The Shanghainese Value System

Abstract

The Shanghainese come to know one another and to know themselves in a physically overcrowded, and even embarrassingly intimate environment. Shanghai's public opinion and the press have an ambivalent feeling toward Shanghainese, the feeling of "wishing iron could turn into steel at once." In criticizing, exposing, and discussing the Shanghainese mentality, the Shanghainese themselves actually do the most. For example, there have been symposiums in the city, focusing on issues such as "Shanghainese in the Eyes of People from Other Places," "Image of Shanghainese," "Shanghainese in the 1990s," and the debate over the notion of the "Ugly Shanghainese." This would be incredible in Beijing and other places. Many Shanghainese are not convinced that some criticism is to the point. Some people argue against it and write articles to prove "Shanghainese are still lovable."