From: lim@rani.chem.yale.edu (Dongchul Lim)
Newsgroups: soc.culture.korean
Subject: Re: parents push their children ... to near death ?
Date: 12 Nov 92 23:23:11 GMT
Distribution: soc.culture.korean,soc
Organization: Yale University
X-Newsreader: Tin 1.1 PL4

emzx@vax5.cit.cornell.edu writes:
: In article <1992Nov6.171648.18873@nmsu.edu>,
: moon@acca.nmsu.edu ('short attention span theater') writes: 
: > 
: > Koreans ( first generation at least :P) have the reputation
: > of working hard and driving themselves.
: > And its not for them that they do this, but so their children
: > can have a better life.
: 
: You said it.  My Father and my Mother believe in that doctrine very firmly.
: 
: > 
: > But now all the hopes and dreams of the parents are riding on their
: > children and all of a sudden, anything short of outstanding is failure,no 
: > in between.
: > 
: > Now these second generation korean-americans are caught in the middle.
: > They want to have fun, go to parties, go on dates, doddle, 
: > make jokes in english, just like theother american kids.
: > But deep down  their parents have driven home the message that
: > unless they become doctors or lawyers or business leaders,
: > they have failed themselves and their parents.
: > And maybe doomed themselves to a hard,cruel life.
: > ( sorry for the paraphrasing :)
: 
: I don't know about that.  I'm not second generation - I wan't born here in the
: good old US of A - but I do share much of their ideals.  The idea of living for
: your kids is wrong.  Nobody should live for anybody else.  It's selfish, but
: the other extreme is stupid.  My parents have ground in their beliefs deep
: inside me, but as long as you think about their ideas and formulate your own
: ideas, things should be aok.  The key word here is THINK.  If there isn't a
: thought processes going on, you'll be screwed and unhappy.
: -- 
: -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
: "Start strong, end strong, and look for opportunities in the middle."
:                               -S. O'Nan
: 
: Sung J. Woo, Secretary of The International Gridlocker Society
: 
: emzx@CORNELLA.cit.cornell.edu
: /\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

In Asian philosophy, 
for an annual plan, nothing is better than growing crops;
for a 10-year plan, nothing is better than planting trees;
for a centennial plan, nothing is bettern than educating children.
Also the last item of Mencius' three pleasures in life is
to get a gifted kid and educate him/her.
Parents don't live solely for their children, but they know
the education is the best gift they can give. Probably children
would think a lot of inheritance is the best gift though...
-DCL

--
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* Dongchul Lim                   | Phone (203) 432-6288            *
* Dept. of Chemistry, Yale Univ. | Email: lim@rani.chem.yale.edu   *
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Newsgroups: soc.culture.korean