Wisdom of Chinese Civilization and the So-called “Chinese Wisdom"
May 14, 2019
As the oldest living civilization, Chinese culture is no short of great wisdom. One notion that has imprinted on a great many ethnic Chinese is a value that could be traced to a saying by Confucius: “A Junzi (the model of virtue) would like to be awkward at talking but swift at acting (君子欲讷于言而敏于行).” While such a teaching has made some Chinese-American boys less “personable” to Harvard admission officers, it keeps the majority of ethnic Chinese staying grounded and being comfortable with being a solid doer. In a time when lip services are often more rewarded, in a moment when political demagogues and activists are ripping apart the social fabric of America in the name of great causes, such old wisdom deserves a serious note.
However, when the word “wisdom” is used together with “Chinese”, the phrase “Chinese wisdom” could occasionally carry a derogatory tone, dependent on the context. Such so-called Chinese wisdom contradicts Confucius’ teaching. The following are just a few illustrations; some has gained its momentum or acceptance in America in the past ten years or so.
As the oldest living civilization, Chinese culture is no short of great wisdom. One notion that has imprinted on a great many ethnic Chinese is a value that could be traced to a saying by Confucius: “A Junzi (the model of virtue) would like to be awkward at talking but swift at acting (君子欲讷于言而敏于行).” While such a teaching has made some Chinese-American boys less “personable” to Harvard admission officers, it keeps the majority of ethnic Chinese staying grounded and being comfortable with being a solid doer. In a time when lip services are often more rewarded, in a moment when political demagogues and activists are ripping apart the social fabric of America in the name of great causes, such old wisdom deserves a serious note.
However, when the word “wisdom” is used together with “Chinese”, the phrase “Chinese wisdom” could occasionally carry a derogatory tone, dependent on the context. Such so-called Chinese wisdom contradicts Confucius’ teaching. The following are just a few illustrations; some has gained its momentum or acceptance in America in the past ten years or so.
Thick Ice Coating, Tap Water Sold at the Price of Seafood
Around 2012, seafood coated with a thick layer of ice, sometimes amounting to 50% of the total weight, caused a public outcry in China. In early 2013, two Chinese trade organizations issued a joint order, dictating that the ice content of frozen shrimp shall be no more than 20%. The order somewhat curbs the fraudulent practice in China . In or about 2015, seafood with heavy ice coating—imported from China—starts to show up in Chinese grocery stores in America. It is contagious; some Boston supermarket chain stores also start to sell unthawed shrimp covered with dense ice frost. The photo shows a fish coated with a thick layer of ice that cracked at its front back, exposing some of its skin, as marked by red arrows. Click to read a specific illustration. |
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A Chinese Elite Took the Harvard Podium to Share His Chinese Wisdom
In Feb 2016, Chen Feng, a Chinese business elite and an adjunct professor in several universities, lectured at Harvard University Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies. When recounting his early experience at Harvard, he claimed his Chinese wisdom: asking his colleagues to do the homework and assemble the answer for him. Click here to read more. |
Infant Formula Adulterated with Melamine
Melamine is a nitrogen-rich compound. It had been added to watered-down infant formula by Chinese manufacturers to inflate nitrogenous content, which is a measure of protein content in the food industry. The scandal broke in 2008. Of an estimated 300,000 victims fed with the adulterated formula in China, 6 babies died from kidney stones and other kidney damage and an estimated 54,000 babies were hospitalized. Earlier, 12 infants had died from malnutrition. |
In these cases, “Chinese wisdom” could be defined as an approach to beat the system.
Each system is maintained by a set of explicit rules or standards, which in turn are premised on assumptions, expectations, consensus, or obligations that could be broadly defined as founding principles. Often such principles are not clearly spelled out or vigorously enforced, out of decency and trust among community members. “Chinese wisdom” is a practice that takes advantage of the explicit rules or standards, ignoring or circumventing the implied founding principles, to produce an outcome often at the expense of system integrity.
Each system is maintained by a set of explicit rules or standards, which in turn are premised on assumptions, expectations, consensus, or obligations that could be broadly defined as founding principles. Often such principles are not clearly spelled out or vigorously enforced, out of decency and trust among community members. “Chinese wisdom” is a practice that takes advantage of the explicit rules or standards, ignoring or circumventing the implied founding principles, to produce an outcome often at the expense of system integrity.