簡介：每一代人都需要宣稱自已是不同的。但在今天的中國，這種差異卻是實實在在的。一個變化如此之快的國家，每一個年齡段的經(jīng)歷都與以往完全不同。

Young, patriotic and conservative:understanding China’s millennials

年輕、愛國和保守：了解中國千禧一代

Young people like me areambitious and more plugged in to the world than ever before. But will theybring about a more liberal China?

像我這樣的年輕人比以往任何時候都野心勃勃，比以往任何時候都更能融入世界。 但他們會帶來更自由的中國嗎？

【日期】2018年5月14日

by Yuan Ren
Every generation needs to announce that it isdifferent. But the differences are real in today’s China, a country that hasbeen changing so fast that the experience of each age-group is entirelydifferent to what has gone before.

每一代人都需要宣稱自已是不同的。但在今天的中國，這種差異卻是實實在在的。一個變化如此之快的國家，每一個年齡段的經(jīng)歷都與以往完全不同。

I was born in the 1980s, in the spring of the new China. When I was achild, most families didn’t have a telephone; by the time I was in my teens,supermarkets started appearing in the cities. It was only once I was a youngadult that, in the run-up to the 2008 Olympics, change came full-pelt,symbolised by smartphones and the western brands flooding into the shops.Foreign travel became much easier and young people began studying abroad.

我出生在上世紀80年代， 新中國的春天。當(dāng)我還是個孩子的時候，大多數(shù)家庭都沒有電話；到我十幾歲的時候，城市里開始出現(xiàn)超市。在我的青年時代，絕無僅有的，翻天覆地的變化到來了。那是在2008年奧運會的籌備期間，標(biāo)志就是智能手機和西方品牌洪水般涌入了中國，出國旅行變得容易多了，年輕人開始出國留學(xué)。

All of which means that, when I look to my parents, the gulf between us iswide. My dad left home at 16 to work in a state-owned factory and so did mymother. Both grew up during the Cultural Revolution, which disrupted the wholeeducation system. When higher education was eventually revived in 1977, theywere part of a tiny and lucky minority to go to university.
Most of that generation faced narrow choices, if any. Many were given jobplacements, which often involved moving far away from home. Lots of youngurbanites were sent to the vast Chinese interior to experience the ruralhardship that persisted there. Some returned, while others remained for life.

這一切都意味著，我與我父母那一代人的差異是巨大的。我父親16歲離開家在一家國有工廠工作，我的母親也是如此。他們倆都是**期間長大的，**擾亂了整個教育體系。當(dāng)高等教育最終在1977恢復(fù)時，他們是少數(shù)能上大學(xué)的幸運兒。他們那一代人中的大多數(shù)要么沒有人生選擇，要么選擇范圍很狹窄。許多人都得到的工作機會都是離家很遠的地方。許多年輕城市居民被派往中國各地農(nóng)村（上山下鄉(xiāng)），去體驗?zāi)抢锏钠D苦生活。（后來）有一些人回來了，另一些人則終身留在農(nóng)村。

Changes began in 1986 with the introduction of compulsory nine-yearschooling, which was transformative for rural children in particular. Then, in1999, came the widening of higher education, which made university accessible.The state has provided these new opportunities—but unlike in my parents’ time,it doesn’t guide young adults through each step. Now, that’s the job of widersociety. In middle-class families parents will often help boost careeropportunities for the young using connections, and by offering financialsupport.

改革始于1986年，當(dāng)時實行了九年義務(wù)教育，對農(nóng)村孩子來說，這項改革尤其重要。然后在1999年，高等教育的擴大化使更多的人有機會上大學(xué)。國家提供了這些新的機會——但與我父母時代不同的是，國家不再為大學(xué)生分配工作?，F(xiàn)在的工作機會由更廣泛的社會提供。在中產(chǎn)階級家庭中，父母通常會利用人際關(guān)系和提供經(jīng)濟支持來幫助孩子找工作。

But the state has intervened in other ways. I am from the first generationborn under the one-child policy, which came into force after 1980. I rememberI’d often hear parents grumble that as only children, we were “all selfishthese days.” The assumption was that we “l(fā)ittle emperors” didn’t know how toget on with other people and would grow up so lacking social acumen that we’dbring on China’s decline.
Well, society didn’t fall—many of us grew up treating cousins likebrothers and sisters. Also, the one-child policy was always less strict thanmany in the west understood. Though I am an only child, the rules allowed manyrural households to have two children, especially if the first was a girl. A30-something friend of mine from Henan province, one of the poorest in thecountry, has two younger sisters and one brother.

