Asian Film Festival

[clay dube]

I hope we can expand the discussion of this film. The book, her second, brought Pearl Buck the Nobel Prize for Literature at a relatively young age. It and the film helped to mobilize American popular opinion to support China in its war with Japan. And it provided enduring images of rural Chinese life.

Of course, in some circles it is considered offensive. Many Chinese Americans take particular offense at representations of Chinese speech, naming practices, and so on. My wife, on the other hand, loved the book so much she read it twice and then devoured the two other volumes in the trilogy (she didn't care for them nearly as much). Buck spoke Chinese well and may have produced an idealized vision of the countryside and its people, but to many the ideas expressed ring true.

Incidentally, every teacher will recognize the scene in the book (I don't think it is in the film) where Wang Lung (Wang Long in pinyin romanization) brings his two sons to the teacher and says something to the effect of -- try to beat some knowledge into them. The more you beat them, the happier I will be.

The Good Earth was among the books I assigned for one of the courses I taught at Berea College, "American Images of East Asia."

[Anonymous]

The film "Not One Less" is quite different from other Chinese films that I'v seen.
While the others often had lush and evocative imagery, the storylines were nearly always
quite tragic. "Not One Less" is a much simpler film, and while it is at times heartbreaking, it is also quite inspirational.

The film begins with a teacher, Gao, at a small one room village school having to leave to visit a sick relative. The down-to-earth mayor of this little village can't find anyone to substitue for a month except a 13 year old girl, Wei Mingzhi, who is mainly interested in the 50 yuan that the mayor promises she will be paid. The plain realism of the film is evident in one of the first scenes as teacher Gao explains to Wei what she should do while he is gone.
Every teacher and parent will immediately recognize the bored and and apathetic reception that Wei gives to Gao's directions. It also shows though, how dedicated this rural teacher is to his young students. Wei follows Gao's directions rather half-heartedly, each day filling the chalkboard with lessons for the students to copy, during which time the students completely ignore her and play around in the classroom (another rather too familiar bit of realism that most teachers have experienced at least sometime in their career.) Wei shows little concern for any of this until an incident makes her think differently. One of the biggest troublemakers is an always smiling, mischievous 8 year old boy named Zhang Huike. As one of the older students, and being a boy, he often has fun by bothering the other students, especially the girls. One day he causes a ruckus by running around the room with one of the girl's diaries that he says has bad things in it about teacher Wei. Wei makes him read it out loud. The simple way this scene is played out not only pulls on the viewer's heartstrings but also shows clearly how little these children have in their lives, and how precious that little is to them.

All of the 15 or so students sleep at the school, the boys in the classroom, and the girls with Wei in the little teacher's room in the back. One day Wei wakes up and finds that Zhang is gone. She finds out that his family has come and sent him to city to work, since his father had died and they are deep in debt. Wei is determined to find him. This is partly because Gao had told her that ten students have already left, and that she would only get paid if there were "not one less" student when he gets back. But, as we find out, she is also very determined because she now cares about the students. However, she has to get money for the long bus ride to the city. The scenes where she enlists the students first to figure out how much money she will need, and later to actually do some work at a nearby brick factory, have a wonderfully touching childish purity to them. These scenes, and some of the ones leading up to them would be great to show to students. Though the characters are speaking
Chinese in a rural schoolhouse, our students would ,I think, instantly identify with the students and the behaviors in the class. Because of this, our students would be able to personalize and understand the plight of these Chinese students, and be more open to appreciate the differences they see rather than dismissing them as weird or alien. Also, our students will be able to see how much of what they learn in school has real applications to the non- school world.

In fact, Wei uses all the limited knowledge and skills she has when she eventually gets to the city and tries many ways to find Zhang Huike. Though the city is a crowded, strange new world for Wei, she is not deterred in her mission, and bravely persists even when everything she tries seems to be of no use. Her interaction with another young girl and with a few other adults, some cynical, some supportive, are other joys to watch, and illumine as much about human nature as they do about contemporary China. Throughout the film the acting, mostly by young children, is marvelously natural and disarming, especially the expressive face of the young girl who plays the always taciturn Wei Mingzhi. According to the credits, the actors were all actual students and citizens of this little village in China. That may be a fictional conceit for the film (I have seen such in American films.) but whatever the case, the heartwarming simplicity of the acting, story, and direction make this a highly enjoyable film to see, and a good resource for the classroom. (p.s., if you're a sucker for movies like me, have plenty of tissue nearby.)

