New Members charvey1 Posted January 29, 2012 at 05:22 PM New Members Report Share Posted January 29, 2012 at 05:22 PM Hello, I'm just finishing my PhD thesis and of course, I wish to acknowledge my Chinese supervisor, who has been amazing. I've been learning Mandarin Chinese a few months now (so am still at a really basic level), and I thought it would be a nice touch to use this Chinese proverb I came across a few months ago and remembered. ming shi chu gao tu 名师出高徒 I understand this to mean "An excellent teacher produces a good student". Is this correct? Also, I was hoping someone here could advise me whether this is an okay use of this proverb in such a situation? I intend it to mean that any of my success in my PhD is down to him being an excellent teacher. I don't want to appear arrogant by saying myself that I am a good student. Many thanks, Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skylee Posted January 31, 2012 at 11:11 AM Report Share Posted January 31, 2012 at 11:11 AM I don't want to appear arrogant by saying myself that I am a good student. Then don't use it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
New Members charvey1 Posted January 31, 2012 at 11:32 AM Author New Members Report Share Posted January 31, 2012 at 11:32 AM Okay... I like concise answers. So, is that because the proverb does indeed carry the meaning of both good supervisor *and* student, and should only be said by someone else, otherwise it would be arrogant? I hope this doesn't seem ridiculously obvious to you. The meaning is far from unambiguous to me. Also proverbs tend to carry more meaning (which is understood by the hearer) than their component words, which is further cause for caution. Many thanks for your reply. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rezaf Posted January 31, 2012 at 11:58 AM Report Share Posted January 31, 2012 at 11:58 AM How about something like “感謝老師春風化雨的教導”？ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
New Members charvey1 Posted January 31, 2012 at 12:13 PM Author New Members Report Share Posted January 31, 2012 at 12:13 PM rezaf, if I understand, then I like that. I think that's much safer than my first thought. My Mandarin is still really basic, so I admit, I plugged it into Google translator (shocking, I know!). Does it basically mean "Thanks to my teacher for teaching well?" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rezaf Posted January 31, 2012 at 12:32 PM Report Share Posted January 31, 2012 at 12:32 PM yes something like that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
renzhe Posted January 31, 2012 at 03:05 PM Report Share Posted January 31, 2012 at 03:05 PM I hope this doesn't seem ridiculously obvious to you. The meaning is far from unambiguous to me. It sounds like you're flattering yourself. Whatever you use should be about the teacher and your debt to him, not about you. It's quite un-Chinese to praise yourself publicly. That's why it's not suitable. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
New Members charvey1 Posted January 31, 2012 at 03:19 PM Author New Members Report Share Posted January 31, 2012 at 03:19 PM It sounds like you're flattering yourself. ... It's quite un-Chinese to praise yourself publicly. That was my main concern. I intended to praise my supervisor. It's good that I asked here to check the meaning. Thank you all of you for saving me the embarrassment. Whatever you use should be about the teacher and your debt to him, not about you. I'll think about it. I may use rezaf's suggestion, but I will probably just leave what I have already written in English. It only crossed my mind to write that proverb in the acknowledgements because I had encountered it before. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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