Left is Bad

Left-handers write funny. They're demanding, too, and ask for all kinds of exceptions, like special scissors, from the right-handed imperialist oppressors (I've been reading my Little Red Book). Plus, they're sketchy: they use their left hands.

Being left-handed, I know all these things. I was, however, still taken aback by my encounter with the Chinese education system and its take on left-handedness.

To set the scene: I had met two Chinese girls, Jesse and Lemon, from the English language college in Yangshuo; they were eager to chat with a native English speaker and brought me back to their classroom.

When I got to class, Jesse and Lemon showed me a section from their workbook, which happened to be about left-handedness. I've struggled with exactly how to write this and have concluded that I should let a few of the better quotations speak for themselves. Here goes...

The section title: "A Clumsy World for Lefties".

"Employers have begun to think in earnest about the needs of lefties."

"Farmers can get left-handed tractors."

"Wives can get left-handed refrigerators."

As before, I will let these statements stand on their own, though I will say that a few Chinese got very confused when I didn't use chopsticks with my right-hand and were very shocked to see me use my left-hand for writing.

I will also leave you with a essay question. Is there anything inherently left- or right-handed about a refrigerator? Discuss.