[Anonymous]

The movie "Together," directed by Chen Kaige is a drama, based during modern day China. It is a touching story about the relationship of a thirteen yeard old boy, Xiaochun and his humble father, Cheng. Xioachun is a violin prodigy whose talent is much revered in the small town that they live in. Xiaochun's father wanted the best for his son's future as a violinist and so they moved to the big city of Beijing, in search for a great violin teacher. Xiaochun's father saved his hard earned money in a small orange beanie, which he wore thrroughout the movie. Once in Beijing, Cheng finds his son a violin teacher, who taught Xiaochun that a great musician doesn't just play the notes but plays it with feeling.

In the of Beijing, Xiaochun and his father encounter the changes one would go through living in a metropolitan city. Xiaochun meets what seems to be his one and only friend, a callgirl with whom he experiences love for the first time. Xiaochun and Chen also experiece the reality of politics and bribery in their quest to obtain a top quality teacher. As Xiaochun's ablitiy to create woinderful music increases, his future appeared to be at a standstill since his teacher, Professor Jiang had no connections to the entertainment world. Chen then finds Professor Shifeng, who has the connections and talent to open doors for Xiaochun. It is during this time, when Xiaochun's outlook on his father has changed.

This is a definite must see for those who are into dramas. "Together," will draw out a mixture of emotions making you feel, appreicative, upset, sympathetic, joyous, and hopeful.

[Anonymous]

Dear Friends,
Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl is a film that moved me deeply. I had hoped that by watching it again I could think of a way to cut the sexual scenes that make it R rated so that parts of it could be used in the classroom. Seeing it again, I just don’t think it can work in the classroom. I did want to say a little about it because I think it’s beautifully made.
Joan Chen, a Chinese actress now living in America, (and not getting enough good parts) directed and co-wrote the script which is based on a novella by Yan Geling. It was filmed in China, without government permission, and is banned there.
Xiu Xiu, played beautifully by a young actress named LuLu, is one of nearly eight million youths who were "sent down" to China's hinterlands, during the Cultural Revolution, to be trained for manual labor. The idea was that the "educated youth" would learn proletarian values before they were returned home to be placed in schools or jobs. In reality many of these children were simply lost, forgotten by the bureaucracy unless their parents had the money or the connections to arrange for their return.
Charming, spoiled, and childlike, Xiu Xiu is dearly loved by Lao Jin, (portrayed by Lopsang) the lonely Tibetan horse breeder to whom she is apprenticed after her first year of training. Emasculated about 20 years before in a tribal war, he has lived an isolated life. Clearly and sweetly he delights in her presence, happy to surprise her with such small luxuries as an outdoor tub, dug into the hillside and lined with plastic. He doesn't even seem to mind her condescension and occasional small cruelties. When her 6-month apprenticeship is up, however, and it becomes increasingly apparent that she has been forgotten by "Headquarters", he is impotent to assuage her despair or curb her increasingly self destructive and hopeless attempts to get those "connections" which will allow her to go home. This is beautifuly shot, brilliantly acted, tragic love story. I think you will love it. Lou [Edit by="lwilliams on Aug 18, 12:24:10 PM"][/Edit]

[Anonymous]

Review: The Story of Qui Ju/ directed by Zhang Yimou/ staring the not-so-luminous-in this-one, Gong Li in the title role. 1995 (100min.)
The opening scene in this subtly funny, slice of life story is a series of medium, close and long shots of Chinese peasants thronging an urban street. People of all ages come into frame walking, pushing or riding bicycles, wagons, and carts. With such a beginning, one begins to search for the “real” actors among the crowds of unselfconscious extras (or could this have been footage of a real street scene?) who are talking, nose picking, worrying, hurrying, or idling down the street. Even though the camera revisited her more than once, I didn’t recognize the beautiful star from Raise the Red Lantern. Gong Li becomes, in the role Qui Ju, a stoic, clumsily pregnant, humorlessly single-minded and quixotically stubborn, peasant woman, probably the worst dresser in the Eastern world. By the time she and her equally stoic sister-in-law (portrayed with an uncrackable poker face by Linchun Yang) arrive in the big city, hopelessly hick and clinging to each other for support, one is totally charmed by them both.

