Popup Chinese

We'll admit that your debut in China didn't go over so well. Everyone knows the tones are tough, but when Jackie Chan saved your life and you told him to... no... no... let's not dwell on obscenities. I was surprised the audience hounded you out of the theater with pitchforks though (and where did those torches come from?). At least your publicist is happy at your making the front page of Xinhua!
But it's not the end of the world. We just want you to listen to this podcast, since maybe you need a little grounding from the pros. Acting in China is hard work: voice training, limericks, memorization and sweat, sweat, sweat. But the good news is that there's no need for you to enroll in the Central Drama Academy: today we're bringing its voice training secrets right to you.

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In this week's mystery film game, a couple of controversial snapshots lead to almost comic misadventures, a boatload of scurrilous language, and someone going to sleep on the job. Add a flying plate to the mix and you've got a recipe for a famous summer blockbuster. But which one?

Listen in to learn a little Chinese and see if you can peg our film: Spider-Man (2002)

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Today's listening test is a bit of an anomaly, since even the most advanced student will probably have difficulty with some elements of this conversation.
Is your curiosity piqued? Take a listen to our Chinese podcast and then scroll back to the quiz section to test your comprehension. And don't worry if you missed something. You can always click over to the text section afterwards for a manually annotated copy of the dialogue with our helpful mouseover popups. Let the test begin!

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Love is a complex emotion, especially when there are three people involved each of which have a different agenda. In this Absolute Beginner lesson, pulled right out of a soap opera, we teach about the fundamental difference between liking and loving things, so that you don't do anything embarassing the next time you're called on to make an impromptu speech, or ask you a simple question like "do you love me?" Listen in any you'll be ready to answer them either way.

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Echo considers this an uplifting story filled with patriotism and self-sacrifice. "Everyone who is Chinese reads it this way," she insists, warding off the collective groans of our foreign contingent, who read it as a decidedly less optimistic critique of our collective indifference to poverty and human suffering.

Whatever your interpretation of the ending, there's no question it's a great short story. It's publication cemented the reputation of Bing Xin as one of the best female novelists in 20th century China, and it remains an inspiration to charitable works to this day, with its name most recently having been adopted by a Baidu charity program which distributes books and school supplies to underprivileged children in rural parts of China.

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It's the classic story: boy meets girl for a whirlwind romance, girl's husband appears, boy hotfoots it out of the country and hits the bottle. This week's selection is a genuine classic, and if you've seen the abominable near-sequel that reunited most of the cast with its director two years later, probably an accidental one at that. Listen in to see if you can guess our mystery film this week: Casablanca (1942)

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Today we bring you a short listening exercise on a topic near and dear to us all: the job interview. But why is the recruiter so eager to find a candidate? And why the reference to extreme sports?
If you're at the Advanced level we believe you should recognize most of the words in this dialogue. The challenge will be keeping up as we charge ahead at a breakneck page. For best results, we recommend listening to the clip once, and then heading over to the quiz section to test your comprehension. You can always replay the recording later, or visit the text section to check the actual transcript.

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You've heard the horror stories. All it takes is a sullen first tone, a half-hearted fourth, or a kowtowing third that isn't quite obsequious enough for the locals to turn on you. And then your innocent little trip to the Pearl Market has morphed into a journey through the Heart of Darkness.
We still think any reasonable language shouldn't make the difference between "buy" and "sell" hinge on pitch alone, especially since everyone gets a bit worked up haggling (honest question: how do the stock markets work?). But since China is unlikely to take our advice on this anytime soon, this podcast will help you slow it down, review the basics and get them right.

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If the restaurant didn't want you to build that bonfire in the ashtray, they wouldn't have put it on the table, right? What else are you supposed to do with matches in the non-smoking section?
In today's lesson, Brendan and Echo waltz us through useful words and phrases for smokers and non-smokers alike. You'll learn how to ask for a light, how to get seated in the non-smoking section, and get the lowdown on how Chinese parents terrorize their children into skipping acts of arson.

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Traditional textbooks don't usually deal with gender stereotypes. In this - the dawning of the age of the metrosexual - new language is emerging to describe male beauty in all of its MTV and beauty-parlor driven forms.
While China has already come a long way, as this week's dialogue shows it still has a way to come. Join us as we introduce some of the common language used to describe masculine beauty. This lesson also covers a core grammar pattern used for comparison purposes. We are deep into duoyinci territory here, so listen up and we'll see you to safety.

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