In cartoons: Top words in China 2013 (9)

Chinese people have traditionally cherished the virtue of eating bitter, or the ability to endure hardships without complaint. As a befitting sign of their tenacity to achieve a worthy goal despite extreme difficulties, the Chinese character for perseverance is a knife suspended over a heart.

But breathing smoggy air has unnerved even the toughest of the tough among them as it is becoming part of their daily life and they see no bright spot at the end of the proverbial tunnel. The nation that has seen unprecedented economic prosperity was shrouded by a collective concern over the smothering smog, which has wreaked havoc in Beijing and its neighboring provinces in northern China in recent years, swept across more than 100 central and eastern cities early this month.