{"id":5530,"date":"2024-11-25T15:55:50","date_gmt":"2024-11-25T23:55:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/troubadourworks.com\/tiandi\/meotw\/?p=5530"},"modified":"2025-08-01T20:40:26","modified_gmt":"2025-08-02T03:40:26","slug":"zida","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/troubadourworks.com\/tiandi\/meotw\/2024\/11\/25\/zida\/","title":{"rendered":"z\u00ecd\u00e0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\n\t\t\tz\u00ecd\u00e0<\/span>\n\t\t\t(z\u00ec\u00b7d\u00e0\n\t\t\t{(consider) self} \u00b7 {to be big \u2192<\/span> [to be great]}<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\u81ea\u5927)<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t \ud83d\udc48\ud83c\udffc Tap\/click to show\/hide the \u201cflashcard\u201d<\/span>\n<\/h3>\n\n

[Notes:<\/strong> Tap\/click on a P\u012bny\u012bn<\/i><\/span>\n\t\t\t(P\u012bn\u00b7y\u012bn\n\t\t\t{Piecing Together of} \u00b7 Sounds \u2192<\/span> [Pinyin]<\/span>\n\t\t\t\u62fc\u97f3)<\/span> expression to reveal its <\/span>\u201cflashcard\u201d<\/span>; tap\/click on a <\/span>\u201cflashcard\u201d<\/span> or its P\u012bny\u012bn<\/i><\/span>\n\t\t\t(P\u012bn\u00b7y\u012bn\n\t\t\t{Piecing Together of} \u00b7 Sounds \u2192<\/span> [Pinyin]<\/span>\n\t\t\t\u62fc\u97f3)<\/span> expression to hide the<\/span> \u201cflashcard\u201d<\/span>. \ud83d\udcd6<\/span> \ud83d\udcc4<\/span> \ud83d\udcd8 icons mean \ud83d\udcd6<\/span> Reveal All<\/strong>, \ud83d\udcc4<\/span> Reveal Advanced<\/strong>, and \ud83d\udcd8 Reveal None<\/strong> re all the \u201cflashcards\u201d<\/span> in the heading, paragraph, etc. that they are placed at the beginning of.]<\/p>\n

I have long especially liked 1 Corinthians 13<\/a>. It contains counsel on what really does and doesn\u2019t matter in life, an extensive description and definition of the most important kind of love, and a sublime discussion about the need to become complete, mature, as a person. As these apply to life in general, so too do they apply to our lives as Mandarin field language learners.<\/p>\n

As Mandarin field language learners, it can benefit us greatly to consider what we can learn from 1 Corinthians 13, and along the way, we can also consider some of the Mandarin expressions used in that chapter<\/a> in the current version of the Mandarin New World Translation<\/i> Bible (nwtsty).<\/p>\n

How Do We View Ourselves?<\/h4>\n

This week\u2019s MEotW, \u201cz\u00ecd\u00e0<\/i><\/span>\n\t\t\t(z\u00ec\u00b7d\u00e0\n\t\t\t{(consider) self} \u00b7 {to be big \u2192<\/span> [to be great]}<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\u81ea\u5927)<\/span>\u201d,<\/i> is used in verse 4 (WOL<\/a>) of 1 Corinthians 13:<\/p>\n

\"Screenshot<\/p>\n

(Dark mode for the Watchtower ONLINE LIBRARY (WOL) website, as shown in the above image, can be enabled in the Safari web browser by using the Noir<\/a> Safari extension. Other web browsers may also have extensions with similar functionality.)<\/p>\n

For comparison, here are the current English and P\u012bny\u012bn<\/i><\/span>\n\t\t\t(P\u012bn\u00b7y\u012bn\n\t\t\t{Piecing Together of} \u00b7 Sounds \u2192<\/span> [Pinyin]<\/span>\n\t\t\t\u62fc\u97f3)<\/span> Plus renderings of 1 Corinthians 13:4:<\/p>\n

English<\/a>:<\/p>\n

\nLove is patient and kind. Love is not jealous. It does not brag, does not get puffed up,<\/strong>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

P\u012bny\u012bn<\/i><\/span>\n\t\t\t(P\u012bn\u00b7y\u012bn\n\t\t\t{Piecing Together of} \u00b7 Sounds \u2192<\/span> [Pinyin]<\/span>\n\t\t\t\u62fc\u97f3)<\/span> Plus<\/a>:<\/p>\n

