11/26/2012
Anth399/499: Ethnography of Contemporary East Asia
Lauren Wils, Mallory Meade, Ofira Fuchs, Wei Li
“Independent Girl”- Life history interview with a Chinese international student
(Q= one of the four interviewers; IG= Independent Girl, interviewee)
Q: So what’s your name?
IG: (states her name)
Q: What year are you in school?
IG: Ah, currently I am a senior in U of I.
Q: What’s your major?
IG: Double-majoring in psychology and economics.
Q: How old are you?
IG: 21.
Q: What’s your citizenship? Are you a Chinese citizen or are you also an American citizen?
IG: Chinese citizen.
(The recording was cut off and seems to start in the middle of an answer; I believe we had
just asked why she had decided to study at the University of Illinois)
IG: -and um, I feel like if you make efforts to, but like, academic and leadership activities
you get something. So, I mean, it’s um…pretty good university to study here, like study at
(small laugh).
Q: Interesting. So who do you hang out with? Like, uh, who are your friends?
IG: My friends?
Q: Yes.
IG: Um, some of my friends are from my class, and some of them like, there’s um, ‘cause I’m
also a transfer student in U of I, so I have a lot of friends also like transfer students. We
have, um, transfer student group, so we hang out a lot together, and also, ah, I met some,
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I’m also like from a band, so I definitely have a lot of people from the band, and we play
music together and have fun together.
Q: So what instruments do you play?
IG: I’m playing, um, flute like generally playing flute (small laugh) and I’m also like
sometimes play piano and some like Chinese traditional music instrument.
Q: So you learned to play flute and piano when you were young?
IG: I learned to play keyboard when I was, like, little and then I quit ‘cause um, you know,
elementary school and middle school in China is like, you have to spend a lot of times on
study, and I don’t have a lot of time, like left for play other music instrument, and then I
learned to play flute when I was thirteen years old? And then I learned piano and other
music instruments for fun by myself, ‘cause I mean, once you learn one music instrument a
lot of things you can find in common, just for fun.
Q: So whose idea was it for you to play flute, was it your idea or your parents’ idea?
IG: My idea. Cause, um, I thought play keyboard was pretty fun, but it’s kinda heavy to carry
around, and then I look someone playing flute on like TV, and I was like “That’s fun! You
can carry it with you wherever you go, so.”
Q: Um, like, so you came to the United States to study after you finished your high school?
IG: No, not really, like um, I came here in my senior year of high school. I did, like, I pass a
test for, um, exchange student program? And then I became an exchange student in Mobile,
Alabama, for a year, and then, that time when I was in Alabama, I was like, um, if I really go
back to China and spend one more year to prepare for the, um, gaokao, which means like,
the test to take to get into college (Q: Mmhm), it’s gonna, like, take me one more year to go.
That time I was thinking about, like, um, save some times, and then I just applied university
when I was high school exchange student, and then I got into university in New York, like
not New York City, New York state (Q: Mmhm), and then I stay there for two years and then
transfer to U of I.
Q: And which university was that?
IG: Alfred University, my favorite, like I really love there.
Q: Was it a four year or a two year?
IG: Ah, this a, that’s a four year university, but I stay there for two year.
Q: Why did you decide to transfer?
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IG: Well my dad wants me to transfer, ‘cause that, um, Alfred University is, um, small
private university, and it is pretty good university, but it’s not that well-known in China,
and my dad thought if I want to get a job back in China I better graduate from a wellknown, big college, and he told me to transfer, and then U of I accept me, so why not?
(laughs)
Q: Ah, are you a single children, single child in your family?
IG: Yes, I am. I’m the only child there.
Q: OK, and your parents, um, they hope, they hope you come back to China someday?
IG: I think so, ‘cause um, I don’t think my parents gonna ever wanna come to United States,
like, to live, ‘cause they want like, definitely want Chinese food there or whatever (laughs)
and then, um, they definitely want to spend a lot of time with me, so I think the only thing
can work out is like I go back to China and then maybe live with them for a while, like for a
pretty long time or whatever, (laughs) I dunno.
Q: So do you want to go back, or is it what your parents want?
IG: Um, they want me to go back, and for me I don’t know yet, ‘cause I’m also, like, um, I’m
thinking about probably, um, go to graduate schooling in United States? And then, well it
depends on where I find my husband, right? If I find someone back in China, so I definitely
want to go back to China, but if I find someone in United States so I probably spend some
time here and some time in China (laughs). Not decided yet, to be honest to you.
Q: How, how did the idea to study abroad came up in the first place?
