Eating Pai Tou (Trouble), Sexy (Naughty), Cheating (Talk about Love), Mopping the Coffin (Prodigal)...
Recently, the Shanghainese version of "Flowers" has become a hit, The charming Shanghainese lines vividly show the Shanghai style in the 1990s. While watching TV series, many young people are immersed in this sub-accent, laughing at themselves as "pidgin" while picking up the increasingly unfamiliar Shanghainese dialect.
This is not an isolated case in which literary and artistic works triggered dialect craze. In recent years, dialect elements are common in literary works, movies, TV series, and online short videos, and young people are eager to follow and imitate them.
At the same time, universities, middle schools and primary schools in Shanghai, Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Chengdu, Changsha and other places offer a series of dialect elective courses, which are also frequently mentioned in social media or news reports.
The Internet craze is just one aspect of the popularity of dialects. Are young people in real life really still willing to speak dialects? What is the dialect level of Generation Z? Can dialects still be passed down from generation to generation? With these questions in mind, we conducted some investigative interviews.
Stills of "Flowers"
#01 Shanghainese version of "Flowers" triggers dialect craze #
"Crybaby (crybaby)"
"Thirteen o'clock (cutely stupid, expressing anger)"
"Hit me and do it"
"Just hit Nong"
This is a classic Shanghainese dialogue in the recent hit drama "Flowers". Miss Wang (played by Tang Yan) traveled thousands of miles alone, driving from Shanghai to Zhuji in order to "rescue" Mr. Bao (played by Hu Ge) who went into the tiger's den alone to explore high-quality imitation Sanyang T-shirts. When the two met, they learned that Mr. Bao was in danger. Ms. Wang was still frightened and squatted beside the accident car, crying with a pale face. Mr. Bao walked to the side, knelt down and entertained her with a smile on his face.
Stills of "Flowers"
Since its broadcast, the Shanghai-language version of "Flowers" has frequently appeared in the entertainment industry. On social platforms, viewers are keen to share exciting Shanghainese dialogue clips from TV series. Many viewers from Shanghai said, "If you want to watch the Shanghai version of "Flowers", it really has a more Shanghainese flavor." "If you can't understand the Shanghai version of "Flowers," you've just watched a fake "Flowers." .
Stills of "Flowers"
While watching the drama, some Shanghai audiences picked up unfamiliar dialects again. Senior drama fans use Shanghainese to discuss character stories and plot trends, and analyze the standard of Shanghainese lines in the drama; migrant workers originally communicated in Mandarin in the office, but after watching the drama, they began to speak Shanghainese; some Shanghai girls because their partners are from other places People have no choice but to speak Shanghainese like crazy to their cats at home. Even when sharing and discussing TV series or daily life on the Internet, many Shanghainese viewers have a dialect flavor in their words, "That's right! Don't post comments and reply to comments." Just gossip in Shanghai."
From literary works to film and television works, Shanghainese has always been an important feature of "Flowers". The author Jin Yucheng once said in an interview with the media that the choice of dialects and ontological narratives was his response to the translation accent that has been prevalent in China for a long time. The use of dialects can more vividly display the richness of people and express regional characteristics. The main actors of the TV series version of "Flowers", including Hu Ge, Tang Yan, Ma Yili, Zheng Kai, and Chen Long, are all Shanghainese. The director chose Shanghainese during filming, and later dubbed and produced a Mandarin version.
The play has both a Mandarin version and a Shanghainese version. The scenes and plots of the two versions are exactly the same, but the different languages bring different viewing experiences. Shanghainese has become the era and city in which the Shanghainese version of "Flowers" is created. An indispensable prop for the atmosphere, the audience's discussion of the Shanghainese lines even exceeded the director, actors, and plot.
The book cover of "Flowers"
Behind the popularity of dialects in "Flowers" actually reflects the current situation of the deterioration of young people's dialect ability: young people who have left home to study and work said, "I have been away from home for half a year, and all of a sudden I can't speak dialects." ""; young people who stay in the local area will laugh at themselves as "Pidgin" (meaning that their Shanghainese dialect is not standard), and their dialect level is "saved" by the crew's small Shanghainese classes; young people who are aroused by "Flowers" to have Shanghai-style feelings try to "It is forbidden to speak Mandarin at home, only Shanghainese", but unfortunately, the children at home can only understand but not speak...
The post-00 generation who can still use Shanghainese proficiently is called "rare" on the Internet Species".
# 02 Post-1995 "Pidgin" students practice Shanghainese and rehearse Shanghai opera #
As a Shanghai native born after 1995, Zheng Dong, a postgraduate student majoring in performance at Shanghai Normal University, is clearly aware of the decline in dialect proficiency among his peers.
