ABSTRACT
Beginning students in a multicultural course cannot be expected to learn Chinese characters, but they can learn about them. My students are usually curious; they see these “mysterious” characters every day on a growing number of shop signs and food products, not to mention Jackie Chan movies. Demystifying the supposedly “exotic” Asian cultures is one of this book’s central purposes. Understanding how Chinese characters work is intellectually important, also. Indeed, it is essential to any study of East Asian culture.
