General Information about Item:

• Verbal Folkore, Proverb
• Language: Chinese
• Country of Origin: China
• Informant: Linda Xia
• Date Collected: 10-31-18

Informant Data:

Linda Xia is an international student from China, studying at Dartmouth College. She is considering studying Economics. She was born and raised in Beijing, China. She loves old, Chinese fairy tales, and grew up hearing proverbs and short Chinese sayings from family members. She enjoys studying and living at Dartmouth, but often misses home.

Contextual Data:

Linda heard this riddle from her mother when she first began attending Dartmouth. Her mother had previously heard it from her grandmother. She was on the phone with her mother, speaking about how she was adjusting and making friends on campus. She was lamenting about how difficult it was for her to make friends compared to others. Her mother then told her this proverb that Linda’s grandmother had once told her.

Item:

Orally transmitted proverb:

如果只看到森林，他们会忘记树的美丽

Rúguǒ zhǐ kàn dào sēnlín, tāmen huì wàngjì shù dì měilì

If one only sees the forest, they forget the beauty of the tree

Associated file (a video, audio, or image file):

Transcript:

• The proverb I have is:

  如果只看到森林，他们会忘记树的美丽

  Rúguǒ zhǐ kàn dào sēnlín, tāmen huì wàngjì shù dì měilì

  If one only sees the forest, they forget the beauty of the tree

  I am an international student from China, still undecided but considering majoring in economics. I was born and raised in Shanghai. I grew up hearing a lot of proverbs and Chinese sayings, and I really like Chinese folklore and stories too. I’m enjoying my time at Dartmouth, but I miss China a lot.

  I heard this proverb from my mom when I first got to Dartmouth. We were on the phone in my room and it was hard for me at first to make a lot of friends. But then,  my mom told me this proverb to make me feel better. She had heard it from my grandmother.

  To me, this proverb means you can only have so many close friends. To be fair, I’m also very unsure of this proverb because I think you can have many close friends. But, you can only spend so much of your time and energy on so many people, and you’re going to be closer and have deeper relationships with some more than others. Also, I see it as saying that those who have a lot of friends, mostly to be popular, won’t enjoy what real friendship is. But I also like the visual and metaphorical aspect of this proverb. I think people would usually hear it in times of hardship, when they need to be reminded of who their true friends are.

Informant’s Comments:

Linda is more skeptical about this proverb than the others. She believes that there is some truth in it, as friendships should take time and commitment. Therefore, there is only so much time and energy one can spend in their relationships, that it is inevitable that some friendships are deeper than others. However, she also questions the idea that one cannot have numerous close friends, and asks at what number of close friends is too numerous to have a meaningful connection with them. She also sees the proverb as a slight against those who merely use their friendships and relationships for their own personal gain, rather than for mutual benefit. Those who only use friends for social gain or for repetitional purposes will most likely not experience the true depths and affections of friendship. However, she enjoys the natural metaphor of the trees, and considers it very beautiful. One would normally hear this proverb when they are considering who their true friends are – perhaps in times of hardship.

Collector’s Comments:

This proverb has the similar two clause structure of many Chinese proverbs, and like many other Chinese proverbs, organizes itself into a cause and effect relationship. There is also the image of nature as a metaphor for friendship, which is also common in many other Chinese proverbs as nature is a large part of Chinese art and Chinese folk culture relies on connecting with nature. Linda seems to disagree with this proverb, which is fitting given her quick adaption to Dartmouth and her reliance on all of her friends to help her through the transition, rather than a few close ones.

Collector’s Name: Rachel Zhao

Tags/Keywords:

• Chinese
• Friends
• Forest
• Individuals