Describe my preparations.
I was really excited when I
got this task as I love to learn about new cultures and people. I thought that
I should interview people belonging to a different culture so as to better
understand the perception of different people and also to bring a diversity.
When I came to the St. Cloud
University I was able to befriend a Chinese girl who was ready to help me out
with the interview. I had a feeling she might feel awkward or shy with the
whole process but I was proved wrong by bubbly and helpful nature as we got
ready to set up the interview. Every question that I asked, I received a
friendly response that was answered in detail. She did not have any
reservations about talking about their families or friends, and was more than
ready to discuss part of her personal life as well. She was well versed with
the positives and the negatives of her country and did not make an attempt to
hide it. Along with the interview I had it taped as well so that the interview
would not miss out on any important point.
Interview report on how the interviewing went
I
conducted the interview at St. Cloud University with Momo Wu. She is a Chinese
girl who willingly agreed for the interview. I spent 45 minutes taking to Momo
Wu during the interview. We had the interview on 25th of October.
She is an extremely cooperative person who is very responsive too. Although she
had her test that day she still gave me some of her precious time. Overall it
was very positive interaction with her. She is well aware of Chinese traditions
and is proud of her culture as is evident from her responses. I think the
interview went great and we both thoroughly enjoyed communication.
COUNTRY REPORT
The country that I choose is China because
as a nation china has always awed me because of its heritage, diversity,
culture, food and history. China is a very highly developed country, and with
the way it is raising, it is highly possible that it will come to the number
one in the world. China is an extremely diverse country with basic language
Chinese, although people speak Mandarin too. Its climate is varied with
different temperatures in different areas. In winter most of areas become cold
and dry, summer in many areas is rainy and hot.
China has extremely diverse culture. Chinese
people celebrate various festivals throughout the year. They have festivals
such as the Lantern Festival, Qingming Festival, Dragon Boat festival and
Mid-autumn festival. The people of China are very friendly and hospitable. The
people of China love to wear their traditional robes. These robes usually called Dragon robes are
embroidered and are designed in bright colors.
The family life is very important for every
Chinese. Chinese families are very close-knit. Children tend to stay with their
parents even after they get married and have children of their own, so that you
often see three or four generations living under the same roof. However,
everyone is well organized within this compact family each member of the family
help each other when there is any problem and they will suffer together. It is
very dangerous for the old people, if there is any accident happened. Nobody
can help them if the old people live alone.
China’s
growth has dazzled the world, but the waste of money has not been as
publicized. The profits from export trade and captive savings from its people
China can invest recklessly. More that $3 trillion is placed inside Chinese
banks, earning paltry interest, because the country’s capital controls and
undeveloped capital markets prevent savers from investing it elsewhere
(Engardio 205).
Deng
Xiaoping, the leader of China disbands communes who had already died, allowing
farmers to freely sell their products and introduces profit incentives for
factories. From there, many of the farmers start to sell their lands, and move
to the big cities like Beijing, or open shops instead of farm. Under Jiang
Zemin s leadership who is the leader after Deng Xiaoping s dead, the 15th Party
Congress reveals its plan to sell most state-owned industries. It becomes
privatize. In the coming years, tens of
million of workers will be laid off; with no social protection is sight. Now,
is this still socialism, no it is the raw capitalism. For the average Chinese,
it might be the worst of both worlds.
My interview was supposed to help gain an
understanding of the students in the university and by no means did I want any
question to become too personal or too offensive to anyone. Hence, for the
interview I decided to use the questions that I felt would not have thrown the
Questionnaire off balance. The fifteen questions which are as follows:
1-Do
you like the weather in St.Cloud? Please explain
10- What is your favorite sport?
2- What do you do for leisure?
3- Could you please tell me about yourself?
4- How often do you communicate with your family back
at home?
5- What is the biggest holiday in your country?
Please explain about the holidays (Activities, Food, Date, Origin, and etc,)
6- In what ways might it are difficult to practice
your religion here in the U.S?
7- Tell me some important things from your culture?
8- What is the biggest difference between the
American culture and your culture?
9- What are your goals for the future; after you
graduate, what are you going to do?
10- What is your favorite sport?
11-What is your major? Why you chose this major?
12-What is your language? How many languages do you speak? How many languages in your country?
13-What do you like to do when you hang out with your friends and/or family?
14-Where do you prefer your home country or here? Why?
15- Do you have any questions for me? I have asked so many of you!
Whenever we talked about China, there would
be smile on Momo’s face, as it showed how much she loved her country. I was a
bit surprised that she had a sister, as I had read that China did not allow
more than a single child per couple. However, it was not the case as she was
from an area that did not enforce this rule. China has a very family oriented
lifestyle as it showed from the warmth of her voice that she loved her family
and took pride in helping them out with the work, unlike so many other families
which look for an opportunity to run away from chores.
Hence, the Interview gave me a lot to think
about China and its people. There are always a few thoughts that are created
before an interview, and Momo was able to clarify them in detail. Hence, I
believe that this was an important interview to gain valuable insight about the
country and its people.
References:
-Shanghai
Xinhong Cultural Development Co. Ltd (n.d.). Cultural China. Retrieved from http://www.cultural-china.com/
-The Decline of the Mediterranean and Chinese Civilizations." 12HelMe.com.
30 Oct 2013
http://www.12HelMe.com/view.asp?id=107963
http://www.12HelMe.com/view.asp?id=107963
Interview
transcription of my interview with Momo Wu
Interviewer: Alzoabur
Interviewee: Momo Wu
Location: University of Saint Cloud, USA, 12.00 PM
A-Alzoabur
M: Momo Wu
A) First, I would like to thank you for giving me
your time and for letting me do the interview with you.
