Chinese

2484 Words5 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Traditional wedding in china essay

This essay will explore how Classical Chinese literature written during the Ming Dynasty illustrates the social role that women played in the traditional Chinese marriage. Issues and traditions that greatly affected women`s roles in the family and society included lineage, male dominance, families position in society, grounds and repercussions for divorce. In the vernacular short story ``The Shrew: Sharp Tongued Ts`ui-lien``, anonymous is a story in the collection Vernacular Short Stories from the Clear and Peaceful Studio (Qingping shantung heaven) which was writing during the Ming dynasty, the main character Ts`uilien, exemplifies a woman in this time period, subject to its rules and societal norms, who rebels against tradition and is forced to deal with the repercussions of doing so. The other hua pen and vernacular short stories that deal with women and marriage during the Imperial time period and were studied in this course are: ``The Tragedy of Pu Fei-Yen``, ``The Oil Peddler Courts the Courtesan``, ``The Jest that Leads to Disaster``. The main character of ``The Shrew: Sharp Tongued Ts`uilien`` exemplified the atypical version of a young female during the Ming dynasty. Her behaviour conflicted with the norms of society in that time period, which will be examined and analysed in this essay.

During the Ming Dynasty, lineage played a large role in marriage. People aimed at marrying others of `equal family background, and “intermarriage between seventeen of the most influential clans.” (Yao 215) People did not get married for love, but rather for the sense of obligation to their family. Great emphasis was placed upon marrying others of equal social, economic and political status. A primary purpose of marriage was to form alli...

... middle of paper ...

...desire to be like the other young women of the Imperial time period. This is exemplified by her wish to be married. She made a point not to gossip about others. This indicates that her whole situation may have been a result of a simple misinterpretation of the rules.

This essay explored the role of woman in the traditional Chinese marriage and family by examining how women were illustrated in literature written during the imperial dynasty. ``The Shrew: Sharp Tongued Ts`uilien``, anonymous, in the collection Vernacular Short Stories from the Clear and Peaceful Studio (Qingping shantung huaben), written during the Ming Dynasty was explored. The issues of lineage, male dominance in marriage, families position in society, grounds for divorce were examined and compared to the case of Ts`uilien in the vernacular short story: ``The Shrew: Sharp Tongued Ts`uilien.``

Show More
Related

  • Du Tenth Sinks The Jewel Box In Anger Analysis

    983 Words  | 2 Pages

    Power and Money do not Substitute Love and as it denotes, it is a deep feeling expressed by Feng Menglong who was in love with a public figure prostitute at his tender ages. Sadly, Feng Menglong was incapable to bear the expense of repossessing his lover. Eventually, a great merchant repossessed his lover, and that marked the end of their relationship. Feng Menglong was extremely affected through distress and desperation because of the separation and he ultimately, decided to express his desolation through poems. This incidence changed his perception and the way he represents women roles in his stories. In deed, Feng Menglong, is among a small number of writers who portrayed female as being strong and intelligent. We see a different picture build around women by many authors who profoundly tried to ignore the important role played by them in the society. Feng Menglong regards woman as being bright and brave and their value should never be weighed against

    Read More

  • The Death Of Woman Wang Summary

    1781 Words  | 4 Pages

    Yan Zhitui states that, "women take charge of family affairs, entering into lawsuits, straightening out disagreements, and paying calls to seek favor...the government offices are filled with their fancy silks." (Differences between north and south, 111). Yet, even in the Qing dynasty women were still restricted by and expected to uphold more traditional ideals, especially in the public eye. So, in the end, through her virtue, Hsi-Liu’s two children we able to become upright. Here, there is a split between what a woman is supposed to be according to old Chinese tradition, and the realities facing women in Tancheng. The loss of her husband, and economic hardship had forced His-Liu to behave in a different way, as if she were usurping the power from the eldest son so she could teach the two boys a lesson about being good family members. While she still maintains the ideals of bearing children, and being loyal to her husband, even after he dies, out of necessity she is forced to break from Confucian ideals of being only concerned with the domestic issues. This too put her at odds with the more traditional society around her, as the villagers pitied her sons, but vilified the Hsi-Liu for being so strict with them (Woman Wang, 65). Had she remarried, she would have been looked down upon even more because she would had broken her duty to remain faithful to her deceased

    Read More

  • Ban Zhao's Lesson For A Woman

    991 Words  | 2 Pages

    Some of the more fascinating documents of the Han period in ancient China were arguably those written by women. The writings were at once contradictory due to the fact that they appeared to destroy the common perceptions of women as uneducated and subservient creatures while simultaneously delivering messages through the texts that demonstrated a strict adherence to traditional values. Those are the paradoxical characteristics of prominent female scholar Ban Zhou’s work called Lesson for a Woman. Because modern opinions on the roles of women in society likely cloud the clear analysis of Zhou’s work, it is necessary to closely examine the Han’s societal norms and popular beliefs that contributed to establishing the author’s perspective and intent.

    Read More

  • The House Of Lim Summary

    710 Words  | 2 Pages

    However, as an adult Lim Hue-lieng removed himself from the Lim household and created his own life separate from his family. Then only to become part of his father’s house once again, he agreed to marry Lim A-pou (Wolf 50). They had two children together, but their relationship was formal at best. He hardly spent time with his wife (Wolf 51). Instead, he formed a relationship with his mistress and second wife, Lim So-lan. In Lim Hue-lieng’s instance, the tradition, although upheld, was not respected since he spent more time with Lim So-lan. His marriage to his foster sister hardly interested him and did not affect his life as much as his marriage to Lim his second

    Read More

  • Changes And Continuities In China From 100 CE To 600 CE

    677 Words  | 2 Pages

    From 100 CE to 600 CE the Chinese had many cultural and political life changes and continuities. A political change was in the end of the Classical Chinese period when the Han Dynasty fell. A cultural change during 100 CE to 600 CE was the paper invention that led to passing down cultural rituals. Not only were there changes but there was also continuities in the Chinese political and cultural life. An example of a cultural continuity is the increasing power of Buddhism. A political continuity is the ruler of the Chinese wanting the people to be protected with for instance The Great Wall of China.