Last year, Zheng Dong rehearsed a Shanghainese comedy "Friendly Chess and Card Room" with his friends, telling the story of an old chess and card room at the entrance of an old neighborhood in Shanghai. There are 6 Shanghai citizen characters in the play, all played by local young people born in 1995. There are many distinctive Shanghai dialects in this drama, such as: Cui Niao Gui (very tricky), Chi Baitou (received criticism), De Gua Gua Gua (real), San Dai Wu Tuo Jia Jia (the appearance and appearance of the three generations are similar). Portrait of the mother-in-law)... In order to better present the character's personality and living conditions, they chose to perform it in Shanghai dialect.
The Shanghainese comedy "Friendly Chess and Card Room"
encountered difficulties during the rehearsal process due to the use of dialect.
"Everyone's dialect skills are so lacking. Most people's dialect skills are described as 'pidgin' in Shanghainese, and they sound unfamiliar and even convoluted." Zheng Dong said that several actors' Shanghainese skills are very good. At the level of "can listen but can't speak well", each line requires continuous practice. In order to get the pronunciation right, the actors often make voice calls to teach each other word for word. Sometimes they really can't figure it out, so they can only ask older Shanghainese for advice.
"Friendly Chess and Card Room" performed 8 times in Changning District, Shanghai in the second half of last year. Each performance had an audience of about 50 people. Most of the audience were between 20 and 40 years old. They praised the Shanghai dialect used in the Shanghai opera. “I have watched many stage plays and musicals, and this performance is unique. It is a play dedicated to Shanghai babies... The whole process is basically in Shanghainese, and everyone speaks it well.” “I didn’t expect that there would be such a group of people now. Young people in dramas who have worked hard to spread Shanghainese!"
Shanghai comedy "Friendly Chess and Card Room"
Zheng Dong said that the choice of performing in Shanghainese in this drama was also related to the feedback from another previous drama. The story of that drama was set in Shanghai in the 1990s. Since some actors could not speak Shanghainese and would find it difficult to learn it in a short period of time, they chose to perform it in Mandarin. But at the performance, Zheng Dong temporarily changed a few lines into Shanghainese. The atmosphere at the scene was originally dull, but after hearing the lines in Shanghainese, the audience became noticeably more active.
"Shanghai dialect contains Shanghai culture, and Shanghai culture embodies the life of Shanghai people. While everyone loves Shanghai life, they also love Shanghai dialect. I feel that when listening and speaking dialects, there is a sense of city and identity in the heart. It’s a natural thing.” Zheng Dong believes that dialects are a symbol of local culture, and the dialects of each place incorporate the wisdom of the local people.
"There are many things that are interesting only if they are expressed in dialects. If young people can learn and inherit dialects, this is a very good thing."
# 03 Dialect elective courses are popular among primary, secondary and university students#
In recent years, nationwide In many places, universities, middle schools, primary schools and kindergartens continue to offer dialect elective courses.
According to media reports, in 2013, more than 100 primary and secondary schools in Shanghai implemented Shanghainese teaching in school-based courses. In 2015, Guangzhou Wuyang Primary School invited scholars to teach Cantonese promotion class "Learning Cantonese, A Few Ghosts (Cute)", and then launched Guangzhou's first school-based Cantonese textbook in 2017 to allow students to learn Cantonese more systematically.Zhixin Middle School, a famous middle school in Guangzhou, also opened a Cantonese elective course in 2020 and invited full-time teachers from Cantonese education institutions to teach. In 2021, Binhe Primary School in Hangzhou City will launch the "Little Yaoer Speaks Hangzhou Dialect" course to allow children to understand the local culture of Hangzhou through learning the dialect.
In addition, Shanghai Second Polytechnic University, Chaoshan University, Sichuan Tianfu New Area Aviation and Tourism Vocational College and other universities have also opened courses in Shanghainese (2022), Chaoshan (2019), and Sichuan (2019).
Guangzhou Wuyang Primary School Cantonese textbook
"Zhu Feite (ju fei te second tone), Su Jiaxin (sou jia xin)..." At the elective course of Yali Middle School, a key middle school in Changsha, the teacher was calling the names in Changsha dialect.
The students in school uniforms stood up and raised their hands and answered loudly in Mandarin: "Arrive!"
The teacher on the podium repeated the word "arrive" in Changsha dialect (the intonation first went up and then dropped). The student imitated the teacher's tone and answered "Yes" again, causing laughter in the audience.
Yali Middle School Changsha dialect course
This elective course is called "Teaching You Authentic Hong Kong Changsha Dialect" and is taught by Changsha native teacher Liao Xiyan. "Judging from the course selection situation, students like dialect classes very much, and many students have not grabbed the class." Liao Xiyan told reporters that according to the school's requirements, each elective course is limited to 55 students, and the dialect class is at full capacity. After the course video circulated on the Internet, more than a dozen graduated students sent Teacher Liao WeChat requests for course materials. They asked Teacher Liao with regret: "Why didn't you offer this course when we were in school?"
In fact, Liao Xiyan’s original intention of offering Changsha dialect classes was related to students’ interests.
At the beginning of this semester, a teacher solicited students’ opinions on elective courses in WeChat Moments. The students excitedly left a message: “Teach us Changsha dialect!” As a Changsha native, Teacher Liao has a deep affection for Changsha dialect. Except for classes at school, Changsha dialect is basically used in daily life. Seeing that students are enthusiastic about Changsha dialect, she quickly applied for this course.
