What do French people think of China and Chinese?

法国人如何看中国和中国人?

Quora评论翻译：

来源：三泰虎 http://www.santaihu.com/45986.html    译者：Jessica.Wu

外文：https://www.quora.com/What-do-French-people-think-of-China-and-Chinese

Ashley Lewis, Grew up in France

Tough question, since most French people really don't know all that much about China except for the obvious: big country, far away, became a very large economy in a short amount of time.

So about China, I'd say most French are quite neutral (while they're much faster going to take sides when discussing Russia).

Now about the Chinese people, I'm sorry to say that even though many French don't hold a grudge against the Chinese, their views will tend to be pretty stereotypical, inaccurate and sometimes plainly offensive.

Common beliefs would be: the Chinese work hard, are modest and keep to themselves, Chinese kids get good grades in school (esp Maths) but have a hard time speaking French,  and they don't create problems in society; however  they're pushovers who don't stand up for themselves and don't stand up against authority, they're hypocritical and too polite to be honest, they're unimaginative, lack creativity, initiative or intelligence and tend to follow rather than lead (never mind that it contradicts the view that Chinese kids are great at Maths).

The Chinese people are also thought to be secretive: some Urban legend's still around, claiming that -in the 13th district of Paris (i.e. Chinatown) people don't declare someone's death to the authorities (the reasons vary and are quite imaginative, although what supposedly happens to those poor corpses is never clear), people buy weird foods (ex: rat, or dog) but won't eat cheese or chocolate (a sign of bad taste, given how important those items are in a typical French diet), therefore the idea of Chinese gastronomy can only be a myth (esp given that Chinese take out is cheap and common, but isn't all that Chinese or that tasty). Well, you get the idea...

The cultural gap is so large though that many French people will see the Chinese as somewhat "kitsch" and mysterious because the French don't understand how one can express negative emotions (disapproval, sadness, anger) without yelling or at the very least frowning while being vocal about what's making you unhappy. So remaining "in control" and not losing face makes no sense at all to a French person.

Also, let's face it, like many Westerners, quite a few French will lump all East-Asian looking people together. Therefore, the way some French judge the Chinese will be influenced by France's colonial past in Indochina, and by how the French perceive immigrants from Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia (since they're more likely to have socialized with them then with actual Chinese people).

Hope this helps, and hasn't offended you. I try to keep it honest.

这个问题很难回答，因为大多数法国人对中国知之甚少，除了一些显而易见的事实：中国是一个遥远的大国，在很短的时间内就变成了一个非常庞大的经济体。

大多数法国人对中国的看法是中立的(尽管他们在讨论俄罗斯时更倾向于选边站)。

关于对中国人民的看法，我很遗憾地说，尽管许多法国人对中国人并不怀恨在心，但他们的看法往往很有成见、不准确，有时甚至明显带有冒犯性。

人们的普遍看法是：中国人工作努力，谦虚谨慎，独来独往；中国孩子在学校(尤其是数学)成绩很好，但学法语很困难，而且他们不会在社会上制造问题；然而，他们易受控制，不为自己辩护也不反对权威；他们虚伪，太过礼貌而不诚实，他们缺乏想象力，、创造力、主动性或才智，倾向于随大流而不是引领潮流(虽然这与中国孩子擅长数学的观点相矛盾)。

中国人也被认为是神神秘秘的：一些传言声称在巴黎13区(例如唐人街)他们不向当局宣布某人的死亡(原因各有不同，非常有想象力，尽管发生的事情永远搞不清楚)，他们买奇怪的食物(例如：老鼠或狗)，但不吃奶酪和巧克力(认为这些口味很差，但这些食物在典型的法国饮食中非常重要的)。因此，中国美食的概念只能是一个迷(尤其是考虑到中国人的外卖既便宜又普通，但并不是那么中式或美味)。所以，你懂的…

文化差异如此之大，以至于很多法国人会觉得中国人有点“庸俗”和神秘，因为法国人不明白，一个人在表达负面情绪(不赞成、悲伤、愤怒)时，怎么能不大喊大叫，或者哪怕是皱眉，同时大声说出是什么让你不开心的。因此，对一个法国人来说，保持“控制”和不丢人完全没有意义。

同样，就像许多西方人一样，相当多的法国人会把所有看起来像东亚人的人混淆在一起。因此，一些法国人对中国人的评判会受到法国在中南半岛的殖民史以及他们对老挝、越南和柬埔寨移民的看法的影响。(因为他们更可能与这些人来往，而不是与真正的中国人来往)。

Benjamin Pittman, Artist/designer of Ngāpuhi (Māori) and English descent. Extensive background in research on oral histories ...

I think the best answer is that this is a develo awareness for France and the French people, aided by increasing trade and tourism from, with and to China. In many ways, the French are very 'self-contained' as to them, they have the best of everything and therefore, the rest of the world effectively comes to them. There are those who talk about French 'xenophobia' although my view is that it comes as part of the reality and essence of France and French pride. National pride is fine by me. At home, they are entitled to it. Of course, in a sense, they are right: Paris is one of the most visited cities on earth and some 84 million people visit France annually. Spain follows not far behind. So, there are now residential developments and services aimed at Chinese investors and visitors and also, Chinese buyers have been investing in things like prestigious properties, French vineyards and wine houses. France also has a colonial history in Indochina although this is perhaps no longer an issue of French pride, given the way they were thrown out in 1952. Historically also, France did have a trading concession in China. Also, many Hakka Chinese ended up in Tahiti in the mid to late 1800s and so, there is a long history of contact there with many French citizens of Chinese ancestry. China is of course a giant re-awakening and will re-shape the world in so many ways.

我认为最好的回答是，法国和法国人民对中国和中国人的认知正在不断提升，这得益于中法之间的贸易和旅游业的增长。在许多方面，法国人是非常“独立自足”的，因为他们认为拥有一切最好的东西，因此其它国家实际上都在向他们靠拢。有些人谈论法国的“仇外”，尽管我认为这是法国骄傲的现实和本质的一部分。我觉得民族自豪感很好。在国内，他们有权利这样做。当然，从某种意义上说，他们也是对的：巴黎是世界上游客最多的城市之一，每年约有8400万人到法国旅游。西班牙紧随其后。因此，现在有针对中国投资者和游客的住宅开发和服务，中国买家也一直在投资知名地产、法国葡萄园和葡萄酒庄等项目。法国在中南半岛也有殖民历史，尽管这可能不再是法国的骄傲，因为他们在1952年被驱逐。历史上，法国在中国也有贸易优惠。此外，许多客家人在19世纪中后期来到塔希提岛，因此，那里与很多有中国血统的法国公民有着悠久的接触历史。中国当然是一个再度觉醒的巨人，将在许多方面重塑世界。

Seb Tu, 39y old, french living in Paris

As a french native, I can tell that, in my point of view, most of the answers given seem true, even if it gives a quite negative vision of french people.

I will just add that, a large part of french people, especially the youngest, are open minded about their opinion on chinese people.

Another cliché : we almost never heard about violent chinese people in our country. If they do bad or illegal things, they although know how to be discreet.

作为一个土生土长的法国人，我可以看出，大多数回答似乎都是正确的，即使法国人的看法相当负面。

我想补充的是，大部分法国人，尤其是最年轻的法国人，对中国人的看法持开放态度。

另外在我们国家，我们几乎从未听说过中国人有暴力倾向。如果他们要做坏事或违法的事情，他们知道该如何谨慎行事。