Male perceptions of body image in Taiwan

Raymond Chen

A few years ago, researchers started with “muscle dysmorphia” and body-image perceptions in the United States and Europe and wondered whether the same problems afflict Taiwanese men. Listen for the results. But don’t be confused by the chicken meat (肌肉). Sean Cole interviews Taiwanese pop star A-Mèi for her opinion. I remember a story in CNN some years ago on the singer, and it referred to her as “Ms. Mei”. Um, that’s not right.

In Taiwanese, the “A-” prefix is used to form nicknames; compare English which appends “-y” for the same purpose. In English, “Mike” becomes “Mikey”; in Taiwanese, “Huì-Mèi” becomes “A-Mèi”. If you want to refer to her formally, it’s “Ms. Chang”. Using “Ms. Mei” would be like referring to the musician Eddie Van Halen as “Mr. Ed”.

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