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III) GENERATION GAP
Albert Chen (J.Y. Albert Chu's pen name)
Generation Gap exists in every generation everywhere. However, the generation
gap of Taiwanese Americans probably is the most complicated of them all. Much
of the generation gap is probably secondary to the culture gap between the
first and later generations of Taiwanese-Americans. We play skits in many
activities of the Taiwanese-American Community. Through these skits, we
actually learn and understand more about the difference between the generations
and between different cultures. Many of the following skits were performed at
the Taiwanese-American Association Meetings and on other occasions. We believe
the skits to discuss the problems of the generation gap. We are an excellent way
may be able to bridge the gap by continuous exploration of these problems.
Content:
1. Learning Taiwanese
2. Going to Taiwan
3. Taiwanese Cowboy
4. College
5. Shopping
6. Dinner
7. Dating
8. Experience in Taiwan(l)
9. Experience in Taiwan(II)
3. TAIWANESE COWBOY
In a typical family room of a suburban middle-class house, a teenage girl is
standing in front of her father who is sitting in a large arm-chair reading
a newspaper.
Girl: Dad, can I go to Mary Johnson's house tomorrow night?
Father: Why, who is Mary Johnson?
Girl: Mary is my friend. We're going to have a party.
Father: Party! Party! Always parties! What is the party for?
Girl: Just for fun, we like to get together to talk and dance before our final
exam.
Father: Why do you have so many parties?
Girl: Come on, Dad, the last party was 3 months ago. It was Robert Lin's
birthday party. You wanted me to go. That party was a bummer.
Father: Okay, okay, you can go. But make sure that all of your homework is done
first.
Girl: I already did all of my homework.
Father: Did you practice your piano?
Girl: Sure I did, I practiced every day for one hour. Mrs. Thompson told Mom
the other night that she was pretty sure that I could win first the place
award this time in the State competition.
Father: Okay, okay. Did you practice your violin lessons yet?
Girl: Yes I did. By the way, Mr. Lawson told me last Sunday that he does not
want to teach me violin lessons anymore.
Father: Why not?
Girl: He told me that I was too good and that he would not teach me anymore.
He said he would call Mom about it.
Father: Did he call?
Girl: I think so. Mom told me that she is going to talk to Mr. Connors about
teaching me violin lesions, but she is not sure yet. She said he is too
expensive.
Father: How much?
Girl: Mom said it will cost $100 for half of an hour.
Father: Why didn't your Mom tell me that. A $100 for half of an hour is okay. I
will pay for it. Did you know Mr. Connors plays first violin in the
symphony?
Girl: So what, I don't care.
Father: Okay, getting back to your homework, did you do your Algebra assignment that
I gave you?
Girl: Why should I have to learn that college stuff now. I'm only a junior in
high school.
Father: Alice, that is not college stuff. Id did it when I was your age.
Girl: You keep saying that. I don't believe you. I asked my teacher about the
Algebra you gave me, and he said it is too difficult for me to do.
Father: No, it is not for college. You are so poor in math and that is why you
should do the assignments.
Girl: No, I'm not. I am the best one in my math class. You have given me so many
math assignments to do. Of all the mat examinations that I have taken, I
am always the first one done and the one who get the highest score.
Father: You know, that is the problem with math education in the United States.
Girl: It's not my problem. I can't do anything about it.
Father: Yes, you should spend more time learning math. Did you know we use to go
to school 6 days a week and the classes lasted from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
every day.
Girl: Dad, that's ancient history. You know times have changed.
Father: No, it is not ancient history. The students in Taiwan and Japan still go
to school the way I did. Not only that, they have to study until midnight
every night to prepare for their college entrance examination.
Girl: Well it's not for me. Isn't that part of the reason we came to the United
States.
Father: If you don't study your Algebra, you cannot go to the party!
Girl: That is not fair; not fair at all!!
Father: Alice, you know if you don't study hard in Taiwan, they assign you to a
class called "Kua-Gu-Pan" or "Fang-Ngiu-Ban."
Girl: What does the "Kua-Gu-Pan" mean?
Father: When I was a kid, if you didn't stud hard in school they sent you to the
mountains or fields to watch the buffalos. We called them the "Tchiong-
Ngiu-Gou."
Girl: Were they like cowboys?
Father: Something like that.
Girl: Well that sounds good. Do they have cowgirl classes? I want to be in that
class. It must be fun.
Father: No, no! It is not fun. Do you know what "Tchiong-Gniou-Gou" do? He is
suppose to take good care of the buffalos. He has to take the buffalos to
the mountain or field to let them eat. He also has to wash them in the
stream.
Girl: That sounds like a lot of fun to me. It sure beats practicing the piano
and violin and learning that Algebra.
NOTE: "Kua-Gu-Pan" or "Fang-Neiu-Ban" are respectively Holo Tawianese and Mandarin for
"Class for Watching Buffalo." "Tchiong-Ngiu-Gou" is Hakka Taiwanese for "boy who watches
buffalo".
(First published in the Newsletter of the St. Louis Taiwanese American Association,
1986 and also in the "Second Generation" section of Taiwan Culture, Vol. 2, No. 2,
April, 1987.)
4. COLLEGE
In a typical family room of a suburban house, a group of high school students are
either sitting of lying on the floor talking.
Albert: Chuck, do you know where you are going yet?
Chuck: What are you talking about?
Albert: College, of course.
Chuck: I don't know yet. To tell you the truth, I don't even know what field I'm
going to study.
Bea: Me either, I don't know what I should do.
Doris: I'm much simpler. I have only one way to go - pre-med. My parents want
me to be a physician.
Albert: Doris, why do you let your parents decide for you. You are so good in
mathematics, you should think about majoring in math.
