Roles of Women in Ancient China Free Essay Example

In the times of 221 BC Woman in ancient Chinese culture lived accordingly to rules set by men. They lived there lives from when they were born being controlled with no input to what they wanted as they were considered inferior to Men.

For about two thousand years the life of an ancient Chinese woman was almost unbearable as they were treated with no respect and were treated as slaves until death. It was believed that it was unacceptable for a woman to have ambitions, although the male would teach that the woman’s greatest duty was to have a son.

In the family household, whole families would live together and a Grandmother would become important and offered the most respect if she outlived her husband.

From the day of birth girls growing into women knew of no other life but serving men, Most girls didn’t go to school, as Chinese didn’t find it important that women got and education.

There marriages were arranged by their fathers and once married the women served her husband’s family and often became a servant of the mother- in-law forbidden to disobey any of her wishes.

The Chinese culture always celebrated the birth of a male more they did of a girl and the women would gain more respect if she gave birth to a male. At a very young age a Chinese girl would get her feet binded, which means twisting and deforming feet to make them smaller as small feet were considered beautiful, poorer families would bind there girls feet to improve their social status, but if too much damage was done in an un wealthy family, the woman would still continue to work in the fields with bound feet but instead had to work on her hands and knees.

Although it was extremely hard to have ambitions as a woman, there was an extraordinary lady that challenged the way Chinese life was lived by the name of Empress Wu. She was the only woman in Chinese history to rule as emperor not only gaining power but keeping it. She ruled during the Tang Dynasty which from (618 BC until 705).it was a time for freedom for women in China, where a number of exceptional women contributed to the culture of politics as they were able begin work instead of being a stay at home mother. Also in this time period foot binding was not acceptable.

Over the years slowly women began to gain independence around the nineteenth and twentieth century, in 1868- 1912 the Chinese nation began to listen to women give them the right to speak through speeches and magazines, this was the first wave of feminism, to raise women’s consciences about their position and they were encouraged to adopt new more “modern” ways of life.

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