Having taught in China, it could also be that it just rained alot, which it did.
Or if you wanted to be political about it, haziness could also mean
acceptance of the gov't which they live under. When I was there, an
elderly couple was murdered in the living complex across from ours-- the
public stretched out for miles-- but no police ever came, and it was never
on the news, local or otherwise. People often (not always) know they're
not getting the full story.
Best, J.
>Carolyn wrote:
>
>I like the way I see the world and have no desire or use for 20/20 vision.
>Audre Lorde, in her biomythography Zami, talks about when she was little
>and was legally blind and how her mother would scold her for staring at
>things and people in public and she couldn't understand how one could not
>stare because things looked so cool. She reiterates this point in a poem
>entitled, Contact Lenses. She also alludes in the poem that how, once her
>sight was corrected, things didn't look as interesting. Like Audre Lorde,
>I've always liked the way things looked, as is: the swirl of colors, the
>melding of things, the lack of sharp edges, the constant movement of it
>all. In a way, it's what Lois Keith has described as the "more womanly
>way" of viewing the world. That's not to say it's better than 20/20
>vision. It is to say that it is not worse than seeing 20/20. It's just a
>different way of seeing the world (literally). And difference is not a bad
>thing.
>
>
>I recall a student from China telling me that to say "today is a fine day"
>in western cultures is different to the idea of a fine day in China. The
>difference, she pointed out, was that a fine day in China was one where it
>was drizzling slightly with rain. She went on to say the westerners need
>to see things with great clarity. We need the visual evidence in front of
>us. The student went on to explain that in China there was not the same
>need. To see things through as haze was beautiful and is reflected in much
>chinese art depicting nature. This is why the drizzly day is a fine day.
>This is one woman's Interpretation but I kinda like it. It does say a lot
>about western culture.
>With best regards
>
>Laurence Bathurst
>University of Sydney
>School of Occupation and Leisure Sciences
>Faculty of Health Sciences
>East Street (P.O. Box 170)
>Lidcombe NSW 1825
>Australia
>
>Ph+ 61 2 9351 9509
>Fax+ 61 2 9351 9166
>E-mail [log in to unmask]
>
>Note: This is the e-mail address for my home as well
>
>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>There is not one shred of evidence that supports the notion that life is
>serious.
>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Johnson Cheu
[log in to unmask]
http://people.english.ohio-state.edu/cheu.1
The Ohio State University*English Dept.*421 Denney Hall*164 W. 17th. Ave.*
Columbus, OH 43210*(614) 292-1730 (O)*(614) 292-6065 (D)*(614) 292-7816 (Fax)
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