--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What is China but a people and their…" description: "\"What is China but a people and their stories?\" — Gene Luen Yang" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/151/gene-luen-yang-22702_china_what-is-china-but-a-people-and-their-sto_1330937.jpg" --- # What is China but a people and their stories? ![“What is China but a people and their stories?” quote by Gene Luen Yang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/151/gene-luen-yang-22702_china_what-is-china-but-a-people-and-their-sto_1330937.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/151/gene-luen-yang-22702_china_what-is-china-but-a-people-and-their-sto_1330937.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/151/gene-luen-yang-22702_china_what-is-china-but-a-people-and-their-sto_1330937.jpg) > “What is China but a people and their stories?” [Gene Luen Yang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-luen-yang/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. China is defined by its people and their narratives, emphasizing culture over geography. **In simple terms:** China equals its people and stories. Key Takeaway Value cultural narratives. Themes culture identity narrative Mood thoughtful reflective Type analytical educational When to use this quote - education - media analysis - cross‑cultural dialogue Key Concepts anthropology history Questions to Reflect On - How do stories shape a nation's identity? - What role do individuals play in cultural narratives? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [China](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/china/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Storytelling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/storytelling/) ## Related quotes > [People have put a lot of faith in the government's ability to get growth going in China. People have this, what I think, illusion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wessel/people-have-put-a-lot-of-faith-in-the-government-s-ability-to-get/) [David Wessel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wessel/) > [To refrain from storytelling is perhaps one of the highest forms of respect we can pay. Those people, with no stories to circle them,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-marcus/to-refrain-from-storytelling-is-perhaps-one-of-the-highest-forms-of/) [Ben Marcus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-marcus/) > [People don't even know how hard it is to play in China. People think it is easy for the foreign players, but it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephon-marbury/people-don-t-even-know-how-hard-it-is-to-play-in-china-people-think/) [Stephon Marbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephon-marbury/) > [In China, people only talk to make a point. You ask someone to go to lunch. They say yes or they say no.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sammo-hung/in-china-people-only-talk-to-make-a-point-you-ask-someone-to-go-to/) [Sammo Hung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sammo-hung/) > [Because people along the route had realized that there was demand and quickly organized supply. That's so Chinese. In a well-organized country like Germany,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zhang-xin/because-people-along-the-route-had-realized-that-there-was-demand-and/) [Zhang Xin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zhang-xin/) > [I'm of the people in the bar and the people in my stories. They are my tribe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-jo-campbell/i-m-of-the-people-in-the-bar-and-the-people-in-my-stories-they-are-my/) [Bonnie Jo Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-jo-campbell/) > [The human world is made of stories, not people. The people the stories use to tell themselves are not to be blamed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mitchell/the-human-world-is-made-of-stories-not-people-the-people-the-stories/) [David Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mitchell/) > [I know that there are a lot of people out there with stories far worse than mine but you, too, can make it. To…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-perry/i-know-that-there-are-a-lot-of-people-out-there-with-stories-far/) [Tyler Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-perry/) > [In my time since moving to the United States, I've found that there is a dearth of great writing for black people. There are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-oyelowo/in-my-time-since-moving-to-the-united-states-i-ve-found-that-there-is/) [David Oyelowo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-oyelowo/) > [“The stories themselves aren't what moves him now...What moves him are the shadowy people behind the stories, the workers weary from their days, gathering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-groff/the-stories-themselves-aren-t-what-moves-him-now-what-moves-him-are/) [Lauren Groff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-groff/) > [I've always been interested in listening to people's stories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jens-lekman/i-ve-always-been-interested-in-listening-to-people-s-stories/) [Jens Lekman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jens-lekman/) > [“One may learn a great deal about a people by the stories they tell of others.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-zahn/one-may-learn-a-great-deal-about-a-people-by-the-stories-they-tell-of/) [Timothy Zahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-zahn/) > [“I never trust frank and simple people whose stories hold together.