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China and the Chinese Herbert Allen Giles Books

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China and the Chinese Herbert Allen Giles Books

The author of this book, Professor Herbert Allen Giles (1845 - 1935) was a British diplomat officially stationed in China between 1880-1893. Unlike many ivory tower academics, he had the real life experience to develop an in-depth understanding of China and its people.

I have reviewed another book by Professor Giles, "China and the Manchus"China and the Manchus. Unlike that book, which can be considered a more serious historical work, this book has a lighter tone, as it is composed of a series of lectures by the author at Columbia Unviersity in 1902, covering subjects such as the Chinese language, library, government structure, religion, manners and customs. It even had a fascinating chapter titled "China and Ancient Greece", giving curious comparision between these two different yet comparable civilizations.

This book makes enjoyable reading for anyone interested in Chinese culture. The writing is highly conversational, breaking up information is easily digestable bits. Many observations he made are as relevant today as they were almost 110 years ago, while the others are completely outdated.

For example, his observation that learning to speak Chinese is relatively easy remains true today, since the Chinese language lacks grammatical restraints. "After 6 months he should be able to chatter away more or less accurately on a variety of interesting subjects." However, he considered the written form of Chinese language "may fairly be regarded as a sufficient study for a lifetime...because [it] is often so extremely terse as to make it obscure, and sometimes so lavishly ornate ..." This was true in 1902, but is no longer true because the written Chinese language has been reformed extensively during the first quarter of the 20th century, and is no longer terse or ornate.

It is interesting to see certain misconceptions linger on despite the passage of time. Even today, many westerners still think the people in China discriminate against females heavily, even to the extent of abondoning or killing baby girls on a regular basis. While such incidents indeed happen (hardly surprising given the odds in a country of over 1.3 billion people), they are not the norm. Professor Giles responded to this very misconception in this book, describing his first-person account showing that such misconception is due to exaggeration by locals and visitors alike, and sensational stories often take on lives of their own.

He also examined the old Chinese custom of binding girl's feet(thankfully such custom died out a few decades after this book was written). Westerns then and now often see such a horrible custom as evidence of oppression of women by the men or the establishment. The real reasons are more complex: (1) The Qing Dynasty (which ruled China for over 250 years until 1911) did not require or encourage foot-binding. In fact, it attempted to outlaw such practice but was resisted by the people. (2) Mothers were the ones insisting on binding their daughters' feet, because bound feet were considered attractive and would improve the daughters' marriage prospect, thus, all the pain and suffering would be worthwhile. Curiously, the same argument may be made for the stick thin figures and 5 inch heels regarded as standards of beauty today in China and the western world alike. Everyone knows such "fashion" can be painful and unhealthy, but for a large section of the population, such pain is worth it if it gives them a comparative advantage in attractiveness. As Professor Giles observed astutely, "Here we have the real obstable to the abolition of this horrible custom, which vast numbers of intelligent Chinese would be only too glad to get rid of, if fashion did not stand in the way."

Of course, some of the customs may be laughable to anyone familiar with the modern Chinaese customs, just like certain Victorian customs will be hilarious in modern UK or America. For example, a polite man should cover his face with his fan (which he apparently carries all the time) when meeting a friend in the street if (1) the friend is riding a horse or a sedan chair or (2) if the man is in a hurry and does want to chat. At least these make highly amusing readings. If nothing else, it would help us to understand certain Chinese dramas set in the bygone era.

P.S. please note the frequent use of the term "Chinaman" in this book does not mean that the author was a racist. The English language evolves over time, and something that may sound derogatory today did not necessarily have the same meaning 100 years ago.

Product details Paperback 248 pages Publisher Leopold Classic Library (February 12, 2016) Language English ASIN B01BPGFK66

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China and the Chinese Herbert Allen Giles Books Reviews

I really enjoyed the lectures that the author wrote out. Surprisingly for a free copy, the characters in the first lecture show fine on my . I didn't expect that, so very neat to see. The comparisons with the Greeks were interesting as well, and the author gets you thinking.

The Chinese Library may be my favorite part. I did love where the Chinese gentlemen asked him if we had books. It really does put the shoe on the other foot.

2,193 locations in length. Definitely worth grabbing the free copy.
Fascinating historical account of Chinese society at the turn of the last century. Especially appreciated the tale of "Chinese Democracy", which accepts authoritarian rule, but used mass protest to depose brutal, arrogant officials. Also very entertaining to follow the author's disparaging account of the phoney history and prevalent superstition of Taoism. The Tao Te Ching was likely not written by a contemporary of Confucius, and--as any reader may recognize--includes commentary and extraneous text introduced by later contributors. Unlike some other ancient sacred texts, however, the power of the message does not depend on authenticity of authorship. I'll continue to enjoy it, just like the plays and sonnets of whoever that was who wrote Shakespeare.
Professor Giles opens with a cute anecdote - contending that if the Chinese people were to file by in single file, the procession would never end - before the end of those living today went by, a new generation would already have grown up, etc. He then proceeds on a more serious note with observations on the Chinese language.

