Jeg blev trænet til at være gymnast i to år i Hunan, Kina i 1970'erne. Da jeg gik i første klasse, ville regeringen flytte mig til at en skole for atleter, med alle udgifter betalt. Men min tigermor sagde, "Nej." Mine forældre ville have at jeg blev en ingeniør ligesom dem. Efter at have overlevet Kulturrevolutionen, troede de de fuldt og fast på at der kun var en sikker vej til lykke: et sikkert og godt betalt job. Det er ikke vigtigt om man kan lide jobbet eller ej.
So I was trained to become a gymnast for two years in Hunan, China in the 1970s. When I was in the first grade, the government wanted to transfer me to a school for athletes, all expenses paid. But my tiger mother said, "No." My parents wanted me to become an engineer like them. After surviving the Cultural Revolution, they firmly believed there's only one sure way to happiness: a safe and well-paid job. It is not important if I like the job or not.
Men min drøm var at blive en kinesisk operasanger. Det er mig der spiller på mit indbildte klaver. En operasanger skal begynde at træne som ung for at lære akrobatik, så jeg gjorde alt hvad jeg kunne for at gå på operaskole. Jeg skrev endda til skolens rektor og værten på et radioprogram. Men ingen voksne synes om ideen. Ingen voksne troede på jeg mente det alvorligt. Kun mine venner støttede mig, men de var børn, og lige så magtesløse som jeg var. I en alder af 15, vidste jeg at jeg var for gammel til at blive trænet. Min drøm ville aldrig gå i opfyldelse. Jeg var bange for, at jeg i resten af mit liv kun kunne håbe på en eller anden form for andenklasses lykke.
But my dream was to become a Chinese opera singer. That is me playing my imaginary piano. An opera singer must start training young to learn acrobatics, so I tried everything I could to go to opera school. I even wrote to the school principal and the host of a radio show. But no adults liked the idea. No adults believed I was serious. Only my friends supported me, but they were kids, just as powerless as I was. So at age 15, I knew I was too old to be trained. My dream would never come true. I was afraid that for the rest of my life some second-class happiness would be the best I could hope for.
Men det er så uretfærdigt. Så jeg var fast besluttet på at finde et andet kald. Ingen der kunne undervise mig? Fint. Jeg vendte mig mod bøger.
But that's so unfair. So I was determined to find another calling. Nobody around to teach me? Fine. I turned to books.
Jeg tilfredsstillede min sult for forældreråd fra denne bog af en familie af forfattere og musikere. ["Correspondence in the Family of Fou Lei"]
I satisfied my hunger for parental advice from this book by a family of writers and musicians.["Correspondence in the Family of Fou Lei"]
Jeg fandt min rollemodel på en uafhængig kvinde da konfusiansk tradition kræver lydighed. ["Jane Eyre"]
I found my role model of an independent woman when Confucian tradition requires obedience.["Jane Eyre"]
Og jeg lærte at blive effektiv fra denne bog. ["Det Vilde Dusin"]
And I learned to be efficient from this book.["Cheaper by the Dozen"]
Og jeg blev inspireret til at læse i udlandet efter at have læst disse.
And I was inspired to study abroad after reading these.
["Complete Works of Sanmao" (alias Echo Chan)] ["Lessons From History" af Nan Huaijin]
["Complete Works of Sanmao" (aka Echo Chan)] ["Lessons From History" by Nan Huaijin]
Jeg kom til Amerika i 1995, så hvilke bøger læste jeg her først? Bøger der var forbudte i Kina, selvfølgelig. "The Good Earth" handler om livet som kinesisk bonde. Den er bare ikke praktisk til propaganda. Modtaget. Biblen er interessant, men mærkelig. (Latter) Det er et emne til en anden dag. Men det femte bud gav mig en åbenbaring: "Ær din far og din mor." "Ære," sagde jeg. "Det er så anderledes, og bedre, end adlyde." Så det bliver mit værktøj til at klatre ud af denne konfusianske skyldfælde og genstarte mit forhold til mine forældre.
I came to the U.S. in 1995, so which books did I read here first? Books banned in China, of course. "The Good Earth" is about Chinese peasant life. That's just not convenient for propaganda. Got it. The Bible is interesting, but strange. (Laughter) That's a topic for a different day. But the fifth commandment gave me an epiphany: "You shall honor your father and mother." "Honor," I said. "That's so different, and better, than obey." So it becomes my tool to climb out of this Confucian guilt trap and to restart my relationship with my parents.
At møde en ny kultur startede også min vane med komparativ læsning. Det tilbyder megen indsigt. For eksempel synes jeg at dette kort var fejlplaceret fordi dette er hvad kinesiske studerende vokser op med. Det var aldrig gået op for mig, at Kina ikke behøver at være verdens centrum. Et kort medbringer faktisk ens synspunkt. Komparativ læsning er faktisk ikke noget nyt. Det er almen praksis i den akademiske verden. Der er endda forskningsområder såsom komparativ religion og komparativ litteratur.
