Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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Chines( BY MARIAN E. DILLASHAW of The Gamecock staff Chinese Studies. Not many students seem to want to "take a chance" with an unfamiliar language. The professor of Chinese studies, Charles Alber, attributes the students' reluctance primarily to the non-European based characteristic of the language. Ironically, Chinese studies were begun at USC as a result of a decline in enrollment in foreign languages, especially European languages, according to Dr. Alber. Chinese and other unfamiliar languages were offered as new options for students. Several other professors at USC were interested in Chinese studies. Dr. Gunther J. Holst, Chairman of the Division of German, Russian, and Oriental Languages, said Chinese studies were in corporated into the curriculum in fall, 1970, primarily because of the growth of the University. At that time there was a renewed stress on academic excellence at USC. Chinese became one of several subjects offered in the "academic forward look" at the University. It was the first of several un familiar languages offered by the Foreign Languages and Literatures Department. When China's cultural role throughout the history of mankind and China's present political role are taken into consideration, the Chinese language cannot be considered an unusual subject. Twenty five per cent of the world's population speaks the Mandarin dialect. According to Dr. Holst, USC tas a viable program in Chinese in which some of the most intellectual students at the University are enrolled. He explained, "Any university that has a high regard for its academic program will offer - 11I3I11igiii1311 WN: 111W . RI Al FACTORY RING R BALFOUR, AND J SHOW SAMPLES A SENIOR CLASS RI] QUALIFICATIONS AND A 2.0 GPR. U. S. C. C} Studie, studies in Chinese, Japanese and other more unfamiliar languages." The department also offers Japanese, Hebrew and Arabic. Dr. Alber thinks a program of Chinese studies is an invaluable benefit to students. He said, "Chinese language and literature are part and parcel of a liberal arts education. The minute you step into one of the fields of Chinese, Japanese, Arabic or Hebrew, you get into an area which United States education never deals with. If it had not been for three wars in Asia, the United States would never have taken Asia seriously. To study Chinese is to study that half of the world almost everyone in the United States ignores," he said. There are several programs encountered in offering Chinese as part of the curriculum. Onc major problem the program faces is enrollment. "On first hearing the word 'Chinese,' a student instantly thinks 'difficulty' - some imagined, some real," Dr. Alber explained. However, that was not the case with Rose Cheney, a recent graduate of USC who completed the 2 -year Chinese program. Cheney, who had just transferred to USC, needed a foreign language. So she decided to "go in head first" enrolled in the Chinese program which she finished with a feeling of real accomplishment. Considering Chinese studies to be a wide-open field, Cheney plans to continue her studies in Chinese, using it for research of population demography. Accepting a scholarship from the University of Pennsylvania, Cheney plans to work on her %iaster and doctorate degrees in Chinese population. The first year the program was offered, eight students enrolled, half of which were Chinese. Of the eight enrolling, two made it to the end of the first year; one made it to NG DA UGUST 6TH VEDNESDAI EPRESENTATIVES )HN ROBERTS WIIl LND TAKE YOURO0 NGS. ARE 75 HOURS olN LMPUS BO( RUSSELL HOUSE : ADi the end of the second year. Alber thinks student response to Chinese studies is a result of the educational system of the U.S., particularly the South. Most students have never had the option to study Chinese in high school. Most high schools offer no course in Chinese culture beyond what is found in a chapter of history texts. Dr. Alber said, "We teach our students what we think is im portant; what we think is im portant is what we identify with; we identify with Europe." To Dr. Alber's knowledge, Spring Valley High School is the only secondary school in the Columbia area which offers more exposure to Chinese culture than what is found in the average history text. According to Mary C. Ruff, teacher of the Afro-Asian course offered at Spring Valley, the nine week segment dealing with China is extremely popular with college bound students. She knows of two or three of her former students who have completed the Chinese program at USC. Another major problem faced in developing the program is the lack of coordination between the disciplines. More professors are needed to support the program. Dr. Alber explained, "There is no sociology professor