Doris: I don't know. I'm good in biology too. My Dad said it is very difficult
to make it as a mathematician. Did you know, my father couldn't find a
job as a physicist in the 70's. He got his Ph.D. at Cal Tech and the only
offer he got was a high-school science teacher position out of the country.
Chuck: That has nothing to do with you.
Doris: Sure, most of my parents' friends who are physicians did well back than and
are doing well now, so they think it would be a good idea for me to study
pre-med.
Albert: However, you can still make your own decisions.
Bea: I have the same problem. All parents would like to make their child's
career decision. My parents are the same way.
Chuck: That's interesting. My dad is a pediatrician and do you know he doesn't
want me to become a physician at all.
Doris: Why not?
Chuck: He told me that going into a medical field is not like it used to be. The
glory days for a physician are all over now. He wants me to get into
something that is more promising.
Albert: Chuck, is that why you don't know what you're going to study.
Chuck: My dad said that any field is okay, but not to go into medicine. When he
said any field was okay, he means only the fields of engineering or sciences.
Albert: What about business?
Chuck: My parents always looked down on business. They have been here for 20
years, but they still believe in the ways of the nineteenth century. They
believe that only science and engineering would be good for me.
Bea: If you think your parents are "bull-headed", you should get to know mine.
Albert: Why? I always thought you were going to music school. You won so many
awards playing the piano in the past years.
Bea: So what! Even my music teacher believes that I am talented and that I
could make it. But not my parents, they definitely do not want me going
to music school.
Albert: I could remember your parents telling you to practice your piano for hours
and hours every day. They also wanted you to have the best music teacher
in town. They took you around the country to play in competitions. Isn't
that right?
Bea: Yes, I know. I really like playing the piano, not because my parents told
me to, but because I enjoyed it. Did you see the review in the St. Louis
Times on my performance with the St. Louis Symphony last month? They
called me the "wunderkind", but my parents still want me to major in
biology or science in some "ivy league" university.
Chuck: Me too. I also won an award for playing my violin. Of course, I am not
as good Bea. When I raise the question about going to music school to
my parents a couple of years ago, they yelled at me. They told me I
wouldn't be able to support a family and that I would probably starve to
death.
Doris: I think all parents are the same.
Albert: I don't think so. I gave up violin and piano years ago. I'm playing the
electric guitar now for the fun of it, not to win some award. I enjoy
playing the guitar rather than the piano. Doris, how about your career
in music?
Doris: My parents made me take piano, violin, flute and ballet lessons. Boys
don't have to take ballet lessons. My mom said girls have to take ballet
lessons. It turns out that I'm mediocre in everyone of them. I don't have
that problem about going to music school. My parents want me to be a
physician, but they also have this funny idea that all physicians should
know music well.
Albert: It sure looks like all of us wasted a lot of time in music and none of us
are going to be professionals in it.
Bea: I wouldn't call it a waste of time. Personally, I enjoyed it. Albert,
what are you planning on studying in college?
Albert: My parents are like yours - "bull-headed". They want me to study engineer
or science. I don't think I want to do that. I'll fight for my rights.
I'm going to major in business administration, pre-law or some field of
humanities.
Bea: Well, I hope my parents are as liberal as yours.
Albert: You need to fight for your rights to get what you want.
Chuck: My parents threatened me once that they would not pay my tuition into
college if I didn't major in science or engineering.
Doris: I have kind of accepted the fact that I will be going into the field of
pre-med now. I am not especially good in anything except for grades and
SAT scores.
Bea: I don't know. I don't know how to fight for my rights. I want to see
what happens in the first year of college. By the way, Albert, how are
you going to fight for your rights if your parents threaten to cut off
your allowance and your tuition?
Albert: I am fighting with them right now. I don't know what I'm going to do.
If worse comes to worse, I can quit college and work for a year before
going back to college again. By the way, where are all of you applying to?
Bea: I'm certainly not planning on staying here. I'm applying mainly to the
Northeast.
Chuck: Me too. I am applying mainly on the West coast.
Doris: I'll apply everywhere as long as it's not here. I want to go away and the
farther the better. My parents are planning for me to attend an "ivy
league" university, and right now I don't really care that much where I go.
Chuck: My parents are usually very stingy. They count every cent they earn and
spend. My mother won't buy a thing unless it is on sale of if she has a
coupon. However, when it comes to a private college, money is no problem.
I can't understand this. Do you know how much Stanford or Harvard costs?
Bea: I know. They both cost around $20,000 a year. Albert, where are you
planning to go?
Albert: I don't know. I'll apply anywhere, even to the state colleges here. In
case my parents refuse to pay the high tuition for me to study either
business or pre-law, I will still have some other options open. I might
work the first year and save enough money to go to a cheaper college.
Bea: I really admire you for that Albert.
Doris: Me too. I hope I have enough guts to do what you are doing.
Chuck: I am not going to do what you might decide to do. Albert, I have to say
that you have courage.
Albert: Let's forget about college for now. Let's go to Cinema 66. I heard that
the movie playing there is pretty good. My car is also running pretty
good today considering I only paid $150.00 for it. I need to fix it from
time to time, but it's running fine now. Let's go.
(First published in the Newsletter of the St. Louis Taiwanese American Association,
January, 1987 and also in the "Second Generation" section of Taiwan Culture, Vol. 2,
No. 4, September, 1987)
5. SHOPPING
In a typical family room of a suburban house, a group of Taiwanese-American
teenagers are either sitting or lying around on the floor talking.
Albert: Bea, did you just come back from shopping?
Bea: Yes, I went shopping with my Mom this afternoon. It was really boring.
Albert: What?? You don't like shopping!!
Bea: Well, I like to go shopping, but not with my Mom. Have you ever gone
shopping with your mother. If you did, you would know what I mean.
Albert: I haven't gone shopping with my parents in a long time.
Chuck: Oh, I bet your Mom wouldn't buy that bikini you wanted.
