我的交际圈子。再次博客不受日常生活时间限制。我和朋友都较忙的时候，也许有几个星期不见面。但是博客随时都可以写，凌晨2点也可以，所以主要的问题不是时间而是灵感。
你的网站公布以后，你是否有时间来阅读别人的回复？从这些回复中你能学到什么？
每一次有人留言我都会看。我承认在留言当中我跟访客交流得不是特别多。这是因为我看新的留言的时候不一定有时间写回复。有时候也会忘记。但是我还是非常感谢留言的访客。有时候我也会直接问读者一些汉语方面的问题，比如“莫名其妙的广告”、“第三声：两个问题”、“大鱼，小池”。他们的回答总是很有帮助。
在你看来，博客是不是一个很好的语言学习工具？
博客肯定是个很好的语言学习工具！不是的话我早就会放弃她。唯一的缺点是应该经常写新的文章，要不然读者会“跑掉”。有时候觉得想中文博客的话题真是个挑战。
Do you live in Shanghai? Do you want satellite TV? Well, here’s your chance to get a satellite dish with the box. All you have to do is come over and pick it up. But you have to leave beer.
The satellite dish and box once belonged to a co-worker of my roommate Lenny. The guy left Shanghai, and left his working satellite dish and box with Lenny. The thing is, neither Lenny nor I watch much TV, so neither …
The links have been piling up lately, and I thought I’d share a few related to China and studying Chinese.
Slate seems to think ChinesePod is pretty damn cool: Learning to Flirt in Chinese. Slate doesn’t really mention anything academic, but I’m working on that.
ChinesePod is not the only Chinese podcast game in town… there’s also Mandarin Chinese with Serge Melnyk. You compare.
A list of “Core Simplified Characters.” Great reference for anyone who’s
祝大家复活节快乐！ (I wish you all a happy Easter!)
(Image found on Japancast.)
P.S. And a very happy birthday to a very special someone…
P.P.S. I don’t believe in any “war on Easter,” but as a Catholic I do believe that Easter is about the resurrection of Jesus and not chocolate bunnies. Still, I find this kind of thing funny.…
The other day as Xiao Wang (my ayi, a 32-year-old woman from the Harbin area) arrived, I was watching the news. Wen Jiabao (温家宝) was making some statement or other. Xiao Wang didn’t pay any attention. She started fixing dinner.
It suddenly occurred to me to get Xiao Wang’s take on Chinese politics, so I asked her what she thought of Hu Jintao (胡锦涛). I think it confused her a little, because Wen Jiabao …
John has lived in China for
11.5
years. He is a linguist focused on SLA and tech.
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