After the village chief kicks her husband in the groin Qiu Ju seeks an apology, first from the chief himself. When he refuses, she goes over his head to the village level; then, to the district; then, to the big city. When each bureaucrat essentially supports the decision of the one before (she is granted a monetary reimbursement but no apology) she hires a lawyer and takes the case to court. By this time, her baby is nearly due, and even her husband is furious at her inability to let the issue go, but Qiu Ju is on a quest for justice - or is it for honor? The issue of saving face comes up a lot, and one begins to suspect that both the chief and Qiu Ju have a lot in common when it comes to personal pride.

The movie suggests many applications for Middle School and High School students. Rather than show the whole video in one sitting, I would use short segments as prompts to writing or as prereading. For instance, the first five minutes could be playing as students take their seats with a dispatch (do we still use that term?) on the overhead to this effect:
We’ve all had the experience of a trip to the doctor’s office. Watch this 5 minute clip then’ make a list of ways in which this doctor visit differs from your experience. You’ll have 5 minutes. Hint; You can consider transportation, doctor’s office, procedures and…
After discussing or making a cluster of the ideas from student lists, have them write an essay contrasting their doctor visit with the one, which opens the film. Other scenes that could be treated in this way include interiors of Chinese rural houses and household rituals, city hotels, entertainment venues, and more.
There is a darling scene in the village headquarters in which two young people are requesting a marriage license and enduring the good natured, if condescending, teasing of the officials with exquisite, neck twisting, embarrassment. This would surely spark discussion about differences in courtship/marriage practices. Some students may pick up on the condescension and get into a deeper discussion of s hierarchies in “classless” societies.
The theme most likely to engage the students I taught at Bell High would be that of honor. Qiu Ju’s husband disrespected the chief. The chief injured him, and by refusing to apologize, disrespected the whole family. My students would have strong opinions regarding the appropriateness of the chief’s response (quick and violent) versus Qiu Ju’s dogged determination to settle things by the book. I can imagine persuasive essays on both sides. At least some students would, after class discussion, certainly reflect more objectively upon the gang-influenced culture of violence in response to perceived insult.

Toward the end of the movie, there is a courtroom scene after which Qui Ju is led to expect vindication. It would be fun to have two students present impromptu speeches on behalf of the chief and Qui Ju respectively before showing the response of the court.
Perhaps the most important lessons learned, though, will be about Chinese culture provided by the rich details of daily life incidental to every scene in the movie.

Notes on the video cover call Qiu Ju’s, “a universal battle against bureaucracy and indifference.” I don’t think that was the film’s intent. The only unrealistic characters were the uniformly courteous, kind, and thoughtful bureaucrats Qiu Ju dealt with. Even when they didn’t give her the judgment she sought, they always took her seriously, adjudicated promptly, informed her scrupulously of her next step should she disagree, and tried to bring about self-criticism for both parties. The District Court took her case so seriously that two officers were immediately sent out from the city to investigate. If only I could meet such bureaucratic paragons at the DMV! The surprising end of the movie is no triumph for anyone. In fact, it is not a neat commercial ending. it will bring up more ethical issues than it answers.

[Anonymous]

Movie Review by Jason Firestein
“Mishima: A Life in Four Parts”

I was excited to view this film, because Yukio Mishima’s writings are so impressive. I use one of his short stories in my class, and my kids respond very well to it. The film was produced by Francis Ford Coppola and George Lucas for an Asian market; it was not released in America. In an interview Coppola gives to an Asian press junkit, he describes the film as an effort to make as extraordinary a film as is warranted for such an amazing person. Mishima himself is truly an extraordinary political, artistic, and personal character. My kids were absolutely mystified with his personal story, culminating in his own ritual suicide after having taken over a military base with four of his students. I had high expectations for the film and its use in the classroom, especially given the producers. I was sadly disappointed,

“Mishima: A Life in Four Parts” is as artistic a film as Mishima’s writings. It’s convention of storytelling, reliving the last day of Mishima’s life, is broken up by four chapters: Fall, Spring, Summer, Winter. The chapters shed light on Mishima’s life and the formation of his political, sexual, familial, and creative identities. I’m afraid that my kids would find the film “too artsy.” As an adult, I could appreciate the director’s choices, conducting much of the four chapters almost like operatic vignettes. However, I found myself a little impatient with this format. I knew what they wanted to express - a life of turmoil, triumph, and achievement - but I feel it’s just not suited for a high school audience.

