How Putonghua Is Used in Mainland China

Mandarin Chinese is known by many names. In the United Nations, it is known simply as Chinese. In Taiwan, it is called Ã¥Å"‹è ªÅ¾ / å› ½Ã¨ ¯ ­ (guà ³ yÇ”), which means national language. In Singapore, it is known as è  ¯Ã¨ ªÅ¾ / Ã¥ Å½Ã¨ ¯ ­ (huà ¡ yÇ”), which means Chinese language. And in China, it is called æ™ ®Ã©â‚¬Å¡Ã¨ © ± / æ™ ®Ã©â‚¬Å¡Ã¨ ¯  (pÇ” tÃ… ng huà  ), which translates to common language.   Different Names Over Time Historically, Mandarin Chinese was called Ã¥ ®ËœÃ¨ © ±/Ã¥ ®ËœÃ¨ ¯  (guÄ n huà  ), meaning speech of officials, by the Chinese people. The English word mandarin meaning bureaucrat, is derived from Portuguese. The Portuguese word for bureaucratic official was mandarim, so they referred to Ã¥ ®ËœÃ¨ © ±/Ã¥ ®ËœÃ¨ ¯  (guÄ n huà  ) as the language of the mandarims, or mandarim for short. The final m was converted to an n in the English version of this name. Under the Qing Dynasty (æ ¸â€¦Ã¦Å"  - QÄ «ng Chà ¡o), Mandarin was the official language of the Imperial Court and was known as Ã¥Å"‹è ªÅ¾ / å› ½Ã¨ ¯ ­ (guà ³ yÇ”). Since Beijing was the capital of the Qing Dynasty, Mandarin pronunciations are based on the Beijing dialect. After the fall of the Qing Dynasty in 1912, the new Peoples Republic of China (Mainland China) became more strict about having a standardized common language to improve communication and literacy across rural and urban areas. Thus, the name of Chinas official language was rebranded. Instead of calling it national language, Mandarin was now called common language, or æ™ ®Ã©â‚¬Å¡Ã¨ © ± / æ™ ®Ã©â‚¬Å¡Ã¨ ¯  (pÇ” tÃ… ng huà  ), starting in 1955. Putonghua as Common Speech PÇ” tÃ… ng huà   is the official language of The Peoples Republic of China (Mainland China). But pÇ” tÃ… ng huà   is not the only language spoken in China. There are five major language families with a total of up to 250 distinct languages or dialects. This wide divergence intensifies the need for a unifying language that is understood by all Chinese people. Historically, the written language was the unifying source of many of the Chinese languages, since Chinese characters have the same meaning wherever they are used, even though they may be pronounced differently in different regions. The use of a commonly spoken language has been promoted since the rise of the Peoples Republic of China, which established pÇ” tÃ… ng huà   as the language of education throughout the Chinese territory. Putonghua in Hong Kong Macau Cantonese is the official language of both Hong Kong and Macau and is the language spoken by the majority of the population. Since the ceding of these territories (Hong Kong from Britain and Macau from Portugal) to the Peoples Republic of China, pÇ” tÃ… ng huà   has been used as the language of communication between the territories and the PRC. The PRC is promoting greater use of pÇ”tÃ… nghuà   in Hong Kong and Macau by training teachers and other officials. Putonghua in Taiwan The outcome of the Chinese Civil War (1927-1950) saw the Kuomintang (KMT or Chinese Nationalist Party) retreat from Mainland China to the nearby island of Taiwan. Mainland China, under the Maos Peoples Republic of China, saw changes in language policy. Such changes included the introduction of simplified Chinese characters and the official use of the name pÇ” tÃ… ng huà  . Meanwhile, the KMT in Taiwan retained the use of traditional Chinese characters, and the name guà ³ yÇ” continued to be used for the official language. Both practices continue up to the present time. Traditional Chinese characters are also used in Hong Kong, Macau, and many overseas Chinese communities. Putonghua Features PÇ”tÃ… nghuà   has four distinct tones which are used to differentiate homophones. For example, the syllable ma can have four distinct meanings depending on the tone. The grammar of pÇ” tÃ… ng huà   is relatively simple when compared with many European languages. There are no tenses or verb agreements, and the basic sentence structure is subject-verb-object. The use of untranslated particles for clarification and a temporal location is one of the features that make pÇ” tÃ… ng huà   challenging for second-language learners.