Bea: That was only part of it. We started arguing the minute I got into the
car. I'm seventeen now, and she treats me like a 6 or 7 year old.
Doris: Well, tell me whose mother isn't like that.
Bea: She wanted to shop at K-Mart and I told her that since we were shopping
for my birthday presents, that I wanted to go somewhere nice like Famous-
Barr or Dillard's. Do you know what she said?
Doris: I know, don't tell me. She said "what is wrong with K-Mart"? And I bet
she went on to say something about when she was young and living in
Taiwan that she had to wear a green uniform; had to have short hair; and
that no make-up, jewelry, or anything else was allowed. Am I right?
Bea: More or less.
Chuck: My mom use to tell me that she never got a chance to go shopping because
she had to study hard to pass the entrance examination for a top college.
I guess now she is making up for all of those times when she couldn't go
shopping. She must go to the store at least every other day.
Albert: Well Bea, did you get to buy something you wanted this afternoon?
Bea: No I didn't. We finally compromised to shop at Sears. Everything was
either too expensive or she would say "lets wait until it goes on sale".
She even wanted to check the others.
Albert: Check with what others? Your dad, grandmother, who?
Bea: No, not them. She wanted to check to see what most of my girlfriends'
mothers had to say.
Doris: Why? What do most of your friends' mothers have to do with your shopping?
Bea: One time I told my mo that I was the only one in my class that didn't
have a bluejean mini skirt. Do you know she actually called two of my
classmates' mothers and asked them if their daughters had that kind of skirt.
Chuck: Well, what happened?
Bea: I'm not real sure. All I know is that the two mothers she called told her
that their daughters weren't allowed to wear that kind of skirt.
Doris: Did she buy the skirt for you?
Bea: Are you kidding!
Chuck: You said something about your mom wanting to wait until the clothes went
on sale. How can you wait if they are to be given to you on your birthday?
Bea: I guess she would give me a rain check.
Albert: Why don't you just go and buy the kind of clothes you want?
Doris: Albert, we don't have that kind of money. How do you possibly do it?
Albert: Because I work for it and I can do what I like with my own money.
Chuck: How can you make that much money?
Albert: I work at McDonald's and I cut grass and shovel snow for some of our
neighbors. Where I used to live I would deliver newspapers to a nearby
apartment complex. The money isn't much but it helps.
Chuck: My parents won't allow me to work like that. They are really bull-headed.
Their concept is that "intellectual families" are not suppose to do hard
labor. They give me only a tiny allowance. They're really stingy.
Albert: Well to tell you the truth, I don't spend all the money I earn. I have been
saving most of it. Do you know why?
Doris:
Bea: Why? (together)
Chuck:
Albert: Have your parents ever threatened you that they would cut-off your allowance
if you didn't do what they told you to do?
Chuck: Yes. My parents have threatened me that they will not pay my tuition to
college if I don't major in Science or Engineering. And, I am really
interested in music for a career.
Doris: Mine also threatened that if I didn't take ballet lessons they would take
away my allowance.
Bea: Albert, can you really save enough money for college tuition?
Albert: No, I don't think so. At least, I have learned some skills and the will
to fight my parents. Now they know that I can't be easily threatened by
the loss of my allowance.
Doris: That's a good idea. At least I would have some money to go shopping with.
Albert: Do you know your parents have a special interest in M.I.T.?
Beatrice: Of course, they are interested in Ivy League Colleges, Stanford, Caltech
and any other prestigious college.
Albert: no, I don't mean the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. I mean "Made
in Taiwan."
Chuck: Oh yeah, I know what you mean. When my parents want to buy something,
they usually check to see where it is made. They certainly prefer those
items made in Taiwan, than those made in China, Korea, Singapore, Hong
Kong or any other Asian or Latin-American country.
Doris: Once my parents took a television back to the store after they found out
it was made in Korea, and bought one that was made in Taiwan.
Bea: There is no doubt about it. Mine prefer only things made in the USA or
Taiwan.
Chuck: I don't know, most of us didn't grow up in Taiwan and we don't have the
same feelings our parents have about Taiwan. I do know that Taiwanese
people are hardworking.
Doris: I came to the United States when I was 7 years old. For some reason I
sympathize with my parents' feelings more so than you guys do.
Albert: I agree with you Chuck. Did you know that Taiwan is the third ranked
country in the world in terms of trade surplus with the United States?
Bea: Really?
Albert: Taiwan is also the 6th ranked country to do business with the United
States. If you would consider the population and the amount of land in
Taiwan, the Taiwanese people must be the top businessmen in the world.
Doris: Albert, you sure know a lot more about Taiwan than we do. Sometimes I
feel kind of embarrassed when my friends ask me about Taiwan and there
is not much for me to tell.
Albert: Don't feel so bad about it. When you go home, why don't you ask your
parents to tell you something about Taiwan. I bet they won't have much
to say. When I asked my dad something about Taiwan, most of the time he
says "it's a long story" or "I'll tell you about it later". Then he
won't say another word about it. Sometimes he says he doesn't know
because they didn't teach him any Taiwanese history or culture when he
was in school.
Chuck: How come?
Albert: I don't know. They won't talk too much about Taiwan when you ask them
questions, but when they want to compare themselves with you then they
have all of the answers. There is too much sidetracking. Let's go
shopping. I have some money and I'll treat you all to ice cream. How
about it?
(First published in the "Second Generation" section of Taiwan Culture, Vol. 2, No. 5,
October, 1987.)
6. DINNER
(First published in the "Second Generation" section of
Taiwan Culture, Vol. 2, No. 6, December, 1987)
In a typical family room of a suburban house, a group of high-school
students are either lying or sitting on the floor talking.
Albert: It's quite late now.
Chuck: Albert, it's not that late, it's only five o'clock.
Bea: Yeah, why are you in such a hurry to go home for dinner?
Doris: I probably should be going soon myself. My mother is very
strict about getting home on time for dinner.