Encountering a new culture also started my habit of comparative reading. It offers many insights. For example, I found this map out of place at first because this is what Chinese students grew up with. It had never occurred to me, China doesn't have to be at the center of the world. A map actually carries somebody's view. Comparative reading actually is nothing new. It's a standard practice in the academic world. There are even research fields such as comparative religion and comparative literature.
Sammenligning og kontrast giver lærde en mere fuldstændig forståelse af et emne. Så jeg tænkte, jamen, hvis komparativ læsning fungerer for forskning, hvorfor ikke gøre det i hverdagen også? Så jeg begyndte at læse bøger parvis. De kan handle om mennesker -- ["Benjamin Franklin" af Walter Isaacson] ["John Adams" af David McCullough] -- der er involveret i den samme begivenhed, eller venner med en delt oplevelse. ["Personal History" af Katharine Graham] ["The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life," af Alice Schroeder] Jeg sammenligner også den samme historie i forskellige genrer -- (Latter) [Holy Bible: King James Version] ["Lamb" af Chrisopher Moore] -- eller lignende historie fra forskellige kulturer, som Joseph Campbell gjorde i sin vidunderlige bog. ["The Power of Myth" af Joseph Campbell] For eksempel, gik både Kristus og Buddha gennem tre fristelser. For Kristus, var fristelserne økonomiske, politiske og spirituelle. For Buddha, er de alle psykologiske: Begær, frygt og social pligt -- interessant.
Compare and contrast gives scholars a more complete understanding of a topic. So I thought, well, if comparative reading works for research, why not do it in daily life too? So I started reading books in pairs. So they can be about people -- ["Benjamin Franklin" by Walter Isaacson]["John Adams" by David McCullough] -- who are involved in the same event, or friends with shared experiences. ["Personal History" by Katharine Graham]["The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life," by Alice Schroeder] I also compare the same stories in different genres -- (Laughter) [Holy Bible: King James Version]["Lamb" by Chrisopher Moore] -- or similar stories from different cultures, as Joseph Campbell did in his wonderful book.["The Power of Myth" by Joseph Campbell] For example, both the Christ and the Buddha went through three temptations. For the Christ, the temptations are economic, political and spiritual. For the Buddha, they are all psychological: lust, fear and social duty -- interesting.
Hvis man kender et fremmedsprog, er det også sjovt når man læser sine yndlingsbøger på to sprog. ["The Way of Chuang Tzu" Thomas Merton] ["Tao: The Watercourse Way" Alan Watts] I stedet for at blive tabt i oversættelsen, fandt jeg ud af at der er meget at vinde. For eksempel, er det gennem oversættelsen at jeg blev klar over at "lykke" på kinesisk bogstavelig talt betyder "hurtig glæde." Huh! "Brud" på kinesisk betyder bogstavelig talt "ny moder." Uh-oh. (Latter)
So if you know a foreign language, it's also fun to read your favorite books in two languages. ["The Way of Chuang Tzu" Thomas Merton]["Tao: The Watercourse Way" Alan Watts] Instead of lost in translation, I found there is much to gain. For example, it's through translation that I realized "happiness" in Chinese literally means "fast joy." Huh! "Bride" in Chinese literally means "new mother." Uh-oh. (Laughter)
Bøger har givet mig en magisk portal til at forbinde sig med mennesker fra fortiden og fremtiden. Jeg ved jeg aldrig kommer til at føle mig ensom eller magtesløs igen. At få ødelagt en drøm er i virkeligheden ingenting sammenlignet med hvad mange andre har gennemgået. Jeg er begyndt at tro på at det ikke er det eneste formål med en drøm. Dets vigtigste formål er at få os i kontakt med der hvor drømmene kommer fra, hvor passionen kommer fra, hvor lykken kommer fra. Selv en ødelagt drøm kan gøre det for en.
Books have given me a magic portal to connect with people of the past and the present. I know I shall never feel lonely or powerless again. Having a dream shattered really is nothing compared to what many others have suffered. I have come to believe that coming true is not the only purpose of a dream. Its most important purpose is to get us in touch with where dreams come from, where passion comes from, where happiness comes from. Even a shattered dream can do that for you.
På grund af bøger, er jeg her i dag, lykkelig, lever igen med et formål og en klarhed, det meste af tiden. Må bøgerne altid være med jer.
So because of books, I'm here today, happy, living again with a purpose and a clarity, most of the time. So may books be always with you.
Tak.
Thank you.
(Bifald)
(Applause)
Tak. (Bifald)
Thank you. (Applause)
Tak. (Bifald)
Thank you. (Applause)