Modern Mandarin Chinese : The Routledge Course Textbook Level 2

317 Pages·2022·12.959 MB·English

by  Claudia Ross

Modern Mandarin Chinese
Modern Mandarin Chinese is a two-year undergraduate course for students with no prior background in
Chinese study. Designed to build a strong foundation in both the spoken and written language, it develops
all the basic skills such as pronunciation, character writing, word use, and structures, while placing a
strong emphasis on the development of communication skills.
Each level of the course consists of a textbook and workbook in simplifed characters. A free companion
website provides all the audio for the course with a broad range of interactive exercises and additional
resources for students’ self-study, along with a comprehensive instructor’s guide with teaching tips,
assessment and homework material, and a full answer key.
Key changes to this new edition:
QQ This revised edition of level 2 introduces over 200 characters and over 400 new vocabulary items.
QQ Additional exercises in the workbooks and online support the expanded number of words and
characters incorporated into the textbooks.
QQ New cross-references between the textbooks, workbooks, and companion website facilitate using all
the resources in an integrated manner.
QQ The website has been redesigned and greatly enhanced.
Retaining its focus on communicative skills and the long-term retention of characters, the text is presented
in simplifed characters and pinyin with a gradual and phased removal of pinyin as specifc characters are
introduced and learned. This approach allows students to focus on the pronunciation and meaning of
new words before the corresponding characters are introduced, ensuring they are guided and supported
towards reading only in characters.
Claudia Ross is Professor Emerita of Chinese at the College of the Holy Cross, Massachusetts, USA. Her
publications include Modern Mandarin Chinese Grammar: A Practical Guide (2014), co-authored with
Jing-heng Sheng Ma; Outline of Chinese Grammar (2004); and Traditional Chinese Tales: A Course in
Intermediate Chinese (2001).
Baozhang He is Associate Professor Emeritus of Chinese at the College of the Holy Cross, Massachusetts,
USA. His publications include Difcult Grammar Knots Unravelled (2015), co-authored with Nansong
Huang and Wenzi Hu and Elementary Chinese (2006), co-authored with Pei-Chia Chen.
Pei-Chia Chen is Lecturer and Academic Coordinator of the Chinese program at UC San Diego, USA.
Her publications include Elementary Chinese (2006), co-authored with Baozhang He.
Meng Yeh is Teaching Professor in the Center for Languages and Intercultural Communication at Rice
University, USA. Her publications include Chaoyue: Advancing in Chinese (2010) and Communicating in
Chinese: An Interactive Approach to Beginning Chinese, Student Lab Workbook (1999).
Praise for the frst edition
“I am deeply impressed by the pedagogical considerations that Prof. Ross and her team
put into the project. The approaches to teaching Mandarin Chinese in this series
refected the authors’ rich knowledge of Chinese grammar and their vast experience in
teaching the language. The materials developed are pedagogically well conceived and
equally well supported by theories of language learning/teaching. A truly innovative
and delightful addition to the Chinese teaching feld.”
Cecilia Chang, Associate Professor of Chinese and Chair of the
Asian Studies Department at Williams College, USA
“This text ofers a refreshing approach to learning Chinese that is lacking in the vast
majority of learning materials. Each dialogue is contextualized so learners better under-
stand how the language is used in a variety of communicative situations. Students learn
not only what to say, but how to use the right language in a given context based on their
role, and when and where the situation occurs. Sentence pyramid exercises provide a
stepped approach that allows students to actually rehearse and perform the dialogues.
“The material is presented in manageable units with clear and concise explanations that
are understandable to students not familiar with linguistics jargon. Valuable informa-
tion on the social and cultural implications of the language is also provided.
“This is one of the few textbooks on the market that delays the introduction of Chinese
characters. This insightful approach allows learners to gain a foundation in the spoken
language before being inundated with characters to which they have little context in
which to place them. Furthermore, these materials use an innovative diglot approach to
introduce Chinese characters where newly learned characters are incorporated into pin-
yin texts. This efectively eases students into reading without overburdening them. By
the end of the text, dialogues and other materials are presented almost entirely in Chi-
nese characters. This approach provides excellent spiraling and reinforcement of char-
acters learned.”