IG: Well, ah, that’s an interesting story, ‘cause I was a people who was in charge of connect,
um, the high school kid’s homework in high school, like, and then the time I was connecting
their homework one guy just told me, like, “(her name), I’m not gonna turn in my paper.” I
asked him, I was like, “Why not?” And he was like, “I’m gonna study abroad, so it’s no needs
for me to do the homework”, and then I talked to him, and then get to know the exchange
student program, and then that time I was 17 years old. I never study abroad, I never step
out of my own country (Q: Mmhm), never step out of my safe zone, and then I wanna know
more about the world across the Pacific Ocean, so I decide to became, um, exchange student
and I turned in all the materials, I passed exam, and did the interview, and then told my
parents that like, I did all of this and I want to be exchange student and I wanna study
abroad. And then my father’s, like, kinda shocked and, but, he still like, he said he respect
my decision, and then that’s how I became, like, really a international student study abroad.
Q: What was the main thing you wanted to get out of coming here and just, your whole
educational experience in general?
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IG: Um, education is the, I’ll say the most important part, and also like, to really think about
what I want to get for my life. ‘Cause, in here it’s kinda like, um, independent, not really rely
on your parents to make your decision for you. You have to think a lot of things differently
by your own, so in that way I feel more like an adult instead of like, a teenager just follow
their parents’ steps (Q: Mmhm), so um, yeah I wanna to really figure out what I wanna do
for my career, not only to do just what my parents tell me to do.
Q: And do those values differ a lot compared to your parents’ when they were growing up?
Did they want to experience independence the same way you are now, or, versus more
educational-based?
IG: I dunno, actually, I really don’t. My parents, like, I never think my parents treat me like a
girl. I think they more, like, treat me like a guy. They always tell me, “You have to be
independent!” And parents cannot accompany, um, accompany with you for your whole
life, you have to learn how to live by your own. So, um, when I was little my parents just like
told me to take the, the city bus to the elementary school, high school, middle school…but
that time I saw a lot of my classmate have their parents, like, with them to the school, but I
never, like, was one of them. And then, um, a lot of time when I spend time with my parents
they told me like, things like, um, their, I don’t know how to say it, it’s like, um, we
communicate, but they, um, they generally tell me how different life, like like, um, kinda like
I was saying different world from theirs (Q: Mmhm). It’s like, it’s really hard to compare.
They said like a lot of things have changed, and what they want from me is just to like, be a
happy person, so we barely talk about like what’s really, what they want from me or
something like that (laughs), so I don’t know.
Q: Did your parents tell you, like do you know more in specific what has changed over the
last couple of decades in China, like for the time your parents were younger now? Like did
your parents tell you what is different (IG: Mmhm) with your experience growing up and
their experience?
IG: My Mom told me it ‘s like I have more choice to wear pretty clothes and like I have
more food to eat, something like that. My Mom, she has four sisters and she told me when
they were little they would have a fight or have an argument about getting food or
something like that., I don’t know. But for me, it’s like you get as much food as you like. It’s
like you don’t have to worry about food, money or saving , something like that, and you can
just go with your thoughts, something like that.
Q: So where are your parents from, the same place as you?
IG: Yes, from Hunan Province.
Q: And what do they do for a living?
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IG: They are business people. My Mom is probably going to retire this year or next year, I
don’t know. She will probably really enjoy being a housewife.
Q: So did your parents go to college?
IG: Yes, they did. My Dad is like, hmmm…I think he got a master’s degree like five years
ago..
Q: So he went back to school?
IG: Yes, he went back to school. I think it was an MBA program, a part time MBA program.
Q: Which university?
IG: The University of [*] [unclear) Province. I think it’s a pretty good one but like I don’t
really know which one it is.
Q: Can you tell us something about your social life? Like, um, what do you think makes you
similar or different to other international students, like from Taiwan, Hong Kong or Korea
at this university?
IG: Well, umm, do you mean different? Like what I feel different from them?
Q: Yes, as an international student from mainland China and whether you feel different or
the same as other Chinese students, and also other students from Hong Kong ,Taiwan ,
Korea or other Asian countries?
IG: Okay, I never really think about it but, umm, well I hang out with a lot of people from
mainland China. I think people who share the same background and culture probably get
along better. I’ll say that. But, umm, I still have a lot of friends from Korea, Taiwan and
Hong Kong. My roommate, like he’s from Hong Kong, and also like…
Q: Do you guys speak Chinese or English?
IG: Umm, sometimes Mandarin, sometimes English, sometimes Cantonese, it depends.
