Speech 2
runner-up: Rui Cheng gang, Foreign Affair College
Honorable judges, ladies and gentlemen:
Kipling said:" East is east, and West is West, and never the twain shall meet!" But now, a century later, they have met.
They have met in business. They have met in education. They have met in the arts.
Some would argue that these meetings leave us with a choice between East and West ,but I believe the best future lies in the creative combination of both worlds. We can make Western ideas, customs and technology our own, and adapt them to our own use. We can enjoy the best of all worlds, because our tradition is, above all, one of selecting the best and ma-ki-ng it our own.
But, do Western styles and values threaten our identity?
History makes it easy for us to think so-perhaps too easy.
Some people seem to think that adopting Western customs, such as a bride wearing white-which has long been a color of mourning in China, instead of the traditional Chinese red for her wedding, is another submission to foreign intervention,--a betrayal of our heritage, they say.
They fear that as we become "globalized", we will no longer be Chinese.
I do not agree.
History teachers that a strong and confident nation is at ease in hearing from the outside world. The wedding of Eastern and Western cultures, whether in white gowns or red, brings us variety. It is a rich banquet of special foods from all over the world.
As an amateur gourmet of Chinese cuisine, our superb flavours delight me.
But my Chinese taste appreciates food from any land.
I even allow the convenience of McDonald's a place in my life without giving up my good taste. My grandfather taught me to hum tunes of Beijing opera from the time I was very young; they are deep in my spirit, part of my soul.
I love Beijing opera, because it always reminds me of who I am.
But I am also a fan of modern pop music, the No.1 fan of Spice Girls on campus.
of course, it goes far beyond food, music and dance. It goes into values and ways of thinking about the world.
Once upon a time, or so my teacher told me, a Chinese boy and an American girl had a squabble. Both wanted to keep a bunny rabbit they had found in the garden.
Surely you've seen a rabbit sunning himself in the grass.
Nothing is more lovable, nothing more natural. No wonder they wanted him.
The Chinese boy played his er-hu. Happiness and joy, longing and passion, filled the air. The little rabbit swayed gently and began to move his ears in the direction of the music. He liked what he heard.
The girl then took out her violin and played it to produce beautiful melodies of her own. The rabbit began to bounce in her direction.
So intent were the children on their own music that neither paid the other any attention.
The competing melodies confused the little rabbit and he did not know which way to turn le to attract the little creature, both children gave up ;they walked away, in different directions, leaving the rabbit. . e.
But, what if they listened ,what if they really heard each other's music, instead of always playing t
heir own tunes?
When I hear the music of a violin ,rich with the joys of men and women who came together and sang and danced.. . I hear echoes of the music of the grass lands, of the hills, of the my own native land.
Is music mine and yours, or is it ours?
What I want to hear is the er-hu and the violin played together, in rhythm and in tune. Together, we can produce new and beautiful music, rich with textures and sounds that can only be made in harmony.
The rabbit sits in the grass in the ever-warming sun. Waiting for us to play, waiting for the symphony to begin.
Will he have to wait forever? The choice is ours . Thank you.
芮成鋼英語演講稿 [篇2]
Rui Cheng gang, Foreign Affair College
Honorable judges, ladies and gentlemen:
Kipling said:" East is east, and West is West, and never the twain shall meet!" But now, a century later, they have met.
They have met in business. They have met in education. They have met in the arts.
Some would argue that these meetings leave us with a choice between East and West, but I believe the best future lies in the creative combination of both worlds. We can make Western ideas, customs and technology our own, and adapt them to our own use. We can enjoy the best of all worlds, because our tradition is, above all, one of selecting the best and ma-ki-ng it our own.
But, do Western styles and values threaten our identity?
History makes it easy for us to think so-perhaps too easy.
Some people seem to think that adopting Western customs, such as a bride wearing white-which has long been a color of mourning in China, instead of the traditional Chinese red for her wedding, is another submission to foreign intervention,--a betrayal of our heritage, they say.
They fear that as we become "globalized", we will no longer be Chinese. I do not agree.
History teaches us that a strong and confident nation is at ease in hearing from the outside world.
The wedding of Eastern and Western cultures, whether in white gowns or red, brings us variety.
It is a rich banquet of special foods from all over the world.
As an amateur gourmet of Chinese cuisine, our superb flavors delight me. But my Chinese taste appreciates food from any land.
I even allow the convenience of McDonald's a place in my life without giving up my good taste.
My grandfather taught me to hum tunes of Beijing opera from the time I was very young; they are deep in my spirit, part of my soul.
I love Beijing opera, because it always reminds me of who I am.
But I am also a fan of modern pop music, the No.1 fan of Spice Girls on campus. Of course, it goes far beyond food, music and dance. It goes into values and ways of thinking about the world.
Once upon a time, or so my teacher told me, a Chinese boy and an American girl had a squabble.
Both wanted to keep a bunny rabbit they had found in the garden.
Surely you've seen a rabbit sunning himself in the grass.
Nothing is more lovable, nothing more natural. No wonder they wanted him. The Chinese boy played his er-hu. Happiness and joy, longing and passion, filled the air. The little rabbit swayed gently and began to move his ears in the direction of the music. He liked what he heard.
