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<p>This attitude has become increasingly less commonplace, especially among younger generations. This phenomenon has caused the governments in Mainland China and Singapore to pass “filial piety” type laws mandating adult children to visit and care for their elderly parents.</p>
<p>In the old Confucian way of thinking, if laws has to be passed to ensure people perform basic filial duties, then society and its people are in pretty bad shape morally and ethically.</p>
<p>Incidentally, your student’s philosophy regarding parent-child relationships, especially the part about treating them well even if parents treat you badly would be considered extremely old fashioned with most Chinese of my generation and younger…even those fresh from the Mainland.</p>