\n\n\t\t\t\ud83d\udcd6<\/span> \ud83d\udcc4<\/span> \ud83d\udcd8<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\u00c0i<\/span>\n\t\t\t(love<\/span>\n\t\t\t\u7231\n\t\t\t\u611b<\/span>)<\/span>,\n\n\t\t\ty\u01d2u<\/span>\n\t\t\t(has<\/span>\n\t\t\t\u6709)<\/span>\n\n\t\t\tn\u00e0ix\u012bn<\/span>\n\t\t\t(n\u00e0i\u00b7x\u012bn\n\t\t\t{being (of\/with) enduring} \u00b7 heart \u2192<\/span> [patience]<\/span>\n\t\t\t\u8010\u5fc3)<\/span>,\n\n\t\t\ty\u00f2u<\/span>\n\t\t\t(also<\/span>\n\t\t\t\u53c8)<\/span>\n\n\t\t\tr\u00e9nc\u00ed<\/span>\n\t\t\t(r\u00e9n\u00b7c\u00ed\n\t\t\t{is kind}<\/span>\n\t\t\t\u4ec1\u6148)<\/span>.\n\n\t\t\t\u00c0i<\/span>\n\t\t\t(love<\/span>\n\t\t\t\u7231\n\t\t\t\u611b<\/span>)<\/span>,\n\n\t\t\tb\u00f9<\/span>\n\t\t\t(not<\/span>\n\t\t\t\u4e0d)<\/span>\n\n\t\t\tj\u00edd\u00f9<\/span>\n\t\t\t({is jealous}<\/span>\n\t\t\t\u5ac9\u5992)<\/span>,\n\n\t\t\tb\u00f9<\/span>\n\t\t\t(not<\/span>\n\t\t\t\u4e0d)<\/span>\n\n\t\t\tchu\u012bx\u016b<\/span>\n\t\t\t(chu\u012b\u00b7x\u016b\n\t\t\t{does puff \u2192 [does brag]} \u00b7 {does sigh \u2192 [does praise]} \u2192<\/span> [does brag]<\/span>\n\t\t\t\u5439\u5618\n\t\t\t\u5439\u5653<\/span>)<\/span>,\n\n\t\t\tb\u00fa<\/span>\n\t\t\t(not<\/span>\n\t\t\t\u4e0d)<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tz\u00ecd\u00e0<\/span>\n\t\t\t(z\u00ec\u00b7d\u00e0\n\t\t\t{(does consider) self} \u00b7 {to be big \u2192<\/span> [to be great]}<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\u81ea\u5927)<\/span>,\n\t\t\t<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/span>\n\n\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The individual morphemes<\/a> in \u201cz\u00ecd\u00e0<\/i><\/span>\n\t\t\t(z\u00ec\u00b7d\u00e0\n\t\t\t{(consider) self} \u00b7 {to be big \u2192<\/span> [to be great]}<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\u81ea\u5927)<\/span>\u201d,<\/i> which are relatively simple and well-known, literally mean \u201cself\u201d and \u201cbig\u201d. When these morphemes are put together in \u201cz\u00ecd\u00e0<\/i><\/span>\n\t\t\t(z\u00ec\u00b7d\u00e0\n\t\t\t{(consider) self} \u00b7 {to be big \u2192<\/span> [to be great]}<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\u81ea\u5927)<\/span>\u201d,<\/i> the resulting expression effectively means \u201c(consider) self to be great\u201d, corresponding, in 1 Corinthians 13:4 in the current English and Mandarin versions of the New World Translation<\/i> Bible, with the English expression \u201cpuffed up\u201d.<\/p>\n

A Nation That Calls Itself \u201cCentral Nation\u201d<\/h4>\n

As discussed in the MEotW post<\/a> on \u201cZh\u014dnggu\u00f3<\/i><\/span>\n\t\t\t(Zh\u014dng\u00b7gu\u00f3\n\t\t\tCentral \u00b7 Nation \u2192<\/span> [China | Chinese]<\/span>\n\t\t\t\u4e2d\u56fd\n\t\t\t\u4e2d\u570b<\/span>)<\/span>\u201d,<\/i> \u201cthe people of China have long viewed their nation as central<\/em> to the world that they knew, or cared most about, to the point that \u2018China was the only culture to use the concept for its name\u2019\u2009\u201d:<\/p>\n

