1. What do you think is the moral of the Play? Why?

- I think the moral of the play is to not be ignorant. You have to respect everyone’s
culture and try to fit in. Daniel thought he knew what he was doing when he arrived
in China, without taking into account the culture and language barriers he would face.
Daniel tried his best to resist by expecting those around him to speak English.

2. Who was your favorite character in the Play? Why?

- My favorite character is Xi. She is a powerful and independent strong woman. She
was determined and overcame all hurdles in her mission of overthrowing Cai from
the minister position, even though she did some unfavorable actions to get what she
wanted. She had some funny dialogues and didn’t cave to Daniel’s pressure. She
protected her culture and country when faced against the foreign culture of Daniel.

3. What does the play say about racism?

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- The play emphasizes racism by some of the Chinese characters insulting the

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foreigners and calling them names. Peter was talking to Chi about how he didn’t want

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to spend the rest of his life waiting to get a job or just becoming something like a

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teacher. Cai goes on to say that this makes him a little bit Chinese. He is basically

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saying that Chinese people are constantly being used. This can be seen in real life
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with the great wall of China. Human bones are used and mixed with materials in
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order to build brakes for the great wall of China. Cai thought that they weren’t good
for anything other than this. Americans think that their culture is the only culture in
the world, and it is the best culture ever. Daniel expected for everyone to speak
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English even when he was in a country that was not predominantly English-speaking.
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4. Most Western Plays explore culture shock of immigrants coming to America. This
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one reverses the theme. How did you feel about that change?
- I really enjoyed that they flipped it for once. Many people come to America as
immigrants and they have to struggle to learn a new language and assimilate with the
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culture of America. A lot of them are not treated well and are constantly made fun of.
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It was a nice twist of Daniel being the one to struggle in a new country. Xi was also
really funny when she kept switching to Chinese in her conversation with Daniel.

5. What does "Guanxi" mean? How does Peter use Guanxi? How does Daniel use it?
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- “Guanxi” refers to the connections or bridges that lead to new business opportunities.
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Daniel thinks that it’s a joke because he never had to do that in America. He believed
that he didn’t need to do that in China either and that it was a waste of time. Peter
things that Guanxi is a vital bridge that can help him to take his career to the next
level. He believes that he can help him further himself and become successful.

6. How is business in China different than in the United States? How is it similar?
- The biggest difference would have to be Guanxi. Business operations in China rely
heavily on making connections and knowing people in order to go somewhere. It’s
about how much time and effort you put into getting what you want and the patients
you have to watch your reward come. China normally focuses on the basics before

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 going into the rush of creating the business. The United States on the other hand,
jump straight into the financials of it all and they’re all hustle and quick.

7. How do the Chinese in the play view foreigners coming over to do business?
- The Chinese see foreigners as people who are on a mission to improve and help
themselves. Foreigners believe that they know what’s best and they’re not needed in
Chinese businesses. They don’t really value the US that much. For example, Peter
tries hard to work with Daniel and Kai by changing some of the words that Daniel
would say in the meeting because Peter knows that their success was dependent on
forming the connections and doing things the way they always knew how.

8. What did you think of the relationship between Daniel and Xi Yan?
- Xi chose to communicate with Daniel and her language, even though she knew that
he wouldn’t understand what she was saying. She thought that Daniel was her fantasy

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escape from her real life. The words that got missed translated between the

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conversation of Daniel and Xi gave Daniel the impression that he could be together

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with her, but she never thought of it like that. I really thought that they had found

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love, but it was surprising to find out that Xi was using him the whole time.

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9. How does race make each character feel about themselves? Daniel? Peter? Xi Yan?
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- Daniel was proud of where he came from and even try to express his culture onto
others, such as when he expects everyone else to speak English. Also his expectations
of everyone conducting business the same way they did in America.
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- Peter wants to be considered Chinese rather than English because he spent a

tremendous amount of years living in China. This did not work out though because
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the Chinese showed him where his place was.

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- Xi Yan is strong and proud of the person she is. She knows who she is which is a
Chinese nationalist and she refuses to speak English with Daniel even though she
could’ve.
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10. How does the current social climate influence the resonance of the play?
- China and the US have not always been on good terms. As mentioned before, Xi is a
Chinese nationalist because she believes that the Westerners only lie. She chooses to
mention this in Chinese so that Daniel could understand what she was saying. This
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goes on to show that there’s always heated tensions between countries. China is
communist and America is a democracy. This is a big difference. That’s why China
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was so happy when they found out that Daniel was part of a scandal with Enron.
Nothing will improve until the social climate begins to change. We constantly have
immigrants coming in especially in a place like Miami which makes this so much
more significant to the world. Especially students who live in Miami. And constantly
remind people to be respectful of other cultures and to be open minded towards
everyone.

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 11. There is a relatively small Asian/Asian-American population in Miami. How did
you feel about examining another culture? What are some similarities and/or
differences with your own culture? If you are of Asian descent, how do you feel
about the depiction?
- I was born in Miami and lived here my entire life. I come from Asian decent but my
Asian is a little different because I am half Indian and a half Pakistani. I was born
here so I never really had language issues but growing up, there were a lot of cultural
differences from where I lived and the cultures that were being taught to me in my
home. Living in a diverse community like Miami, I was able to experience and see
everyone’s different cultures and I feel like it made me more respectful and open
minded to everyone.

12. What did you think about the ending?

- Everyone ended up happy at the end of the play, but it felt a little off to me. Daniel

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and Xi’s relationship feels like it was left hanging. The end ties back to the beginning

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of when he is making a speech. Daniel ends up understanding and respecting the

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Chinese culture as his business begins to grow. I wish there was more action at the

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end of the play, but I am happy that everyone got what they wanted in the end.

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13. Did you like the play overall? Why or why not?
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- I enjoyed the play because I got inside of the different culture and I got to learn more
about the way that Chyna worked. I don’t know a lot of Chinese people but I love
learning about new cultures, so it was really a nice read. I love being able to be open
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minded and excepting to everyone, no matter what their culture is.

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