Crystal Luciano
02/23/14
Essay 3 First Draft
Women in China
During the early ages Chinese women were often discriminated against by older men. They were often abused and treated unfairly by their men. Older women were usually uninformed about many issues such as family planning and some were forbidden to learn how to read and write. Obviously over the years this has changed and although Chinese cultures are very traditional and rarely stray away from the “old ways”, in some cases nothing was ever changed. For example women were able to obtain power by becoming a mother they would have the respect of their sons and husbands as well.
At a very young age Chinese women were always taught to be submissive to their fathers and husbands. It all began with the Han Dynasty which states that scholars and rulers had developed a male dominance. During this Dynasty Confucian thoughts had a great influence on the official education that has been passed down year after year. In the later dynasties it has been known that male authority had been highly enforced during this time causing the women to have a lower status. A way for a women to higher there status was to become a mother. However, if a women had a baby girl it was frowned upon, baby boys were what was always wanted in the family so they can carry on the family name. By having a girl in the family would put a stop to the name and dishonor that entire family. Some of the Confucian ideas were that women were not allowed to rule or be seen as rulers. The ideas of women were always seen as a waste and if a women would speak up there were consequences or they would simply be ignored. Many of the Confucian ideas still carry on to today’s family and women are often treated the same. I was able to interview an older lady and her grandchildren about this topic; she was able to prove this information is correct.
The Essay on On The Chinese Dynasty
Dear Editor, I am a 16 century trader. I have been to China. I have seen all the things Marco Polo has seen. I know that he was not telling a lie at all. I am very angry that you did not believe him. I am writing to defend him. There are three Chinese beliefs, which are Buddhism, Daoism, and Confucianism. All beliefs were taught during the same time. Buddhism was taught during 563 to 483 b. c. ...
When asked how the girls are treated from the boys she stated “The boys are required to do chores around the house like the girls but the girls fear there father and during super time the girls must sit and wait until the men finish eating before they are allowed to touch the food. “ I did also ask if anything had changed when she had her son and the difference between when she had her son and daughter. She stated “When I had my son I was treated different, he was the first born in our family and it was an incredible time and I was now looked at as a person rather than an object. When I had my daughter there was a significant difference. My husband was ashamed and believed I did this on purpose like I had any control over the fact that I had a girl. When I lived in China people threaten to kill my baby girl, but I refused and my husband could not look at me. Eventually after years of her being born it was accepted and that is when we decided to move to the USA.”
As you can tell women struggled at this time and it was very difficult for them to have a say in anything. It was very common for women to get abused by their husband, and today in some parts of China things have not changed. There has not been any laws that enforced the protection of women so they were forced to endure the pain if the wanted to stay and be with there husband and not seen as a dishonorable women. Although, women are supposed to bow down to their husband the sons must respect the older women as there mother. This allows the mother to have certain type of power in the household. The sons always respect there mothers even after a certain age.
There is also another thing to think about when discussing the power of women in China in there household. Let’s say hypothetically speaking the husband dies how is the women supposed to support her family? There’s something called a dowry. A dowry is “a process whereby parental property is distributed to a daughter at her marriage rather than at the holder’s death a dowry establishes some variety of conjugal funds, the nature of which may vary widely. This fund ensures her support in widowhood and eventually goes to provide for her sons and daughters. In some cultures, especially in South Asia, in countries such as India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Nepal, dowries continue to be expected. In India, nearly 7,000 women were killed in 2001 over dowries, and activists believe that figures represent a third of the actual number of such murders. Dowry related violence is a problem in several places and, in response to violent incidents regarding the practice, several jurisdictions have enacted laws restricting or banning dowry. In Nepal, dowry has been made illegal in 2009. Many authors believe that the giving and receiving of dowry reflects the status and even the effort to climb high in social hierarchy
The Essay on Equality And Shows Further That Women Men Husband Divorce
Women's role in society has changes much throughout history all over the world. In Korea, during the Koryo Period, it had not been uncommon for an upper class man to have several wives. Talented women were to be concubines, or kisaeng, who could make intelligent conversation, recite and even compose poetry, sing, dance and even play musical instruments. On the other hand, main wives had been there ...
In West Africa and India older woman is have some type of power in there household based on certain factors of course like how many sons she had and whether or not her husband was still alive. In Early European writings pertaining to Chinese women were produced by missionaries and ethnologists at the conclusion of the 19th century. The goal of the missionaries was to “civilize China,” and highlighting weakness and victimization provided for the continuance of their work. This belief prompted scholars to use female subordination as a means to validate Western ideas about Chinese culture and Confucian principles.
All in all, women life style in China whether they be a mother or just a wife is very different and they are often treated as an object rather then an actual living person. Of course it’s not like that in all areas of China just in some and over the years it has gotten much better, however it is still a huge issue today. This all came from one culture a thousand years ago and it is still
