A long-awaited television series, which was released in both Mandarin and the Shanghai dialect in late December, has sparked discussions among residents, online viewers and experts over the preservation and inheritance (传承) of the Shanghai dialect.
Adapted from writer Jin Yucheng’s award-winning novel, Fan Hua (Blossoms), the TV series Blossoms Shanghai takes audiences back to Shanghai in the 1990s, when everybody looked forward to opportunities in the new century. The plot follows the rise of the main character A Bao, played by actor Hu Ge, an ambitious young man who seizes the opportunities of the early stock market to become a millionaire.
However, it is the Shanghai dialect version that has many online viewers riveted to the series, produced by legendary Hong Kong director Wong Kar-wai, who was born in Shanghai. Some viewers are sharing short videos from the series to help others learn the Shanghai dialect, which has been greatly replaced with Mandarin in schools and workplaces. Chen Zhongmin, a professor at Fudan University, said that most people he knows are interested in the dialect version of Blossoms Shanghai, regardless of whether they are from the city or elsewhere.
Some experts said they believe the series could make a big contribution to the inheritance of the Shanghai dialect, as there is general consensus (共识) among Shanghai residents that the dialect needs to be protected. Ding Dimeng, an expert in Shanghai dialect studies at Shanghai University, noted that the dialect will become endangered if the government and society do not pay due attention to its preservation.
Many children in Shanghai do not fluently speak the dialect anymore, and for their convenience, their parents don’t speak with them in the dialect either, she said. Some residents expressed agreement with Ding’s observations.
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