我感觉大多数的受访者在这个问题上没有抓住关键字“were”。首先，我想问一下研究者：你是在设想的哪个时间跨度用“Were”？目前而言，我姑且假设你的意思是“在20世纪早期，在引入白话文作为书面用语（普通话）之前”......
评论翻译
Yong Wen San
I get the feeling most of the respondents did not catch on to the keyword ‘were’ in the question.
Firstly, I would ask the OP: What is your assumed time-frame for ‘were’? For now, I will go with the assumption that you mean “before the introduction of Vernacular Chinese (Mandarin) as the written standard from the early 20th century”.
That being the case, the reason students were ‘forced’ to study Classical Chinese was simply because that was the official form of written Chinese in all formal documents and in schools.
But if you meant to say “Why are students in China forced to learn classical Chinese?”, i.e. at present, then please correct the tense used in your question. ‘were’ and ‘are’ makes a big difference in the answer you will get.
我感觉大多数的受访者在这个问题上没有抓住关键字“were”。
首先，我想问一下研究者：你是在设想的哪个时间跨度用“Were”？目前而言，我姑且假设你的意思是“在20世纪早期，在引入白话文作为书面用语（普通话）之前”。
在这种情况下，学生“被迫”学习文言文的原因很简单，因为这是所有正式文件和学校里的官方形式的书面汉语。
但如果你想表达的是“为什么中国的学生被迫学习文言文？”“那么现在，请纠正你所提问题中使用的时态。用“were”和“are”，你会得用截然不同的答案。
Edward Higgins
Well, I can provid 3 reasons for that:
1)In order to arm the students the ability to better understand the history, which is the key to understand the current international word as well as current Chinese Society.
Ancient Chinese dynasty had the tradition of recording the important events, no matter offical or not. Although history was wriiten by the victors instead of the truth, reading the infomation from over ten centuries ago still offer a specific perspectives.
If someone can read the raw materials, I mean the content instead of the accient Chinese characters, he or she can understand the meaning beyond that without translation. And no one will doubt that, the translation is always harder than the original to convey the ideas of the authors.
So many events happened in Chinese history had been recorded, which is indeed the treasure of the Chinese cultures. If possible, why don’t people hold the key to the safe ?
2)In order to enhance the national self-respect. In my opinion, for most of Chinese, material affluence do not mean spiritual confidence. The current spiritual inferiority can backtrack to the whole 20th century or even the 1840.
In those times, being faced with the booming westen world, Chinese, especially the upper class, held nihilism toward the convention, blaming that for the weakness of the country and poverty of the people. Classical Chinese stood in the breach.
Adding significance to the classical Chinese meanwhile teaching with simplified Chinese characters reflect the offical attitude toward Chinese convention nowadays: take its essence and discard its dross. It is the crucial part of the reconstrcution of national self-dignity.
3)In order to provide more fun in life(this one is too personal, but I insist to add here). Maybe not all students take interst in that, but a few ameturs will benefit in their future life.
Just like some can read the stories of how theri grand-grand-fathers fight against the cruel nature to reclaim the soil from the Yellow River Basin.
Just like some can read the stories of how theri grand-grand-fathers fight against the Huns to light the torchs of the cities bypass the Silk Road.
Just like some can read the stories of how theri grand-grand-fathers fight against the imperialism to strrugle for the liberty in the era of colonialism.
Some may feel lucky that the school provide the ability to experience the great times , in which their ancestors used to live, when they do not have the ideas how cool it is to read the quotations of confucius without dictionaries.
It offers the ability of reading the genealogy of the whole nation.
All in all, it assists Chinese to review the pass, anticipate the future and examine themselves from the classical records without any third part translation.
对此有以下3点原因：
1）使学生更好的理解历史，这是理解现代文和当前中国社会的关键。
不管是正史还是野史，中国古代王朝都有撰写史书的传统。尽管史册都是由王朝统治者撰写而不尽其实，但研习古书仍然可以为我们当前的研究提供一个特定的视角。
如果有人能读懂这些手札，我指的是了解其含义而不非单纯的字词的意思，即使没有译稿，其也有明白字词的言外之意。
没有人会怀疑，翻译总是比原作更难以传达作者的思想。
中国历史上发生的许多事件都被记录下来，这确实是中国文化的瑰宝。
但如果可能的话，当时的人为何不直接了当的说明事件的真实原委呢？
2）为了提高民族自尊心。
在我看来，对大多数中国人来说，物质的富足并不意味着精神上的自信。
当前的精神上的自卑感可以回溯到整个20世纪甚至1840年。
在那个时代，面对蓬勃发展的西方世界，中国人，尤其是上层阶级，将割地赔款的条例，归咎于国家的软弱和人民的贫困。
中国的白话文也是那时候应运而生的。
同时，对中国古典文学的教学也具有重要的意义，同时也体现了中国传统的观念，即：取其精华，去其糟粕。
这是民族自我尊严重构的重要组成部分。
3）为了在生活中提供更多的乐趣（这纯属个人意见，但我还是要特别指出）。
也许并不是所有的学生都能以此为乐，但是必然会有一部分因此而在他们未来的生活中受益。
就像有些人读到关于其先祖如何与残酷的自然斗争，从黄河流域收回土地的故事。
就像有些人读到关于其先祖如何与匈奴人对抗，又如何发展繁荣古代丝绸之路沿路城市的故事。
就像有些人读到，在殖民主义时代，其先祖们是如何与帝国主义对抗的，为自由而战。
有些人可能会觉得幸运，学校为他们去了解其先祖曾生活过得伟大时代创造了机会，而他们不会觉得在没有字典的情况下阅读孔子的语录是多么的酷。
古书为我们了解全民族的历史创造了可能。
总而言之，它帮助中国人回顾过去，展望未来，并考验了国人在没有第三方译文的前提下，对古典文字的了解。
Jackson Lee
Because classical Chinese is more beautiful, concise and it was the language our ancestors had been using for the past thousands of years. Learning the ancient form of the language will help with better understanding of history and culture of China.
