English or Chinese?
In the meantime, kids grow up between English and Chinese schools. They’re no longer in China, but they live within fortress walls in Chinatown -where neighbours protect themselves from invading, clapping and joyful madness from kids listening to stories from somewhere else; where they’re also protected from the outside non-Chinese world-
They go to English schools …with stone throwing boys, tough.
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I think, this seems close to Margaret Atwood's idea of 'Garrison Mentality.' Chinese immigrants' sending their kids to Chinese school seems to be an attempt to protect their language and culture in their new surroundings: their adopted country.
ReplyDeleteAt the same time, they send their children to English school because they think that it would not be possible for them to keep their children away from outside influences, they cannot avoid their children's integration into the new country.