[Anonymous]

For this project, I selected The King of Masks based solely on the cover of the box. I found the film at Blockbuster, in Mandarin with English subs. It was made in 1996 and directed by Wu Tian-Ming.

The reason this film appealed to me was that it deals with the topic of gender. I found the film to be interesting, beautiful, and moving. I recommend it for the classroom as there is no sex or violence. It's unrated.

The story is set up when an old street performer impresses and then meets a female impersonator from the Sichuan Opera. The film is set in the 1930s and shows the Western influence that was a part of China's upper class before the Cultural Revolution. Wang, the King of Masks, is moved by this meeting to seek an heir for his skills--but it must be a boy. I think that students will be touched by the scenes of parents selling their children because they can't feed them.

Needless to say, Wang purchases a girl (Doggie) who hides her gender for as long as she can. The inevitable truth is poignantly revealed. The consequenses aren't predictable, which is one of the things that I like about this movie. It has a happy ending, but I went through some Kleenex getting there.

Some ways to use this film in the classroom:

History and SS analysis skills-Historical interpretation #3--Analyzing within the context versus in terms of modern norms and values. This will give students a basis for questioning their own feelings about gender.

Use with topics of gender, child labor, economics, Cultural Revolution, Chinese Opera, Buddhism.

L/A Writing Applications- Write a movie review based on standard 1.2 "using precise language, action verbs, sensory details", etc.

L/A 10.1.3 Pose a clear question and use suitable methods to elicit and present evidence from primary and secondary sources. This film could generate many research topics for students.
Write a biography about Wang's early life, or about Doggie's later life outside of what was portrayed in the film.

Hold a Moot Court for Wang. L/A 10.2.4 Write, using specific rhetorical devices, to pursuade the reader of Wang's innocence or guilt.

L/A Speaking Applications- I found many ways this film could be used as the basis of lessons dealing with speaking in grades 9-12. I think it has application in lower grades too, although I don't work with those age groups. Some examples:
2.1 give narrative presentations showing sequence and significance of events
2.2 deliver expository presentations using exerpts and interpret them
2.5 deliver persuasive arguements (Again, this could be on the aforementioned topics.)
2.6 deliver descriptive presentations

For 11/12 graders, Standard 2.4 includes multimedia presentations, including the use of a wide range of media. A student could use clips from the film in a presentation about religion, lifestyle, economic conditions, opera, etc.

I recommend a firm grasp of where you want the lesson to go before showing the film in class. There are so many topics and levels that can be addressed, that I think students will benefit from a focused discussion. Mine would anyway. They would be so obsessed with how Wang's magic with masks was performed that they would lose other aspects of the film.

Enjoy,
Edie

[Anonymous]

I watched a Korean movie called Toward Home. I watched it in Korean so I think that is what it would be called in English. I heard that it won an award.

The movie is about a young boy who ends up spending some time with his maternal grandmother in the countryside who he meets for the first time because his single mother is having difficulty taking care of him as well Textas earning a living. The story does not go into much detail, but it's understood that she is going to make some money and then come back for him. So she packs his bags with food and toys that he likes and leaves him at her mother's.

On the way to his grandmother's, the boy's mother tells him that his grandmother is very old, poor, and a mute. So when he is left with his grandmother, he treats her very badly. He writes on her walls that she is stupid, draws his depiction of his grandmother on her walls, throws away her shoes, tries to sell her hair accessory, throws tantrums when he does not get her way, is embarrassed to be seen with her so he refuses to allow her to take the same bus as he when coming home from the marketplace, etc. But despite all of the misery he brings to her life, she never stops treating him as she would treat herself.

Finally, the boy comes around and realizes his grandmother's unconditional love for him. He ends up worrying that she will become ill and that there will be no one to take care of her because she cannot ask anyone for help since she is a mute. So he draws a picture of his grandmother ill in bed on a postcard and tells her to mail it to him when she becomes ill so that he can come to take care of her.

I truly enjoyed watching this movie. In the beginning, I hated the boy but I kept watching knowing that the movie would end with his love for his grandmother. It was heartwarming and a tear jerker.