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/i-never-trust-frank-and-simple-people-whose-stories-hold-together/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [It's very important to me that people get to see themselves in stories. When someone tells me they've never seen themselves, I have a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seanan-mcguire/it-s-very-important-to-me-that-people-get-to-see-themselves-in/) [Seanan McGuire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seanan-mcguire/) > [I love different sorts of people, their stories, all the different facets, that make them, them. This is entwined with how I am compelled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gemma-cairney/i-love-different-sorts-of-people-their-stories-all-the-different/) [Gemma Cairney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gemma-cairney/) ## More by Gene Luen Yang > [“I do not make mistakes, little monkey. A monkey I intended you to be. A monkey you are.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-luen-yang/i-do-not-make-mistakes-little-monkey-a-monkey-i-intended-you-to-be-a/) [Gene Luen Yang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-luen-yang/) > [“Class, I'd like us all to give a warm Mayflower elementary welcome to your new friend and classmate Jing Jang!" "Jin Wang." "Jin Wang!"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-luen-yang/class-i-d-like-us-all-to-give-a-warm-mayflower-elementary-welcome-to/) [Gene Luen Yang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-luen-yang/) > [My best teachers, the teachers who had the deepest effect on my reading, combined the two. They would mix required reading with reading where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-luen-yang/my-best-teachers-the-teachers-who-had-the-deepest-effect-on-my/) [Gene Luen Yang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-luen-yang/) > [Sometimes, a fight you cannot win is still worth fighting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-luen-yang/sometimes-a-fight-you-cannot-win-is-still-worth-fighting/) [Gene Luen Yang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-luen-yang/) > [Zombies aren't about zombies. It's not about the dead bodies. I think it's a very hopeful subgenre. It says that regardless of what happens,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-luen-yang/zombies-aren-t-about-zombies-it-s-not-about-the-dead-bodies-i-think/) [Gene Luen Yang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-luen-yang/) > [“Tell me, Little Bao, have you ever gotten close to woman?' 'Well. . . ' 'Close enough to smell her?' 'No.' 'Ah! Even when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-luen-yang/tell-me-little-bao-have-you-ever-gotten-close-to-woman-well-close/) [Gene Luen Yang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-luen-yang/) > [I find that nowadays it's just gotten harder for me to read for fun. It feels like all of my reading is research-based.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-luen-yang/i-find-that-nowadays-it-s-just-gotten-harder-for-me-to-read-for-fun/) [Gene Luen Yang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-luen-yang/) > [Wait." "So what am I supposed to do now?" "You know, Jin, I would have saved myself from five hundred years' imprisonment beneath a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-luen-yang/wait-so-what-am-i-supposed-to-do-now-you-know-jin-i-would-have-saved/) [Gene Luen Yang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-luen-yang/) > [In the '40s and '50s, a lot of teachers and librarians saw the graphic novel as the enemy of reading.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-luen-yang/in-the-40s-and-50s-a-lot-of-teachers-and-librarians-saw-the-graphic/) [Gene Luen Yang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-luen-yang/) > [If you look at our world, we're becoming so much more diverse in every sense of the word. It's not just about culture or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-luen-yang/if-you-look-at-our-world-we-re-becoming-so-much-more-diverse-in-every/) [Gene Luen Yang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-luen-yang/) > [I was always a slow reader, from the very beginning. I remember in first grade our teacher divided us into groups, and I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-luen-yang/i-was-always-a-slow-reader-from-the-very-beginning-i-remember-in/) [Gene Luen Yang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-luen-yang/) > [As somebody who's kind of a technophile, I'm interested in how traditional and digital publishing connect. Maybe ten years ago they were seen as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-luen-yang/as-somebody-who-s-kind-of-a-technophile-i-m-interested-in-how/) [Gene Luen Yang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-luen-yang/) > [“Appa has feelings, too!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-luen-yang/appa-has-feelings-too/) [Gene Luen Yang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-luen-yang/) > [I liked interacting with students. I liked having coworkers. For a long time, I was really worried that sitting at home by myself in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-luen-yang/i-liked-interacting-with-students-i-liked-having-coworkers-for-a-long/) [Gene Luen Yang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-luen-yang/) > [I think reading has got so many more enemies now that graphic novels have kind of flipped over to that side.