They have been mentioned more than 56 million times on Sina Weibo, China's Twitter. Everyone wants to be their friend, but no one likes them. They seem to be everywhere, throwing around their newly minted renminbi and well-used UnionPay debit cards; yet they are elusive and shun the media. Their love for bling has become the backbone of the global luxury goods industry, yet they are also the subject of disdain, the butt of jokes, the punching bag for that which is offensive to good taste。
他們在新浪微博上被提及超過5600萬次;人人都想和他們成為朋友,卻沒人真的喜歡他們;他們無處不在,揮霍嶄新的人民幣、刷爆銀聯(lián)的借記卡;同時他們又行蹤詭秘、躲躲閃閃。他們喜歡亮閃閃華麗麗的東西,這種嗜好已經(jīng)成為全球奢侈品行業(yè)的支柱;同時他們又品味極差,并且因此遭到鄙視、嘲笑和抨擊。
They are the tuhao -- tu means dirt or uncouth; hao means splendor -- and they are the Beverly Hillbillies of China。
他們是“土豪”——“土”意味著土氣和粗野,豪意味著奢華、霸氣——他們是中國的“貝弗利山人”。
小編注:Beverly Hillbillies《貝弗利山人》是美國的一部著名情景喜劇,講述一家暴發(fā)戶遷到富豪名人聚居的貝弗利山莊居住的故事。
Tuhao once meant rich landowner -- the villainous landed gentry and class enemy of communist China's proletariat -- but the term's modern revival began with a popular joke that made its rounds on Chinese social media in early September. A young man asks a Zen master, "I'm wealthy but unhappy. What should I do?" The Zen master responds, "Define 'wealthy.'" The young man answers, "I have millions in the bank and three apartments in central Beijing. Is that wealthy?" The Zen master silently holds out a hand, inspiring the young man to a realization: "Master, are you telling me that I should be thankful and give back?" The Zen master says, "No … Tuhao, can I become your friend?"
土豪舊指富有的地主——惡毒的有產(chǎn)鄉(xiāng)紳,中國無產(chǎn)階級同志的階級敵人——這個概念重新走紅,是由于9月初中國社交媒體上一個廣為流傳的笑話。一個青年人問禪師,“我很富有,卻不開心。我該怎么辦呢?”闡師答曰:“何謂‘富有’?”年輕人回答說,“我有千百萬的銀行存款,在北京中心城區(qū)有三套房子。這可以稱為富有了吧?”禪師默然、握住青年人的手。青年醍醐灌頂似的頓悟道:“大師,您是想告訴我,我應(yīng)該心存感恩,回報他人嗎?” 禪師說,“不是……我是想說,土豪,我們可以做朋友嗎?”
This rather lame joke struck a chord with China's middle class, a rapidly expanding group that now numbers over 300 million. As a middle-class lifestyle grows increasingly normal, so has disdain for flaunted wealth. Many Chinese would now say they consider themselves the antithesis of tuhao -- educated, fashionable, and disdainful of conspicuous consumption。
這個并不那么好笑的笑話,卻觸動了中國中產(chǎn)階級的心弦。這是一個在中國迅速壯大的群體,目前人數(shù)已經(jīng)超過了300萬以上。隨著中產(chǎn)階級式的生活方式越來越普遍,對炫富習(xí)氣的鄙夷也越來越普遍。
At the same time, Chinese live in a society where understanding tuhao is valuable, catering to tuhao taste is lucrative, and making tuhao friends is sensible. Multinational corporations understand this。
但與此同時,在當下的中國社會中,理解土豪是很有必要的,迎合土豪趣味是有利可圖的,和土豪交往是很有道理的?鐕径眠@一點。
Tuhao had their breakout moment on Sept. 20, when Apple introduced a gold version of the new iPhone 5s smartphone. Despite initial disbelief that Apple would indulge such tackiness, the gilded phone has become insanely popular in China, where it is known -- even in state media headlines --as the "tuhao gold."
9月20日,土豪們終于揚眉吐氣了。這一天蘋果公司推出了金色的新型號蘋果5s智能手機。人們起初不敢相信蘋果會如此張揚俗氣,然而這款鍍金手機很快在中國受到瘋搶。在中國媒體的頭版頭條新聞上,這款手機被稱為“土豪金”。
The tuhao concept extends beyond gilded gadgets. On Sept. 22, members of Hollywood royalty flocked to the seaside Chinese city of Qingdao for the opening of a cinema complex owned by developer Wang Jianlin, whom Bloomberg calls China's richest man. China's Internet users labeled the event an "Extravaganza of Tuhao" and a celebration of "Haollywood". A-listers rubbed shoulders with security guards in uniforms; elderly locals performed Chinese opera. The country's middle class, it seems, is conflicted: The nouveau is surely gauche, but the old is still uncouth。
土豪的概念不只體現(xiàn)在手機等小玩意的品味上。9月22日,好萊塢御用班底齊聚青島,參加彭博社所稱的中國首富王健林旗下一個電影城的揭幕式。中國網(wǎng)民們將這個揭幕式成為“土豪的盛宴”,“豪萊塢”。上層名流和穿著制服的安保摩肩接踵;老一輩們表演著山東戲曲。這個國家的中產(chǎn)階級似乎有些矛盾:新生的爆發(fā)戶們顯然十分粗野,老一輩的中產(chǎn)階級還固守土氣。
Among stiff competition, the most famous tuhao on the Chinese Internet in early October was a nameless woman in backwater Anhui province. Chinese media reported that she gave a Bentley worth approximately RMB 4 million (about $650,000) to her son-in-law as a wedding gift. Some allege the reporter fabricated the story, but it has already caused uproar online, where responses range from derision to expressions of real or exaggerated jealousy of the young man's good luck。
土豪之間也有名氣的激烈角逐。10月初以來網(wǎng)上最有名氣的中國土豪是一位匿名的中國女士。根據(jù)媒體報道,這位家住安徽省的女士給女婿的新婚禮物是一部價值4百萬人民幣的賓利轎車。有些人指出這則消息是媒體造價,但無論如何這則消息已經(jīng)在網(wǎng)上造成一片嘩然,有人嘲笑,有人假裝嫉妒,也有人真的嫉妒。