Wednesday, November 20, 2013


Andy: "Chinese grammar is much more difficult than English. It's very different."

"Like ending sentences with a verbs?"

"Yes, but more than that. In China, nothing is ever as it appears. An American can hold this pen and say, 'This is a pen. I like this pen.' In Chinese, if a man says, 'This is a pen. I like this pen,' that doesn't mean he's actually talking about a pen. He could be talking about anything. Something over there... one of his friends... anything. It's crazy! I don't know why we do that! But, it's also beautiful. If I took you to an ice festival in Beijing, you would look at the snow and say, 'Look at the beautiful snow.' I would say, 'That's not just snow. Look closer, it's in the shape of a sheep,' and you would say, 'Look at the beautiful sheep.' Then I would say, 'That's not just a sheep. That's a story.' And I could tell you the story that sheep represents. So, sometimes the complex is not just confusing. Sometimes, it's beautiful."

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