This movie could be used in any number of ways in the classroom. It could be used simply to talk about conflict between characters and how it is expressed between them. It could be used to talk about the concept of love and the various kinds there are, and how it happens to be expressed in this movie. Another possibility is the widening gap between generations as well as between those who live in the cities versus the countryside. For example, one day, the boy decides that he wants Kentucky Fried Chicken, so he tells his grandmother what he wants. But the grandmother does not know what Kentucky Fried Chicken is. The boy is at first disappointed, but he finds another way to communicate with her by mimicking that of a chicken. The grandmother immediately understands and comes back with a live chicken instead of chicken fried in batter. Finding her grandson asleep, she prepares it the only way she knows how which is by boiling it.

Most of all, I appreciated the movie because of the universal qualities that it holds. Though I watched the movie in Korean, I think anyone could relate and understand what is going on in terms of the plot not only because there is not much dialogue, but because of the bond that can be created between any people even if they just met.

[Anonymous]

The film I'm reviewing is "The Good Earth" starring Paul Muni as Wang Lung and Luise Rainer as O-Lan. Rainer won the Academy Award for Best Actress in this role in 1937.

This film chronicles the lives of peasant farmers as they struggle to bring in a harvest each season large enough to last through the winter. They survive famine and a mass exodus south to a life of urban poverty before returning and ultimately rising to become wealthy landowners.

Neo-Confucianism guides the development of this storyline as we find elements of Taoism, Confucianism and Buddhism weaved throughout the movie. At the outset, we are presented with a picture of the perfect Taoist family. After Wang Lung takes home his new wife O-Lan, immediately we see the juxtaposition of yin and yang, each a complement to the other. She is feminine, passive, docile, dark, negative and receptive. By contrast, he is masculine, outgoing, authoritarian, light and bright, positive and scrutinizing.

She epitomizes Mother Earth, even planting the first seed of life she encounters on the first day of their life together. Never one to stand in the way of a lifecycle, after eating a peach she plants the pit. On their wheat farm, they map their lives according to the cycles of the seasons and they live in balance with nature and each other. They embark on a simple, natural, happy existence together in harmony with the Tao.

Of course, they are poor and the work is tough. This is excellently portrayed by the set designers, cinematographer and actors. You really get a sense of the physical toll on the body of farm work. However, they are able to buy more land and produce more. As long as they stay connected to their land, they won't upset the natural balance of yin and yang and can continue their simple, happy, spiritually nourishing life.

One year the harvest is lost and there is a great famine. When faced with the choice between selling the land and traveling south, Wang Lung chooses to join the exodus. They face a hard journey but hope to return to their land later. The couple, with his father and their three kids, endure poverty, hunger, illness, riots and political upheaval in the South. However, when Mother Earth (O-Lan) rises from being trampled by rioters, she finds a bag of jewels. This enables the family to finally return to their land and start over.

They have many good years and they acquire more land. Eventually, Wang Lung becomes so wealthy that he buys "The Gray House", becoming the Lord of the house. (same house where O-Lan was a kitchen-slave before becoming his wife) He becomes consumed with his new, elevated status and disconnects from the land, leaving its management to his sons and employees. He begins to betray his family first by shaming his wife for not displaying the outward trappings of wealth and then by taking a second wife. The second wife is shallow, but displays fine clothes, plays music, sings and wears make-up.

Confucianism is an ethical and political system based on the Chinese family structure that dictates how family life is conducted. Riddled with greed and arrogance, Wang Lung wields his status and power in ways that defy Confucian teachings. If we compare Wang Lung's business empire to that of a government or kingdom, then he is headed for chaos. In Confucian thought, men are to strive for ethical and intellectual superiority and only such cultivation can make them a Chun-tzu (a gentleman). These are the men who enter politics and have the requisite virtues enabling them to govern. The most important quality that for Confucius defines the "superior man" is jen (benevolence, love, goodness). A government based on jen is ideal for it focuses on social welfare and meets basic needs of the citizenry. This humane system leads to social order naturally, with no coercion necessary.

When Wang Lung becomes a Lord, he mistreats his wife, sons and employees. He develops an appetite for all things superficial and hedonistic. He ridicules, disparages and condescends. He does not govern his empire with the benevolence (jen) taught by Confucius. He has just learned that his second wife seduced his second son and he has cut ties with them and with a trusted friend/employee who informed him. Then the locusts come and threaten to destroy all his crops. All of a sudden, everyone rushes out together to put a plan into action to save the crop and drive away the locusts. It's a very dramatic, graphic, exhausting effort. It forces Wang Lung to go to his land and work hard to save it and witness the entire community coming together (including his estranged son and friend) to save the fields.