M) (Laughs) it is perfectly fine, I am really excited
about the interview.
A) Do you like the weather in St.Cloud?
M) The Weather over in St. Cloud is gorgeous; I have never
seen weather with so many different seasons. It rains, and it snows and it is
cool and it is hot, I am really enjoying something new every day.
A).And what do you do for leisure?
M) Since the time I have come here I have made a lot of new
friends who are just lovely to me. With them I am getting an opportunity to
learn not only about them but about their countries as well. Their culture
always brings something new for me to explore, hence I try to spend as much
time with them as I can. However, sometimes, I like to go out for long walks
throughout the campus and outside as well. I enjoy exercising, so I play my
iPod and go out for a walk or a jog at times. Apart from that I love to
experiment in the kitchen. Cooking is a good way for me to spend the rest of my
time so my friends and I try to have cooking competitions with one another so
we are learning as well as having fun at the same time. It is really fun; I
would love to invite you some time.
A) Could you please tell me about yourself?
M) Hi! I am Momo Wu (Giggles) and I from China and I come from
a beautiful family consisting of my mother and a sister. I am the oldest and
hence got the opportunity to come to St. Cloud through my school, where I
completed my high school. I am a wacky girl, who loves to have fun no matter
what and always like to keep a smile on someone’s face. So with me you are
always going to have a fun time. Except when I am studying. Then I am dead
serious.
A) How often do you communicate with your family back
at home?
M) After my father left us a few years ago, we all have become
very close. It was not easy for me to leave my family to study in St. Cloud but
I had their wishes and their support and so I came. I am very talkative, and
there is nothing better that I like to do than to talk to my mother at least 3
times a week. Since we can use Skype here, it is not difficult for me to talk
to them too.
A) What is the biggest holiday in your country?
Please explain about the holidays (Activities, Food, Date, Origin, and etc,)
M) Well in China we have a lot of festivals that are celebrated
on different days. For example, we have the Chinese New Year’s eve, which is
celebrated on the last date of the lunar calendar as well as the New Year
celebrations that happen exactly at midnight, where there is a traditional
meeting of the families and a lot of fireworks. For women we have a special
event known as the Shangsi festival where we go for picnics and pluck orchids.
However, my favorite one by far is the Dongzhi festival which we also call the
Winter Solstice Festival as it is usually held in the last ten days of
December. In it, there is a traditional meeting of the family members and
eating traditional dumplings, known as tangyuan. They are made up of glutinous
rice and are served in a broth. The event is known to be the most important as
it is considered to be the night when the sunlight is the weakest. It
symbolizes that there will be a flow of positive energy in the later days to
come. Personally, this is the holiday that I enjoy the most.
A) In what ways is it difficult to practice your
religion here in the U.S?
M) In China, we do not have a particular set of beliefs in
a particular religion and would consider
them to be known as “Different schools of thoughts” or “Philosophies”. By this
definition, I follow the cultural beliefs of my family and can be considered an
atheist. However, as far as the time I have spent in U.S., I have not faced
much difficulty in practicing my beliefs, as there are plenty of Chinese here
who share my thoughts and we happily meet one another on the day of the event
to celebrate.
A) Tell me some important things from your culture?
M) Our Culture is extremely diversified; because of the
many kinds of people who are living in china have their own ways of expressing
themselves. However, the respect for the elders and the closeness of our
families is the highlight of the Chinese Culture.
A) What’s the biggest difference between the American
culture and your culture?
M) The difference between the American and the Chinese
Culture is as different as the night and the day. From the Food to the
clothing, to the perceptions and the thinking, each aspect is treated
differently by both the cultures. However, each of the cultures has their
strengths and I believe we can learn from them as well as teach them as well.
A) What are your goals for the future; after you graduate,
what are you going to do?
M) After I complete my Bachelors, I would like to gain some
experience while working as well as make sure I am able to study for my MS in
Finance. After that, who knows?
A) What is your
favorite sport?
M) I am not
really much for sports, but I used to enjoy playing badminton and table tennis
with my sister back in China.
A) What is your major? Why you
chose this major?
M) My major is finance. I love playing with numbers and I
am good at it too. There will always be a need of people who are good with
numbers and numerical concepts and I would want to be working in a field that I
like and can excel at.
A) What is your language? How
many languages do you speak? How many languages in your country?
M) Well even though we have a lot
of dialects in our country, we predominantly speak Chinese, properly known as
Mandarin or Standard Chinese. There are about more than 200 languages that are
spoken in my country, and I am proud to say that can understand and speak the
most commonly used ones, such as Chinese, Mongolian, Tibetan, Uyghur and the
Zhuang.
A) -What do you like to do when
you hang out with your friends and/or family?
M) In the U.S there are a lot of things to do, such as
going out with friends and enjoying the nightlife by going to bars and clubs
and having a great time. With family, we usually talk a lot while going out for
shopping or prefer to go to some eatery for some snacks.
A) Where do you prefer your home
country or here? Why?
M) Even though I enjoy the atmosphere and the
love that has been showered upon me by the people living in the U.S, if given
the choice, I would always wish to come back to the land of my birth. It may
sound sentimental or patriotic, but I would wish to work for my country as it
is through that country I was able to get a chance to come here.
A) Well that’s all from my side, do you have any questions
for me?
M) Well Yes, Thank you. Yes, I do have a question for you.
What do you think about the Chinese people?
A) I think they are beautiful (laughs). They are calm and a
peaceful people that are willing to go the extra mile in order to achieve
something they have set their minds on.
