I really like China, but.. If you go to a party, do you go up to strangers and say, "Tell me how pretty and smart I am!" If your family is very successful and powerful, do you tell strangers, "My family is very rich and powerful!" If you are very talented or intelligent, do you tell strangers, "I have so much talent! I am so intelligent!" We should remember always to be humble :) That being said, Chinese art, literature, and culture are very, very cool. Mandarin Chinese is the second most popular foreign language in the United States, and school systems all over our country are trying to develop Mandarin Chinese language learning programs. Chinese cinema continues to grow in worldwide popularity, Chinese sports stars are coming to the fore, and Chinese companies like Lenova and Seaspan increase their market share yearly. Chinese literature, particularly poetry, had a major influence on American writers and particularly poets - many famous American poets like Allen Ginsberg and Gary Snyder were very influenced by Chinese poetry, particularly 杜甫 and 李白 – in fact, Gary Snyder learned classical Chinese just so he could read 杜甫 and 李白 in their original language.
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