In September, Professor Greg Patton of University of Southern California (USC) was removed from his post while trying to broaden his students’ worldly perspective in his August 20th seminar. In fact, he was giving a cross cultural lesson on filler words across languages. According to BBC’s Investigation Into US Professor sparks debate over Chinese word, “in Chinese the word “na-ge” (那个) is a common filler phrase that people use when they’re hesitating or trying to find the right word. It literally translates to the word “that”.” In Mandarin Chinese “nage” is used as commonly as “umm” in English and, “a-no” term in Japanese. The “nage” term is a long-standing joke among stand-up comedians who have visited China. For example, one comedian has described his jaw-dropping shock when he was in a KFC in Shanghai and he heard a Chinese child glued to the menu display and stuttering to make his order, “nage, nage” while a black tourist was standing nearby. Yes, “nage” sounds like the N-word, and for its use, Professor Patton was dully reported by his students. In response to such complaint, the dean of the USC, Geoffrey Garrett, has removed Professor Patton from his post.
Professor Patton’s effort to broaden American students’ perspective about the world fell on deaf ears. Next to English and Spanish, Chinese is the third most spoken language in the US. Professor Patton’s lesson is actually something that Americans may come in contact within US borders. This practical encounter with Mandarin Chinese ought to be welcomed, rather than shunned with blinders of our own English language taboos. This incident occurring in a business school further highlights how unprepared our future business executives are for the international world environment.
A university ought to provide an open-minded, safe learning environment where students can hold off judgement and reach for a new idea. The article includes other experiences worldwide on the misunderstanding that has led to physical altercations in public and Yao Ming’s own experience in the NBA. I would decline to support that Professor’s Patton’s incident is a part of a worldwide “xenophobic attitudes on the Chinese people”. As a cross cultural trainer, I believe cross cultural lessons are not always comfortable. It requires everyone to pause and rethink what we know. Professor Patton’s class was clearly unprepared for the purpose of the lesson.
Photo by David Garry on Unsplash