Albert: I am planning to leave now and not because of dinner. I need
to go to work at McDonald's in a couple of hours.
Bea: Talking about dinner, where are you gonna go to eat?
Chuck: At home of course. Aren't you going home for dinner Bea?
Bea: I don't know. I'll probably find some fast food place for
dinner tonight, instead of going home.
Chuck: I don't really want to go home for dinner either. Every
Saturday, my parents have a Saturday "special". I know what
kind of "special" they are having tonight.
Bea: I wouldn't complain about that. You're lucky. At least your
parents spend time to make a "special" dinner. My parents are
so busy everyday, because both of them have more than one job.
They are hardly ever at home on Saturday nights for dinner.
Chuck: But, they make a Taiwanese "special". You would be surprised
at what kind of "special" they make.
Albert: I bet that's no surprise to anyone here. We have all eaten
those bizarre dishes.
Doris: Do you think so? I am surprised you said that. I think some
of the dishes are really good. If you would try them you'd
probably would like them.
Chuck: Let me tell you what my parents are going to make tonight. I
know because Dr. Chu just gave us some bitter squash this morning.
Did you know Dr. Chu has always grown those bizarre vegetables
in his garden.
Bea: Yeah! Dr. Chu gave my parents some bizarre looking squash just a
few days ago. I don't know what they are called. They're still
in the frige. My parents haven't had time to fix them.
Chuck: You should have seen my father this morning when he saw those bitter
squash. His eyes popped out. He kept saying "great, great, great,
we are going to have a feast tonight".
Albert: Did you ever taste bitter squash?
Chuck: Yeah! They are gross. Last summer, Dr. Chu gave us some. I took
one bite and it tasted more like medicine rather than food.
Albert: Not only that, my parents even gave me a philosophical lecture on
why we should eat bitter squash.
Chuck: Did they say something like this? (He takes a small piece of paper
from his wallet.) Do you know what this means?
Albert: Yes, it's the same one I was talking about and it means "If you can
eat the bitterest one among the bitterest, then you become the best
man among all men".
Doris: That's good Albert. You can read those characters. I probably
should try to learn Taiwanese too.
Albert: I can understand only some words, but not that many. I know this
quotation by heart now. Do you know why? I ate too much
"bitterness".
Chuck: Oh! Is that what it really means? When my parents explained it
to me, my interpretation was something like this, "If you eat a lot
of bitter squash, you can become superman".
Doris: You guys shouldn't make fun of it. I don't think the bitter squash
is that bad. You should try it, you may like it.
Chuck: No way! You should see how my parents fix it. They mix small dry
fish and black beans with it. Those small fish aren't clean. They
are so small, you can't clean them. If you eat them, you eat the
whole fish including the head, guts and everything.
Bea: Oh, gross, and those small eyes just stare at you.
Chuck: Do your parents eat the heads of larger fish?
Bea: Sure, my father eats the fish's eyes, its teeth and even tries to
get the fish's brain.
Doris: Fish head soup is really good. Did you guys ever try this kind
of soup? You should, it's delicious! You don't have to eat the
fish's head.
Chuck: My parents also like raw fish. They call it "sashimi" or
something like that.
Bea: Yes, I ate "sashimi" once at a Japanese restaurant.
Albert: I don't think this is a traditional Taiwanese dish. That is why
you can find it in Japanese restaurants. It must be a Japanese
dish. You know Japan occupied Taiwan for 50 years.
Chuck: My parents are against eating raw foods like salads and raw steak.
However, it's interesting to know that they will eat raw fish.
Bea: You should hear what my parents say. Did you know we go out to
eat in cheap restaurants a lot because my parents are always so
busy. Once we went to York Steak House the other day and I ordered
a medium rare steak that was a little bloody. My parents called
me a "barbarian" because I was eating raw meat.
Doris: My parents will eat only well done steaks, too.
Bea: So, when we went to a Japanese restaurant, I told my father that he
was a "barbarian" for eating raw fish. Do you know what he said?
Albert: I bet he said, "this is different".
Bea: How did you know that. That is exactly what he said. Then he
lectured me on why it is okay to eat raw fish but not okay to eat
raw meat. He didn't explain this from the medical or scientific
viewpoint, but as a moral reason.
Albert: Yeah. That's their typical double standard - one set of rules for
them and one set of rules for us.
Bea: There are still a lot of other weird dishes they eat. Did your
parents ever eat foul smelling Dou-fu?
Albert: No, what's that? Tell us something about it.
Bea: Because my parents are so busy making money, we eat a lot of canned
foods. This can of food is called "Five Fragrant stinking Dou-fu".
It really stinks. You can smell it a thousand miles away.
Chuck: I remember it now. When I went to Taiwan last year, I remember
smelling something awful from a food stand.
Bea: Oh, yeah! Whenever my father took those stinking Dou-fu's out of
the microwave oven, I would have to close my bedroom door and
sometimes I would even leave the house because the smell was so bad.
Doris: Yes, even I can't stand that stinking odor. Now, I know what stinking
Dou-fu you are talking about.
Albert: Do you know that Dou-fu is now very popular in the United States?
Bea: Oh, yes! Some of my classmates at school keep asking me to teach
them how to fix a Dou-fu dinner.
Chuck: Why?
Albert: It's good for decreasing cholesterol in the blood and for losing weight.
Bea
& Doris: What?!! It helps to lose weight?
Bea: Tell me more, Albert. Why is it good for losing weight?
Albert: I just read somewhere that Dou-fu is the reason that oriental
people are so thin.
Chuck: My parents said it was because most oriental people did not have enough
food to eat when they were kids.
Albert: Anyways, did you know that it is a big business now to make Dou-fu and
dou-fu-tti.
Doris: What is dou-fu-tti?
