The Difficult Life Of Women In Ancient China

Women in ancient Rome and China were very different but quite similar as for as their treatment and roles were concerned. In both cultures they were under the protection of their fathers until they married. When they married they were to stay home and be wives, they were not formally educated and learned to manage their households. They were not allowed to disgrace their families in any way and were inferior to men from the moment of birth. Chinese women whether from a noble or a poor family could not escape oppression, but it was somewhat easier for the women from Noble families. (8) Comparing the women of Ancient Rome (750BC – AD500) and the women of China (350BC – AD600), from the roles they played in

Women living during the Roman Empire and the Han Dynasty lived in a society where gender roles were strictly imposed. The Roman Empire and the Han Dynasty existed in two distinctive time periods, but the roles of women were indistinguishable between the pair. The Han Dynasty existed from 206 BCE-220 CE, while the Roman Empire lasted from 27 CE-476 CE. The treatment women received in the Han and Roman societies were all based on gender and stereotypes. Women’s roles in marriage, domestic life, and society in the Roman Empire and Han China portrayed their limited freedom and voice.

In both the Han Dynasty and the Roman Empire, women were seen as delicate figures and had limited political freedom. Women in Han China were required to be accompanied and led by a male, whether

During the Song Dynasty (960–1279) in Ancient China, the gender in which a person was born as, changed their whole path of life. Their role in society, their education, their power in the household were very different depending on if they were male or female. A typical female had much less power compared to a man; they were considered the inferior gender. It was unfair, and to an extend, cruel, the way that women were treated compared to a man, but during that time in China, it was so normal that no one questioned it. The roles that each gender held were rigid, quite different, and clearly not equal. As China gained power during this time and became more powerful, women were greatly downgraded by men because men were thought to be the ones

The idea of feminism has not always been common. The term “feminism” wasn’t introduced until the 1970s. This shows how society didn’t allow anything that had to due with everyone being equal because of the standards that society constructed. In all the versions of Mulan, I think that Disney’s Mulan was the most strict on her having Ancient China’s role of being a woman. This would be having kids, helping clean around the house and not working for money, but working for her husband and kids. In Disney’s Mulan, her family is more hard on her to be a lady and for her to be the proper role of a women. This is because they went to a “matchmaker” to find her husband, and after saving everyone several times, she was still looked down upon because she was a woman.

Medieval China, as seen in the Stories from a Ming Collection, was characterized by distinct separations between men and women’s abilities, typical old fashioned family structure, and a desire to advance their social status. Throughout all the stories in this book, it dives deep into different aspects of how men and women are treated, how families were structured and how that affects their lives, as well as the values these people held. A very common trend in the stories was how different men and women were treated and the limitations they may or may not had.

Lessons for Women is a book of conduct written during the Han Dynasty by Ban Zhao (C. 45-120) to advise the women of her family on the proper conduct of a wife. Ancient China around this time was a Confucian state in which the society was control by the belief in order and harmony. The book contains seven chapters that talks about: humility, husband and wife, respect and caution, womanly qualifications, wholehearted devotion, implicit obedience, and harmony with younger brothers- and sisters- in law. This work of literature reflects on how a proper women was to behave obediently to the husband, by being devoted and respectful to avoid humility to herself, her parents and her clan. It gives the readers an idea of the power that men had over women during this time period and the exceptions for both roles of husband and wife. Lessons of women informs the readers that women during the Han Dynasty had no control over their own lives and the philosophy of Confucian had a huge influence on the society’s everyday life. Ban Zhao emphasizes the importance of distinctions between men and women, and their separate natures.

This Fresco depicting a brothel scene is from Pompeii was pictured by Mario Laporta. This piece of art reflects the hidden part of Rome. These women were interacting with many men. It shows how they were viewed and how the men who visited them thought of them. It also showed how Rome was not shy to these pictures. It gave a hope to future patrons of what they hope to gain from their visit. What this showed is that prostitution was not negatively looked at, but widely accepted

Cameron gave statements to newspaper to garner attention, she estimated in the Los Angeles Daily Herald “that ninety per cent or more of the Chinese girls brought to San Francisco were destined for immoral lives. She said these girls were bought and paid for in China and that they were compelled to take purchase money in their own hands and give it to the persons selling them so it could not come back upon the person making the purchase.”

The texture on the face of the bronze tripod vessel is Taotie饕餮which known as one of the four fierce beasts of ancient China. Taotie is a decorative motif that is found on many Ancient Chinese Bronzes. The fierce-looking beast is mysterious and terrifying.  The primary attribute of this frontal animal-like mask is a prominent pair of eyes, often protruding in high relief. Between the eyes is a nose, often with nostrils at the base. In the Zhou dynasty, casting the Taotie on the food vessels was to warn people not to be as greedy as Taotie. This is not only a political necessity, but also has a great bearing on the low level of material production and the serious shortage of material supplies at that time. Gluttony not only harms the body but

Foot binding, also known as Lotus Feet, is a tradition most people find too intense and torturing to Chinese women that they don’t even want to talk about it. Although it may be uncomfortable or even controversial, talking about it is important because it is relevant to modern women.

The Qing era was successful in introducing a new variety of crops from the Americas in China. These crops included sweet potatoes, corn, and even a new faster growing rice. Sadly during both eras the population started to explode and with expansion comes serious problems, such as lack of enough land for the population as well as hunger amongst the rural areas. But, this also lead to a steady increase in manufacturing and commerce. Trade routes started opening into the West, this helped to boost the economy, which helped provide more goods and services into the everyday life in China.

In the current context of Chinese history, gender issues have formed and evolved throughout time. These certain issues have been embedded in the past, the present, and shaped visions for the future. From the late nineteenth century to the early twentieth century, there have been reforms and revolutionaries that compelled people to realize the problems that occur to women within a patriarchal-dominated society. There are two prominent reformers in that period who helped give a voice to the oppressed females, Qiu Jin and an unnamed male author of the Women’s Magazine. During this particular time period, the reformers asserted their opinion and condemned the widespread gender issues that existed in the past and present, while they also

Throughout time, women have often been referred to as the inferior gender. In China, women have had to go through dire circumstances in order to look good in the public eye. From foot binding, to enduring abusive husbands, to becoming concubines in a prison-like house, women have been through hell in order to please their men, and, most importantly, to please their society. There are a series of double standards and contradictions to how men and women are treated, and this is shown in both Lu Xun and Qiu Jun’s essays as well as in the film, Raise the Red Lantern.

The woman of the tang dynasty were not equal.The rich boys went to school. While the girls took care of the house. During the Tang Dynasty the woman had more advantage than usual. The first empress in China was during the Tang Dynasty her name was Wu Zetian. The Tang dynasty was the time for women freedom. The people were to respect their elders.