Lady

Author: She Huimin
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-01-01
Features: The term "shi nu" refers to the beautiful and intelligent women in ancient China, who were also popular subjects for painters throughout the dynasties. Chinese painting has a dedicated category called "shi nu painting," where painters have portrayed these women according to their own ideals of beauty. However, in the male-dominated ancient China, the ideal shi nu was more like a refined and elegant cultural ornament, accompanying music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, enriching the leisurely lives of literati. As a result, the ancient shi nu we see today are mostly depicted in flat images, and it is difficult for us to know what their actual lives were like. The first half of this book attempts to reconstruct the true lives of shi nu through the scattered clues in historical records, while the second half presents the biographies of several famous shi nu in history—their talents and dreams, joys and happiness, suppression and struggles, as well as the brilliance that could not be buried even in a male-dominated world.