I have both a young Chinese girl (from Beijing no less) and a Russian girl in my classes this term. The young Chinese woman is a Savannah College of Art and Design flunkee -- due to lack of English skills; while the young Russian woman is fluent in at least four languages.
Both are hard-working -- with the Chinese woman (call her Faye) wishing to be a Western fashion designer. She is tall, angular, and wears her clothes like elaborate sexy costumes -- entertaining to see, but usually not very practical in a climate like Savannah's. The Russian girl -- by contrast -- is extremely studious, bright, and Westernized to the extent that you can barely trace her dialect in her voice. She is a strategic student -- aimed for success, focused on doing well, achieving more and more each day.
Our Chinese woman is doll-like -- beautiful round eyes, whiter-than-white skin, and a soft and pleasing personality. She also has only a working vocabulary of about 3000 English words (about that of a third grader in the USA). Nonetheless she will earn an A or strong B in my class -- attention to detail, sticking to things she knows, and assiduous effort with a dictionary working on her "American" speeches. The Russian girl uses no help -- she is all business, and all success-oriented. And she will have one of the highest grades in all my classes -- hard work always yields results.
These two reflect for me the "world as it is"out there -- China versus Russia! Which is a threat -- and what are they threatening, if anything?
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