Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
behavior historically and culturally based on the concept of
wenming
(crudely translated as “civilized”). Leo Ou-Fen Lee identifi ed the genealogy
of the term from its Japanese roots at the turn of the century, through its
propagandist uses by the nationalist movement in the 1930s and its relation-
ship to hygiene discourse and injunctions on proper behavior.
Wenming
in
the world expo context was used by the government to exhort the Shanghai-
nese to move away from their local customs and poor behavior and toward a
global cosmopolitan worldview.
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Government action included the banning
of wearing pajamas in public and explicit descriptions of how to ride an
escalator and ride on the bus (another scholar gives these examples: “stand
on the right, walk on the left, use the escalators in a wenming way.” “Don't
spit on buses, be more wenming”).
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For example, bringing gigantic pack-
ages on a bus would be an example of a non-wenming thing to do. One
young Shanghainese journalist criticized the pajama ban (and explained its
roots). He described the bans on inappropriate attire and exhortations of
“Pajamas don't go out of the door; be a civilized resident for the Expo,'” and
the volunteer “pajama policemen” who patrolled the neighborhoods and
told pajama wearers to go home and change.
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In other instances, the slight diff erences between the English and Chi-
nese versions of the expo publicity materials were equally discordant.
According to the online English explanation of the expo theme, “Better City,
Better Life” represented “the commonality of the whole humankind for a
better living in future urban environments.” In contrast, the Chinese
description of the theme explained that the expo “is a festival of discussing
human urban lives. It is a symphony of creativity and fusion (of diff erent
cultures and traditional culture). h is will become a wonderful conversation
about human civilization.” Where the urban environment is dominant in
the English version, the Chinese version also discusses cities, but more
around the issues of culture and civilization. h
e symbolism of the emblem
and the mascot also diff er. h
e English version of the emblem described the
