Women's Life in the Ming Dynasty

"Women's Life in the Ming Dynasty" is a substantial monograph on the lives of women in the Ming Dynasty. Its main content is divided into eight chapters: Ming Dynasty people's views on women, women of various social classes in the Ming Dynasty, rituals and customs and women's lives, Ming Dynasty women's education, Ming Dynasty women's clothing, Ming Dynasty women's social activities, Ming Dynasty women's talents and achievements, and the "vitality" and "diversity" of Ming Dynasty women. Each chapter is divided into several sections for detailed analysis. Through a multi-faceted examination of the lives of Ming Dynasty women, the author explains the collective personality of Ming women formed within the closed world of traditional etiquette. On the other hand, after the mid-Ming Dynasty, people's thoughts became more active, their interests became more diverse, and their horizons broadened. Influenced by this social trend, the lives of women in the late Ming Dynasty also became more vibrant and diverse.
"Women's Life in the Ming Dynasty" not only cites rich and persuasive data but also has well-placed arguments. It tells me about the actual state of research on gender history in Ming Dynasty China, beyond women's history, and how men and women thought and lived at that time.
——(Japanese) Fu Ma Jin In the late Ming Dynasty when the idea of ​​women's liberation was gradually budding, not only did a group of enlightenment thinkers have the idea of ​​gender equality in theory, but in actual actions women were also gradually breaking through the defense line of ethics and pursuing gender equality, which was followed by the strengthening of women's self-awareness.
The transformation of women in the Ming Dynasty from the gentle, docile role of "supporting husbands and raising children" to the "strong woman" who independently supported the family's livelihood undoubtedly reshaped the image of women. The widespread emergence of "girls" and "female mountain women" further demonstrates that women in the Ming Dynasty had broken free from the constraints of etiquette and family and integrated into the complex society.
——Chen Baoliang

2023-06-01

中国工人出版社

712

9787500880851