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How far should job applicants go to show they are keen?

A 38-year-old graduate from Hunan Province resorted to begging recently kneeling down before his potential employer.

Now, I know the job market is tough. But what does bending down on your knees and kowtowing achieve other than to humiliate yourself? Nothing. Unless the employer likes that sort of thing.

It turned out that President Chen of the Hunan Environment and Biology Vocational Institute, who was conducting the job interview, "felt extremely awkward."

Could it be that the student, who majored in Chinese history, was carrying too much baggage of of all things Chinese history? One would think that going down on bended knee, together with foot binding, had been consigned to the rubbish bin of history when the Qing Dynasty collapsed.

Obviously it is still in fashion, kind of. If you flip through the channels and pause at any costume drama, you're bound to catch glimpses of ministers prostrating themselves in front of the emperor, or peasants on all fours in front of anybody who may grant them favour or mercy.

It is sad to see such historical dramatizations spill over into real life in an era when everybody is supposed to be equal and human dignity respected.

Incidents of kneeling crop up in the press from time to time and at the most unusual times or places. A couple of years ago, some hair salons invented a service that made kneeling mandatory for the workers while washing customers' hair. That surely made them very uncomfortable, both physically and psychologically, and it did not really increase the comfort level of the customer unless they took pleasure in debasing other people.

In the early 1990s, when China's nouveaux riche had not yet learnt how to squander their money tastefully, there were reportedly private clubs where all service personnel would pour drinks and light cigarettes while hunkering down. That must have made the patrons feel like emperors sitting on a throne.

Ironically, a few students who demanded that authorities respect their rights and freedom went down on their knees while presenting their plea in a very public place. Could this be black humour? Certainly not to the kneelers.

Maybe, in their minds, one has to stoop low in order to raise oneself a little. Maybe that was the manifestation of the tactical detour, what we Chinese call the "can bend, can stretch" spirit, a metaphor generally involving the arms rather than the legs.

I am not against genuflection per se. At the annual Clear and Bright Festival, or before the Spring Festival, I kneel and pray as part of a family ceremony to remember my deceased ancestors. When visiting temples I may also do this in front of the giant Buddha, even though I am not a Buddhist, either practising or at heart.

For me, to drop to my knees in front of another human being would only mean that the person is dead, which would be an implicit curse, would it not? But that's just my quirk. When a billion bucks falls into my lap, I may think differently and envisage a harem of supermodels all shorter than I am.

There is something ritualistically sadistic or masochistic about all this. It is the most visible sign of subordination. The kneeler forfeits his self-esteem, and the one knelt to gains a sense of superiority. As interpreted by the British governess in "The King and I," you become a "toad" once you put yourself so low that your forehead touches the ground.

However, kneeling is symbolic. If you remove all the status connotations, it causes a little discomfort to the kneeler and brings nothing concrete to the one sitting or standing. Which means if you have a knack for acting, you don't lose anything when impersonating a "toad."

This has led me to think that there must be at least two kinds of kneelers real self-debasers who would do anything short of cutting off a limb, and pretenders who just want to boost the ego of the other party. The salon girls who do this for a living must have accepted it as play-acting or a way to make tips. Otherwise, they would be miserable.

For those who get satisfaction out of being knelt to, the joy of seeing someone artificially crouch down could make up for their insecurities. But they should realize that when they make another person lower in stature, they make themselves even lower in respectability.

(China Daily 12/30/2006 page4)