When Chinese women speak to each other

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When Chinese women speak to each other
Sep 4, 2009 21:14 GMT-6
LARRYBOY Points: 265 Join Date: Apr 10, 2009 Status: offline	When Chinese women speak to each other Even though I dont speak Chinese, I have noticed especially when 2 Chinese women are together at their work place they seem to be angry when talking to each other. Is this a part of the culture? Why do they seem to speak harshly at each other? Help me to understand this.

Sep 7, 2009 04:48 GMT-6	#1
GUESTMIKE	[quote=LARRYBOY,375539]when 2 Chinese women are together at their work place they seem to be angry when talking to each other. Is this a part of the culture? quote] No, speaking harshly to each other is by no means part of Chinese culture.Chinese culture advocates harmony and compromise. I didn't see the female colleagues around me speak rude and harshly to each other. They treated each other politely.
GUESTMIKE

Sep 7, 2009 12:28 GMT-6	#2
LARRYBOY Points: 265 Join Date: Apr 10, 2009 Status: Offline	Thanks for your reply Mike, I guess since i dont speak Chinese it is hard to say what they are saying but one can sense a persons tone of voice when talking. What do you think? LB

Sep 7, 2009 21:38 GMT-6	#3
JIMMYB Points: 6322 Join Date: Feb 7, 2007 Status: Offline	LARRYBOY, do you encounter the situation ( Chinese wemen talking harshly to each) in person? Certainly some Chinese women dislike their colleagues of the same sex. Do you watch the scene in a movie? Anyhow, it may be true. If they are working in the same office ( supervisors and subordinates, or at the same rank), they may fight for the opportunity to be promoted. They are rivals. Can they speak friendly to each other?

Sep 8, 2009 06:26 GMT-6	#4
LARRYBOY Points: 265 Join Date: Apr 10, 2009 Status: Offline	Hey Jimmy thanx for your reply. I do not see this in a movie but I encounter it when I go shopping in a Chinese owned store or at the market. I notice this only with Chinese women than I do with men. Im still curious! Thanx again.

Sep 8, 2009 20:22 GMT-6	#5
GUEST21131	As a Chinese women, I must admit that they in general like to compete, say whose ring is more expensive, whose house is bigger, whose husband is richer, etc,etc, especially those who didn't get a higher education, what they care most is just the money. However, this is not for all. At least ladies I work with are all kind, polite and behave really well to each other.
GUEST21131

Sep 9, 2009 05:01 GMT-6	#6
SHEPHERD Points: 109 Join Date: Aug 5, 2009 Status: Offline	There is a general belief that "things become easier when men and women pair up". When women and women paired up at workplace, things become messed up." Does this make sense?

Sep 12, 2009 11:25 GMT-6	#7
CARLOS Points: 1650 Join Date: Sep 10, 2007 Status: Offline	When I first time travelled to China, I noticed the same. I often said to my lao po that Chinese is very angry language. She used to answer that they were not angry at all. My lao po respects her father wery much, so I was kinda surprised when she talked to him. I thought she was "putting her father in order". Well, she was not, it only sounded like that to my ears. Carlos

Nov 1, 2009 04:04 GMT-6	#8
HERBEAT Points: 804 Join Date: Mar 17, 2009 Status: Offline	Emmm.... When I'm with my female friends, we are always very happy, at least most of the time we are happy. Sometimes we even like to make some children voice which is cute. So I guess the "angry talking" is not a general thing^-^

Nov 1, 2009 10:36 GMT-6	#9
JABAROOTOO Points: 12071 Join Date: Jul 4, 2005 Status: Offline	It's got nothing to to do with rivalry. But more to do with the tones of the Chinese language and the pitch or timbre of a women's voice. I'm living in China and I hear it around me all the time. Here's a simple example of how Mandarin can sound angry even when a person is saying 我爱你 Wo3 ai4 ni3 'I love you' Because the word for love ' ai 爱' is forth tone it often sounds heavy and harsh or like a whinge. And this is but one example.......................

Nov 1, 2009 21:30 GMT-6	#10
HERBEAT Points: 804 Join Date: Mar 17, 2009 Status: Offline	But as a native speaker, I think the forth tone is completely ok and it's nothing to do with whinge at all. I guess it might be the problem with a second language. It's always hard to understand or accept it. But when you get used to it, it would be ok I hope^-^

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