I meet one every couple of months or so. You know who I’m talking about. I’m talking about those guys who get some sort of perverse pleasure out of trying to humiliate the ’stupid foreigner.’ I used to meet these types of people every couple of weeks when I lived in China and I have enjoyed a blissful respite from them and their brand of ignorance since moving to Taiwan. My respite ended this morning while I was waiting at the bus stop.
I was standing off to the side of the bus stop unsuccessfully trying to decipher some of my boss’s English notes on the front of an envelope, when I noticed a middle-aged man standing behind me staring intently over my shoulder. As soon as I noticed him looking at me, he stuck his grease-stained finger in front of my nose.
“Can you read that?” he asked loudly as he pointed to the company name and address written in the left hand corner of the envelope. He looked around confidently at the other passengers to see if he had anyone’s attention yet. He did. Half a dozen folks were standing there with nothing better to do than watch the following exchange take place.
I didn’t even bother to look at the address. I told him no and prayed he would go away and find someone else to pester.
“Why can’t you read it? Can you read Chinese?” he demanded with a sneer on his face.
I could already tell that ignoring him wasn’t going to work. He wasn’t going to go away without an answer.
“I can read a little, ” I replied grudgingly. I stood up and moved to another bench to put an end to the conversation. Sure enough, he followed me. By this time, he had the full attention of everyone standing within a ten foot radius of us.
“Why can’t you read this? How long have you been here?” he inquired brusquely.
“Two years,” I said shortly.
“Two years! Why can’t you read Chinese?” he demanded. He rammed his finger down at the envelope in my hand as if to reiterate his point. He didn’t bother to acknowledge the fact that the entire conversation was taking place in Chinese. Most people will compliment a foreigner who can speak Chinese, even if their Chinese is piss-poor. This guy was having none of it.
“I’m an English teacher in Taiwan. I’m not a student.” I replied steadily. I could feel my face starting to burn as he kept repeating the same question over and over again.
“You should learn Chinese. Why can’t you read?” he kept asking me. Then he laughed in my face. I couldn’t believe it. What an asshole!
I was through being nice. I pointed to the English phone number written along the top of the envelope. “Can you read these numbers?” I asked.
He grinned and read the numbers in Chinese.
“No, no. In English. Read them in English,” I said.
Suddenly he looked uncomfortable. He shook his head.
“Go on,” I encouraged. “My four year old students can read these numbers in English. Why can’t you read these numbers?”
Suddenly the tables had been turned and I had the upper hand.
“Why can’t you read these numbers on my envelope? Can you read the words in English?” I pressed on. I pointed to the few words on the envelope that my boss had written. He shook his head. I heard a few titters from the ladies standing next to me and a short bark of laughter from a young man standing near us.
“Why can’t you read in English?” I inquired. Then I laughed at him, shook my head and turned my back on him. I wanted nothing more to do with him. My point proven, I kept a careful watch on him out of the corner of my eye.
I looked at him innocently and pointed to my envelope, shrugged and smiled like an angel. He had turned a slow shade of purple as he glared at me. He turned on his heel and walked away.
Not once did he stop to consider that the whole conversation was in Chinese. Nor did he stop to consider that I understood the stupid ass comments he was making about me to other by-standers before he approached me.
I don’t understand why people feel the need to belittle others just because they’re different.
So, to the stupid man at the bus stop today. Screw you!
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Good for you, Carrie! Wow! You know, the funny thing is that the guy is just so insecure that the only way he can feel slightly above what a little turd he is is by successfully humiliating other people. It is not even a matter of foreigners, or whatever. Actually, most of the time, he would not be able to do that because most foreigners in Taiwan don’t speak Chinese like you do, so they wouldn’t understand what he said. The fact you understood him so well enable him to speak to you like this. He would have been able to humiliate you if you had not turned the tables on him. He is never to want to do that again. And what is the point of him doing that anyway? He’s just an f-head with an axe to grind.
i get some of those people sometimes. i just say “yeah, of course i can read it. why wouldn’t i be able to?” i give them the same look that the Wei Ta Li guy does when the African man asks “is it good to drink?” normally that finishes them off. if they push the agenda further i say ” you’re crazy” and bystanders laugh. at that point i never acknowledge them again. of course, it’s only effective if you can actually speak in Chinese.
of course, you can just snap that grease-stained finger like a twig. that has an immediate effect.
There, there, you always will see a handful of these bullying people in all cultures – there is just no way to avoid them. Sigh.
That Wei Ta Li guy…hahahahahaha! That ad! At least it shows, on TV, that there are other foreigners than some big nosed white guy like me (but uglier than me.
But the African guy is such a stereotype. Why don’t they show some African American hairdresser or something. Somebody Taiwanese have never seen (unless they watch Queer Eye for the Straight Guy on Travel/Living on Channel 19).
I’ve met this type of guy many times: mid-40s, greasy, black frame glasses, wears a cheap suit with white socks showing, and often sports a comb-over. Opens conversations with a loud “YOU SPEAKER CHINESE?!” Never takes a hint.
Very well done on your great come back. Classic!
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Way back in the day when I was teaching in Taipei I inevitably would have some guy like that in one of my adult classes. Except with a twist-he’d feel obligated to try to show me up with his superior knowledge of English-mwahaha. Enjoy your writing Carrie.
Thanks for the comments guys. Despite putting him in his place, I walked away from the whole episode with a sour taste in my mouth. There’s no need for this kind of behavior and I hate having to stoop to someone else’s level to make a point.
You’re right MJ. I should’ve just snapped his finger!