In China, we have an old saying: 言以载道. The philosophy and moral teachings are passed down through words. That is how the culture heritage and identify as Chinese has been passed down for the past 5 thousand years.
Frankly speaking, the proportion of the classical Chinese teaching is very small, and it is only serves very symbolic purpose to remind the students of their culture heritage and roots. I am not sure if the kids in the west were taught Shakespeare's sonnets or extracts of some of the famous drama when they are in school. Students might not appreciate the beauty of it, but some might have interest and devote more time to learn more.
To be honest, I think for most of the Chinese students, learning foreign language is the toughest challenge of all, and it surely takes up much higher proportion of their curriculum;-)
因为古汉语更优美、更简洁，而且它是我们的祖先在过去几千年里一直使用的语言。学习这种古老的语言将有助于更好地理解中国的历史和文化。
在中国,我们有句老话:言以载道。哲学和道德教育是通过文字传递的。这就是过去五千年里，中国文化遗产和身份认同的传承方式。
坦率地说，中国古典教学的比例非常小，它的目的只是为了提醒学生们他们的文化传统和根源。我不确定西方的孩子们是否在学校里教过莎士比亚的十四行诗或一些著名戏剧的摘录。学生们可能不会欣赏它的美丽，但有些人可能会有兴趣，花更多的时间去学习更多的东西。老实说，我认为对于大多数中国学生来说，学习外语是最困难的挑战，而且肯定会占据他们所学课程的比例更高;-）
Lola
If your ancestors live a very long life,and write down all their experiences for you to refer to later.But you just can't read them.What a pity!Cases in Korea n Vietnam.
Forced to learn?I think it's a way how Chinese civilization evolves.
1.During Chinese 5000 years uninterrupted history,our ancestors left us numerous cultural heritages.Time sifted the best out for us.When you read them,you’ll realize histories always repeat themselves.Civilization is evolving but human beings stay almost the same in such a short period.Our ancestors are just like human computers,giving us references by their experiences and thoughts.
I guess that's one of the reasons why we hold our ancestors so high.
2.You asked this question,so I assume you don’t know much about classical Chinese.I always feel so lucky that there're so many beautifully-written Chinese poems and brilliant articles.Some are so beautiful that I would cry out.When I read them,I feel exactly what they felt before.That’s an amazing thing.
3.Without the classical Chinese,you won’t understand the source of modern Chinese.And to achieve a better level of writing,a certain amount of that knowledge will be necessary.
4.There still are tons of anceint stuff under the ground.Wouldn’t it be a pity if you don’t know what they are saying when digged out some day in the future?
如果你的先祖十分长寿，并且写下他们所有的经历，供你以后参考。但你就是看不懂，这是多么遗憾的一件事情.
这是被迫去学习么？我倒是觉得这是中华文化发展传承的方式。
1。在中国5000年的历史中，我们的祖先留下了无数的文化遗产。经过时间的沉淀传承下来的都是其中的精华。。当你读它们的时候，你会发现历史总是惊人的相似。相对于文明的持续演化传承，人类存活的时间就好像沧海一粟。而我们的祖先就像电脑一样，通过记录下他们的经历和想法来给我们提供参考。我想这就是为什么我们应该崇尚先祖的原因之一。
2。我觉得你之所以这样问，是因为你不太了解中国的古典文学。我总是感到很庆幸，能有这么多美丽的中国诗歌和精彩的文章。有些是如此美丽，以至于我读了都要哭出来。当我读这些书的时候，我能感觉到了他们字里行间流露的当时的所思所想。这是一件很神奇的事情。
3。如果没有中国古典文学，你就无法理解现代汉语的来源。为了达到更好的写作水平，一定数量的知识积累是必要的。
4。鉴于目前仍然有无数尚未被发现的古籍。故而如果有一天这些古籍都被考古发现而你却不明白其含义，你会不会感到遗憾呢？
Larry Park
Is there any country where the students don’t learn the classical literatures of their country? I mean those countreis that has histroy and classic literatures like France, England,Greece, Spain, Japan, Egept , Russia, etc., Even America has a very short history ( 241 years till now ), don’t the students learn the literatures by Edgar Allan,Mark Twain,William Faulkner , Ernest Hemingway ,etc .those great writers ?? China has a long 5000 years history, you can image how many masterpieces worth reading and studying .those are great historical /cultural heritage .