Matthew Christensen, Brigham Young University, USA
Modern Mandarin Chinese
The Routledge Course Textbook
Level 2
Second edition
Claudia Ross, Baozhang He, Pei-Chia Chen, and Meng Yeh
Second edition published 2022
by Routledge
4 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN
and by Routledge
605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10158
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2022 Claudia Ross, Baozhang He, Pei-Chia Chen, and Meng Yeh
The right of Claudia Ross, Baozhang He, Pei-Chia Chen, and Meng Yeh to be
identifed as authors of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with
sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or
utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now
known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any
information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from
the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered
trademarks, and are used only for identifcation and explanation without intent
to infringe.
First edition published by Routledge 2012
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Ross, Claudia, author. | He, Baozhang, 1955– author. | Chen,
Pei-Chia, author. | Ye, Meng, 1950– author.
Title: Modern Mandarin Chinese : the Routledge course textbook level 2 /
Claudia Ross, Baozhang He, Pei-Chia Chen, and Meng Yeh.
Other titles: Routledge course in modern Mandarin Chinese Textbook level 2 :
Simplifed characters
Description: 2nd edition. | Abingdon, Oxon ; New York, NY : Routledge, 2021. |
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifers: LCCN 2020048692 (print) | LCCN 2020048693 (ebook) |
ISBN 9781138101135 (paperback) | ISBN 9781315657196 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Chinese language—Textbooks of foreign textbooks—English. |
Mandarin dialects.
Classifcation: LCC PL1129.E5 R678 2021 (print) | LCC PL1129.E5 (ebook) |
DDC 495.182/421—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020048692
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020048693
ISBN: 978-1-138-10113-5 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-1-315-65719-6 (ebk)
Typeset in Scala
by Apex CoVantage, LLC
Access the companion website: www.routledge.com/cw/ross
Contents
Acknowledgments x
Introduction xi
引言 xiv
How to use the resources in this course to learn Chinese xvi
LESSON 17 XUAˇ N 课 SELECTING COURSES 1
Communication goals
• Talk about selecting classes and discuss your daily and weekly
academic schedules.
• Express your interest in activities and things.
• Report what someone said or asked about.
• Narrate an event indicating the beginning, the middle, and the end.
Key structures
• 忙 zhe + action busy doing an action
• 回来 return back to a location
• 有 time 没 VP stating how long an action has not occurred
• zuì 后 fnally
• 不过 however
• 只是 it is only that
• bıˇjiào AdjV relatively AdjV
• 对 (NP or VP) 有兴 qu interested in (NP or VP)
• 对 VP 有帮 zhù helpful in doing VP
vi Contents
LESSON 18 选 ZHUĀNYÈ SELECTING A MAJOR 26
Communication goals
• Talk about academic majors and felds of study.
• Compare the way that college students in the US and college students
in China select their major.
• Explain at least one difference between the college application process
in the US and in China.
Key structures
• A 跟 B 有关系 A and B are connected, A and B have a relationship
• VP 的 NP describing nouns with verbs
• 难道。。。吗 Do you mean to say that . . . ?
• 一 bān (一般) on the whole, generally
• ràng (让)
• 最 AdjV the most AdjV
• 方面 perspective, and 在 ___ 方面 from the perspective of ___
• quán (全) + NP the entire NP
• 在 VP 以后 after VP
• situation 怎么 bàn (怎么办)？ what can you do about it?
LESSON 19 SHŌUSHI 房间 STRAIGHTENING UP THE ROOM 44
Communication goals
• Describe the location of objects in a room.
• Talk about putting things in locations.
• Talk about doing actions until you reach a conclusion or result.
Key structures
• number + classifer + 多 more than number
• Resultative verbs
• AdjV jí 了 (极了)
• 就是 NP/VP only, it is only NP/NP
• 难 guài . . . ! no wonder . . . !
• yòu (又) AdjV yòu (又) AdjV both AdjV and AdjV
1 2 1 2
• baˇ (把) + NP take something and do something with it
• 非 VP 不可 must VP
• 不 bì + VP do not need to VP
• 放在 location put (something) at a location and 放回 location return
something to a location
• 出去 go out and 出来 come out
LESSON 20 看 BÌNG GETTING SICK AND SEEING
A DOCTOR 66
Communication goals
• Describe and answer questions about the symptoms of an illness.
• Talk about the details of a past event.
