Chinese Language Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for students, teachers, and linguists wanting to discuss the finer points of the Chinese language. It only takes a minute to sign up.
Sign up to join this community
I just watched an interview in Mandarin with Jackie Chan and he gets emotional telling a story about his mother saying "你给我死" - you kill me?
So, can anyone tell me what kind of emotion "你给我死" would typically be used to convey. Extreme disappointment? A sense of "I don't even want to know you anymore"? Is it an idiom that has a deeper meaning?
Link to interview, it's at 29 minutes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjIZv9Y9idQ
at 29:02 he mentioned "安樂死" (euthanasia)
at 29:16 he mentioned that his mother said "你給我死吧"
i think that you misunderstood the saying. it's not "I don't even want to know you anymore".
你 - you
給 - give, let
我 - me
死 - dead
吧 - a particle ~ ok, or treat it as meaningless
so, "你給我死吧" is roughly "let me die, please"
in most countries, religions, euthanasia is prohibited, so when a aged parent asked his son to let her die, it's unbearable for all parties.
the son would be facing legal action, most likely homicide; or against his religious belief, if he do it.
if he don't it, he is looking his mother suffering from disease, lost of functions slowly, which is also an bad experience.
so, in such situation, the emotion of "你给我死吧" would convey is an unbearable begging, asking someone who is close, trustable.
lastly, imo, it's a question about euthanasia, beyond any languages. have a look of the book "fatal freedom" by thomas szasz; chapter 6 talked about euthanasia in details:
https://www.amazon.com/Fatal-Freedom-Ethics-Politics-Suicide/dp/0815607555