Langston Hughes A Man of Truth - 899 Words

Langston Hughes: A Man of Truth The main theme in most of Langston Hughes’s poems is the idea of a dream and the struggles to achieve that dream as an African American. Langston Hughes focuses his writing on the actual experiences and events of the African American working class during the Harlem Renaissance. He describes the struggles that African Americans have to face in following their dreams because of the discrimination and segregation. His writings were looked down upon by many critics, no matter what race. Langston Hughes was an African American poet who wrote of the racism around him despite the critics judging his work during an era known as the Harlem Renaissance. Hughes’s childhood was an extreme struggle. His father left the family just after Hughes was born. His mother struggled to support their little family. â€Å"He spent many years living with various relatives and family friends as his mother traveled in search of work. When she was remarried and secure in 1914, he joined her in Cleveland, Ohio. At Central High School, he proved himself as a student and an athlete, and began writing poetry and short fiction for the schools literary magazine† (â€Å"Langston Hughes† Exploring Short Stories). Critics of his time suggested that because of his father’s absence, Hughes was so bitter about the reality of life and following dreams. Hughes first began writing in a magazine called The Crisis, â€Å"a magazine published by the NAACP and one of the cornerstones ofShow MoreRelatedA Brief Look at Langston Hughes1413 Words   |  6 PagesLangston Hughes Langston Hughes’ challenging background, ethnicity, and era of life can all be thought of reasons as to why his style of writing relates among discrimination and unsettling topics. Although his writing can be said to bring hope to the African Americans, his style can be frightening and daunting when taken the time to read his pieces. 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Semple In the early 1940s an African American writer by the name of Langston Hughes, who flourished during the Harlem Renaissance in New York, had established a character in his short story writings named Jesse B. Semple. Through these short stories he used this character to represent the black man of his times. However the question remains, is Jesse B. Semple an accurate representation of the black man of 1940s? This question can best be answered by looking at theRead MoreEssay on Langston Hughes and Jesse B. Simple1074 Words   |  5 Pages â€Å"Lansgton Hughes and Jesse B. Semple† In the early 1940s an African American writer by the name of Langston Hughes, who flourished during the Harlem Renaissance in New York, had established a character in his short story writings named Jesse B. Semple. Through these short stories he used this character to represent the black man of his times. However the question remains, is Jesse B. Semple an accurate representation of the black man of 1940s? 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Ged Language Arts Essay Example For Students

Ged Language Arts Essay The talent the students had shown were so professional, I was absolutely blown away by the beautiful and incredibly powerful voices that made this opera come to life on stage. The acting was well portrayed and the individuals who played the lead roles did an excellent job of connecting with their characters to connect the audience with their characters. After reading Brochettes chapter on theatre, he made a statement that As in life, it is through listening and watching that we come to know characters both externally and internally. What we learn about their minds, personalities, and motivations come from what they say and do and from what others tell us about them. Thus we absorb a theatrical performance the way we do a scene from real life. . In my experience with the audience, it made the opera more enjoyable knowing that the audience around me were all connecting in similar ways to the play and actors through the joyfulness, laughter, and temporary sadness. The more an audience enjoys the performance, the most likely it will be for anyone else around them to also enjoy it. Just as Tolstoy mentions in his writing of What is Art? He says it is this capacity of man to receive another mans expression of feeling, and experience those feelings himself, that the activity of art is based, On the night which I attended, this was the case. Much of the audience simply responded to the humor and sadness the opera produced, and from that some people in the audience could not help but laugh or empathic when other members of the audience were doing 50, Throughout the performance, found myself easily connected and excited bout the action taking place on stage simply because I have a love for musical talent and the theatre itself. As said before, the talent of these students blew me away! While the storyline was wonderful, it was hard not to admire the hard work of vocal and performing practice each of the actors had put in to this performance to make it come to life on that stage. As Bracket says, art lifts us above the everyday fray and gives us something like a gods-eye view of experience. and that is exactly what this performance did. After viewing the opera and batching the set of events take place, I would say the flap. Rights purpose was to keep the audience light and happy, yet, have them empathic with the main characters. If there were any question the opera could have been asking its audience, would say that question would be: far Will one go for the one they love? Prince Taming proved his love and dedication to Panama by following all the rules he was told, such as not speaking to her when she came into his presence, just so he could have her back forever. This of course upset Panama because she did not realize what was going on at the time, but in the end realized that he did it all for their love. We are accustomed to understand art to be only what we hear and see in theaters, concerts, and exhibitions; together with buildings, statues, poems, novels But all this is but the smallest part tooth art by which we communicate with each other in life. All human life is filled with works of art of every kind from cradle-song, jest, mimicry Etc. It is all artistic activity. So that by art, in the emitted sense of the word, we do not mean all human activity transmit feelings, but only that part which we for some reason select from it and to which we attach special importance, -Tolstoy, What is Art? , If there was anything to take away from this opera that is applicable to life, would say it would teach one that when you love someone, the love you possess for that other person will overcome the knowledge you possess, and that if you are really pursuing something Or someone, stay true to your heart and follow Where ever the crazy path of life takes you. No matter how insane may be.