Learn the necessary expressions in Mandarin Chinese. As usual, this lesson will start with a situational dialog, then you will learn new vocabulary with explanations and then it’s your turn to read aloud. Let’s get started!
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I wanted to talk about your decision to have ‘Having an Affair’ as one of
your lessons, even the first one. While I think your lessons are great, I
think you should take that lesson off, as I do not think having that lesson
here is appropriate. That is telling all learners that adultery is a
condoned practice in China, which I don’t think is true, and is giving the
Chinese a negative image. As a Chinese growing up in Hong Kong, my uncle
had an affair when I was about six, and I saw all the pain it had caused
the whole family.
Hi Kit,
I’m really sorry about any negative memories that this lesson may have brought up for you. However, if you hear the whole dialog, the point of this lesson and the conclusion of the dialog is on condemning the adultery, as in the last sentence of the dialog we say: “you need to be honest and stay with your principles of life (distinguish between what’s right and what’s wrong)”.
We are in no way telling our students that having a mistress is a condoned practice in China, I believe, everybody understands that. This is a morally wrong behavior regardless of your nationality or country of residence. It’s just wrong in it’s roots. However, it exists and exists in China as well.
Our mission is to present a variety of possible situations of our daily life in China and teach Mandarin vocabulary or expressions that one will never learn from a textbook, a Mandarin Chinese spoken by real people, in real life situations (good or bad). There is one saying in Chinese: 人生百态 ren1sheng1 bai3tai4, that I can roughly translate as ‘ a hundred perspectives on life’.
人生（ren2sheng1）-life, 百（bai3）-hundred, 态（tai4）-attitude, situation, perspective….. So we try our best to follow this principle.
Best,
Serge
**update** Just FYI, there is an interesting article on this topic I found in times online, here is the link:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/article604618.ece
Hi, Serge
I just read the item by Kim and I just want to make a comment. I believe adultery is wrong also. However, the topic can come up anywhere, and I do not believe the lesson condones adultery at all. As you put it, adultery happens in all countries. Thank you for all your work and effort put forth in these lessons.
Rest easy, Kim; it is simply a language lesson to introduce people to a possible topic that may arise. I am from the USA and I in no way judge the Chinese people by a language topic. I don’t think others do, either. All people are human and no one race is any better or worse than any other in their actions. We are responsible for what we do ourselves. We do not need to follow the actions of a subject; in fact we don’t even need to read or learn it. We are free to disregard any lesson that has a distasteful topic to us. Peggy
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