\n

\nThe English translation of Zhongyuan<\/i> as the “Middle Kingdom” entered European languages through the Portuguese in the 16th century and became popular in the mid-19th century. By the mid-20th century, the term was thoroughly entrenched in the English language, reflecting the Western view of China as the inward-looking Middle Kingdom, or more accurately, the Central Kingdom<\/i> or Central State<\/i>. Endymion Wilkinson points out that the Chinese were not unique in thinking of their country as central, although China was the only culture to use the concept for its name.[source]<\/a><\/sup>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n

This cultural trait is such a thing that there are several words and concepts related to it, including \u201cSinocentrism<\/a>\u201d.<\/p>\n

While many worldly Chinese people think nothing of calling their nation \u201cCentral Nation\u201d, or think that this is only natural considering China\u2019s history, many cultures consider calling oneself the centre of the world to be puffed up, overly and offputtingly self-important. As a Chinese person, I find this proud, self-centred aspect of worldly Chinese culture to be regrettable. Note that this characteristic should not be taken as a stereotype to be applied to all individual Chinese people, since each individual is different. However, it does tell us something about part of the true nature of worldly Chinese culture.<\/em><\/p>\n

The Mark of B Players and Bozos<\/h4>\n

When it comes to writing systems, the z\u00ecd\u00e0<\/span>\n\t\t\t(z\u00ec\u00b7d\u00e0\n\t\t\t{(consider) selves} \u00b7 {to be big \u2192<\/span> [to be great]}<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\u81ea\u5927)<\/span><\/i> attitudes of many people in China unfortunately motivated them to act as B players, as described by Steve Jobs<\/a>. The MEotW post on \u201cg\u0101o\u2019\u00e0o<\/i><\/span>\n\t\t\t(g\u0101o\u2019\u00b7\u00e0o\n\t\t\t{[is] (considering self to be of) high (status)} \u00b7 {[is] proud; haughty; arrogant}<\/span>\n\t\t\t\u9ad8\u50b2)<\/span>\u201d<\/i> discusses this:<\/p>\n

\nThe below quote was recently added to the article \u201cP\u012bny\u012bn<\/i><\/span>\n\t\t\t(P\u012bn\u00b7y\u012bn\n\t\t\t{Piecing Together of} \u00b7 Sounds \u2192<\/span> [Pinyin]<\/span>\n\t\t\t\u62fc\u97f3)<\/span> Was Plan A<\/a>\u201d:<\/p>\n

\n

This tendency of many to prioritize their own pride and position over what\u2019s really better for everyone is also described in this quote<\/a> from Guy Kawasaki<\/a> about something he learned from Steve Jobs:<\/p>\n

\n

A players hire A+ players.<\/strong> Actually, Steve believed that A players hire A players\u2014that is people who are as good as they are. I refined this slightly\u2014my theory is that A players hire people even better than themselves. It\u2019s clear, though, that B players hire C players so they can feel superior to them, and C players hire D players. If you start hiring B players, expect what Steve called \u201cthe bozo explosion\u201d to happen in your organization.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Yes, P\u012bny\u012bn<\/i> was Plan A, but China unfortunately let the proud, self-serving B players have their way.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Note that what makes someone a B player or worse is not necessarily that person\u2019s level of intelligence, skill, talent, etc. What characterizes B players or worse is their proud, self-serving rejection of others who are better in some way, their need to feel superior to others.\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Yes, rather than embracing P\u012bny\u012bn<\/i><\/span>\n\t\t\t(P\u012bn\u00b7y\u012bn\n\t\t\t{Piecing Together of} \u00b7 Sounds \u2192<\/span> [Pinyin]<\/span>\n\t\t\t\u62fc\u97f3)<\/span> as the way forward for the benefit of all, as it deserves to be embraced based on its technical merits, many worldly Chinese people showed a z\u00ecd\u00e0<\/span>\n\t\t\t(z\u00ec\u00b7d\u00e0\n\t\t\t{(consider) selves} \u00b7 {to be big \u2192<\/span> [to be great]}<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\u81ea\u5927)<\/span><\/i> attitude and stuck with the characters that they had personally invested heavily in, and that brought them status and glory in the status quo.<\/p>\n

\n

China relegating _P\u012bny\u012bn_ to being just a pronunciation aid for characters is like a company hiring a talented A player executive and then making that person just get coffee for the CEO, because the established power base\u2019s top priority is to preserve itself\u2014B players in action. https:\/\/t.co\/fNHsBWEsWO<\/a><\/p>\n

— Troubadour WW (@troubadourww) May 15, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n