Question: Do people in Taiwan have any passion?

Taiwan Living in Taiwan
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Do people in Taiwan have any passion?

Boy, what a question. I would say that as far as I know, from the people I know, they actually have many passions. I don’t know about you, but I got friends that get so excited and are so devoted to their passions, being it helping poor kids go to school, learning zapateado, playing drums, biking, hiking, running marathons, etc… seem almost evangelical. Those activities are the salt of their lives even if they do not seem tto encompass most of their time. You see their eyes light up so bright when they talk about this and they usually try to recruit more converts. They love their families, and may or may not speak with pride about their kids, but they have this little altar fire burning for something special.

Yes, there are people even in volunteer organizations that simply go through the motions. But you cannot say that Taiwanese people have no passions. I am actually so happy that their sole reason of living is not soccer!

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[quote=“igorveni”][quote=“shifty”]Let’s see… if I worked 80 plus hours a week and had spent the first 20 years of my life being constantly hammered scholastically by an overbearing and face obsessed mother, only to graduate into the real world and get an office job at a shit company run by a door knob with no qualifications other than the fact that he lives by the motto “cha bu duo” and then have the extreme good fortune to be forced into a marriage that my mother approves of rather than one I desire, ultimately leading to my daily rage filled drive to and from work, which lets me escape from my harpie of a new wife and the shrew of a mother, who I actually still live with at 39 years old, and who is now making the lives of my own children a hellish existence of 12 hour school days and constant berating to get better test scores… if this was my life how much passion would I have left? How much passion was I ever allowed to have?
…[/quote]
You have just summarized the life of probably more than half the population of adult Taiwanese. Very sad, but very true.
To say that “Taiwanese people don’t have passion” would be a false statement and could be corrected by stating “A large majority of adult Taiwanese just don’t know what passion is.”[/quote]

hear hear. I would say that all humans, by nature, have passion. It’s just that some get their life/passion sucked/beaten out of them. Hell, I’ve seen plenty of passionless people in the US (and elsewhere) too, automatons they are. And the only way they get “life” back into them is some very destructive habits: abuse of substances and violence and sexual aggression. meh.

That said, my own impressions are that my Philippino and Brazilian friends are the most, categorically speaking, passionate in an extrovert way. By contrast, I have Chinese friends that are very passionate, but not in a public way (well, if they got a few beers in them, then all bets are off).

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Boy! Could I EVER have some fun with one of them!

Other than that, Buttercup said it best, although shifty gave a very good account of how SOME people might have had any passion beaten out of them. Just like anywhere else, I suppose – certainly no worse than having nothing to talk about other than Eastenders or Celebrity Big Brother.

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I think you guys have hit it on the head especially shifty. A lot of them just have it taken away from them before age 12. Passions do have to be developed. I don’t think my friend would say it’s zero. It is a blanket statement and his impression. A few people always shine, but it’s rare. Shame.

As for the dullards in the USA, those who never travel or leave their states. That to me is a lack of interest in things different created by our own self absorbed “America is best” thinking. At the same time that guy that loves the Nebraska Cornhuskers or his 200 bluegrass music CDs, or can fix any pre 1980 car, etc, etc. At the least has something real to look forward too and get really excited about besides TV time and Chinese New Year = sleep.

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The most passion I’ve ever known was from my Taiwanese ex. He was passionate about everything. It was insane. And beautiful.
He was not ABC. He had never lived out of Taiwan. He was Taiwanese as Taiwanese can get and full of passion.
Maybe just one example. But I would say “yes.”

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Yes, they do.

Yes, quite a bit.

Yes, just don’t expect it from strangers.

If you had any Taiwanese friends, whom you could connect with, you would see passion.

Icon said it well, as did Suchafob, et al.

Don’t generalize so much, or stoop to assuming all are as you see them, that is, as strangers.

What are you looking for? This is not Italy.

A similar question was asked a few weeks ago: “do Westerners care about family?”

Goodness yes. What leads people to make these queries anyway?

Do posters have any sense? There’s one for you.

Do posters stereotype too much? How about that one?

Do some people expect to have total strangers reveal their most personal lives to other strangers in a city of several million people, each of which are going about just trying to live out their day as they wish?

Passion. I could go on. But my friends I adore in Taiwan are amazing, giving, loving, generous, fun, happy, laughing, inquisitive, brilliant, PASSIONATE PEOPLE.

Break down your wall. Let others in. I find that a simple smile or comment will get you much further than assuming.

jm

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[quote]Yes, they do.

Yes, quite a bit.

Yes, just don’t expect it from strangers.

If you had any Taiwanese friends, whom you could connect with, you would see passion. [/quote]

I think people here mean in general, not each person, but as a whole it is lacking. My brother said the same thing as the OP’s Italian friend when he was here. I have Taiwanese friends as I assume do most people in the forum. “Quite a bit”???

O…K… :astonished:

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JOHN MOSS…

Who is posting here that has a wall, or assuming, raise your hands?!? I bet it’s just observation.

You need to chill! My friend Alex who is well traveled and has worked abroad and visited a lot of places, was commenting on the vibe or feel he got in Taiwan. He is not a shallow dude and he just felt he did not see much life in the eyes of Taiwanese people compared to where he’s been. The conversations we had with locals left him feeling that the average persons life is a bit empty.

My brother who has also been to 7 countries told me something along the same lines after he was there in 2003. He wasn’t sterotyping or being rude. It was a feeling. I don’t expect Taiwan to be Italy, but shifty pretty much hit a homerun IMO. It’s taken out of MOST of them, but NOT all.

I did not read the post about westerners, but shit, that means how many freaking countries? Taiwan is a specific place and if you see “real” passion more power to you, but after teaching kids, high schoolers and those even in their retirement as well as having friends there. I can honestly say there is something lacking. You can’t have that much passion if your head is stuck in a book or always working overtime.

WTF?

Ch-ILL!

Fin.

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I brought up a similar topic about nine months ago:
[forumosa.com/taiwan/viewtopic.ph … highlight=](Analyzing Taiwanese People

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Dangergyrl,

“not each person”?? where else would passion occur, if not within each person? passion does not occur “in general”. It happens in individuals, feeling passion for whatever they want.

PLAYER101,

I’ll chill, sure; but I am only answering a question that your friend posted. If you don’t want to hear many viewpoints, than don’t, or don’t have your friend post questions. No offense intended.

I simply know that the people of Taiwan have passion, so I gave my response. That is what this is, an open forum.

And by the way, I love bluegrass, but I don’t know buttkiss about my car.

peace,

jm

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Food.

You may think I’m kidding but I’m not. When their not eating they’re talking about food, and when they’re not talking about food they’re watching it on TV. Where else in the world can food head off the evening news? Any town with a population over 50 people in Taiwan has one food item they’re known to be famous for. You want to practice your Chinese I suggest brining up a conversation about food and you’ll have a crowd around you in no time.

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When my wife gets angry I wish she had a little less passion… :smiley:

For the love of all that’s holy, DON’T tell her I said that!!