Comments on: Zhonglish: ulterior motives http://www.sinoglot.com/bjs/2008/05/zhonglish-ulterior-motives/?&owa_medium=feed&owa_sid= Home of the Beijing Sounds Studios: productions mostly of language through foreign ears Thu, 10 Nov 2011 12:08:32 -0800 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.6 hourly 1 By: Sima http://www.sinoglot.com/bjs/2008/05/zhonglish-ulterior-motives/comment-page-1/#comment-1102 Sima Thu, 26 Jun 2008 00:06:43 +0000 http://www.bjshengr.com/bjs/?p=126#comment-1102 Hmmm, apologies. Looks like I went all limey on you, with the cat's mother. This should make it clear: http://everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=1836181 My feeling is still that Albert was right, even though it was a side conversation and you'd said 姥姥 the first time. If the same conversation played out in even a very conservative/up tight British family, I'd say it would not be considered impolite. I sometimes think that Chinese manners make more sense to a Brit than they might to an American, e.g. responses to compliments...but maybe that's a subject for another day. Hmmm, apologies. Looks like I went all limey on you, with the cat’s mother.

This should make it clear:
http://everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=1836181

My feeling is still that Albert was right, even though it was a side conversation and you’d said 姥姥 the first time.

If the same conversation played out in even a very conservative/up tight British family, I’d say it would not be considered impolite.

I sometimes think that Chinese manners make more sense to a Brit than they might to an American, e.g. responses to compliments…but maybe that’s a subject for another day.

]]> By: syz http://www.sinoglot.com/bjs/2008/05/zhonglish-ulterior-motives/comment-page-1/#comment-1099 syz Wed, 25 Jun 2008 01:31:34 +0000 http://www.bjshengr.com/bjs/?p=126#comment-1099 Sima, Up to your usual habit of sowing confusion, I see. Dammitall, maybe you're right, but I still don't know what the "cat's mother" thing was all about. Regardless, I'll still claim that most native speakers would NOT consider the "tā" impolite in the original context discussed above: <blockquote> PBS: 不是qì负是qī，一二三四五六七 Búshì “qìfu” shì qī, yī èr sān sì wǔ liù qī. It’s not “qìfu” it’s “qī“, 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 [qī]. SYZ: qī负，是吗？ 那你别欺负她吧！ Qīfu, shì ma? Nà nǐ bié qīfu tā ba! “Qīfu,” right? Then don’t qīfu her, OK? </blockquote> But maybe this is the case because what's going on is sort of like an odd side conversation between me and PBS. Or maybe I'm just plain, dead wrong -- not to mention rude. Sima,
Up to your usual habit of sowing confusion, I see. Dammitall, maybe you’re right, but I still don’t know what the “cat’s mother” thing was all about.

Regardless, I’ll still claim that most native speakers would NOT consider the “tā” impolite in the original context discussed above:

PBS:
不是qì负是qī，一二三四五六七
Búshì “qìfu” shì qī, yī èr sān sì wǔ liù qī.
It’s not “qìfu” it’s “qī“, 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 [qī].

SYZ:
qī负，是吗？ 那你别欺负她吧！
Qīfu, shì ma? Nà nǐ bié qīfu tā ba!
“Qīfu,” right? Then don’t qīfu her, OK?

But maybe this is the case because what’s going on is sort of like an odd side conversation between me and PBS. Or maybe I’m just plain, dead wrong — not to mention rude.

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