As guests in a foreign place far away from home, we’re often left wondering, “How can we make our hosts feel better? Is there anything that we can do to make them feel more respected?”
Along with providing the usual answers of a) “I’m not from around here, but abroad,” b) “Yes, I can use chopsticks,” and c) “Really,” there’s something else you can do to make your hosts feel more at home: by giving them affirmation.
There aren’t many details to this video as seen on Sina Eyewitness that was apparently taken on a Huangshan Street in Anhui Province. You may just see a local resident teaching a dance to a foreign woman, described here as a “long-legged babe”, but others may see it much more as an affirmation:
So. Never mind that the Chinese woman in the video is dancing the infamous “public plaza line dance”, a type of group dance that middle-aged women flock to perform in public spaces located in residential neighborhoods across China in which they are accompanied by loud music. Never mind that the rise of the “dancing auntie” is a cultural phenomenon that pits the power of a vocal throng against residents who can’t stand it.
And, never mind that an overwhelming majority of Chinese citizens react vehemently against “dancing aunties” and reacted with sarcasm when the mayor of Sydney suggested she import this culture back to Australia. Never mind that chengguan in Beijing were not able to stop dancing aunties from disturbing students leading up to the gaokao examinations, and perhaps as a result, gaokao examinations will be patrolled by armed police in Foshan and Shenzhen schools will enforce a noise ban in its own general areas.
No, none of that matters, because no matter which side of the dancing grannies you’re on, the foreigner is on the opposite side of the dancing auntie itself. So that means that a foreigner that supports any Chinese culture, good or bad or dancing auntie, is by all accounts supporting China.
That does seem a bit reaching, especially for a short video about two people dancing. After all, is there any revealing statement that shows us this affirmation?
Sure there is. Though it lacks any other details about this incident, Sina Eyewitness posted this text at the end of the post:
Netizens have cried out that the dance moves of the auntie has overwhelmed the foreigner babe. Our “public plaza line dance” has now become internationalized!
Affirmed.
Photo: Sina Eyewitness via Weibo