Can Chinese replace English as International Language?
With the rocketing economy in China Chinais playing a more and more important role in national stage. Recently the issue“Can Chinese replace English as International Language?” has been brought intofocus .As the proverb goes “There are a thousand Hamlets in a thousand people'seyes” Some people think Chinese can replace English as international language;The other do not agree with them. For my part I agree with the latter opinionfor the following reasons.
First and foremost economic basedetermines the superstructure which is a paramount factor in deciding whetheror not its language can be used widely. Firstly England used to invade othercountries and thereafter forced its colonies to admit English as their officiallanguage. Secondly American dominance in the twentieth century spread thelanguage even further owing to its strong economy.
Besides a language is taken as universalonly when it’s simple to study and easy to understand. On the one hand Englishis composed of 26 characters and all words are constructed of basic elements;On the other hand there are only 4 tones in Chinese but there are overthousands of different forms and meanings in Chinese. It’s more difficult tomaster Chinese than English.
In conclusion with the rapid economicdevelopment although China has become the second largest economic power in theworld Chinese cannot replace English as international language at present.