Foucault and Chinese categorization

I rediscovered a favorite quote the other day. It's written by Michel Foucault and it quotes Jorge Luis Borges who quotes a Chinese encyclopedia that says "animals are divided into:

a. belonging to the Emperor

b. embalmed

c. tame

d. suckling pigs

e. sirens

f. fabulous

g. stray dogs

h. included in the present classification

i. frenzied

j. innumerable

k. drawn with a very fine camel-hair brush

l. et cetera

m. having just broken the water pitcher

n. that from a long way off look like flies”

I've been trying to re-evaluate this quote in light of my recent experiences here in China. It's all about how Westerners can't stand when things don't follow a logical order. But I'm convinced now that the writer of this encyclopedia entry was talking more about humans than animals. It's a bit cynical to look at it this way, but a lot of the population here can be put into the same categories--tame, innumerable, et cetera, belonging to the Emperor (or in this case, the PRC).

And if you're wondering which category I put myself into, it's this one: m(e): having just broken the water pitcher. I'm sure I could make this into another existential poem, but I'll spare you all the pain. :-]