ABSTRACT
During one of my last research trips to Beijing, while traveling on the tube, my attention was caught by a paper carrier bag belonging to the Chinese lady sitting in front of me. Despite the colorful-rather kitsch-style and the extremely rich printed content, I immediately noticed someone who looked familiar: Kongzi 孔子 (‘Confucius’ or ‘the Master’). I quickly took a picture, trying not to be noticed, to immortalize the unexpected encounter. In the blink of a couple of stops, Confucius disappeared from my sight, swallowed by the busy crowd of Beijing tube travelers. Thanks to the picture I took (Figure 11.1), I was then able to identify the name of the advertised product-duowei xiangsu jianbing 多味香酥煎饼, “multi-flavor crispy pancakes”—written between an image of Confucius and a picture of the Hall of Great Achievement of Confucius’ Temple in Qufu, Shandong province.
