Women in China Before 1500 Women in Ancient China were constantly oppressed in Chinese society. They were subjected to restrictions in society and in the family that prohibited them from thriving in everyday life. These restrictions affected marriage and, because of this, marriage was treated as an economic and social joining of two families rather than a voluntary joining of two people. These restrictions also affected women’s everyday freedoms. This mindset for women was pushed by philosophies, religions and a new government, coming out of the Warring States period. This transformation shows a clear mental shift in the perception of women in society. Men, especially those in power, seemed to ignore women’s place in society and thought …show more content…
In Lessons for Women by Ban Zhou (Ban Zhao, Lessons for Women), it directly states the women’s role in the family and how women should act on a day to day basis is directly stated. This work shows the clear role that a woman should play in society. These thoughts come from Confucian philosophy and Zhou’s personal view of women in society. She was in the higher class, and in her work, she did not give much attention to women of a lower class. Although that is apparent, there is no doubting her contribution to women and Chinese society. Though by today’s standards, some of her views seem to force women to play a difficult role, by Ancient Chinese standards, some of her views were very extreme. An example of this is that she strongly advocated for girls to be educated along with boys. It can be argued that she only advocated for women of a higher class to be educated, but her contribution still heavily impacted society (Yuen Ting Lee, “Ban Zhao: Scholar of Han Dynasty China”). Ban Zhou had very influential views on women in the Confucian Philosophy, and she influenced how women were viewed within the …show more content…
Although, the main intent of these philosophies was not to do this to women. They were interpreted over time to justify what they were doing to women and they were “commonly appropriated as an ideological tool for backing the oppression of women” ( Shen and D’Amboise. “Gender in Chinese Philosophy”). The Taoist and Confucian ideas of yin and yang have exemplified the common ideas of women’s place in Chinese society. In the Confucian philosophy, families and society are said to be patriarchal: even Confucius himself “the patriarchal character of society in general” (James, Kelly, and Robin. “A Confucian Defense of Gender Equity”). This proves the idea of Confucianism being a patriarchal philosophy and how it further implemented the idea of women being lower in society than men (James, Kelly, and Robin. “A Confucian Defense of Gender Equity”). These philosophies heavily influenced how women were viewed in society and took a large role in determining roles for
Lessons for Women was written by Ban Zhao, the leading female Confucian scholar of classical China, in 100 C.E. It was written to apply Confucian principles to the moral instruction of women, and was particularly addressed to Ban Zhao’s own daughters. As her best remembered work, it allows the reader insight into the common role of a woman during this fascinating time-period. The work starts off by Ban Zhao unconvincingly berating herself, and claiming how she once lived with the constant fear of disgracing her family. This argument is rather implausible, for the reader already knows the credibility of Ban Zhao, and how important her role was in ancient China.
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.
The united States Declaration of independence states that all men are equal, but aren’t all women as well? Nowadays, the numbers for the population are at an increase for the support in gender equality, with the capture of feminist labels. The seek for equality between men and women, and criticize the privileges that arouse by gender differences. However in Old China, males control almost everything due to a patriarchal society. At that time, not only men, but also women are influenced by male chauvinism. In the Jade Peony, written by Wayson Choy, female characters are affected by an unequal perspective despite their age group.
Gender hierarchies have been a central pillar of social orders almost since its inception. However, the balance has not been remotely even throughout history, with patriarchies far outnumbering matriarchies. Despite the large dominance held by men, it was not all black and white in East Asian societies. Even though Tang and Song China were all patriarchal, they were very different in their application and influences of gender hierarchies.
...c. 4). This is an example of one of the seven unequal relationships in Confucianism. Much of the social structure of classical China was based on Confucian ideals (Doc. 3). In Greece the relationship between a husband and wife also very unequal due to her young age and lack of education. Alone a woman had no political rights and limited legal powers therefore is was necessary for a husband to provide for his wife much like a father would (Doc. 6) A woman would learn house hold management and eventually produce heirs. These two similar systems of social roles was not a benevolent system. It did not take into account the welfare of individuals, particularly woman who had little power to leave in a bad marital situation. However by insuring that people know their place, which kept them in line, classical societies were more prosperous and able to run more smoothly.
In the patriarchal, Confucian influenced, Han dynasty, a woman’s role and social status was far from equal to that of a man. In Ban Zhao’s work Lessons for a woman she depicted the role of a woman, as a lower-class member of society. Hidden beneath the stereotypes of what a woman was supposed to be, Ban Zhao was a rarity of her time as she excelled as a historian and teacher.