at the University qualified to teach Chinese culture." In his opinion, the University needs a coordinated program to deal with the culture of that part of the world we tend to ignore. Dr. Alber considers the South less advanced in study of the Far East than other areas of the United States. Dr. Alber said, "Chinese at USC has ceased to be news. The more it ceases to be news, the more it ceases to be in the forefront of student's thinking which is needed for it to survive." Several posters urging students to enroll in Chinese Y FROM JOSTEN'S, L BE HERE TO RDERS FOR RECORD )KSTOR E erent J 101 are displayed in the Humanities building. Cheney said the incorporation of Chinese studies on the high school level is the major solution to the problems of the Chinese program. If students could find out how in teresting Chinese is on the secondary level, they would not be reluctant to enroll in Chinese on the college level and would be more motivated to continue in the program. Cheney, who enjoys reading Chinese more than speaking or writing the language, also feels that the availability of more small, easy paperback books in Chinese would encourage the students to read more. The Cantonese students at USC, who are southern Chinese, are faced with a special problem. The Mandarin dialect which is northern Chinese is the dialect taught at USC. Dr. Alber does not think that USC's Chinese program is for the Cantonese students who want to learn the northern dialect. Con sidering their knowledge to be too sophisticated for the program at USC, Dr. Alber thinks they should be provided with individual study. Like most students, Cheney thinks that the hardest skills to learn is reading which involves learning new patterns and memorizing characters. The student learns 1800 different characters in three years. Dr. Alber uses texts in which the characters are spelled out in Roman letters. This makes the transition from the basic characters to Chinese characters encountered in the higher-level courses easier. Calligraphy, or the art of writing with a brush, is the hardest skill to acquire, and it is an essential course which is lacking in the Chinese program at USC. Ac. USC Summ Final Perfc The USC Summer Repertory Theatre will wrap up its first season this week in the Univer sity's Drayton Hall Theatre. Final performances of two shows "Charley's Aunt" and "The Hot I Baltimore" -- will be presented today, tomorrow and Saturday beginrning at 8:15 p.m. On both today and tomorrow, the 18-member acting company will present Lanford Wilson's hilarious comedy hit 'The Hot I Baltimore." Set in the seedy lobby of a grand hotel, "The Hot 1 Baltimore" FREE UNI REINCAM: 7:30 - 9:00'PN( Rm.it 307. RE indow cording to Dr. Alber, a knowledge of both popular and classical Chinese language is required to be skilled in calligraphy. Many students have requested courses in calligraphy but Dr. Alber thinks it should be taught as an art because it involves an elegance and assumes the personality of the writer. Dr. Alber hopes a course in calligraphy will be offered at USC in the near future. Even though USC does not have a course in calligraphy, Dr. Alber considers USC to be one of the better prepared centers of Chinese studies in the Southeast. Many programs at other universities have only one Chinese instructor. Dr. Alber considers Peter Chow, the teaching assistant who is a native of China, a great asset to USC's Chinese program. Dr. Alber also considers USC to be well-prepared to offer Chinese studies in terms of materials, equipment, and library resources. He said since there is no B.A. degree offered in Chinese, there is no need for large library resources of Chinese materials. There is a noticeable lack of English material on China. Dr. Alber, who came to USC from Indiana University where he received his Ph.D. in Chinese language and literature, does not foresee a degree in Chinese offered at USC in the near future. He said the program will survive if here are continued efforts to coor nate the program with the ther disciplines and continued publicity to arouse student interest in the Far East and China. From the viewpoint of a student, Cheney said, "It gives you a dif ferent outlook. You have to change your whole way of thinking. It's like looking at the world through a different window." er Theatre: ormances brings together an odd assortment of unrelated people including three prostitutes, a quiet spinster who believes in ghosts and a brother sister pair who dream of be'oming organic farmers in Utah. The final performance on Saturday evenilpg will feature the always popular classic comedy, "Charley's Aunt." Tickets for single performances are $1 for students, $2 for USC staff and faculty and $3 for all others. Reservations may be made at the Drayton Hall Boxc Office. IYVERSTY NATION ..dt Mana.