与中国结缘的12年

唐锐杰

我對中国的兴趣始于2008年初，我在高中完成了汉语入门课程。当时，去学习一门既难懂又难学的语言，我的同学认为这很不可思议，甚至用他们的话来说很愚蠢。记得我坐在高中的图书馆里，看着电脑上满是奇怪的字符和注音，我才意识到那是拼音。我立刻被迷住了，那天的晚些时候，回家我告诉父亲自己对普通话的迷恋。“总有一天中国会统治世界”，父亲简单地说。起初，我怀疑自己学习中文的能力，但现在回头看我一点也不后悔。

在2008年底高中毕业之前，我申请了英国几所顶尖大学的中国学研究项目，包括爱丁堡大学、曼彻斯特大学和诺丁汉大学。尽管收到了这三个学校的邀请，我还是选择了诺丁汉大学，以及去浙江宁波的中国校区进行为期一年的交换项目，这是最吸引我的地方。初到宁波，一开始我大部分时间都待在校园里，不敢冒险进入一个全新的文化空间。之后在学校组织的活动中，我去了上海和北京这两个中国主要城市进行实地考察，让我看到了中国的经济现代化、快速城市化、可持续发展，以及在现代发展中这个国家又是如何保持其传统文化和价值观的。

2011年，我以优异的成绩毕业，并获得全额奖学金到浙江大学继续深造，我很荣幸在中国最著名的学术机构之一，获得中国学硕士学位。2013年，宁波诺丁汉大学文化研究专业向我抛来橄榄枝并提供全额奖学金。相对钱来说，读博的机会显得更是一种稀缺资源，完成博士课程、获得博士学位是一种精神追求和财富，于我而言更像是奢侈的生活方式，不是每个人都可以享受。

虽然我的研究重点一直是中国的明清和当代，但过去十到二十年时间里，中国发生了翻天覆地的变化，特别是中国的软实力，越来越多的西方学生通过孔子学院的学习，对中国和汉语感兴趣。读硕士期间我的研究方向是网络同性文学，读博士期间我的研究方向是同性恋文学与晚清时期中国动物和人类之间的关系，志怪小说和西方酷儿理论（二十世纪九十年代在西方火起来的一种关于性和性别的理论）之间的关系，特别是纪晓岚和蒲松龄的小说。我还记得2013年圣诞节，在西塘古镇的一家书店，我第一次阅读古文版本的蒲松龄《聊斋志异》。这一类的志怪故事真的非常吸引我，它们是中国传统文化的精华，反映了佛教、道教和儒家的信仰，对任何西方学者来说，它们都是令人兴奋的读物。

我在中国的学术生活围绕着浙江展开。我现在的家在宁波，一座美丽的港口城市，海风传递着江南的灵秀，她书藏古今、港通天下，是七千年河姆渡文化发祥地，是唐代“海上丝路”的起点。读硕士期间的学习生涯让我有幸在杭州生活了三年，邓小平说，像杭州这样美丽的城市，世界上也不多了。白居易说;江南忆，最忆是杭州。要我说;此生不枉到此一游。我想那些热爱中国文化的西方青年，如果有幸来到我们浙江，一定会和我一样爱上这里。

我很荣幸在2020年下半年来浙江大学国际商学院做访问学者。国际商学院提供的项目立刻吸引了我。我曾参加过浙江大学的中国学项目，而且这个项目旨在为年轻学者提供广泛的培训，为他们的职业生涯做准备。

因为COVID-19新冠疫情大流行，我和妻子、儿子在英国滞留了9个月。这是我10年来离开中国最长时间的一次，可能也是我一生中最长的9个月。在这段时间里，我意识到没有中国我无法生活。一句话来说，手机在手，天下我有。中国便捷的生活、四通八达的公共交通、街头小吃、就餐选择、旅游目的地、自然美景，但最重要的是在中国生活的那种安全感令都人怀念。在英国，晚上自己或带家人外出时，我从未感到足够安全。正如我经常告诉我的英国朋友们的那样，我在中国待了这么长时间，从来没有、甚至一次也没有遇到过危险，没有抢劫，没有偷窃。我遇到的所有中国人都很友好。对我来说，中国是世界上最安全的国家，我的第一手经验说明了一切。经过70多年的奋斗，今天，在中国辽阔的土地上，我们看到的是一片生机勃勃、充满活力、充满希望的景象。

如果没有我生命中最重要的人——我的妻子和两岁的儿子，那么我的生活也是无法想象的。我在2015年遇到了我的妻子，当时我还在攻读博士学位。空余时间，我在一家顾问公司兼职，命中注定，在同个办公楼我遇到了我现在的妻子，感谢这份工作让我结束了单身汪的生活——两年后我们结婚了。不仅在生活上，我的妻子在工作上也给了我很大的支持。我是工作与生活需要平衡的坚定信徒。诚然，工作可以带来许多个人快乐，但没有人分享这些成就，生活将是毫无意义的。如果没有家人的支持和爱，我不会有今天的成就。

我对中国的爱始于研究，现在这种爱将伴随着我的一切继续在浙江大学的学术生涯。

（作者系中国学研究学者，目前是浙江大学国际商学院的客座教授。）

My interest in China began in early 2008 after completing an introductory Chinese language course during high school. At the time， my classmates thought I was foolish to learn a language that was unintelligible and difficult. I remember sitting in the library of my high school and looking at a computer full of strange characters and pronunciations， which I came to realize was called pinyin. I was instantly fascinated with them and returned home later that day to tell my father of my captivation with Mandarin Chinese. “One day China will rule the world，” my father simply said. At first， I doubted my ability to learn Chinese but looking back I do not have a single regret.

