Chinese Culture Generates Wisdom Beyond Past Fortune Cookies

Proverbs are pieces of popular wisdom packaged into a witty quip or eloquent phrase (Crystal 53). They often feature vivid images, word play, or allusions to cultural norms (Crystal 53). Proverbs are reflections of cultural norms (Briley, Morris, & Simonson 168), and in the case of China, proverbs are woven into the culture they reflect. In the introduction to the instructional language manual Teach Yourself Chinese, H.R. Williamson quotes an old Chinese proverb: 'Don't mind going slow, as long as you keep going' (Woolley 324); even in learning the language through old fashioned methods and rote memorization the author saw fit to incorporate proverbs because of how tied they are to the Chinese way of life.