但國家卻以其他方式進行干預(yù)。1980年中國實行獨生子女政策，我是之后出生的第一代人。我記得經(jīng)常聽父母抱怨說，作為獨生子女，我們“現(xiàn)在都很自私”。他們覺得我們這些“小皇帝”不知道如何與其他人相處，成長的過程中缺乏社交敏銳性，我們會導(dǎo)致中國衰落。
但是，中國并沒有衰落。我們還有表兄弟姐妹，許多人從小就像對待親兄弟姐妹一樣對待他們。而且，獨生子女政策并不象西方人想象的那樣嚴格。盡管我是獨生子女，但按規(guī)定，第一胎是女孩的農(nóng)村家庭可以有兩個孩子。我有一個來自河南的30多歲的朋友，他有兩個妹妹和一個兄弟，河南是全國最窮的省份之一。

Nonetheless, I wonder whether the constant blaming of “only-childsyndrome” for our flaws hasn’t instilled in us a deep sense of guilt—it is ouroriginal sin. And that has pushed us to prove our elders wrong. My generationturned out to be harder-working and more responsible than anyone had predicted.We are a bridging decade between old and new China. Those of us born in the1980s are not as traditional as the 1970s cohort, and not as entitled as thoseborn in the 1990s. “In my experience, the post-1990s have more of a casual outlookon life and care more about having fun,” said my friend Lily from Beijing,herself born in the late 1970s. “They also disregard consequences… it’s like, Ican leave my job and won’t think about it.”

然而，我們這一代從小到大都被指責(zé)有“獨生子女綜合癥”，我不確定是不是這種指責(zé)讓我們產(chǎn)生了一種類似于原罪的負罪感，于是我們就努力證明我們的長輩是錯誤的。事實證明我們這代人比任何人想象的更努力——工作更勤奮，更負責(zé)任。我們是新舊中國之間的橋梁。80后不像70后那樣傳統(tǒng)，也不象90后那般擁有特權(quán)（享有豐厚的物質(zhì)條件）。我的70后北京朋友莉莉曾說，“根據(jù)我的經(jīng)驗，90后對生活的看法更隨意，更關(guān)心玩樂。他們做事不那么瞻前顧后，（他們的做派）就好像在說，去他的工作，我才不在乎呢。

Of course, she is describing the lucky ones. For people born in the countryside,the city can still be tough. Many young “internal immigrants” live in crampedbasement dormitories and work in low-wage jobs. They moved for a better life,but their chances are limited, much more so than in the previous generations,when rents were not so exorbitant and social hierarchies were less entrenched.And even when the moving pays off, it can introduce an alienating disjunctionwith home. One newcomer to the city, a 27-year-old barista, told me that he was“always telling mum that she should stop eating leftovers. Sometimes in thesummer the food is nearly bad, and she’ll still keep it. We didn’t have afridge until two years ago.” He now lives in Xi’an, a member of the supposedlypampered post-1990s generation whose childhood was spent in severe ruralpoverty.

當(dāng)然，她描述的是幸運的人。對于90后的農(nóng)村孩子來說，城市生活仍然艱難。許多年輕的“農(nóng)民工”住在狹小的地下室里，干著低薪工作。為了過上好日子，他們背井離鄉(xiāng)，但擺在他們面前的機會卻十分有限，比前幾代人更有限。因為那時房租還不算貴，社會也還沒有固化。盡管他們在外面賺到了錢，卻因此家鄉(xiāng)疏遠了。一位27歲的咖啡師告訴我，他“總是告訴媽媽不要再吃剩飯剩菜。夏天，有時食物都快餿了，她還留著。我們直到兩年前才有冰箱?！彼F(xiàn)在住在西安，他就是人們口中的被寵壞的90后之一。

But even when living very different lives, faraway, younger generations cannot escape familial expectations. Arecently-married 28-year-old gym instructor I know is already facing pressurefrom his mother, who worked as a cleaner in Beijing for a decade, to bao haizi,literally to “hold a child.” “And it has to be a grandson,” he told me. He andhis wife, a yoga teacher, would rather wait until they are financially stable.

但是，即使生活在離家很遠的地方，年輕一代也無法逃避家庭的期望。我認識的一位新婚的28歲體育教練已經(jīng)面臨來自母親的壓力，她母親在北京當(dāng)了十年清潔工，想“抱孫子（而且一定得是男孩）”。他和妻子是瑜伽老師，他們想等經(jīng)濟穩(wěn)定了再要孩子。

In the west, the children of the post-war growth period turned out to beliberal hippies—the same cannot be said for the progeny of China’s long boom.They may well be more self-centred, but they are not necessarily moreindependent-minded. Filial piety, the Confucian ideal of having respect forone’s elders and obeying their wishes, is much subtler in the modern age, butstill influential. My cousin, for example, is enrolled in a business courseabroad that was chosen by her father, even though she wanted to do psychology.Her parents continue to plan her internships and career from within China. Iknow graduates who have returned to China at the request of their parents, eventhough they preferred life in the UK, and the move back required them breakingup with their partners.