Before graduating high school in late 2008， I had already applied to some of Englands top universities for China Studies programs， including the University of Edinburgh， the University of Manchester， and the University of Nottingham. Despite receiving offers from all three， I chose the University of Nottingham， for a one-year exchange program to the universitys China campus in Ningbo， Zhejiang was offered. But after arriving there， I had mostly stayed on the campus， daring not to venture out into a whole new culture. Later， a field trip took me to Shanghai and Beijing， Chinas two major cities， opening my eyes to its economic modernization， rapid urbanization， sustainable development as well as how amongst all the growth the country maintained its traditional culture and values.

In 2011， I graduated with distinction and was offered a full scholarship for a Master of Arts China Studies program taught entirely in Chinese at Zhejiang University， one of Chinas most prestigious academic institutions， which， unbeknownst to me， would become the place where my academic career would flourish some years later. After graduating from Zhejiang University with merit and fluent in Mandarin in 2013， I went on to be offered a full scholarship for my PhD in Culture Studies at the University of Nottingham， Ningbo.

While my research focus has been on China， both late-imperial and contemporary， for the past decade， there have been changes over time： first on Chinas soft power， and the perception of Confucius Institutes among Western students interested in China and the Chinese language， then on online queer literature in contemporary China and now on the relationship between humans， animals and queer in late-imperial Chinese fiction， with a particular focus on Qing dynasty tales by well-known writers such as Pu Songling and Ji Yun （or Ji Xiaolan）. I still remember picking up an old Classical Chinese version of Pu Songlings Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio as I sat in a Cat Café in the historical town Xitang in Jiashan county during Christmas in 2013. Admittedly my Classical Chinese was not as strong as I would like it to be， but from the little I understood I was immediately drawn by the supernatural and strange creatures and happenings in this work， but perhaps more so by the fact that these figures and events are instructional and moral against the authors own worldly society. Indeed， they are the essence of traditional Chinese culture， reflecting on Buddhist， Daoist and Confucian beliefs， and are a thrilling read for any Western scholar.

What may have become strikingly obvious by now is that my academic life in China revolves around Zhejiang. My home is in Ningbo， a major port and industrial hub in the province. While Hangzhou， the provincial capital city， boasts the West Lake， a personal love of mine due to its historical and cultural significance， Ningbo also has much history and culture： its home to the 1516 landmark Tianyi Ge， one of Chinas oldest libraries， Ningbo Museum， exhibiting regional artifacts dating to the Neolithic Hemudu Culture， and Tianyi Square， a vibrant city-center featuring a musical fountain and bounded by shopping arcades.

At present， I am a visiting scholar at Zhejiang Universitys International Business School， which is part of the universitys newly opened International Campus in Haining， a county-level city. The International Business School， which offers a Master of China Studies program， attracted me straight away. Not only was I once part of the China Studies program at Zhejiang University， the first in China， but this program aims to prepare young scholars for a career in a broad range of sectors where they can implement their knowledge on China and/or East Asia.

But I was able to join the university only in September 2020， having been stuck in the UK with my wife and son for nine months because of the COVID-19 pandemic. This was my longest time away from China in a decade， and probably the longest nine months of my life， during which time I realized just how much I cannot live without China. Chinas fast pace of life， public transportation， street food， dining out， traveling， natural beauty， but most importantly the general feeling of safety living in China were sorely missed. I have never felt safe enough to take myself or my family out at night in the UK. As I often tell my British friends back home， all this time in China I have never， not even for once， found myself in danger. No robbery. No theft. All the Chinese I have met were friendly， nice， and happy. For me， China is the safest country in the world， and my first-hand experience says it all. After over 70 years of hard work， what meets the eye across the vast expanse of the country today is vigor， dynamism， and promise.

My “survival” in China， or more specifically in Zhejiang， would not be conceivable without the most important people in my life， my wife and two-year-old son. I met my wife in 2015， when I was still completing my PhD and under immense stress， teaching English as a second language to business professionals to earn some money for rent and food.

As fate would have it， on the way out of my teaching building one day， we came across each other and it was love at first sight — we were married two years later. My wife gives me much support both in life and in academic work， presenting me with fresh ideas now and then. I am a strong believer in work-life balance. Work， admittedly， can bring many personal delights， but life would be meaningless without anyone to share these achievements with. I would not be where I am today without the support and love of my family.

My love for China started in research， and this love now goes on with my family and academic career at Zhejiang University.

Thomas William Whyke is a scholar in China Studies. He is currently a visiting professor and will be an Assistant Professor and Academic Director of China Studies at Zhejiang University International Business School later this year. Thomas has published numerous SSCI and AHCI papers in highly regarded international journals， including Journal of the History of Sexuality， Society & Animals， Journal of Homosexuality， Journal of Chinese Humanities， Fudan Journal of the Humanities and Social Sciences， and Animation： An Interdisciplinary Journal. He wholly enjoys teaching courses to talented undergraduate and graduate students who share his passion for China Studies， including Intercultural Communication， History of Chinese Civilization， Introduction to Contemporary China， and Academic Writing.