The girl then took out her violin and played it to produce beautiful melodies of her own.
The rabbit began to bounce in her direction.
So intent were the children on their own music that neither paid the other any attention.
The competing melodies confused the little rabbit and he did not know which way to turn le to attract the little creature, both children gave up; they walked away, in different directions, leaving the rabbit . . . alone.
But, what if they listened ,what if they really heard each other's music, instead of always playing their own tunes?
When I hear the music of a violin, rich with the joys of men and women who came together and sang and danced.... I hear echoes of the music of the grass lands, of the hills, of the my own native land.
Is music mine and yours, or is it ours?
What I want to hear is the er-hu and the violin played together, in rhythm and in tune.
Together, we can produce new and beautiful music, rich with textures and sounds that can only be made in harmony.
The rabbit sits in the grass in the ever-warming sun. Waiting for us to play, waiting for the symphony to begin.
Will he have to wait forever? The choice is ours. Thank you.
尊敬的評委、女士們、先生們：吉卜林說過，“東方是東方，西方是西方，兩者永不聚！”然而如今，在一個世紀之後，東西方相聚了。
它們在貿易中相聚，在教育中相聚，在藝術中相聚。
有人爭論說這種東西方之聚,使得我們能夠在東西方中作出選擇.然而我相信最美好的未來在於東西方世界的創造性的結合，我們可以變西方的觀念、習俗、技術爲己所有，爲己所用；我們可以享受兩上不同世界之精華，總之，我們的傳統之一就是擇其精華，爲己所用。 然而，西方的生活方式和價值會威脅到我們的民族特色嗎？
歷史讓我們輕易相信——也許是太輕易地讓我們相信此說了。
有人似乎認爲彩西方習俗，比如新娘結婚穿白色婚紗，是對外國介入的屈服，是對傳統遺產的背叛，因爲按中國傳統，結婚新娘要穿紅色，而白色長期以來代表的是哀悼。 這些人擔心一量我們變得全球化，我們也就不在是中國人了。
我不這樣認爲。
歷史告訴我們：一個強大自信的民族學起外面的世界易如反掌 。
無論是穿白衣還是黑衣，還是東西方異質文化的聯姻，都給我們帶來多姿多采的生活。 東西方異質文化的聯姻是一席來自世界各地佳餚的盛宴。
身爲中國菜的業餘美食家，我喜歡民族的佳餚。
然而我的中國口味也欣賞異國的風味。
生活中我爲簡便吃麥當勞，卻不會放棄自己的良好口味。
從小祖父就教我哼唱京劇，京劇深入我的精神之中，成爲我靈魂的一部分。
我熱愛京劇，因爲京劇讓我總想起自己是誰。
但是我也迷戀現代流行音樂，在學校裏還是“辣味女孩”的頭號歌迷。
當然，異質文化的交流遠不止於食物、音樂和舞蹈，它深入到價值觀和世界觀。 有一次老師給我講了一箇中國男孩和一個美國女孩發生爭執的故事。
在花園裏他們倆發現了一隻小兔，兩人都想要。
你肯定見過草叢中曬太陽的小兔。
沒什麼東西比小兔子更可愛的，更富有自然情趣了，難怪他們兩人都想要它。
男孩拉起了二胡，愉快喜悅的琴聲，充滿了渴望和激情，迴盪在空中，小兔子聽着這音樂輕輕搖擺，耳朵轉向音樂，它喜愛男孩的琴聲。
女孩也取出小提琴，拉出悠揚的旋律。
小兔子聽了朝她跑去。
兩人都全神貫注於自己的音樂，絲毫沒注意對方演奏的音樂。
交雜在一塊的音樂困惑了小兔子，它不知該朝哪走。男孩和女孩都不能將小兔子吸引過來，只好放棄，各自走開了，扔下小兔子獨自一人。
然而倘若他們傾聽對方的音樂，而不是各自爲歌，那麼結果會如何呢？
當我聽到小提琴聲響起，男男女女走道一起又唱又跳，樂聲中充滿了歡樂， 此時我也聽見了草原上、山谷間、小河旁傳來得我們本民族的音樂的回聲。
音樂分你我，還是屬於我們大家？
我想聽的是二胡與小提琴的合奏，旋律與節奏和諧一致。
大家一起才能創造出新穎動聽音樂， 只有在和諧中大家才能創造出富有神韻的樂聲。 在溫暖的陽光中，小兔子在等待着我們一起演奏，等待着交響樂開始。
他有必要再永遠的等下去嗎？決擇在於我們自己。謝謝。
Liu Xin: Thank you, contestant number 10. Now you're going to compare street markets and supermarkets.
劉欣：謝謝十號選手。現在請你對街市和超級市場做一個比較。
Rui Cheng gang:
Well, thank you very much. Um as a man who suffered from male chauvinism, I used to think that shopping is a privilege of women. I seldom do shopping until I have to . But three years ago, something happened and it changed my view. I remember it was the first day I went to college. After I had put down my luggage, I went out of the school to have a look around. It was a romantic rainy day. And guess what, I found the street market, right beside the school.
