Lessons For Life

2022 ISSUE 3

Lessons For Life

In this issue, we investigate efforts to fill three vital gaps in China’s public education: on sex, death, and aesthetics. We also enter the world of UFO hunters; find out why young Chinese are giving up sugar; ask when domestic TV will get good female characters; talk to graffiti artists working with government; and more.

Close Encounters, a cover story from the third issue of 2022, "Lessons For Life."

Learn some new Covid-19 Chinese slang from our third issue of 2022.

From this issue

CHINESE CHARACTERS

On the Character: 感

A character that can move heaven and earth

POETRY

Crabapple Blossoms | Poetry

Enjoy a poem on spring flowers and rains by university lecturer and writer Wang Ruiyuan

FICTION

Night Moves | Short Story

Read a newly translated short story from writer Hu Yuesheng

EDUCATION

Death Discussions: Educators Struggle to Break Taboos Around Death

More and more Chinese have been talking and learning about death, a traditional taboo, for better living

EDUCATION

The Ugly Truth: China’s Weird Buildings Have Their Roots in Education

Is a lack of “aesthetic education” to blame for bizarre architecture and artistic confusion in modern China?

TRAVEL

The Rough Side of China’s Tropical Paradise

Racing through Hainan’s back roads on a secondhand motorbike shows a different facet of the island

GALLERY

Written on the Walls: How Graffiti in China Went Mainstream

With artists enjoying lucrative commissions from governments and brands, and attracting millions of followers online, some are asking whether China’s graffiti art has forgotten its counter-cultural roots

FOOD

Bitter Sweets: Have Chinese Consumers Lost Their Taste for Sugar?

Sugar consumption has boomed in China in recent decades, but health-conscious youngsters and sugar-free products are hoping to reverse the trend

TRADITIONAL CULTURE

Anything Flies: How Kiting in China Reached New Heights

Backed by international competitions, a 2 billion yuan industry, and complex tricks and designs, kiting in China is no child’s play

FOOD

The Taste of Summer: Learn to Make Delicious Watermelon Soup

An unlikely but refreshing marriage of watermelon and clams in Hainan’s must-try soup

FILM

Nü Perspectives: Striving for Better Female Characters on Chinese Screens

Do female characters in Chinese cinema and TV pass the Bechdel test?

BOOKS

The Rouge Street Blues: A New Translation Breathes Life into China’s Rustbelt

A translation of Shuang Xuetao, one of China’s brightest millennial writers, finally brings one of the country’s new generation of authors to English-language readers

SOCIETY

Learning to Love: Why Demand for Relationship Classes is Booming in China

Young Chinese turn to university and online courses to build better relationships

HEALTH

Let’s Talk About Sex (Education in China)

Grassroots organizations and social media are filling a wide gap in China’s formal sex education

SOCIETY

Close Encounters: Inside Chinese UFO Hunters’ Search for Extraterrestrial Life

As interest in science fiction and space exploration grows, China’s grassroots UFO enthusiasts continue to search for answers

SOCIETY

Enter Our New “Most China” Photo Competition

TWOC’s new photo contest is open for submissions

SOCIETY

The Price of Beauty Online

Critique of influencers has become a weapon for shaming female internet users

SOCIAL CHINESE

The Essential Pandemic Language Guide

MUSIC

How a Band from China’s Industrial Heartland Captured the Emotions of a Generation

Despite an experimental sound and just two album releases in a decade, Omnipotent Youth Society has remained one of China’s most relatable rock bands since 2010