Yali Middle School Changsha Dialect Course Textbook
In the classroom, the students' enthusiasm for learning the dialect contrasted with their current ability. In the first class of
, Teacher Liao randomly surveyed the dialect proficiency of the students in class. More than 60% of students cannot speak authentic Changsha dialect, and only about 30% of students can both listen and speak authentic Changsha dialect.
Judging from the teaching results, it is difficult to quickly improve students' dialect level in just one semester. In the final exam in early January, Teacher Liao set up listening, speaking, reading and other sections for students to draw lots for assessment. The topic that one student got was to name several animals in dialect (Mr. Liao had taught about this in class before), but this student was dumbfounded and couldn't remember it during the exam. This classmate told Teacher Liao quite aggrievedly: "My parents are from Changsha, but our family doesn't speak dialects, we all speak Mandarin."
Teacher Liao understands this very well. In school, teachers and classmates all speak Mandarin, and students cannot practice dialects. Back home, my parents mostly speak Mandarin, and dialects are only occasionally used when communicating with grandparents. Outside of homes and schools, except in small streets and alleys, it is difficult to hear authentic Changsha dialect in the city. "I think the biggest dilemma in the inheritance of dialects is the language environment. Language learning is not only about learning, but also about using it, but young people increasingly lack the environment and small environment to listen and speak dialects."
# 04 Overcoming "Dialects" Shame” to get back the original intention#
The promotion of Mandarin, the acceleration of urbanization, the increase in population mobility...the change in the use of dialects is the result of many comprehensive factors, and for many young people, the degree of psychological identification with dialects It is also constantly changing.
"Joyce Irreversible", an international student from Chongqing, once posted on the Internet about his experience of "dialect shame" and the process of coming to terms with his "accent".
She recalled that during her childhood, everyone only used Mandarin in class and usually spoke dialects. Speaking Mandarin in daily life was considered "weird" by others. Most of the time, the funny "Trump" was more recognized by everyone.After transferring to a big city from junior high school, she was teased by her classmates for her accent. Her accent gradually blended into the local area, and she was teased about her big-city accent when she returned home. A chain of contempt formed in her heart: Mandarin - big city dialect - small local dialect.
Stills from "Flowers"
When she first entered college, she worked hard to practice speaking Mandarin without an accent, and did not speak dialects even with fellow classmates. She is happy that outsiders cannot tell her hometown from its accent. One of the criteria for finding a boyfriend is the Mandarin standard. Later, when studying foreign languages, she began to pursue authentic English and American accents...
"If you can speak well, it's good. What more English and American accents are there? Isn't it normal for Chinese people to have Chinese accents?" A teacher said. She let go of her longstanding accent problem.
As English and Mandarin are used more and more frequently, she began to forget some dialect words, but she felt uncomfortable inside: "I feel that I have probably got rid of the dialect, but I don't feel happy in my heart. "
Until one day, she discovered that when she was doing math problems in English, she was still speaking in dialect - every number, mathematical symbol, and mathematical formula sounded in dialect. She finally understood: "My mother tongue is still a dialect. When I am immersed in thinking, the dialect will automatically pop up. I am now happy with my mother tongue and will no longer be ashamed of my accent."
From dialect shame to mother tongue Proud, "Joyce Irredeemable"'s learning of dialects, Mandarin, and foreign language accents also represents the mental journey of some young people currently moving around different countries, cities, and villages. After learning multiple languages, some young people still hope to return to the embrace of dialects and feel belonging and identity here.
"Dialects can make people feel safe, proud, cordial and practical." Teacher Liao said that dialects are the living fossil of language. They carry the human geography, customs and sentiments of a place from ancient times to the present, and retain almost all the history and culture of a place. Information is an irrecoverable historical memory and a non-renewable cultural gene. I hope young people can pass on the dialect.
Stills of "Flowers"
Returning to the Shanghainese version of "Flowers", the scene before the end of the play is quite meaningful from a linguistic perspective. Mr. Bao walked out of the magnificent Peace Hotel, and changed from the turbulent Mr. Bao back to the mortal Ah Bao he once was. The young elevator attendant Xiao Xiaogu chased him out and said goodbye to him in Italian. Previously, with Mr. Bao’s encouragement, Xiao Gu learned 26 languages.
When Xiao Gu expressed that he would insist on learning more foreign languages in the future, Mr. Bao said to him: "China has many dialects. In addition to learning foreign languages, you will also have to learn dialects. In the future, the Peace Hotel will not only have foreigners."
This sentence may not only be A Bao's farewell words to Xiao Xiao Gu, but also the director's advice to young people watching the drama.
Text/Beijing Youth Daily reporter Chen Jing Intern Ma Anni
Editor/Lin Yan Zhang Bin
Editor | Intern Lu Shuzhen Xu Hanrao
Pictures are from the Internet, provided by the interviewee
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