美国国家公共电台 NPR For Some Chinese Uighurs, Modeling Is A Path To Success

 

AILSA CHANG, HOST:

China is riding a tidal wave of domestic consumption. More products means more advertising¹, and that means more models. Few are busier these days than those from China's northwestern region of Xinjiang. NPR's Rob Schmitz explains why.

ROB SCHMITZ, BYLINE²: Speaking to a foreign journalist is usually a stressful endeavor for a Uighur in China. Uighurs belong to a Muslim ethnic³ minority. They speak a language closer to Turkish than Chinese. These differences from China's dominant⁴ ethnicity, the Han, have been at the root of a tense and sometimes violent relationship between Uighurs and China's government. But there's another difference Uighurs possess that the rest of China is attracted to - their looks.

XAHRIYAR ABDUKERIMABLIZ: (Through interpreter) Not to brag⁵, but we are very good-looking.

SCHMITZ: Nineteen-year-old Xahriyar Abdukerimabliz is a model from Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang, and he insists he's not bragging⁶.

XAHRIYAR: (Through interpreter) Our facial features are naturally attractive. We've got great eyebrows⁷, big, beautiful eyes and double eyelids⁸ that weren't created by a surgeon.

SCHMITZ: So that double eyelid⁹ thing - more and more Chinese are undergoing surgery to create a crease¹⁰ in their upper eyelids that half of all East Asians are born without. They do that to look more Western. Abdukerimabliz has naturally-creased eyelids, as well as striking eyebrows, a long nose and expressive¹¹ eyes that look either Asian or European depending on his mood or pose. Max Liu, CEO of the Beijing-based modeling agency Fun Models, says China's demand for this look has its roots in the birth of consumerism in China back in the '90s.

MAX LIU: (Through interpreter) There were fewer local brands in China back then. All the famous brands were international, and they all used Caucasian models. As China developed, local brands now want local image but not too local, so they've turned to models who have half-Asian, half-European looks for their brand identity.

SCHMITZ: Plus, says Liu, Uighur models are Chinese, and they speak the language, making it a cinch for agencies to work with them. That's why Liu says he's seen a steady increase of Uighur models in China in recent years.

LIU: (Through interpreter) With their looks, they can easily flow through cultures. They can play multiple roles. If you need to cast a foreigner in a movie, they can do that while speaking flawless Chinese. They're incredibly versatile¹².

PARWENA DULKUN: (Foreign language spoken).

SCHMITZ: At a teahouse in Urumqi, Uighur model Parwena Dulkun shows me a video of her dancing to a local song on "Walk Of Fame," a talent show on CCTV, China's largest broadcaster. Later, she shows me another video of her in a nationwide beauty pageant¹⁴. She's busy. Her shape-shifting appearance is so in-demand that she's taken to turning down some advertisers.

PARWENA: (Through interpreter) I was in the states recently, and then after that, I went to Europe. I was in Italy, France and Switzerland, and then I had a job in Hong Kong.

SCHMITZ: And wherever she goes, she gets the same response.

PARWENA: (Through interpreter) In France, people spoke¹³ to me in French, thinking I was French. In Italy, they spoke Italian to me.

SCHMITZ: What's most surprising is the only country where she isn't confused for a local is in her home country.

PARWENA: (Through interpreter) In many Chinese cities, people think I'm a foreigner.

SCHMITZ: She uses these moments to educate her countrymen.

PARWENA: (Through interpreter) They try to speak English to me, and I answer in Mandarin¹⁵. Cab drivers always turn around and ask me what country I'm from.

SCHMITZ: She says she smiles proudly and concludes her lesson by announcing, I'm Chinese. Rob Schmitz, NPR News, Urumqi.

1 advertising   

n.广告业；广告活动 a.广告的；广告业务的

参考例句：

• Can you give me any advice on getting into advertising? 你能指点我如何涉足广告业吗?
• The advertising campaign is aimed primarily at young people. 这个广告宣传运动主要是针对年轻人的。

2 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

3 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

4 dominant   

adj.支配的，统治的；占优势的；显性的；n.主因，要素，主要的人(或物)；显性基因

参考例句：

• The British were formerly dominant in India.英国人从前统治印度。
• She was a dominant figure in the French film industry.她在法国电影界是个举足轻重的人物。

5 brag   

v./n.吹牛，自夸；adj.第一流的

参考例句：

• He made brag of his skill.他夸耀自己技术高明。
• His wealth is his brag.他夸张他的财富。

6 bragging   

v.自夸，吹嘘( brag的现在分词 )；大话

参考例句：

• He's always bragging about his prowess as a cricketer. 他总是吹嘘自己板球水平高超。 来自辞典例句
• Now you're bragging, darling. You know you don't need to brag. 这就是夸口，亲爱的。你明知道你不必吹。 来自辞典例句

7 eyebrows   

眉毛( eyebrow的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Eyebrows stop sweat from coming down into the eyes. 眉毛挡住汗水使其不能流进眼睛。
• His eyebrows project noticeably. 他的眉毛特别突出。

8 eyelids   

n.眼睑( eyelid的名词复数 )；眼睛也不眨一下；不露声色；面不改色

参考例句：

• She was so tired, her eyelids were beginning to droop. 她太疲倦了，眼睑开始往下垂。
• Her eyelids drooped as if she were on the verge of sleep. 她眼睑低垂好像快要睡着的样子。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 eyelid   

n.眼睑，眼皮

参考例句：

• She lifted one eyelid to see what he was doing.她抬起一只眼皮看看他在做什么。
• My eyelid has been tumid since yesterday.从昨天起，我的眼皮就肿了。

10 crease   

n.折缝，褶痕，皱褶；v.(使)起皱

参考例句：

• Does artificial silk crease more easily than natural silk?人造丝比天然丝更易起皱吗？
• Please don't crease the blouse when you pack it.包装时请不要将衬衫弄皱了。

11 expressive   

adj.表现的，表达…的，富于表情的

参考例句：

• Black English can be more expressive than standard English.黑人所使用的英语可能比正式英语更有表现力。
• He had a mobile,expressive,animated face.他有一张多变的，富于表情的，生动活泼的脸。

12 versatile   

adj.通用的，万用的；多才多艺的，多方面的

参考例句：

• A versatile person is often good at a number of different things.多才多艺的人通常擅长许多种不同的事情。
• He had been one of the game's most versatile athletes.他是这项运动中技术最全面的运动员之一。

13 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

14 pageant   

n.壮观的游行；露天历史剧

参考例句：

• Our pageant represented scenes from history.我们的露天历史剧上演一幕幕的历史事件。
• The inauguration ceremony of the new President was a splendid pageant.新主席的就职典礼的开始是极其壮观的。

15 Mandarin   

n.中国官话，国语，满清官吏；adj.华丽辞藻的

参考例句：

• Just over one billion people speak Mandarin as their native tongue.大约有十亿以上的人口以华语为母语。
• Mandarin will be the new official language of the European Union.普通话会变成欧盟新的官方语言。