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-luen-yang/i-think-reading-has-got-so-many-more-enemies-now-that-graphic-novels/) [Gene Luen Yang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-luen-yang/) [Explore all 27 Gene Luen Yang quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-luen-yang/) ## More China quotes > [I don't want to go into space because of war. I think we would if it was triggered. If China said they want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/i-don-t-want-to-go-into-space-because-of-war-i-think-we-would-if-it/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [ \[The Dalai Lama\] told me some years ago, "I've made every concession to China, and I've been as open and tolerant as I could,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/the-dalai-lama-told-me-some-years-ago-i-ve-made-every-concession-to/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [One of the things the United States does well is building coalitions. What the U.S. knows is that if you don't have a coalition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shimon-peres/one-of-the-things-the-united-states-does-well-is-building-coalitions/) [Shimon Peres](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shimon-peres/) > [Personally, I prefer contemporary films, but the market calls for more period choices, especially since China opened up a cinema market in Hong Kong.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donnie-yen/personally-i-prefer-contemporary-films-but-the-market-calls-for-more/) [Donnie Yen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donnie-yen/) > [There is no precedent of an advanced economy withdrawing from a trade agreement as deep and as complex as the European Union.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jo-johnson/there-is-no-precedent-of-an-advanced-economy-withdrawing-from-a-trade/) [Jo Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jo-johnson/) > [In China, people are moving from bigger cars to small hatches, and interestingly, the Indian market is graduating to bigger cars and sedans. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winfried-vahland/in-china-people-are-moving-from-bigger-cars-to-small-hatches-and/) [Winfried Vahland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winfried-vahland/) > [Broken china lasts longer than unbroken.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jules-renard/broken-china-lasts-longer-than-unbroken/) [Jules Renard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jules-renard/) > [Language is so specific to art, all the way to the past in China. Previously, people were not allowed to include various regional dialects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jia-zhangke/language-is-so-specific-to-art-all-the-way-to-the-past-in-china/) [Jia Zhangke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jia-zhangke/) > [I don't see why we and the Chinese should have to be enemies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/indira-gandhi/i-don-t-see-why-we-and-the-chinese-should-have-to-be-enemies/) [Indira Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/indira-gandhi/) > [India may be overtaking China as the world's most polluted country. Even now, which country is worse depends on the day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-inskeep/india-may-be-overtaking-china-as-the-world-s-most-polluted-country/) [Steve Inskeep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-inskeep/) > [If China someday gains a more fair, just, and accountable system of government, it will be due to the hard work and efforts of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-mackinnon/if-china-someday-gains-a-more-fair-just-and-accountable-system-of/) [Rebecca MacKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-mackinnon/) > [We're always willing to look at ways NAFTA can work better. But it's a fine line between looking at ways to make it work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-harper/we-re-always-willing-to-look-at-ways-nafta-can-work-better-but-it-s-a/) [Stephen Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-harper/) > [The situation with Tibet has to change. China is one of the last huge dictatorships, holding on to these colonies, provinces. 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Sanger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-e-sanger/) [Browse all 3,827 China quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/china/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "What is China but a people and their stories?", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gene Luen Yang" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-luen-yang/what-is-china-but-a-people-and-their-stories/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "China" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-luen-yang/what-is-china-but-a-people-and-their-stories/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/151/gene-luen-yang-22702_china_what-is-china-but-a-people-and-their-sto_1330937.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/151/gene-luen-yang-22702_china_what-is-china-but-a-people-and-their-sto_1330937.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/151/gene-luen-yang-22702_china_what-is-china-but-a-people-and-their-sto_1330937.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“What is China but a people and their stories?” — Gene Luen Yang", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Gene Luen Yang", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-luen-yang/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "What is China but a people...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-luen-yang/what-is-china-but-a-people-and-their-stories/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-luen-yang/what-is-china-but-a-people-and-their-stories/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```