And I saw lots of middle-aged men and women talking with the sellers of fruit, clothes and soft drinks and it seems to me that they were intimate friends. And then I said to myself, why not have a try.
So I walked to the seller of pineapple and talked to him. And then i bought a pineapple and
bargain with him and then I will eat the pineapple while wandering around the street market and enjoy the si-mp-le things of life. Thank you.
芮成鋼：
謝謝你。唔，以前由於深受男權主義影響，我向來把購物當作是女性的特權。 不到萬不得已決不得已決不上街購物。但在三年前發生的一件事改變了我的觀點。 記得那是我進大學的第一天，放置好行李後我走出學校四處看一看。 那是個浪漫的雨天。你猜怎樣？就在學校附近我發現了一條街市。
我看到許多中年男女正在與賣水果、服裝、飲料的攤主議價，似乎是很熟的朋友。我對自己說，何不一試呢？
於是我走到一個賣菠蘿的`小販前同他說起價來，最後買下一個菠蘿。忽然間我意識到這十分有意思。回到學校後我想了一想，總結出這所以會鍾情於街市的兩點原因。首先，它帶給了我樂趣。其次，我喜歡講價。實際上我認爲講價是提高口才的極端有效的辦法。沒有這幾年講價經驗的積累，我想我也不會有現在的機會站在這兒用流利的英語向你們做演講。三年過去了，我一週還至少上街一次。我會去賣菠蘿的小販那兒和講價，然後一邊吃菠蘿一邊在街市上慢步，享受生命中一些小樂趣。謝謝。
Judge: You mentioned in your first speech the importance of variety even though the east and west are converging. But many people think that one of the problems of modern life is the lack of variety. This hotel looks like every other hotel in the world and the whole world is becoming an airport. Hong Kong looks like Singapore and so on. Do you think that we may be in danger of losing the very variety that you think is so important?
評委：在你的第一個演講中你提到，儘管東、西方文化存在共性，多樣性仍有其重要性。可是許多人覺得現代生活中存在的問題之一就是缺少多樣性。這家飯店看似世界上其他飯店，整個世界成了一個機場。香港看似新加坡，諸如此類。既然人認爲多樣性很重要，你是否認爲我們正瀕臨喪失這種多樣性的危機的邊緣？
Rui Cheng gang:
The variety. Of course I do not think so. I don't think we are losing variety. Instead ,we are, I think we are getting more varieties.
Well nowadays, as I had mentioned in my speech, we have a combination of eastern and western music, food and lifestyles. Actually I, I think I read an article in Vienna and many western critic and composers feel that a western music which has traditionally emphasized on the harmony
between different instruments now is becoming increasingly, it increasingly reflects eastern music style. However, the eastern music style brought them a completely new sense of music.
So I don't think we are losing variety. I think we are having more varieties. And also in our daily life, I think we have more choice. It's not actually a choice between the east and west. Actually I think the choice is a combination of the two. And this doesn't necessarily mean we are losing our variety. We are updating what variety is k you.
芮成鋼：
說到多樣性，我並不認爲我們正瀕臨喪失這種多樣性的危機，與此相反，我認爲我們正取得越來越多的多樣性。
正如我剛纔說過的，在現代社會中，我們在音樂、飲食和生活方式方面都有東西方的結合。幾年前，我曾在《中國日報》上看到一篇文章，說中國音樂在維也納受到熱烈的歡迎。許多西方評論家和作曲家認爲，西方音樂傳統上將重點放在各種樂器的配合上，現在剛更多地反映東方音樂的風格。東方音樂的風格給他們帶了全新的意識。
因此，我認爲我們並沒有喪失多樣性，而是在取得更多的多樣性。在日常生活中，我們也擁有更多的選擇。並不是說是選擇東方還是選擇西方，而是在東西方的結合中進行選擇。這不一定就意味着我們正在喪失多樣性。我們正在不斷地高速這種多樣性。謝謝。
Judge: In your second speech just now about street markets. You said that you enjoyed going to the street markets. It's a peaceful life and eating pineapples. Could you say something more comparing street markets and supermarkets as regards prices and quality and choice of products, things like that.
Rui Cheng gang:
Yes. Of course I prefer street market to super market. And actually I think, nowadays the prices in the supermarket are becoming lower and lower to meet the demands of the people. But somehow I think people, not only Chinese people, but people from all over the world, will enjoy street markets much better. Because even though going to the supermarket will help you to get rid of a lot of the trouble of bargaining, but somehow you lose the fun of talking with people and communicating with each other, and I think the super market just reflects one of the problems of modern society. I mean the alienation of people and their fellow man. And so I think that street market is secure to these disease or illnesses in modern society. Thank you.
芮成鋼：
好。我當然是喜歡街甚於超級市場。我認爲，現在超級市場的物價爲了迎合大衆的需要在逐漸調低。但我總覺得不僅是中國人，所有的人都會喜歡街市更多一些。因爲儘管上超市可以省去講價的麻煩，你多少也損失了和人聊天和交往的樂趣。超市反映了現代生活的衆多問題。在此我指的是人與人之間的疏離。而街市則可避免現代社會的這些毛病。謝謝。
