Светлой памяти Нины Макаровны Чередеевой-



وَاليَمينُ أَضحَت إيماناً

中国人用筷子吃饭。

Chinese *Zhōngguórén yòng kuàizi chīfàn* – literally, 'China-people use chopsticks eat-rice' - has one single meaning: 'The Chinese eat with chopsticks'. The fact that there is no other way to convey that statement is explained by a Chinese triple logic unveiling (1) the myth of senseless 'grammatical' concepts, such as 'prepositions' (*eating **with** chopsticks* in Chinese would mean *eating **in the company of** chopsticks*), while reinstating the fundamental role of the verb (in certain other languages, also the noun) as the true link between the various parts of speech; (2) the intrinsic role of *rice* as a millenary daily staple in any generic 'eating' action (compare the non-specific 我要吃饭 wǒ yào chīfàn 'I want to eat [lit., eat rice]' with the specific 我要吃肉 wǒ yào chī ròu 'I want to eat meat'); and, finally, (3) the unconditional placement of the auxiliary action before the main action: 用筷子吃饭 *yòng kuàizi chīfàn* 'using chopsticks eat', as 吃饭用筷子 *chīfàn yòng kuàizi* 'eat using chopsticks' in Chinese would sound as an anachronism - indeed, one cannot consume the food *before* using the tool. One can never go wrong in Chinese!

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-This site owes its conception to Sarah Frantz-
-Ce site doit sa naissance à Elian Carsenat--