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.
This would seem to be a relatively accurate description. Though she is self-deprecating, and downplays her intelligence, it is apparent that Ban Zhou is a revolutionary. (Teacher’s comment, ?) Maybe he wants it cited In Lessons for Women Ban Zhao begins by downplaying any intelligence or abilities that she possesses. She calls herself an “unworthy writer, unsophisticated, unenlightened, and by nature unintelligent.” This seems odd that she would put herself down while writing and providing a new interpretation of Confucian writings. By nature a decidedly enlightened and sophisticated undertaking. (Teacher’s comment- not a sentence) Perhaps she does this because even though she advocates the inclusion of women in the educational system of the time, she also is highly aware of the controversial nature of her writings. Chinese society was highly prejudicial towards women and the thought of someone arguing for female inclusion in typically male arenas would have definitely been controversial. Ban Zhao gives the credit of her “limited” abilities to her scholarly father and cultured mother. The basis for Ban Zhao’s writings at this time was primarily due to her concern for her daughter’s well-being and the need to impart upon them the proper manners and expectations for a successful married life. Because Lessons for Women is explicitly for her daughters and since it speaks directly to them, one can assume that her daughters received a fair amount of Ban Zhao’s teachings in their own daily interactions. It would also be fair to assume that her daughters learned, at least on some level, the classics as well as how to read and write. Ban Zhao found it strange that teachings of women were so neglected. Though there was much thought on the education and expectations of men, there was none of women. She believed that focusing on just males, while neglecting females, was ignorant. Without a standard set of
Throughout ancient civilizations, women were lower than men. In some civilizations like Mesopotamia society, women were below slaves. It is not shocking that they would still not be equal to men. In Roman society, women had more independence and people were more encouraging of women being educated in philosophy. In the Hans society, women did not have any freedom. They were required to follow what the men told them. By examining Gaius Musonius Rufus’ essay and Ban Zhao’s essay, the views of women were different. Woman in Roman society had more freedom and women in the Han’s society were required to fulfill her responsibilities.
Across cultures, many times similarities lay within them that go unnoticed. It is true that obvious differences set them apart; but if a closer look is taken, it is surprising what can be found. The Chinese culture is obviously different from the American culture, but underneath the surface there are similarities. One of them is how the treatment of women has evolved and changed. Anti-feminism in China has been present since ancient times, and has just recently decreased. Anti-feminism in America has never been as severe as it was in China; however, instead of the value of women gradually increasing over the years - it has reversed. The value of women in America has decreased. There are many similarities between the ancient Chinese women and the modern women of America. Women in China and women in America have both gone through evolutions of how they are treated and looked upon; it is just that women in China have evolved, where the women of America have devolved.
Confucianism is a philosophy and way of life formed in China by Confucius, an early Chinese philosopher. It began as a simple concept with ideals of personal virtue, simple filial piety, and basic gender distinctions and social inequalities. But, over time with the emergence of Neo-Confucianism it began to transform into a way of life that was degrading towards women with certain hostilities towards rivaling religions. In its early period, from around 500 B.C.E to the Common Era, Confucianism changed in that it became the leading belief system and a major part of Chinese tradition. From the transition into the Common Era to the end of the Classical time period, Confucianism was altered because of a loss of popularity following the collapse of the Han dynasty and the corruption in the governing political system. In its ending period, the post-classical era, Confucianism underwent perhaps its biggest adjustments with the emergence of Neo-Confucianism. The ideas and virtues presented in the “rebirth of Confucian philosophies” of intolerance of foreign religions and extreme filial piety...
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.
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...
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 ...
In China, gender inequality for girls in education come from various aspects. Three stakeholders (the society, families, and schools) affect each other as a whole. The society is impacted by Confucian philosophy, which believed a strong hierarchy that women were subordinate of men (Bauer, Feng, Riley, & Xiaohua, 1992). The belief has influenced the society for decades, although the issues of gender inequality are reducing gradually compared to the past three decades because of new policies and laws (Zhang, Pang, Zhang, Medina, & Rozelle, 2013). As an essential part of society, schools are affected by the social concepts and it is the reason that educators and school administrators have different expectations for girls in schools. Parents, as they were educated in a way which does not address much awareness of the issues of gender inequality, do not realiz...