The land of people in blue robes

Author: (English) Aribodai
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 1998-01-01
Features: The Land of the Blue Robe recounts the observations and experiences of Mrs. Aribodai as she traveled with her merchant husband to various places (Beijing, Yantai, Shanghai, Ningbo, Wuhu, Yichang, Fengdu, and the border areas of Sichuan, etc.), extensively depicting local customs, folk culture, and daily life. The author also dedicates two chapters to her experiences and observations in promoting the anti-foot-binding movement across the country. The book's strength lies not only in its broad content and fluent writing but also, more preciously, in its on-the-ground documentation of various folk customs in urban and rural China at the end of the 19th century, advocating for the abolition of outdated practices. The author took numerous photographs in China, and these folk photographs she captured preserve the customs and cultural landscape of China during that era, becoming indispensable materials for researching late Qing history and Chinese culture. For example, the scenes she photographed of court trials from that time are extremely valuable; by comparing her records with the court trial scenes in some of today's TV dramas and films, we can see that the directors clearly lack the cultural knowledge of such folk practices.