Giles contends that after six months one should be able to talk reasonably well on a variety of topics - speaking beginning colloquial Chinese is easier, he says, than colloquial French or German. (Others contend the contrary - that subtle tonality distinctions are quite difficult to master. Giles does admit, however, that there are about eight distinctive dialects, each so distinct as to constitute different and unlike languages. The most popular is Mandarin, used by about 80%.) Regardless, Giles also contends its written form is much more difficult, because its terseness requires knowledge of historical and mythological allusions that are present on most pages. The 'good news' is that a document will be equally intelligible across China. The 'bad news' is that Giles' observations on written Chinese are outdated - Mao and others simplified the written language in an effort to boost literacy.

Giles then tells the Cambridge has a Chinese library of 4,304 books, and details their characteristics, then summarizes 'Democratic China' (also obviously out of date), compares China and Ancient Greece, and goes into Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism, with great detail on the latter's system of beliefs. (One brief observation - Muslim religion came to China in 628 A.D. and has 'more than once threatened the stability of the Empire.'
There is no gender in Chinese - that is decided by context. There are a reputed 42,000 separate written characters in the Chinese language, though only one-tenth more than suffice for the average speaker.
The author of this book, Professor Herbert Allen Giles (1845 - 1935) was a British diplomat officially stationed in China between 1880-1893. Unlike many ivory tower academics, he had the real life experience to develop an in-depth understanding of China and its people.

I have reviewed another book by Professor Giles, "China and the Manchus"China and the Manchus. Unlike that book, which can be considered a more serious historical work, this book has a lighter tone, as it is composed of a series of lectures by the author at Columbia Unviersity in 1902, covering subjects such as the Chinese language, library, government structure, religion, manners and customs. It even had a fascinating chapter titled "China and Ancient Greece", giving curious comparision between these two different yet comparable civilizations.

This book makes enjoyable reading for anyone interested in Chinese culture. The writing is highly conversational, breaking up information is easily digestable bits. Many observations he made are as relevant today as they were almost 110 years ago, while the others are completely outdated.

For example, his observation that learning to speak Chinese is relatively easy remains true today, since the Chinese language lacks grammatical restraints. "After 6 months he should be able to chatter away more or less accurately on a variety of interesting subjects." However, he considered the written form of Chinese language "may fairly be regarded as a sufficient study for a lifetime...because [it] is often so extremely terse as to make it obscure, and sometimes so lavishly ornate ..." This was true in 1902, but is no longer true because the written Chinese language has been reformed extensively during the first quarter of the 20th century, and is no longer terse or ornate.

It is interesting to see certain misconceptions linger on despite the passage of time. Even today, many westerners still think the people in China discriminate against females heavily, even to the extent of abondoning or killing baby girls on a regular basis. While such incidents indeed happen (hardly surprising given the odds in a country of over 1.3 billion people), they are not the norm. Professor Giles responded to this very misconception in this book, describing his first-person account showing that such misconception is due to exaggeration by locals and visitors alike, and sensational stories often take on lives of their own.

He also examined the old Chinese custom of binding girl's feet(thankfully such custom died out a few decades after this book was written). Westerns then and now often see such a horrible custom as evidence of oppression of women by the men or the establishment. The real reasons are more complex (1) The Qing Dynasty (which ruled China for over 250 years until 1911) did not require or encourage foot-binding. In fact, it attempted to outlaw such practice but was resisted by the people. (2) Mothers were the ones insisting on binding their daughters' feet, because bound feet were considered attractive and would improve the daughters' marriage prospect, thus, all the pain and suffering would be worthwhile. Curiously, the same argument may be made for the stick thin figures and 5 inch heels regarded as standards of beauty today in China and the western world alike. Everyone knows such "fashion" can be painful and unhealthy, but for a large section of the population, such pain is worth it if it gives them a comparative advantage in attractiveness. As Professor Giles observed astutely, "Here we have the real obstable to the abolition of this horrible custom, which vast numbers of intelligent Chinese would be only too glad to get rid of, if fashion did not stand in the way."

Of course, some of the customs may be laughable to anyone familiar with the modern Chinaese customs, just like certain Victorian customs will be hilarious in modern UK or America. For example, a polite man should cover his face with his fan (which he apparently carries all the time) when meeting a friend in the street if (1) the friend is riding a horse or a sedan chair or (2) if the man is in a hurry and does want to chat. At least these make highly amusing readings. If nothing else, it would help us to understand certain Chinese dramas set in the bygone era.

P.S. please note the frequent use of the term "Chinaman" in this book does not mean that the author was a racist. The English language evolves over time, and something that may sound derogatory today did not necessarily have the same meaning 100 years ago.