How Did You Make the Decision to Move to China?

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I had been interested in China since college. I started studying Chinese politics just took a class on it and there was this incredible professor who just passed away not too long ago his name was Rod McFarquhar. He would just get up in front of the room and kind of clasp his hands behind his back and then tell you about Chinese history with no notes for the next 55 minutes and then dismiss you all. It was like holy smokes that's the most amazing epic thing I want to do that. Even now 20 years later, I find myself gravitating to these little expressions which can open up an entire culture but you have to sort of pay your dues enough to know what to look

Evan Osnos is a staff writer for The New Yorker. His new book is Wildland: The Making of America’s Fury.

“I'm always trying to get inside a subculture. That's the thing that I think has been the most enduring, attractive element for me. Is there a world that has its own manners and vocabulary and internal rhythms and status structure? And who looks down on whom? And why? And who venerates whom? Who's a big deal in these worlds? And if I can get into that, it doesn't even really matter to me that much what the subculture is. I'm fascinated by trying to map that thing out.”

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