Ganqing
Encyclopedia
Gǎnqíng is an important concept in social relations in Chinese culture
which is loosely translated as "feeling" and is related to the concept of guānxi
(relationship network). Gǎnqíng reflects the tenor of a social relationship between two people or two groups. One can speak of having good gǎnqíng, meaning that two people have a good rapport, or deep gǎnqíng, meaning that there is considerable feeling within a social relationship. However, gǎnqíng can also refer as "love affair" in Chinese.
The term gǎnqíng is often used in comments by the government of the People's Republic of China
, and is sometimes mistranslated when used in this context. Often one will see a statement that an action "hurts the feelings of the Chinese people." This statement is better translated as an action that "offends the Chinese people." When used in this context the statement is actually implicitly threatening that should the action continue, cooperation would not be forthcoming in the future.
Chinese social relations
Chinese social relations are social relations typified by a reciprocal social network. Often social obligations within the network are characterized in familial terms. The individual link within the social network is known by guanxi and the feeling within the link is known by the term ganqing...
which is loosely translated as "feeling" and is related to the concept of guānxi
Guanxi
Guanxi describes the basic dynamic in personalized networks of influence, and is a central idea in Chinese society. In Western media, the pinyin romanization of this Chinese word is becoming more widely used instead of the two common translations—"connections" and "relationships"—as neither of...
(relationship network). Gǎnqíng reflects the tenor of a social relationship between two people or two groups. One can speak of having good gǎnqíng, meaning that two people have a good rapport, or deep gǎnqíng, meaning that there is considerable feeling within a social relationship. However, gǎnqíng can also refer as "love affair" in Chinese.
The term gǎnqíng is often used in comments by the government of the People's Republic of China
Politics of the People's Republic of China
The politics of the People's Republic of China take place in a framework of a single-party socialist republic. The leadership of the Communist Party is stated in the Constitution of the People's Republic of China...
, and is sometimes mistranslated when used in this context. Often one will see a statement that an action "hurts the feelings of the Chinese people." This statement is better translated as an action that "offends the Chinese people." When used in this context the statement is actually implicitly threatening that should the action continue, cooperation would not be forthcoming in the future.