‘Cause like… uh, of the times when I was in New York , most of my friends were from
Hong Kong , so I know how to like , I can understand them, but it is hard for me to speak
Cantonese, like a little, but then I will say that I do not feel that I am special from that group.
I feel there are a lot of things in common for all the international students. But for me,
because I have stayed in United States and I would say this is my fifth year, so I am not that
afraid to communicate with American students and other English speakers. So compared
to those students who have just got here, I think it’s easier for me to make friends with
those people who are English speakers.
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Q: How is now your experience at the U of I different from what you felt when you first
arrived to the university in New York, when you first arrived in the United States?
IG: Well, it is pretty different. When I arrived in New York, it is a private university, and
like I knew a lot of people there. I could say “hi” to a lot of people on the way to class. And
at U of I, I feel like it is more like the real world. Because in New York, I sometimes felt it
was like a fairy tale. I am sorry to say that, but it’s like my safe zone. A lot of things
beautiful or like happy just happened there. And then at U of I, the first time I got here , I
felt like because it’s a really big university, and the first time I got here I knew just a few
people here, and I just felt like I have to take care of myself all by my own. But in New
York, like it’s different. I really have a lot of friends and people knew me. I hung out with a
lot of Master’s students and PhD students who are older than me and they would like take
care of me all the time. And the time I came to U of I, I am really, really independent. Have
to know how to survive on my own, something like that. The first two months were kind
of tough. But after that, after I made a lot of friends in some social groups and clubs, things
got better.
Q: So what clubs are you in? What clubs did you join when you came here?
IG: I joined a dance club, then I was in the band, and also the economics club, and um…
what else? Umm, I would say I generally focused on the dance and band clubs.
Q: So do you like dancing? Do you dance in the dance club?
IG: Umm yeah…I learned a little bit of ballet when I was young, and then a little bit of jazz.
So in the dance club we can dance for fun. None of us are really professionals, but when we
hear the music, we can just play and dance for fun and then just have a good time
together…yeah.
Q: Would you say most of your friends come from the dance club or have you met them
somewhere else?
IG: I will say somewhere else.
Q: Where?
IG: I don’t know, just like sometimes at random events somewhere, like in the class. And
then it’s like, “Are you Chinese?” “Yes, I am.” Just like randomly becoming friends.
Q: So would you say it is slightly easier to make friends with Chinese international students
than with others?
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IG: Yes, I think that way because... hmm I don’t know. I feel sometimes like American
students do not that want to talk to international students; I will say to talk to people who
physically look different. Maybe it is like some language issue going on or…
Q: Like a language barrier?
IG: Yeah, I will say it easier to make friends when you share the same background and have
a lot to talk about.
Q: So after you graduate and have a college degree here, do you think you will have better
prospects here or in China?
IG: I think, umm, both.
Q: Okay…
IG: Because I am going to go for graduate school. So in that way it is going to be
comparative, with a higher education degree, and also like back in China with U of I a
graduate degree like I think it’s good also.
Q: Which part of education in U.S., as compared to that in China, interests you most?
IG: Education in the United State seems more challenge (ing) than in China. ‘Cause some of
my friends from Chinese universities told me like that they can just study for the final for
one or two days and the rest of time they don’t even need to go to class. But here I attend
to class every single day. You have mid-terms. You have papers to write about. There are a
lot of things counts into the final grades. You spend times on lots of things to be good
students.
Q: Where do your friends go to university?
IG: Where? A Lot of places in China. I think a lot of them stayed in my province and a lot of
them go to Beijing or Shanghai, those big cities for education.
Q: Do you think it’s harder to come here for college education or it’s harder to enter those
key universities in China?
IG: You mean to get into the college?
Q: Yes. The difficulty to get into.
IG: I think it’s harder to get into the top universities in China. Because there is a lot of
competitions there. Students compete to go to the top ten colleges in China. China has large
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population there. And also you only take one exam to get into the college there. You’d
better do good on the one exam. In the United States, you can SAT or ACT for several times
to get the highest scores to the universities you are applying to, so there is more
opportunities to get into a better college in the United States.
Q: So did you take the Gaokao?
IG: No. (laughing). I graduated from high school in 2009. Actually Gaokao and high school
graduation exam are separate in China. So when you are like junior high school students,
you can take the graduation exam for high school. Then when you are in your senior year,
you take the Gaokao, the time for my senior year I was in the United States, so I just skipped
that.
Q: Do you think in terms of living, do you think which one is better? Living in US or living in
China? In terms of the quality of living.