Albert: Some guy in New York invented a kind of an ice-cream made from Dou-fu
and gave the name Dou-fu-tti. He has really made a bundle.
Bea: Why didn't my parents think of that. They eat so much Dou-fu. They
are always in some kind of business adventure. If they invented that
Dou-fu-tti, we would be millionaires.
Chuck: To tell you the truth, I do like some Taiwanese dishes. They are much
more tastier than the fast food restaurants.
Bea: Yes, I do like sweet & sour pork and fried wontons and potstickers.
Doris: I still think the real traditional Taiwanese home-cooked cuisine is
good. I like it better than any restaurant.
Albert: I am really hungry now. I've got to go. Let's go home and enjoy the
dinner, so to speak.
7. DATING
First published in the "Second Generation" section of Taiwan Culture,
Vol. 3, No. 2, April, 1988.
A group of Taiwanese-American youths are talking in a family room of
a typical suburban home.
Albert: Bea, I heard you had a hot date last night. How was it?
Bea: Don't even mention it. I didn't go.
Doris: What?! You didn't go, why?
Bea: My mother wouldn't let me.
Doris: What happened? You were looking so forward to it.
Chuck: I bet your mother said you are too young to date.
Bea: I'm sixteen now, they still treat me like a kid.
Doris: Taiwanese-American girls have all the problems. We are either too
young or the guy isn't good enough for our parents. They always
want to choose the boys for us to date.
Bea: Yeah! Doris, tell me about your date with that guy from the East
coast.
Chuck: Doris, did your parents fix you up with that guy?
Doris: To tell you the truth, I really don't want to talk about it. By
the way, how did you guys know about the date? I haven't even gone
out with him yet.
Albert: Everyone knows about it. But, we don't know all of the details.
Who is this guy anyway?
Doris: His name is John, and he is the son of one of my mom's friends.
He is a freshman in an Ivy League college.
Chuck: Ha! Ha! An Ivy League guy.
Bea: Chuck, what is wrong with an Ivy League guy?
Chuck: Nothing's wrong. It's just another example of our parents' generation
of having a bull-headed mind.
Doris: My mother says he is a genius of some kind and is majoring in pre-med.
Chuck: Ha! Ha! Another guy with a pre-med major.
Albert: Doris, have you ever seen him before?
Doris: Yes, my mother invited his family to our home last summer. To tell
you the truth, I didn't even pay attention to him. He was really
boring. All he talked about were his grades and test scores. All I
remember is that he got so many "A+"s.
Chuck: That must have been a real drag.
Bea: So your parents planned the whole thing from last summer. Wasn't he
suppose to see you last weekend?
Doris: How do you know that?
Albert: I heard my mom talking about it.
Bea
& Chuck: Me too, my mother told me.
Doris: Darn! The whole town must know that I was supposed to have a date
with John last weekend.
Albert: Well, not really. Only the Taiwanese-American community.
Doris: I really hate having my dates arranged for me. For years, my parents
told me to do this, to study that, play the piano, and to stay home
on Friday nights. Now they are telling me who I am supposed to date.
It isn't fair. They've gone too far.
Bea: Who doesn't have those problems. Chuck and Albert, what about you guys?
Chuck: It's more or less the same. Probably a little bit better. My parents
feel that boys can have a little more freedom. You know, sex
discrimination.
Albert: I am always fighting with my parents for my rights. To tell you the
truth, I haven't had to fight with them yet about this matter.
Bea: Why do you think they arrange such stupid dates for us anyway?
Chuck: I suppose they want us to date Taiwanese-Americans so that eventually
we will marry a Taiwanese-American. I can almost bet on it.
Bea: Albert, do you know how many Taiwanese-Americans there are in the
United States?
Albert: Yes, probably more than 200,000.
Chuck: You see, that is 0.1% of the United States population. By those
statistics, my chances of getting married would be 0.1%. Oh, my gosh.
I would not be able to get married at all if I would obey my parents
wishes.
Bea: What would our chances be with other Asian-Americans?
Albert: Not much better. The population of Asian-Americans in the United States
is still only 2%.
Doris: Do you know of some Asian-American parents who are also against their
children dating certain ethnic groups of Asian-Americans?
Chuck: Yes, there are two Asian-American kids in my class, one from Vietnam and
the other from Cambodia, and their parents will not speak to each other.
Albert: I bet it's not because of their language. You know they fought against
each other in their own country.
Bea: In our generation, there shouldn't be any problems. They had their
differences, but not us. We are Americans.
Albert: Doris, don't get so upset because your parents arranged a date for you.
That may be the way it happened for them and aren't you glad they got
married. My grandparents told me that they never spoke to each other
until the day of their wedding.
Bea
& Doris: What?! How do you know that.
Albert: You know, I can speak and understand Taiwanese. The last time I was in
Taiwan visiting my grandparents, they told me.
Bea: Well, how do they go about arranging a marriage?
Albert: My grandfather said he saw my grandmother only once before the engagement.
During that encounter, my grandmother said that there were so many
relatives in the room that she didn't even know who her husband-to-be was.
Then they were engaged and got married without ever speaking to each other.
That type of an encounter is called "Tau-Kua", "Teau-Kan" or "Tou Kon" (see
note at end of page).
Chuck: No dating at all?! That's awful. By the way, what does "Tau-Kua" mean?
Albert: It literally means to steal a look. Like to peek at your husband-to-be.
Doris: That's dumb. How could a girl just peek at her husband-to-be, and not be
introduced to him or to get acquainted with him.
Albert: They have customs which seem ridiculous to us now. For example, family
status was very important. The families had to be of equal doors and
matched windows.
Bea: Why would they need to have equal sized doors and matched windows before
getting married?
Albert: That is just an expression. It's not really about doors and windows.
It means that the social status of both families had to be equal.
Doris: Maybe we shouldn't complain so much. Can you imagine how our great
grandparents got married.
