Now I'm neither of Chinese ethnicity nor residing in China, but if Sun Yunxiao has written a book in order to "Save the Boys" from turning them into girly men, then I definitely see this as becoming a major issue for not just Chinese, but for all Asian males worldwide.
In his book Sun claims that,
- Chinese boys between the ages of 7 and 17 are 2.54 cm shorter than Japanese boys.
- Chinese boys are getting physically weaker.
- Chinese boys are now emotionally more vulnerable than girls.
First of all, I'll assume that the three bullets aren't some outlandish claims Sun pulled out of his ass, and he actually did his due diligence in researching and gathering legitimate data. With that, if all the stereotypes Asian men struggle with today aren't bad enough, then this definitely hammered the last nail in the coffin of a slow and painful death of the masculine Asian male image.
Sun argues what I have been griping about all along - Asians unhealthy overemphasis on education which stifles the growth in maturing from boys to men. Yes, as laudable as studying 24/7 and earning high marks on exams may be, too much of anything can result in dire and unwanted consequences.
They say that in order to address and resolve an issue, you must admit that one indeed exists. Fortunately, Sun along with many others including myself, recognize this cultural characteristic as a sociological, psychological and even physiological setback for Asian men,
"...traditional Chinese method of 'caged breeding' raises a child like a little emperor and doesn't encourage independence. Furthermore, “the frequent absence of a father figure and the overprotection of the mother is another factor that makes Chinese boys more feminine.”I have seen instances of this in other Asian countries as well, though I think there is less of this in Korea due to a law requiring every Korean male citizen to enlist in the military for almost two years. Sun argues the need for Chinese men to participate in sports as opposed to trying to imitate popular culture icons, since they "blur the man/woman divide". He points to Li Yuchun as a primary example of who Chinese boys try to imitate.
This dudette above may be a good singer and have some ambiguously captivating flavor, but it leaves me confused. At first glance, I actually thought Sun's reference to Li was illustrative of how guys in entertainment are beginning to reflect a girly behavioral display. I was going to say Li is nowhere in close proximity to Rain's level of masculinity and sex appeal or Jin's level of rawness until I found out...Li Yuchun is actually female! I think I'm beginning to understand Sun's conjecture.
So who is to blame for this developing trend? Is Sun's book a backlash against A) feminism in China, B) the lack of universally defined gender roles, C) Chinese boys stunted due to an overemphasis on smarts or D) all of the above?
My answer is D) all of the above. Final answer.
My answer is D) all of the above. Final answer.