IG: I will say I want to live with my parents. So where my home is always the place with my
family. And for living condition, a lot of things are changing in China and I think a lot of
things are getting better. After my graduation, so I can decide then. I think so.
Q: What are your living conditions here? Do you live in an apartment? Or a dorm?
IG: I live like off-campus in an apartment with my 2 lovely roommates.
Q: Are they guys or girls?
IG: One guy and one girl. We have like 2 floors, so the guy lives in the second floor and me
and the other girl live in the first floor.
Q: How you guys meet? Did you know each other before? Or you guys meet over apartment
matching service?
IG: I knew that girl since she also is from the same province. We are all from Hunan
Province. The guy we met a year ago when I was seeing New York. I was his research
assistance. I was his RA and he told me that he was going to transfer to U of I. I told him
that I was looking for a roommate and why don’t you become roommate with me.
Q: For transportation, do you take bus or do you walk or do you drive?
IG: For school days, I generally take bus. For weekends, I have own car, so I can just drive to
some Chinese restaurants or downtown someplace.
Q: When you got your driver’s license?
IG: When?
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Q: Yes
IG: This year, March.
Q: How was it? Did you have trouble getting your license here?
IG: I took like twice for the driver’s license.
Q: Any major accidents?
IG: No.
Q: Any major incidents?
IG: No. (laughing)
Q: Did you notice any big difference like independence?
IG: Sometimes, driving takes longer than taking bus. Because you see lots of students
crossing the road and you have wait for a bunch of them. You have to stop and wait for a
bunch of them to pass. Sometimes, take bus is easier for me. Sometimes, save some time.
Q: How about in China? When you got your license in China?
IG: Last December.
Q: Was that later than usual?
IG: It took me like a year to get my Chinese license. Eh.. I am a good driver! (laughing) There
were like four driving tests in China you have to take in order to get the license. One test is
called, like...eh… I don’t know how to translate into English. Like you have a lot of circles on
the road and you have to pass it without like crossing something like that. I did it twice and
failed. And then it took me a year to retake it. Yeah, I got it last December.
Q: Are your parents supportive of you to get your licenses in both countries?
IG: I have to get my US driver’s license. Because I forgot to bring my Chinese license with
me. So without a US license, I cannot drive here. So I have to get the American driver’s
license.
Q: How often you talk to your parents? Do you talk to them every day?
IG: Not really. Like three, four times per week I’ll say.
Q: Do you Skype? Or do you use the phone?
IG: I use Skype to call them. ‘cause that is the cheapest way. I’ll say.
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Q: Text?
IG: No. My parents do not really like text. Even though my mother, she uses I-Phone, but
the only way she does with I-Phone is to call someone. Not with any applications there.
Q: So going back to your learning and education, what do you want to get out of your time
here? What do you think the purposes of college?
IG: For me is to figure out what I want to do. I always want to be an archeologist. But my
dad said no. He told me to major in economics and to major in accounting for graduate
school. I cannot reject. Because I don’t know what I want. I need some time to figure out
what I really want to do. I know I want to be an archeologist. But I need to get some money
first, right? Before I spend them all, to do something in Egypt or China. I have to become
maybe a businessman, or eh work for a financial service company to collect some money
first. And then just use them all. Maybe if I got a lot of money, I will donate half of them to
some poor people in China and then use the rest to become an archeologist. That is my
plan.
Q: That is your dream for your future?
IG: I think so. I will say 80%.
Q: How did you become interested in archeology? Do you remember?
IG: When I was little. My mom bought a lot of DVDs and video recording things. She put like
all of DVD stuff in the apartment. But at that time I was not allowed to watch TV. The only
thing I can do is to watch what she has. So I just keep on watch that. I became very
interested in finding some antiques. I am always curious on stories behind the antiques. So
if I got a chance to find something interesting, that sounds so cool to me.
Q: Did you share this interest with your parent? What do you think they would have said
about it?
IG: I told my dad I’d probably like to major in archeology in college and he said no. ‘cause, I
mean, I thought about to do archeology as my major but it’s more like interest to me
instead of like a professional way to go. I think my dad is right. I need financial support for
my interest, the things I do for fun. So economics, and accounting is not too (unclear). I’ll
just go for it first and do archeology later on.
Q: Do you ever think about going against what your parents recommend and do archeology
anyway?
IG: I never think against my parents.
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Q: Are they paying for your education?