Contents vii
Key structures
• 一 noun the entire noun
• number + 次 number of times
• huòzhě perhaps, or
• The potential form of resultative verbs: V 得 ending, V 不 ending
• 是 . . . 的 focusing on details of past events
• chú 了 noun phrase 以外 besides NP, except for NP
• 穿 wear vs. dài wear
LESSON 21 天 气和气候变化 WEATHER AND
CLIMATE CHANGE 93
Communication goals
• Talk about the weather, seasons, and climate change.
• Make comparisons.
Key structures
• yuè 来 yuè + AdjV more and more AdjV
• guā fēng it is windy, 下 xuě it is snowing, 下 yuˇ it is raining
• V 不了 unable to V
• Stating that things are alike and not alike with 一样
• Asking questions to confrm assumptions: 不是 VP 吗？
• 变 + AdjV turn AdjV
• Making comparisons with 比
• Stating differences with 不同
• The suffx 化 -ify, -ize
• zhí 得 + VP worth V-ing
LESSON 22 DUÀNLIÀN 身体 WORKING OUT 117
Communication goals
• Talk about different forms of indoor and outdoor sports and exercise.
• Compare two entities in terms of their similarities and differences.
• Decline an invitation by presenting an earlier commitment.
Key structures
• 在 X 上 from the perspective of X, when it comes to X
• xiāng 同 similarities and 不同 differences
• 为了 for the purpose of, in order to
• gèng + AdjV even more AdjV
• lìng 外 in addition
• 走进来 walk in and other directional expressions
• AdjV 是 AdjV . . . 可是 it’s AdjV all right, but
• lián NP 都/也 VP can’t even VP
• A 没有 B 那么/这么 AdjV A is not as AdjV as B
• gòu enough
viii Contents
• 来自 NP come from NP
• 到 dıˇ after all, fnally
LESSON 23 GUÀNG JIĒ GOING SHOPPING 144
Communication goals
• Shop for clothing.
• Compare objects in terms of price, size, color, and appearance and
indicate your preferences.
• Compare shopping in a store with shopping online.
Key structures
• 大大小小 big and small
• 一 zhoˇ ng (一种) NP a type of NP
• 不得不 VP nothing one can do but VP
• 只要 as long as
• 穿不下 unable to put (something) on and V 不下 unable to get something
down
• 越 V 越 AdjV the more V the more AdjV
• 一点都不 AdjV not even a little AdjV, not AdjV at all
• 大小 and other abstract nouns formed from opposites
• zhèng (正) AdjV precisely AdjV
• 看起來 VP appears to be VP
LESSON 24 JIAˇ N 价，打折 DISCOUNTS AND BARGAINS 163
Communication goals
• Discuss the price, size, and appearance of clothing.
• Compute discounts and bargain with shopkeepers to reduce prices.
• Persuade others to do something.
Key structures
• Question words as indefnite expressions: 什么都 VP (verb) everything
and 什么都 NEG VP not (verb) anything
• 再 ActV, 又 ActV 了 do an action again
• 你这儿 People as locations
• AdjV 得 VP/S so AdjV that VP/S
• 不但 VP /S 而且 VP /S not only . . . but also . . .
1 2
• The verb ná take and the preposition 把
• 不是 NP 就是 NP if it isn’t NP it is NP
1 2 1 2
• 连一 classifer (NP) 都/也 NEG V not even V one (NP)
LESSON 25 过 春节 CELEBRATING THE NEW
YEAR FESTIVAL 191
Communication goals
• Explain the basic traditions of the Chinese New Year holiday.
• Explain the symbolic signifcance of items associated with the Chinese
New Year.
Contents ix
Key structures
• AdjV 不得了 extremely AdjV
• VP 的 NPs with the main noun omitted
• V 着 indicating an ongoing or background event
• V duration 的 object, another way to express duration
• 一边 VP 一边 VP two actions at the same time
1 2
• 从来 NEG VP don’t ever VP; have never done VP
• The adverbs 刚刚 just completed an action, 刚才 just a moment ago,
等到 when an action is completed
Vocabulary: English to Mandarin pinyin 213
Vocabulary: Mandarin pinyin to English 237
Chinese characters alphabetically arranged 260
Chinese characters by lesson 275
Index of radicals for simplifed characters 289
Index of radicals for traditional characters 292
Index of structures and functions 296