A dramatic metamorphosis occurs in Wang Lung. He realizes the chaos his life has become living as a Lord in the big house so he sells it and returns to the house on the land and to O-Lan. (2nd wife is out of the picture now) His return to the land symbolizes his return to an orderly, moral life. He falls back into the proper Confucian order of family life. Filial piety has returned as he treats his father better. Also, benevolence to his sons restores their filial piety. He feels great love for O-Lan and recognizes her as the force producing the bounty of their land. His return to the land restores balance between yin and yang and once again they live harmoniously with each other and the Earth.

O-Lan however, has been weakened over the years by hard labor, child birth, betrayal and being trampled. After the wedding of her son, she dies after Wang Lung professes his love and devotion. After her death, Wang Lung walks out to the peach tree she planted the day they met and says, "O-Lan, you are Mother Earth." How appropriate to end on a Taoist belief in the cyclical nature of life...as O-Lan returns to her natural place in the universe.

I thought it was interesting how they continued to make O-Lan look dark and somber, even when times were good. This Taoist notion of the woman always being in a dark, negative space was accomplished through make-up and lighting and it served to keep her in the background even if compositionally she was in the foreground. She was always yin, even when he was not yang. She stayed connected to the Earth, always. In contrast, the second wife was a very lit up, positive, outgoing force who defied the laws of yin and yang. Chaos ensued and it was only when Wang Lung realigned himself with O-Lan could the natural order of the universe be restored.

[Anonymous]

Clay, you mention in a previous posting that those who read "The Good Earth" will remember a scene in which he tells a teacher to beat his sons.....well that reminds me of a question I wanted to ask you.

All through the movie, when people received any kind of compliment, they immediately fired back a self-deprecating remark about themselves or a belittling remark about a family member. For example, a businessman compliments him on his hard-working, successful sons and he says something like, "They are stupid...I had to beat them to get them like this."

The man calls his daughter "wretched" when proposing that she marry his son.

WHAT IS THIS ABOUT? I find nothing in my readings about Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism to explain this cultural phenomenon!

Thanks,
Mehgan Manes

PS I loved seeing our picture at the website...I sent it to friends all over the world.

[clay dube]

Hi Mehgan and Everyone,

You have a good ear! Throughout East Asia (and I think in SE Asia as well), the norm is to respond to any compliment with "Who, me?" or the equivalent. One says, what is your honorable name (in Chinese, Nin gui xing?)? And in earlier times one responded with, my humble name is.... In contemporary China, people still ask for your honorable name, but most respond without the humble part. Still, when someone says "you do XX well," one responds with "where? how?" in an incredulous tone. The multicourse meal is introduced with "I'm sorry for this poor food, we didn't have time...." One's spouse and children get similar intros. As Mehgan noted, "this is my stupid kid"....

A couple of points:

1. In 21st century American English we sometimes engage in this as well. "Here's a small token of our appreciation..." (and the envelope may have a nice check in it!) "Nice outfit!" - "This? Everything else was dirty!" [Please note that one won't find this present in advertising or politics!]

2. Some Chinese norms of exchange have changed over the 7 decades since Pearl Buck wrote of Wang Long. And the impact of the me-centered one child family generation has only begun to be felt. More changes are coming. Still, the expectation is that the civilized person, the cultured person takes modesty to be an important virtue. And, of course, among friends this sort of polite ritual was and is largely ignored. Teasing and taunting are common among schoolmates and friends.

Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism all value humility. Confucianism probably predates the others and due to its stress on internalizing the values conveyed through ritual (including simple rituals such as greetings) affirmed the group-centeredness and hierarchical consciousness already present in (what we now call) China. And Confucius, while a bit boastful at times, always said something such as "Walking with two other people, I am certain to be able to learn something important from at least one of them." (Every person had the capacity to teach the Sage! Or, perhaps it is still a bit of a boast -- "I'm such a sharp student I can learn from anyone!")

And it isn't just that humility is valued. There's also a cautionary note about the bad things that may come to those who put themselves first. What do you think Chinese, Japanese, and Koreans mean when they repeat a variation of "The tallest tree attracts the wind" or "A nail that sticks out gets hammered down"?

smiling,
clay

PS Thanks for sending the photo (or the web address) to your friends. I'm rather fond of the group shot on the last photo page myself. I love all the smiles -- you weren't all laughing at my shortcomings as a photographer were you?

Please do spread the word about any of the resources on our site that you find useful.

[Author]

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