在西方，戰(zhàn)后成長起來的孩子變成了自由派嬉皮士。而成長在中國經(jīng)濟長期繁榮時期的孩子則不是這樣。他們很可能更加自我中心，但不一定更獨立。孝道，儒家尊重長輩服從長輩意愿的觀念，雖然在現(xiàn)代中國變得有點微妙，但仍然有很大的影響。例如我那個在國外留學(xué)的表妹，盡管她自己想學(xué)心理學(xué)，但她還是選擇了父親想讓她學(xué)的商學(xué)。她的父母已安排好讓她在中國實習(xí)和工作。我認識一些留學(xué)生，盡管他們更喜歡在英國生活，但他們還是應(yīng)父母的要求回到中國，還為此與他們的伴侶分手。

And what about politics? Young Chinese people like me have had all sortsof assumptions projected onto us. We have been called apathetic, as well as selfishand lazy. It’s true that the vast majority of my generation are not muchconcerned about domestic politics, though there is plenty of interest ininternational affairs. Everyone has their gripes but few find anything major tocomplain about. Money often solves problems better than protest. The grumblesabout individual policies tend to be balanced by a wider acknowledgement thatthings have changed vastly for the better. That’s just as well, becausecomplaining can be treacherous territory.

那么政治呢？人們對我們這代年輕人有各種假設(shè)，說我們冷漠、自私和懶散。誠然，我們這代人對國內(nèi)政治并不十分關(guān)心，卻對國際事務(wù)有很大興趣。每個人都有自己的抱怨，但都無關(guān)大局。錢能解決很多問題，比抗議更有用。對某個具體政策抱怨，往往在我們了解到更廣泛的事實后往好的方面轉(zhuǎn)變。這也有好處，因為抱怨可能是一個危險的領(lǐng)域。

A willingness to agree with criticism of China can be put down to westerninfluence, especially by our elders. Conversely, if you talk to a westernerabout politically sensitive topics, there’s a good chance they think they knowbetter—that you’ve been “brainwashed” by the state.
That sort of accusation and dismissiveness infuriates one of my friends,who is completing her PhD in social sciences at Peking University. Before that,she studied at the LSE. “Why do foreigners always want to bring everything backto politics?” she asked. You often hear this from young, well-educated Chinese.It’s born out of a frustration: why can’t you see what China and its governmenthave achieved—hundreds of millions lifted out of grinding poverty—withouttainting it with politics? And it’s not hard to understand this defensiveness,given how transformative China’s long boom has been for our generation.

受西方的影響，我們愿意接受對中國的批評，尤其是上了年紀的人。相反，如果你和西方人談?wù)撜蚊舾性掝}，很有可能西方人會認為他們更了解真相——（因為按他們的說法），你已經(jīng)被國家“洗腦”了。
我的一個朋友曾這種指責(zé)和蔑視而憤怒不已，她目前正在北京大學(xué)攻讀社會科學(xué)博士學(xué)位，之前她曾在倫敦商學(xué)院學(xué)習(xí)?！盀槭裁赐鈬丝偸前岩磺卸汲兜秸紊希俊彼龁柕?。你經(jīng)常從受過良好教育的年輕中國人那里聽到這句話。這源于一種挫折感：為什么你們看不到中國和它的政府所取得的成就: 撇開了政治，讓數(shù)億人擺脫了極度貧困? 考慮到中國的長期繁榮在多大程度上改變了我們這代人的生活，就不難理解為什么我們要捍衛(wèi)自己國家了。

“And what of the next generation?”I ask the gym instructor whose mother is lobbying for a grandchild. Will therebe another gap between us and our children, as we have with our own parents?“These days, you are just contributing to society by having children,” said myfriend. For him, the Confucian idea of children looking after their parents inold age could fade away. “It’s not like before, you can’t rely on them for thefuture.”

“下一代又如何呢？”我問上文提到的那位母親想抱孫子的體育教練。我們和孩子之間會不會有另外一種代溝，就像我們和自己的父母一樣？他回答說“現(xiàn)在，生孩子算是社會做貢獻了?！睂λ麃碚f，儒家關(guān)于孩子為父母養(yǎng)老的觀念可能漸行漸遠。“這不像以前那樣，你將來不能指望他們?！?br/>
Today’s young people are ambitious and more plugged into the world thanever before, even though Facebook and Twitter are blocked. It has fallen to usto explain China to the world. Many are readier to defend the status quo:compared with their parents, they can be more vocal in their defence of the nation.Those who have lived abroad can end up more patriotic—they have experiencedwestern culture and democracy, and yet they still come home.

今天的年輕人比以往任何時候都野心勃勃，比以往任何時候都更能融入世界，盡管Facebook和Twitter被封鎖了。我們應(yīng)該向世界解釋一下中國的情況。許多年輕人更愿意維護現(xiàn)狀：與他們的父母相比，他們可以更加直言不諱地捍衛(wèi)這個國家。那些在國外生活過的人最終可能會變得更加愛國——他們經(jīng)歷了西方的文化和民主，但他們?nèi)匀贿x擇回家。

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