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人人书 > 杂志 > Changing Gender Roles in Chinese Society

Changing Gender Roles in Chinese Society

时间:2024-10-26 09:09:59

AccordingtoConfucianphilosophy,themainsourceoftraditionalChineseculture,thehusbandisresponsibleforhandlingexternalaffairs,whilethewifetakeschargeofhomeaffairs.Inthissocialorder,menaresuperiortowomen.

Thistraditionalsocialdivisionputthefamilysupport,especiallyeconomicsupport,andoutside-homeresponsibilitiesonthemen.Tobalancetheircontributiontothefamily,theyhadabsoluteauthorityathome,andtheirpowerinthefamilywasakintothatoftheemperorinthecountry.

Thewifewassupposedtobeherhusband’secho,andhermainresponsibilitiesweretotakecareoftheelders,educatethechildren,andhandlethehousechores.Inruralareas,womenalsodidsomefarmwork,buttheirmainresponsibilitieswereathome.

TheChinesesocietyisbuiltonthebasisofapatriarchalsystememphasizingbloodrelations.Familyunityisthefoundationofsocialandnationalstability,andindividualinterestshavelongbeenconsideredtobesecondary.ThepowerofthefatherinthefamilyandthemonarchialpowerwereintegratedthroughoutChinesehistory.

AstheChinesesayinggoes,“Therearenevertwomonarchsinonestate,andnevertwohomemastersinonefamily.”Thefatherwasthecoreofthefamilyandhispowerwasthehighest.Inthefeudalsystem,theemperorwasthecoreofthegovernmentandhispowerwassuperiortoanyoneandanythingelse.Therefore,thedominatingpowerofthemalehadasolidsocialbackgroundandsystemicguarantee.

TheConfuciusphilosophyconsidersagentle,refinedandkind-heartedfemaletheidealwoman.TheChinesecharacterforwomanisactuallycomposedoftwoelements:femaleontheleftandabroomontheright,suggestingawomankeepingtheroomclean.InancientChina,womenwerecalledthe“kitchenkeepers,”andlaterthe“oneswhomasterhousechores.”

TheoldChineseethicrequiredwomentofollowtheThreeObediencesandFourVirtues,whichwereasetofbasicmoralprinciplesspecificallyforwomeninConfucianphilosophy.TheThreeObedienceswereobediencetofatherbeforemarriage,obediencetohusbandaftermarriageandobediencetosonafterthedeathofherhusband.Onlythosewhounderstandandfulfillthesedutieswereconsideredperfectwomen.

TheFourVirtuesreferredtomorality,properspeech,modestmanneranddiligentwork.Awomanmustbemodest,pureandfaithful,becarefulinherspeechandbehavior,neveruserudewordsandalwaysknowwhentostoptalkingandnevergossip.Shedidnothavetobeverybeautiful,butmustbecleanandproperlydressed;shedidnothavetomasteraprofessionalskill,butmustbediligentandgoodatknittingandhousechores.Whenguestswerevisitingthehouse,sheneededtoknowhowtobehaveandnotmakethefamilyloseface.

ThesedeeprootedpatriarchalvirtueshadabigimpactonChinesepeople’ssocialpsychologyandnormsofbehavior.Menandwomenmustfulfilltheirrightsandobligationsathome,keeptheirsocialandfamilyposition,andsustainfamilystabilityandharmony.Intoday’sChina,wheremenandwomennowenjoyequalrightsandfreedom,onecanseethatinmanyfamilies,husbandsstillbearthemaineconomicresponsibility.

However,withtheeconomicandsocialdevelopment,thenumberoffamiliesinwhichboththehusbandandwifebearcommonresponsibilityforfamilyexpensesisincreasingonayearlybasis,especiallyintheyoungergeneration.ThetraditionalandbackwardfamilyconceptinChinaisgraduallybeingabandonedbyyoungChinese.

Accordingtoarecentsurvey,asmorewomenleavetheirhomeandtakepartinsociety,theyaregainingevenmorerightsinthefamily.Decisionsmadetogetherasacoupleormainlybythewifenowaccountfor60-70percentofthetotalfamilydecisions,andmoreandmorewomenaredecidingpersonalaffairsforthemselves.

ItisnoteworthythatinruralareasofChina,asmanymenmovetothecitiestoseekjobs,thewomenhavetoassumetheresponsibilitiesofdailyfamilylife.Astheirresponsibilitygrows,sodotheirrightsinthefamily.Furthermore,theirself-confidenceandtheirabilitytodealwithvariouskindsofcomplexaffairshaveimprovedsignificantly.Accordingtoasurvey,overtwo-thirdsofChinesewomenaresatisfiedwiththeircurrentmarriage,family,andmaterialandspirituallife.
   

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