Albert: I heard that they never met under any conditions. The engagement was
arranged as a family business, and the first time the two met was on their
wedding day.
Doris: Oh, my god - that's awful.
Bea: No way would I let my parents decide on who I was going to marry. That is
my business, not theirs.
Doris: I agree. We should all fight about our rights and dating.
Chuck: Yea! We should. "Long live our rights on dating".
Albert: Chuck, we sould fight for our rights, but not with the slogan such as
yours. You know, you sound like a "Red-Guard" in Mao's China.
Bea
Chuck & Yea! Let's go home and find our own dates.
Doris:
NOTE: "Tau-Kua", "Teau-Kon", and "Tou-Kan" are respectively
Hok-lou Taiwanese, Hakka Taiwanese and Beijing Taiwanese
(Mandarin Chinese) for the same characters that
literally means to steal a look. Three major languages
are spoken in Taiwan and more than nine different aborigine
languages are used by about 2% of the population in Taiwan.
8. EXPERIENCE IN TAIWAN(I)
First published in the Newsletter of the North American Taiwanese Medical
Association, January, 1989, Vol. 5, No. 1 and in the "Second Generation" section
of Taiwanese Culture, Vol. 4, No. 1, February, 1989.
In a medical center cafeteria four Taiwanese-American medical students
or houseofficers are talking while having their lunch.
Janet: Aren't we lucky. We all got here about the same time today. It seems
that I haven't seen you guys for a long time.
Ken: Yeah! We can hardly get together any more.
Lisa: Mike told me that he was in Taiwan for an elective.
Mike: I just got back two weeks ago. It was truly a great experience.
Janet: How long were you there?
Lisa: What did you do while you were there?
Mike: I was there for three months. I took a one month elective in a large
medical center of about 2,000 beds, another month at a medium-sized
private hospital, and the last month was spent visiting different
communities, small hospitals and physicians' private offices. I met a
lot of nice people.
Ken: That sounds great. I wish I had the opportunity to do something like
that. I didn't do it as a senior, and I don't think it would be
possible for me to do it now as a houseofficer.
Lisa: Mike, how many times have you visited Taiwan?
Ken: Weren't you just there some time ago?
Mike: I came to the United States with my family when I was in junior high.
That was about 12 years ago. When I was in pre-med I went there. That
has been about six years ago.
Janet: I bet you felt differently about this trip as compared to the previous one.
Mike: Sure I did. This trip was much more meaningful.
Lisa: What do you mean?
Mike: Well, probably because I am older and wiser (ha! ha!). I observed and
evaluated people and places better that I have done before. I can still
speak in three different kinds of Taiwanese languages fluently. For being
single and a medical student, it was a very wonderful trip. I had a lot
of fun.
Ken: What kind of fun did you have?
Lisa: What is so special about being a bachelor and a medical student?
Mike: Even before I went to Taiwan, my grandparents, uncles, aunts and cousins
were all so excited about my visit that they told everyone they knew.
Janet: That is their nature. Your grandparents and other relatives have not
seen you for years.
Mike: No, not for that reason. They told everyone that I was going to Taiwan
to find a wife.
Lisa: Oh, oh! This is getting to be interesting. No wonder why you had a lot
of fun.
Ken: I bet you have a lot to tell us, don't you?
Mike: Medical students have got to be the most popular bachelors in Taiwan. A
lot of physicians in Taiwan try to arrange for their daughters to marry
medical students or houseofficers. They told me that a building, house
or something of value was attached to the bride.
Janet: What??
Mike: It just means that the father-in-law gives the newly married couple a
large gift such as a house or a building.
Ken: Did anyone try to fix you up with a rich girl?
Mike: I was invited to have dinner with my father's friend who is an attending
physician at that large medical center in Taiwan during the first week I
arrived there. At first, I thought it was to be a quiet family dinner
in his home. It turned out to be a very elaborate dinner party at a
fancy hotel with about 30 of his relatives, and everyone there was
checking me out.
Lisa: What kind of checking out were they doing? Did they ask you many
questions?
Mike: Most of them wanted to know if I had a girlfriend here in the states.
Janet: I bet your father's friend wanted to introduce his daughters to you.
Lisa: My parents met for the first time by an arrangement similar to that.
Actually, they said it wasn't a bad idea.
Janet: Such an encounter is called "Shion-chin", "Shian-chin" or something
like that. It is still very popular in Taiwan.
Ken: Mike, how many girls did you meet during those three months in Taiwan?
Mike: To tell you the truth, I don't know. All I know is that I went to
dinner a lot at fancy hotels and nice restaurants especially during the
first two months. Most dinners were delicious, but costly. There were
even a few bizarre ones for even a guy like me who grew up in Taiwan.
A dish with a huge turtle in it sitting in the center of the table
didn't arouse my appetite.
Ken: We don't want to hear about what you ate, tell us about the fun parts.
Mike: Kenny, don't you know that dining is a very important part of Taiwanese
culture. Business, marriage proposals and many other important functions
are conducted at dinner. There is a kind of restaurant that specializes
in late night snacks.
Janet: I know about that kind of restaurant. They call it "Shiaw-ya"
or something like that. Am I right?
Mike: You sure are. Those restaurants have many different kinds of delicious
snacks for late night customers. It's a good place for social activities.
Lisa: I don't see what the big deal is. We have pizza restaurants here in the
United States.
Janet: Well, this kind of restaurant serves more than 100 different types of
snacks, not just a few limited items like pizza.
Mike: That's right. It's a little bit like the night version of "Dim Sum". Have
any of you ever tried the "Dim Sum" during the weekend lunch hours at the
Hunan Restaurant on Main Street?
Ken: Mike, don't keep talking about food. Let's hear your story.
Mike: One night, one of my junior high classmates called and invited me to the
restaurant for late night snacks. He promised that it would only be him
and his two cousins. During our dinner, I noticed that a few men and women
at the next table kept staring at us.
