英语畅谈中国文化50主题 16

　　16. Trendy Shanghai
A: Some MNC employees in Shanghai prefer speaking English than Chinese. Many people disapprove¹ of this phenomenon as a blind worship of western culture.
B: I’m not surprised that this could happen in Shanghai. As a poor city, Shanghai was heavily influenced by western culture, beginning in the 1920s and 1930s.It was called “a paradise of the adventurers”. A lot of western companies opened offices there as trade in commons began to develop. New ideas were brought in, together with the arrival of businessmen and foreigners. Shanghai residence were overwound with important merchandise, foreign languages and jobs in foreign companies. As result, Shanghai people are very open-minded and receptive to new things.
A: I know many westerners like Shanghai because of its cosmopolitan² atmosphere. Shanghai people are smart and pragmatic. They are business-minded and have a high standard of ethics³. For example, you seldom hear people accuse Shanghai taxi drivers of cheating. If you ask Shanghai person for directions, he (she) will show you the most efficient route to your destination.
B: Many new things were initially⁴ introduced to China through Shanghai. In the 1920s, some Shanghai art schools were the first in the country to use human models. Shanghai was also the first city to have movies. In the late 1970s, Shanghai was again among the first cities to send students to study abroad. Shanghai made products such as watches、bicycles and sewing machines and enjoyed a very favorable reputation throughout the country even during the years of central economic planning. This reputation still benefits Shanghai today.
A: People from other cities always feel the Shanghai people are biased⁵ against them.
B: This is indeed very perplexing. A city as open and developed as Shanghai doesn’t have the capacity to accommodate others. In the past, an outsider who didn’t speak the Shanghai dialect was always ignored by the shop assistants. Now, there are more and more MNC employees prefer speaking English. Non-English speakers feel disadvantaged.
A: Some people say Shanghai doesn’t look like a Chinese city. It is more like New York. People used to make that comment in the 1930s. In many ways, Shanghai does look like New York. It is not New York. It is a Chinese city no matter what.

1 disapprove   

v.不赞成，不同意，不批准

参考例句：

• I quite disapprove of his behaviour.我很不赞同他的行为。
• She wants to train for the theatre but her parents disapprove.她想训练自己做戏剧演员，但她的父母不赞成。

2 cosmopolitan   

adj.世界性的，全世界的，四海为家的，全球的

参考例句：

• New York is a highly cosmopolitan city.纽约是一个高度世界性的城市。
• She has a very cosmopolitan outlook on life.她有四海一家的人生观。

3 ethics   

n.伦理学；伦理观，道德标准

参考例句：

• The ethics of his profession don't permit him to do that.他的职业道德不允许他那样做。
• Personal ethics and professional ethics sometimes conflict.个人道德和职业道德有时会相互抵触。

4 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

5 biased   

a.有偏见的

参考例句：

• a school biased towards music and art 一所偏重音乐和艺术的学校
• The Methods: They employed were heavily biased in the gentry's favour. 他们采用的方法严重偏袒中上阶级。