Despite earning more than 10,000 yuan or US$1,350, a month, Chen Xiaonan does not consider himself a member of the so-called "middle class."
According to the latest government figures, the average monthly wage here in the Guangdong provincial capital is only about 3,000 yuan. However Chen, a 32-year-old account manager with a Hong Kong-funded public relations firm, said he still struggles to make ends meet.
He said, "The mortgage on my apartment is about 3,000 yuan a month, which I have been paying for three years already and still have another 12 years to go. The repayments on my Chevrolet car are about 2,000 yuan a month, and I pay a nanny 1,200 yuan to care for my daughter"
Chen continued: “By the time I have bought food, paid my phone and utility bills, I have little left for anything else, like entertainment. By the end of the month I'm almost penniless. I doubt middle class people lead lives that are as miserable as mine."
Although average salaries have been rising steadily in Guangzhou, the number of people who consider themselves middle class has been in decline, research has shown.
According to a recent survey by the Guangdong Family Periodical Group, just 30 percent of people in Guangzhou regard themselves as middle class. 42 percent responded in the same way to a similar survey conducted by the company 10 years ago.
That percentage is also lower than in many other big cities, including Beijing and Shanghai, the survey said.
Zheng Chen, a woman working on the study, said there is a widening wealth gap in the city and the perception that their neighbors in Hong Kong and Macao lead "better" lives. This has meant that people in Guangdong have a higher expectation of what it means to be "middle class."
She said, "Few of them look back on the hard times of the past, or make comparisons with people who are worse off."
Chen concluded: "Their understanding of social class is clearly not just based on rising salaries and improved living standards."
Questions:
1. How much money does Chen Xiaonan make every month?
2.Chen Xiaonan complains that he can’t afford what luxury after paying all his bills?
3.What percentage of Guangzhou citizens consider themselves middle class?
4. Ten years ago, a Guangdong Family Periodical Group survey found what percentage of Guangzhou citizens consider themselves middle class?
Answers:
1.10,000 yuan.
2.Entertainment.
3.30 percent.
4.42 percent.
（英語點津 Celene 編輯）
About the broadcaster:
Jonathan Stewart is a media and journalism expert from the United States with four years of experience as a writer and instructor. He accepted a foreign expert position with chinadaily.com.cn in June 2007 following the completion of his Master of Arts degree in International Relations and Comparative Politics.