有没有哪个国家的学生不学习他们国家的古典文学？
我的意思是那些有历史和经典文献的国家像法国,英国,希腊,西班牙,日本,印度,俄罗斯,等等,甚至美国有很短的历史(241年至今),这些国家的学生会不读埃德加·爱伦,马克·吐温,威廉·福克纳、海明威等伟大的作家的文学作品?
中国有5000多年的历史，你可以想象有多少值得一读和研究的杰作，这些都是伟大的历史文化遗产。
Katlyn Overwood
Classical Chinese is a part of literature. And it is bound with the subject of ‘literature’. We are no more forced to learn it as we are with Math or Science, but it is certainly a less practical subject that most student despise.
中国古汉语是语文学习的一部分。我们不再像数学或科学那样被迫去学习它，但是它确实是一门大多数学生都轻视的不那么实用的学科。
Steve Waddington
I am not sure they are. But if they are, wouldn't you think 3,000+ years of contiguous history, right there and fully documented, would be worth the effort to remain readable by the general population?
我并不这样认为，即使果真如此，难道你觉得古文真的记录了完整的3000多年的历史么？我们真的有必要去努力使之了然于众？
Julia Collier
In order to cultivate the ability to read ancient books, so as to criticize the inheritance of the motherland; The second reason is that ancient Chinese also has certain help to the modern Chinese culture. We should realize that studying ancient Chinese can not only improve the ability of reading and writing, but also improve the ability of reading modern books and writing.
为了了解国家的文化传承而去培养读古书的能力;第二个原因是，古代中国人对现代中国文化也有一定的帮助。我们应该认识到，学习古汉语不仅能提高阅读和写作的能力，还能提高阅读现代书籍和写作的能力。
Raven Crown
I assume it's safe to say most of your knowledge is FORCED into your mind when you are young. How many kids are talented enough to enjoy math in their primary school? But when we grow up, many of us will find it useful or interesting. Some might think classical Chinese hard to understand stand, but once I got to learn it, I found it unbelievablely beautiful. I don't know much about English poems so I can't compare them. But most Chinese would agree that none of the modern Chinese poems could reach the highest peak the classical poems had. If I didn't learn them at school, I might miss the fortune forever.
我认为，当你年轻的时候，你的大部分知识都是被迫进入你的脑海的，这是可以肯定的。有多少孩子有足够的天赋在他们的小学里享受数学学习？但当我们长大后，我们中的许多人会发现它有用或有趣。有些人可能认为中国的古典文学很难理解，但一旦我学会了，我就觉得它是不可想象的美丽。我对英语诗歌不太了解，所以我无法拿它们作比较。但大多数中国人都会同意，现代中国诗歌没有一种能达到古典诗歌的最高境界。如果我在学校没有学过这些，我可能会永远错失那笔财富。
Frank Wolson
As someone who has lived in China for some time, I am personally happy that the party limits some freedoms. This is because Chinese nationalism is a much scarier and more violent force than anything the party doles out.
For those who think that the party is bad/evil/inefficient/corrupt/authoritarian etc., they should ask themselves "If the party were not in charge, what would be the alternative?"
My guess is that it would be a very violent form of Chinese nationalism which would lash out against Taiwan independence supporters, Americans and the west in general. Fortunately, the party is in charge, and the party prevents this from happening.
If you have spent time on Quora following the topic of China, there are people who are Chinese nationalists, and you can see how deep this feeling runs in their postings. If it doesn't frighten you, then it should.
作为一个在中国生活过一段时间的人，我个人很高兴共产党限制了部分言论自由。这是因为中国的民族主义是一种比任何政党都更可怕、更暴力的力量。
对于那些认为共产党是不良/邪恶/低效/腐败/独裁等的人，他们应该问自己：“如果不是一党专政，结果会怎么样？”
我的猜测是，这将是一种非常暴力的中国民族主义，它将猛烈抨击台独分子以及支持台湾独立的美国人和西方国家。幸运的是，由于一党专政从而阻止了这种情况的发生。
如果你花时间在Quora上关注过中国民族主义者关于中国问题的帖子，你就会发现这种民族主义情怀在他们的帖子中是多么的强烈。如果这都不足以使你感到震惊，那真的挺吓人的。
Quora User
Many literature work written in classical Chinese are just beautiful and full of wisdom and simplification. When translated to modern Chinese, it just lost most of its beauty and wisdom and becomes complex. Got to learn some classical Chinese in order to understand the 5000 yrs of our culture.
许多中国古典文学作品都是优美的，充满智慧和简洁的。当被翻译成现代汉语时，它失去了大部分的美丽和智慧，变得复杂起来。为了了解5000年的文化，我们必须学习一些古典汉语。
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