Lisa: Were you talking too loud or speaking in English?
Ken: It might have been that they overheard you were a bachelor medical student,
and they had daughters they wanted you to meet.
Janet: I bet they were the parents of your friends' cousins.
Mike: Yes they were. I later learned that they were their parents and grandparents.
Lisa: Another variation of "Shion-chin" then.
Janet: To me it's more like peek at the would be son-in-law. Did you know that it
is an old custom in Taiwan that a girl could only peek at her husband-to-be
at the initial get-together party. They were not allowed to speak with
each other.
Ken: I read that in the Second Generation section of the recent issue of Taiwan
Culture Magazine, (Volume 3, No. 2, pg. 19, April, 1988). They called it
"to steal a peek". Isn't that right, Mike.
Mike: Actually, it's called "Tau-Kua", "Teu-Kon", or "Tou-Kan" in three different
Taiwanese languages. It is a very old custom.
Lisa: However, it has a new meaning now. They "steal a peek" at a potential
son-in-law in the middle of the night at a snack restaurant.
Ken: Do you have any more interesting stories about "Shion-chin"?
Mike: I do have another odd story to tell. One of my uncles lives in Kaoshiung,
a large city in Southern Taiwan, about 150 miles from Taipei. He asked me
to visit him and told me he wanted to introduce a girl to me from his town.
I told him that I could not spend half of a day traveling by car to meet
with him. He suggested that I fly, but I told him that was too expensive
for me, especially being a medical student. The next morning at the
hospital, I was paged and a man told me to meet him in the lobby as he had
an airline ticket to give to me.
Lisa: Did you fly to meet your uncle and the girl?
Mike: Yes, I had to. I had run out of excuses.
Ken: Did you ever date any girls after these episodes of the "Shionn-chin"?
Lisa: Yeah, tell us about your wonderful experiences.
Mike: You know I was quite busy when I was there. I was taking an elective,
not vacationing. I had to date some of them because I had no other choice.
Janet: How come? You're a free man and can do as you please.
Mike: During my second month there, I lived in the home of the Director of a
small community hospital. Can you believe he owned the whole 150 bed
hospital by himself. There was no dormitory for medical students or
houseofficers. He insisted that I stay at his house. He had a huge house.
Janet: I know why he asked you to stay there. He had a couple of daughters for
you to meet and you felt obligated to do so.
Mike: I couldn't avoid seeing them. One daughter just finished college and the
other was a senior in college. They were both preparing to come to the
states.
Lisa: Well it looks like you didn't do too bad. Many rich girls, ha!
Mike: I wouldn't say that. I had a hard time communicating with them, even
though I know Taiwanese languages fluently. They were the same age as
us, but it must have had something to do with the culture gap.
Janet: Some differences we have between our parents and us may have nothing to
do with the generation gap, but a culture gap. If Mike felt that way,
just think, it would probably have been worst for us since we don't know
too much about Taiwan or its cultures and languages.
Lisa: Mike, did you notice any difference between medical students in Taiwan and
those in the United States?
Mike: Yes, there is a big difference. That is what I wanted to talk about in
the first place instead of the "Shion-chin". I have to go, I am scheduled
in clinic and need to be there right now.
Ken: We should try to get together like this more often. Maybe we can manage to
meet once every couple of months.
Janet: Well, since I am a houseofficer now, I have a larger apartment and would
prefer meeting at my place where we could talk more leisurely than in the
cafeteria during our lunch hour.
Mike: That's a good idea. Everyone can bring a dish or some kind of snack, and
then I can tell you more about my experiences in Taiwan.
Ken: Good. We'll see you then.
9. EXPERIENCE IN TAIWAN(II)
First published in the Newsletter of the North American Taiwanese Medical Association,
Vol. 5, No. 2, April, 1989 and in the Independent Weekly Post.
In a typical living room of an apartment in a large city, four Taiwanese-American
medical students and houseofficers are talking.
Janet: I hope you guys like my cooking.
Ken: Janet, I didn't know you could cook Taiwanese dishes so well. I
haven't eaten such a good meal in a long time.
Lisa: Me too. To tell you the truth, I used to hate my mother's cooking
when I was little. But now, I really miss her cooking. I am starting
to appreciate Taiwanese cooking. Mike, I also like the cookies you
brought from Taiwan.
Mike: That's very interesting. When I was in Junior High in Taiwan, we used
to try to imitate the Americans. It was fashionable to eat hamburgers,
hot dogs and pizza at that time. Now, I am trying to preserve some of
the customs taught by our parents.
Janet: Mike, it's much easier for you because you grew up in Taiwan. For those
of us who were born and raised in the United States, it is much more
difficult to preserve our heritage.
Ken: Talking about heritage, let's hear more about your trip to Taiwan, Mike.
I'm still fascinated about your trip. I really regret not taking an
elective in Taiwan when I was a senior student.
Lisa: I bet Ken is only fascinated with the stories about Mike's opportunity
to meet girls in Taiwan. Isn't that right Kenny?
Janet: I don't want to hear any more stories about "Shion-chin". The stories
Mike told were humiliating to women.
Mike: I'm sorry. That's the way it is in Taiwan. I just told the truth.
Lisa: That's the part of Taiwan I don't like. Females in Taiwan play
subordinate roles in their society.
Mike: From the views of second generation Taiwanese-Americans, the subordinate
role of females would probably be the last thing that would upset you
if you visited Taiwan. For example, the education...
Janet: Yeah! You said you would compare the medical students living in Taiwan
to those in the United States. Didn't you?
Ken: What were you allowed to do as a senior medical student taking an elective
in Taiwan?
Mike: I was allowed to do more there, than I am doing here. The last year of
medical school for students in Taiwan is called internship. I was assigned
to do the same things as an intern does here. Coincidently, there was
a former junior-high school classmate of mine in the same medical center
where I was doing my internship. We saw each other often and I always
tried to compare each of us with regard to our medical education.
