Four Big Things Explained

The Four Big Things, sometimes rendered in English as Four Big Items, is a term originally applied to the four symbols of material success in China from the 1950s until the 1970s, and is now used to refer to any visible marker of newfound affluence.^[1] The original list was:

1. A sewing machine, generally a Flying Man pedal-driven one;
2. A bicycle, general Flying Pigeon;
3. A wristwatch, generally from Shanghai Watch Company;
4. A radio receiver, usually Red Star or Red Lantern brand.^[2]

In the 1980s, the Big Things included other consumer goods like refrigerator, colour television, washing machine, and tape recorder, especially items from imported brands like Panasonic. More recently, the "Four Big Things" could include cameras, cell phones, computers, apartments, cars, etc.^[3]

Notes and References

1. Web site: Foster. Angus. Chinese families' worldly goods in Huang Qingjun's pictures . BBC News . September 24, 2012. September 25, 2012 .
2. Book: Chatwin, Jonathan . The Southern Tour: Deng Xiaoping and the Fight for China's Future . . 2024 . 9781350435711.
3. Web site: 各年代"四大件"：永不磨灭的痕迹 . https://web.archive.org/web/20090830220838/http://news.joy.cn/China60/consumer/index.shtml . dead . August 30, 2009 . Joy.cn . September 25, 2012 . zh.