    Read More

  • The Shrew: Sharp Tongued T Ui-Lien

    1182 Words  | 3 Pages

    The short story, The Shrew: Sharp Tongued Ts’ui-lien is a comical piece about conformity and societal expectations. Within the story we are introduced to a young woman with the disposition to talk relentlessly, and with a need to have all of her ideas heard. However, the societal expectations are stifling and are focused on obedience of tradition and decency. Through comedy, Ts’ui-lien upsets the balance and need to remove herself from society completely as the only viable solution for others to deal with her strong personality, the only solution that allow her to remain unchanged and unconfirmed to the demands of the society. Through this, the story’s position on the place of societal norms in this culture become clear, fall in line or remove

    Read More

  • The Death of woman Wang

    1140 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Death of Woman Wang, by Jonathan Spence is an educational historical novel of northeastern China during the seventeenth century. The author's focus was to enlighten a reader on the Chinese people, culture, and traditions. Spence's use of the provoking stories of the Chinese county T'an-ch'eng, in the province of Shantung, brings the reader directly into the course of Chinese history. The use of the sources available to Spence, such as the Local History of T'an-ch'eng, the scholar-official Huang Liu-hung's handbook and stories of the writer P'u Sung-Ling convey the reader directly into the lives of poor farmers, their workers and wives. The intriguing structure of The Death of Woman Wang consists on observing these people working on the land, their family structure, and their local conflicts.

    Read More

  • Female Gender Identity In The Memoirs Of Lady Hyegyong And The Tale Of Genji

    1890 Words  | 4 Pages

    (1800)Topic 2: A Literary Analysis of the Historical Differentiation of Patriarchal Culture and Female Gender Identity in the Memoirs of Lady Hyegyong and the Tale of Genji

    Read More

  • Empress Wu: Evil Usurper?

    1234 Words  | 3 Pages

    Chen, Jo-shui. "Empress Wu and Proto-feminist Sentiments in T'ang China." In Imperial Rulership and Cultural Change in Traditional China, edited by Frederick P. Brandauer and Chün-chieh Huang. 77-116. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1994.

    Read More

  • Summary Of A History Of Marriage By Stephanie Coontz

    1031 Words  | 3 Pages

    The first chapter begins with an exploration of love and marriage in many ancient and current cultures. Surprisingly many cultures either avoid the discussion of love in marriage or spit on the idea completely. China and other societies believed that love was simply a product of marriage and shouldn’t get too out of hand, while a few Greek and Roman philosophers shunned excessive

    Read More

  • China

    468 Words  | 1 Pages

    conscription of men for the army and labor on government projects and all other important

    Read More

  • Wild Swans Analysis

    1456 Words  | 3 Pages

    The early part of the novel shows women’s place in Chinese culture. Women had no say or position in society. They were viewed as objects, and were used as concubines and treated with disparagement in society. The status of women’s social rank in the 20th century in China is a definite positive change. As the development of Communism continued, women were allowed to be involved in not only protests, but attended universities and more opportunities outside “house” work. Communism established gender equality and legimated free marriage, instead of concunbinage. Mao’s slogan, “Women hold half of the sky”, became extremely popular. Women did almost any job a man performed. Women were victims by being compared to objects and treated as sex slaves. This was compared to the human acts right, because it was an issue of inhumane treatment.

    Read More

  • No Name Women

    1007 Words  | 3 Pages

    Kingston uses the story of her aunt to show the gender roles in China. Women had to take and respect gender roles that they were given. Women roles they had to follow were getting married, obey men, be a mother, and provide food. Women had to get married. Kingston states, “When the family found a young man in the next village to be her husband…she would be the first wife, an advantage secure now” (623). This quote shows how women had to get married, which is a role women in China had to follow. Moreover, marriage is a very important step in women lives. The marriage of a couple in the village where Kingston’s aunt lived was very important because any thing an individual would do would affect the village and create social disorder. Men dominated women physically and mentally. In paragraph eighteen, “they both gav...

    Read More

  • Rhetorical Techniques In Maxe Hong Kingston's No Name Woman

    1624 Words  | 4 Pages

    In Maxine Hong Kingston story, “No Name Woman,” the author told a story of her aunt who was punished for committing adultery and died in order to express her thought and spirit of revolt of the patriarchal oppression in the old Chinese society. My essay will analyze the rhetoric and the technique of using different narrators to represent the article and expound the significance of using those methods in the article.

    Read More

  • Definition and Study of Cultural Construction

    946 Words  | 2 Pages

    Examples of cultural constructions can be seen throughout history in several forms such as gender, relationships, and marriage. “Cultural construction of gender emphasizes that different cultures have distinctive ideas about males and females and use these ideas to define manhood/masculinity and womanhood/femininity.” (Humanity, 239) In many cultures gender roles are a great way to gain an understanding of just how different the construction of gender can be amongst individual cultures. The video The Women’s Kingdom provides an example of an uncommon gender role, which is seen in the Wujiao Village where the Mosuo women are the last matriarchy in the country and have been around for over one thousand years. Unlike other rural Chinese villages where many girls are degraded and abandoned at birth, Mosuo woman are proud and run the households where the men simply assist in what they need. The view of gender as a cultural construct ...

    Read More

More about Chinese

Open Document