中国人的美国观

   
              
    When the Chinese first came to know that there was a country on  the other side of the Pacific Ocean called the United States of "America" and needed to name it in Chinese, they chose the phonetically translated "Mei Guo," which literally means "the beautiful(mei)country(guo)."A Chinese who happens to hear this name would have a romantic image of America, even though he or she might  have little knowledge of the country.
            　
    Since then, Chinese have become familiar with George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Abraham Lincoln, and with the American Revolution, the Civil War, the Pearl Harbor Incident and the  outstanding service and sacrifice of the American people during the Second World War, However, compared to its images of other Western countries, the Chinese images of the United States have shown greater complexity and inconsistency, in light of historical events such as the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Sino-Us Shanghai Joint Communique in 1972,and more recent issues.
            　
    It is helpful to explore the role of the media in Sino-Us relations. Just as many Americans believe the Chinese media to be monolithic and subservient to government dictates, many Chinese believe the U.S. media to be obsessed with sensationalism and biased against China. How can thoughtful Chinese and Americans explore these perceptual differences and thus build bridges between peoples in the 21st century?
            　　
    当初，中国人刚刚知道远隔太平洋的彼岸有一个国家叫美利坚时，就给她起了一个最好的中国式的名字--美国（美丽的国度）。这样一个好名字，会使一个不了解美国的中国人对她也自然地产生好感。
            　　
    中国人孰知华盛顿、杰斐逊和林肯，也熟知独立战争、南北战争，珍珠港事件和美国人在二战中的贡献。
            　　
    伴随着朝鲜战争、越南战争，1972年中美上海联合公报及冷战后美国媒体对中国的具有明显偏见的报道，中国人对美国的看法比对任何一个外国都显得更为复杂和富有变化。