讨论中国文化就像吃了个臭虫，昨天打发了“自古以来”，今天又冒出个“从今以后”。不知道中华文明究竟得罪了谁，翻来覆去被人按在地上糟践。本想写篇文章反驳，转念一想，何必呢，反正人家恨不得拔了自己身上那张黄皮，那里感兴趣一个华裔写中文。于是到网上找了找，正好看到老外写的此文，就翻译部分。文字主要用google translate翻译，因作了少量文字修改，多少费了些功夫，耍赖称作原创吧。 6park.com
我的评论用蓝字，译文用黑字。 6park.com
中国文化驱动其经济成功

China’s Culture Drives Its Economic Success
Lothar Katz
“20 世纪美国总统卡尔文•柯立芝经常引用的名言“美国人民的主要业务是商业”很可能对中国也适用。历史上，回溯到帝国的过去，有许多漫长而繁荣的时期，拥有丰富的贸易和商业遗产。今天这种特性依然存在。这个国家的文化和人民在许多世纪里发展并保持了强烈的商业倾向，令人惊讶的是，即使在共产党统治的几十年里也几乎没有丢失。
Twentieth-century U.S. President Calvin Coolidge’s oft-quoted line that “the chief business of the American people is business” could well have been coined for China during many of its long and prosperous periods throughout its history.  The country has a rich legacy of trade and merchantry, extending into its imperial past. Today, that quality is still alive.  While the nation’s culture and its people developed and maintained a strong commercial orientation over many centuries, surprisingly little of it has been lost during the decades of Communist rule.”
“随着现任政府放宽限制并允许私营企业开展业务，新一代的中国企业家迅速在全国各地涌现。快节奏、繁华的商业和贸易市场，以前都属于香港和澳门的标志，迅速扩展到整个中国，从深圳和广州到重庆、上海、天津、北京，以及许多其他工业和商业中心。贿赂和裙带关系等令人不快的副作用也已经浮出水面，但人们的大部分精力似乎都花在了达成交易和发展成功的企业上。
As the current government dropped restrictions and allowed private business initiatives, a new breed of Chinese entrepreneurs quickly mushroomed all over the country.  What had previously been Hong Kong and Macao trademarks, namely being fast-paced, bustling marketplaces of commerce and trade, quickly expanded across all of China, from Shenzhen and Guangzhou to Chongqing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Beijing, and many other of its industrial and commercial centers.  Unpleasant side effects such as bribery and nepotism have surfaced, too, but most of the people’s energy seems devoted to making deals and growing successful businesses.”  6park.com
这一段让我颇意外，我一直以为中国社会重农轻商，没有做生意的传统。看来老外的感受完全不同。让我想起八十年代刚开放式，我的一个同事弃职摆烟摊的往事。中国人骨子里的发财思想历千年而不变。 6park.com
“该国的大多数商人还有一个优势，都擅长谈判技巧而且讲究效率。他们的谈判技巧和讨价还价方式很多在西方社会闻所未闻，从极端的开放到愤怒的要求，从施加时间压力到使用沉默作为心理武器。与中国人谈判可能是一种有趣但有时令人不寒而栗的经历。因此，在中国从事商务谈判的外国人要想取得成功，就需要做好充分的准备。
Another advantage for the country’s business people is the fact that most of them are skilled and effective negotiators.  Their spectrum of negotiation techniques and bargaining tricks is much broader than is usually found in Western societies.  From extreme openings to angry demands, from applying time pressure to using silence as a psychological weapon, negotiating with the Chinese can be an entertaining and occasionally chilling experience.  Foreigners engaging in business negotiations in China thus need to prepare well if they want to be successful.”  6park.com
“中国文化中根深蒂固的核心价值观是虔信所谓“三个 P”：耐心、坚持和（长远）目标。与典型的西方文化相反，在西方文化中，商业计划通常每年进行一次，任何超过 3-5 年的时间框架都被认为是长期的，而中国人，无论是在组织层面还是个人层面，通常都在更长的时间框架内思考和计划，有时跨越几代人。
A core value deeply engrained in Chinese culture is its devotion to what could be called the “three P’s”:  patience, persistence, and (long-term) perspective.  Contrary to typical Western cultures, where business planning is usually done on an annual basis and any timeframe beyond 3-5 years is considered long-term, the Chinese, both at an organizational and an individual level, often think and plan in much longer timeframes, sometimes spanning several generations. ”  6park.com
不觉得三个P（patience, persistence, and (long-term) perspective）总结得很到位吗？
“在中国，与许多其他的亚洲文化一样，团体的影响力通常比个人主义更重要。个人家庭被视为社会细胞。不管对家庭还是社会来说，人们通常认为集体利益比任何个人利益更重要。尊重长辈和上级被认为是一种美德。这些价值观可以追溯到儒家信仰体系，尽管共产党过去曾试图根除它们，但它们仍然完好无损。
In China, as in many other Asian cultures, group influence generally weighs more heavily than individualism.  One’s family is treasuredas a prototype for society, and, in both, people believe that the collective good is much more important than any individual’s benefit.  Respect for elders and superiors is considered a virtue.  These values trace back to the Confucian belief system and remain intact in spite of past attempts by the Party to eradicate them.”
否定中国传统文化的几位，你们是否爹妈不认了？
接着文章说这个特性意味着中国人在商业谈判中决策较慢，因为需要很多人商量后批准，但一旦决定，the group will quickly gain traction as it acts （团体会迅速行动）。接着还有一大段谈论关系在中国的作用，想来大家对此理解更深刻，就不翻译了。当然他也提到关系有助于持续维持商业合作。
“中国人具有强烈的职业道德。这是帮助重新刺激经济的中国文化的另一项资产。谦虚、奉献和对工作的贡献，为更大的社区做出贡献，是大多数中国人共有的强大价值观。虽然整体工作节奏可能没有美国那么忙碌，工作时间也没有美国那么长（不知作者为何如此说，难道不知国内的996），但人们通常会不惜一切代价地完成工作，只要他们看到对家庭、团体、组织，或整个社会有好处。
The Chinese people possess a strong work ethic.  This is another asset of Chinese culture that has helped re-stimulate its economy.  Modesty, dedication, and commitment to one’s work as a contribution to the larger community are powerful values shared by most individuals in China.  While the overall work pace may not be quite as hectic and work hours not as long as in the United States, people will usually do whatever it takes to get the job done, as long as they see the benefit to their family, group, organization, or to society at large.”
嘿，几位，你们的工作都敷衍塞责吗？至少在网上是如此，因为你们喷之前似乎连什么叫文化，什么叫文明都不清楚。

贴主:mingxiaot于2023_01_03 20:56:59编辑
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