Essays on Writing and Language in Honor - Sino-Platonic Papers

Schnffestschrifl: Bsay in Honor of John DeFrMcir
actually the phrase means that after five years your Chinese will stiN be abysmal, but at least you
will have thoroughly learned humility.
There is still the awe-inspiring fact that Chinese people manage learn their own language very
well. Perhaps they are like the gradeschool kids that Baroque performance groups recruit to sing
Bach cantatas. The story goes that someone in the audience, amazed at hearing such youthful
cherubs flawlessly singing Bach's uncompromisingly difficult vocal music, asks the choir
director, "But how are they able to perform such difficult music?"
"Shh - not so loud!" says the director, "If you don't tell them it's difficult, they never
know."