Ed Note: Since I’m still in Yunnan, I’m re-posting a couple of my greatest hits (such as they are). I urge many, if not both, of my readers to be patient, I’ll return with new posts very soon.
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I’ve spent my entire adult life trying to understand Chinese history. Confucius himself once said: “To know that you know what you know and that you don’t know what you don’t know, that is true knowledge.”
Later scholars in China’s history wrote insightful commentaries on this passage to assist future lao wai historians. All of which could basically be summed up as: “We have 5000 years of history. Call us when you realize you’re completely screwed.”
And it’s true. My colleagues who study American history have no idea how lucky they are to know exactly what is meant when a source refers to an honest “Abe,” a scheming “Judas,” a traitorous “Benedict Arnold” or an unfortunate soul pulling a “Nathan Hale.” They don’t have to check every obscure reference through 12 different dictionaries and encyclopedias each with arcane indexing systems, a preposterous chapter/page organization, and two different Chinese scripts.
And that’s nothing compared to the joy of asking my Chinese colleagues