Online Chinese Learning – 你不高兴吗? (Nǐ bù gāoxìng ma?) Aren’t you happy?
Key Learning Points (Preview):
高兴 (gāoxìng) adj. happy/glad
微笑 (wēixiào) n./v. smile
At the Charles de Gaulle airport, some friends came to pick up me. When they met me, my French friend hugged and kissed me as if he hadn’t seen me for a hundred years. But my Chinese friend just shook my hand, although he was really “高兴 (gāoxìng) happy” to see me as well. Many non-Chinese people are confused by this: don’t you want to show how happy you are when you meet your friends? Most Chinese people, however, prefer to be more restrained when they meet their friends. But why is this so?
This is best explained by the greatest thinker and educator in Chinese history, “孔子 (Kǒngzǐ) Confucius,” who upheld the virtue of a restrained character. Exhibiting a restrained character is also the way of Confucianism and Buddhist in China. Educated Chinese also value the virtues of being restrained. In classical Chinese literature, from the “诗经 (Shījīng) Book of Poetry” to the “红楼梦 (Hónglóumèng) Dream of the Red Chamber,” the characters tend to be very restrained, not express their feelings directly and completely. Likewise, most Chinese people prefer to have their feelings be more restrained and implicit. That’s why Chinese people don’t hug and kiss easily. They tend to nod their head and shake hands with a “微笑 (wēixiào) smile.”
Key Learning Points:
高兴 (gāoxìng) adj. happy/glad
For Example:
Nǐhǎo, hěn gāoxìng rènshi nǐ.
A: 你好， 很 高兴 认识 你。
Hello, glad to meet you.
Nǐhǎo, wǒ yě yíyàng.
B: 你好，我 也 一样。
Hello, the same here.
微笑(wēixiào) n./v. smile
For examples:
Tā de wēixiào shǐ tā gèng piàoliang le.
她 的 微笑 使 她 更 漂亮 了。
Her smile makes her even more beautiful.
Tā zǒngshì wēixiàozhe hé měi gè rén shuōhuà.
他 总是 微笑着 和 每 个 人 说话。
He always speaks to everyone with smile.
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Does 开心 also mean happy?
Yes, both 高兴 and 开心 mean happy. But 开心 is more colloquial. I learned this from an online Chinese course.
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