Tutor in the Inner Chamber -- The Culture of Talented Women in Jiangnan during the Late Ming and Early Qing (Series of Overseas Chinese Studies)

Author: (American) Gao Yanyi, translated by Li Zhisheng
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2005-01-01
Features: The main purpose of this book is to rewrite the perspective on traditional women's history in the May Fourth Movement. The significant socio-economic and cultural changes during the late Ming and early Qing periods fostered the flourishing of the "talented women culture." Among these, the rise of commercial printing, the emergence of a broad readership, a renewed focus on emotions, the increased visibility of courtesan culture, the promotion of women's education, the expansion of opportunities for women to travel, and the redefinition of female characteristics are particularly prominent. Therefore, this book argues that the Jiangnan ladies of the late Ming and early Qing were far from being oppressed and voiceless. These women, within the male-dominated Confucian system, created a rich and meaningful cultural way of life. Through the intersection of Confucian idealized theory, life practices, and female perspectives, the author reconstructs the social, emotional, and intellectual worlds of these women, offering a new method for examining history that prioritizes understanding how women actually lived.
Author Bio: Gao Yanyi (Dorothy Ko) holds a Bachelor's degree in International Relations from Stanford University and a Ph.D. in East Asian History from Stanford University, specializing in social history and comparative women's history. She has taught at the University of California, San Diego, and the Department of History and Women's Studies at Rutgers University, New Jersey. Currently, she is a professor in the Department of History at Barnard College, Columbia University. Her recent works include (Every Step a Lotus: Shoes for Bound Feet, University of California Press, 2001) and (Cinderella's Sisters: A Revisionist History of Footbinding, University of California Press, 2005).