X,
Bit late on this, but:
I don't know what China you are imagining existed before this generation but since the communist takeover "Texture, subtlety, delicacy, innuendo, grace, romance - all the softer things" have been utterly squashed.
If you think it's that simple, I suggest that you take a closer look at the 50 years of Chinese history immediately preceding the communist takeover. Or, for that matter, the 3000 years before that. The "texture, etc." that seem so admirable were built on the blood, sweat, and often corpses of uncounted millions who toiled in darkness (the same could be said of the achievements of colonial-era Europe). The fate of the Chinese educated class is a classic example of what happens to people who build their prosperity on the labor of others, and fail to share even to the slightest degree.
Make your bed, lie in it. At least the Europeans had the wisdom - or the benefit of an accident of geography - to oppress those far enough away that the inevitable wrathful response couldn't reach their home territory.
Steve |