Lisa: What were some of the major differences between you and him?
Mike: The most important difference I noted was their attitude toward authority.
I guess they believe much more in what they are told from their superiors.
You hardly see any of them challenging or making a suggestion to the
professors, attendings, or even residents about the diagnosis or management
of a patient.
Ken: I bet this kind of attitude is not only limited in the medical profession.
My parents who both taught high school and college in Taiwan told me that
it was different being a college professor or teacher there. Students
wouldn't challenge the teachers opinions and they hardly asked questions.
Most of the teachers would just follow the orders received from the
governmment or their superiors.
Lisa: Did you notice the older generation Taiwanese-American physicians educated
in Taiwan to be somewhat similar, so to speak? Do you remember the last
Taiwanese-American Physicians Meeting we attended as guests? You know,
the one with the wonderful 10 course dinner that was free. The guest
speaker spoke on malpractice problems and when it as over hardly anyone
asked questions on a subject that was pertinent to their practice.
Janet: Yeah, I remember. Of us four, we asked more questions than the 40 of them
put together. Maybe there was some language problems. You know it is
more difficult for them to express themselves in English.
Mike: I don't think so. They speak English to their patients. Actually, this
phenomenon is much worse in Taiwan where language is not the problem. In
most of the conferences I attended, the audience, especially the medical
students, did not ask questions.
Ken: Maybe it's their traditional "Confucius Philosophy". Remember, he had a
lot of quotations that told people the great virtue of silence.
Lisa: I think part of the reason is due to the system of the authoritarian
government. I bet this happens a lot in other countries. The government
discourages different opinions or ideas from their society. So, in turn,
everyone keeps their mouth shut.
Janet: I also believe that. My parents told me that they would study very hard
in school in order to get high-scores on their examinations. The
government, teachers, and even parents all discouraged anyone from speaking
out, especially those who had different opinions. They didn't teach
students to communicate well. Also, in Taiwan there are some historical
reasons why people do not express different opinions.
Ken: On the contrary. In the United States, everyone is encouraged to speak out
and to show off in order to get attention. The way to excel here is to
promote yourself and your ideas. This is what makes people speak out more.
Mike: I heard a speech given by Dr. Yuan Lee sometime ago. You know, he is the
Nobel Laureate in Chemistry. From his own experience as a Taiwanese-
American, he is most critical about the education system in Taiwan.
Especially, the presence of miliary or intelligence officers on college
school campuses.
Ken: I also remember him saying he would have never been able to win a Nobel
prize if he would have stayed in Taiwan.
Janet: I believe he wanted to emphasize the education system. The academic
freedom and research environment in Taiwan could not have produced such
a remarkable scholar. Isn't that right, Mike?
Mike: To tell you the truth, I don't know if that is Dr. Lee's belief. I
certainly do agree with Janet, just as I said from my own experience and
observations. However, my friends in Taiwan are quite excited about the
recent changes that have taken place there. They are actually discussing
the withdrawal of military and intelligent officers from the campuses.
Lisa: Do you think the presence of military and intelligence officers affect
medical education or patient care?
Janet: Yes, I do. The presence of officers remind students about military rules,
and if you don't obey their system, you will be punished. I think this
makes people think less and so they end up following the doctrine they know.
Mike: You know I recently observed a phenomenon in Taiwan just like the one Lisa
and Janet were talking about. The medical students in Taiwan do not think
much about differential diagnoses. They would try to find more evidence
to prove the most likely diagnosis, rather than finding evidence to rule
out a different diagnosis.
Lisa: Mike, that's a good observation. My father also told me about this. He
said the professors did not teach much about differential diagnoses when
he was a medical student.
Janet: Mike, you came to the United States when you were in Junior High, didn't
you? Did you have difficulty relating to our ways?
Mike: Yes I did. I was so used to the "only doctrine way" of thinking. It took
me many years to shed that kind of approach. When I went to Taiwan this
last time, I found the medical students' way of thinking to be quite strange.
Ken: I don't think we should degrade the education system in Taiwan. The
University produced a graduate such as the Nobel Laureate Dr. Lee. Also,
those medical schools educated physicians like Lisa's father.
Lisa: Kenny, you know your father and mine had to change their way of thinking
under the American education system in order to succeed. In addition,
they also had to work very hard.
Ken: I know, my father works day-in and day-out in his laboratory. After he
got established in laboratory research, he then began working very hard on
his English communication skills. He bought a series of tapes and books
to better himself as the students used to criticize the way he lectured.
He later won the best teacher award in his department.
Lisa: Since my childhood, I can remember my father hardly ever eating dinner with
us. He would work in his lab at night, after seeing patients all day long.
We never were able to take long vacations, because he said that was the best
time for him to be at home writing a paper or grant proposal.
Janet: To tell you the truth, we don't seem to have to work as hard as our parents'
generation did. Mike, can you tell us if the younger generation in Taiwan
are like us?
Mike: Yes, they're about the same. Our parents went through difficult times in
Taiwan. That was their way of life. Now, the younger generation is growing
up in a much more affluent society. They don't have to work as hard as
their parents did either. You know, we should be able to enjoy ourselves
sometimes too.
Ken: Yeah! What we discussed tonight was too serious. Maybe we should find
something more entertaining to talk about. I'll host the next get together
and order some take-out dishes from the Hunan Restaurant since I don't know
how to cook. Now that I am a houseofficer, I think I can afford it.
Lisa: Kenny, please don't order chop-suey dishes. I can come over early and help
you cook.
Janet: I can also bring a dish.
Mike: That sounds good, I'll bring some desert too. Let's make sure we talk about
something that is more relaxing next time.
Any comment and question, please send to Albert Chu 朱真一
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