How children raised in the United States view Avanti (repost)

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Children raised in the United States describe Avanti Heat in this way. 16summer-king 2010-06-08 12:00 The students in the Chinese class I teach are all twelve or thirteen years old and are in middle school in the U.S. The textbooks used in class are a set of twelve Chinese language books compiled by Jinan University for teaching Chinese to foreigners. Last Sunday in class, we learned a text titled \"Avanti Borrowing a Pot\". The story goes that Avan went to the landlord’s house to borrow a pot, and when returning it, there was another small pot on top of it. The landlord asked, “You only borrowed one pot, so why did you return two?” ”Avanti replied that the pot he borrowed had given birth to a small pot at his home, so they were returned together. The landowner happily accepted it, telling him he could borrow a pot whenever he wanted in the future. Soon, Avanti borrowed the largest pot from the landlord’s house and never returned it. The landowner went to demand it, and Avanti said that pot was dead. The landowner asked angrily, “How could the pot die?” ”Avanti replied, “If even a pot can give birth, how can it not die?” ”The landowner was very angry, but there was nothing he could do about him. After reading the text, I discussed the story with the children, and their answers overturned my previous impressions of Avanti. Teacher: Do you have any questions about this text? Student: What *? Teacher: A pot is the tool used for cooking meals. Student: Since it’s something used for cooking at home, it should be a relatively personal item. Why would Avanti go to someone else’s house to borrow it? Teacher: Because he was relatively poor and his family didn’t have enough pots, he had to borrow some. Student: Oh, then what is a landlord? Teacher: A landlord is a relatively wealthy person in the countryside; they usually own a lot of land and hire people to work it. Teacher: What are your thoughts after reading this story? Student: I don’t like this story, nor do I like these two characters. Articles like this shouldn’t be included in textbooks; they will corrupt children. Teacher: Why? Student: Everyone in this story is dishonest. Student: Yes, they’re all fraudulent and greedy. Student: I think this Avanti seems smart on the surface, but is actually quite stupid. He goes to such lengths to devise tricks, all just to get a big pot by using a small one – and it’s just an old pot that someone already uses at home. Student: The reason he’s so poor that he has to borrow pots is probably because he only thinks about getting things without working, by using tricks to deceive others. If he focuses on working hard, he will definitely be able to earn a lot of money. Student: Yeah, if he saves the money used to buy that small pot, and then works to earn more money, he can buy himself a larger pot. There’s no need to cheat. Teacher: Well... you’re right. Working hard to support oneself is the duty of a person. Student: Also, if he tries to borrow things from others again, surely no one will lend them to him. Student: Yeah, he doesn’t return things he borrows, so he loses his credibility. Teacher: The analysis is reasonable. One must be honest in life; that is fundamental. One should not lose credibility for short-term gains. Teacher: So what’s your opinion on the character of the landlord? Student: He’s too greedy. The first time Avanti returned the pot, the extra pot that was returned didn’t belong to him; he shouldn’t have taken it. Student: He has no principles as a human being. Since he’s rich while others are so poor that they have to borrow pots, how can he still ask for more things from them? Student: Yes, since he’s rich, he should take the initiative to help the poor and engage in charitable work. Teacher: Well said. We should think about helping others rather than taking advantage of them. One should also avoid being greedy in life. There is an old Chinese saying that goes, \"Greed leads to death,\" and many misfortunes stem from greed. I remember when I was a child and read stories about Avanti, they always portrayed him as very smart and wise, using his intelligence to outwit the landlords and managing to defeat those foolish and greedy landowners; he was a positive character. But in the eyes of these children who have received an American education, he is seen as a cunning, foolish, and untrustworthy person. Upon careful consideration, Avanti’s stories actually have a background: that landowner was always selfish and greedy, and he was cruel to his workers. The poor people dared not speak up against him, but only Avanti was able to deal with him, often putting him in awkward situations and helping the poor get revenge. When ordinary people are deceived, exploited, and oppressed to the point of having no ability to resist, figures like Avanti provide a channel for the weak and marginalized to express their dissatisfaction with the forces of evil. “Being greedy when rich and killing the rich to help the poor seem to be deeply rooted concepts in our culture. Children raised in the United States live in a society governed by the rule of law, where honesty and hard work as well as individual effort are highly valued; deception and lying, as well as a lack of integrity, are considered despicable behaviors. Without any background information, it is indeed difficult for children to understand Avanti’s actions based on just a story. I didn’t give them further explanations; it would be inappropriate to have them understand Avanti’s actions as part of Chinese culture. For the next assignment, I plan to have them write a letter to the editor in charge of compiling textbooks, in which each person writes down their thoughts on this text and suggests that such articles should no longer be included in textbooks. The student who writes the most comprehensively will send the letter on everyone’s behalf.