IG: That’s part of the reason (laughing). My father is really like my friend. We talk a lot of
things. I can talk to him every single day and then, things about like boyfriend if they ask
me then I’ll tell them. Why not? You know someone really loves you and want to know
about your life here, I’m willing to share my stories with them. I know they want me to be
good, be better. So if their plans sound like doable, I’ll do it.
Q: So you majored in economics to make your parents happy?
IG: Yes, but I also like it. Something that makes my parent happy and I like it, not a bad
choice.
Q: You said earlier you were applying to graduate school. Where are you applying?
IG: Probably the U of I. I can just drop my application materials in the office. Right? I
probably ‘gonna apply to University of North Carolina, the U of Virginia, U of Texas. Like
four or five of them.
Q: Are you going to graduate school in psychology or economics?
IG: Accounting.
Q: Accounting?
IG: Yes (laughing).
Q: So you plan to pursue archeology after you establish yourself a little bit?
IG: Yes, and probably live in Egypt for a while, just to find some fun stuff to do there.
Q: After you graduate you want to travel?
IG: Yes.
Q: Where to?
IG: Egypt (laughing).
Q: Anywhere else?
IG: Africa, Central Africa. Because like I’m currently taking development economics at U of I
and I feel there are a lot of business opportunities and opportunities to help people over
there. So I probably want to go there and see.
Q: Have your plans for the future changes since you came to U of I
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IG: Not really.
Q: Do you think that your decision to come to study here is different than what your
parents planned for you?
IG: Actually I don’t know about their plans, they just tell me, my father just generally tells
me as long as my decision makes me happy, he’ll respect it and support it. So I don’t know
about their plans, I just know this is my plan and they like it.
Q: Are you worried about your future? Do you have economic worries?
IG: No. I feel like I’m a good person so, I mean, as long as I try to help some people, I will
always be grateful about life. I mean, my life shouldn’t be too bad, right? So there’s no
worries about that. There’s a path to go, god has a plan for you. You just need to go with it
and accept it and find meaningful and grateful moments to (unclear) and be happy. Pretty
much like that.
Q: Do you believe there’s a god that is watching us?
IG: I believe there’s some like an invisible power that controls individual paths. I am not
like totally Christian yet but I think I might decide to believe in Jesus one day. I am kind of
in the middle right now. In the middle between Buddhist and Christian.
Q: So you were raised as Buddhist?
IG: Ahmm (affirms). My parents are Buddhist. And also a lot of times I just copy the
Buddhism book, I don’t know how to say it… (Q: Classics). Classics. And then just to find
peaceful mind and that really helps. I stayed in Alabama for a year in my exchange student
program and I was pushed to believe in Jesus. But it is hard for me to decide my mind right
now because Buddhism is like cultural stuff to me. This is what I learned in China. It is hard
for me to change it without a big reason, I would say. I don’t know. It is hard for me to
determine my religion right now. I need time to figure out what I really want to go with.
Q: What made you interested in Christianity? Did anyone tell you about it or did you
discover it by yourself?
IG: A lot of people told me about it. We discussed about the absolute truth about the world
and I believe in 80% of them, not all of them. I feel that a lot of them can be explained very
well by the theory of God. But I still need time to figure out.
Q: Since you come to the university, have you thought about going more to church? Has
coming to the university pushed you more one way or another, more Buddhist or more
Christian?
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IG: Actually I don’t have time to go to Church here (laughs). Generally my weekend is in
library or sleep. So I really don’t have enough time to go to church. One of my professors is
like, one of my psychology professors, he’s totally a Christian and I talked to him in the past
two weeks about the religion part and then there’s a lot of things I feel that are reasonable
to change my religion or whatever. I don’t know.
Q: Do you want to talk about your social life? What do you do for fun in weekends?
IG: Library (laughs).
Q: If you didn’t have to study for the GMAT and you didn’t have any midterms, what would
you do for fun?
IG: Sleep (laughs). I may be hanging out with friends. My mom is a really good chef; she
knows how to cook a lot of good food. I learned from her how to make delicious dish. So
maybe in weekend, I invite, my friends come to my apartment and we spend time. And ask
some advice for academic… (laughs). And also spend time with Mallory in WMCA program.
Q: What is it?
IG: It is a leadership mini-consultant internship program. This is what we were doing today
before I came here.
Q: What are you doing in this internship?
IG: We work with non-profit organizations and try to find a way to solve their problems,
which is a lot.
Q: How did you hear about the internship?
IG: Quad day. I just say WMCA. Generally, the word I heard a lot is YMCA so when I saw
WMCA I was interested and applied for it.
Q: Thank you so much for telling us about your experience as an international student.
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