Women in Song and Yuan China

227 Pages·2020·2.717 MB·English

by  Bret Hinsch

Women in Song
and Yuan China

Women in Song
and Yuan China
Bret Hinsch
ROWMAN & LITTLEFIELD
Lanham • Boulder • New York • London
Published by Rowman & Littlefield
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Copyright © 2021 by The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc.
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British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available
Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data
Names: Hinsch, Bret, author.
Title: Women in Song and Yuan China / Bret Hinsch.
Description: Lanham : Rowman & Littlefield, [2021] | Includes bibliographical
references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2020033387 (print) | LCCN 2020033388 (ebook) | ISBN
9781538144916 (cloth) | ISBN 9781538144923 (epub)
Subjects: LCSH: Women—China—History—To 1500. | Women—China—Social
conditions. | Sex role—China—History—To 1500. | China—History—Song dynasty,
960–1279. | China—History—Yuan dynasty, 1260–1368.
Classification: LCC HQ1767 .H58 2021 (print) | LCC HQ1767 (ebook) | DDC
305.420951—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020033387
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020033388
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American
National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library
Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992.
Contents
Chronology of Dynasties and Eras vii
Introduction 1
1 Family 11
2 Government 37
3 Wealth 57
4 Religion 75
5 Learning 87
6 Virtue 99
7 Image 121
8 The Conquest Dynasties 131
Conclusion: The Tang–Song Transition and Women’s History 149
Glossary 155
Notes 159
Bibliography 181
Index 209
v

Chronology of Dynasties and Eras
Tang dynasty 618–907
Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms era 907–979
Liao dynasty 916–1125
Northern Song dynasty 960–1127
Jin dynasty 1115–1234
Southern Song dynasty 1127–1279
Yuan dynasty 1271–1368
Ming dynasty 1368–1644
vii

Introduction
Introduction
Introduction
Chinese women have always lived out their lives amid the currents of
national affairs, subject to both abrupt upheavals and gradual shifts.1 In the
course of China’s long history, several eras stand out as transformational. In
antiquity, the invention of basic technologies such as agriculture, metallurgy,
and writing allowed a sophisticated civilization to emerge. National unifica-
tion in 221 BCE, concurrent with the establishment of the emperor system,
set down a political arrangement that endured for more than two millennia.
And the fall of the Han dynasty in the third century CE initiated a long inter-
lude of division and chaos that only came to an end when the Sui dynasty
reunited the realm in 589.
This book covers the changes that resulted from the next great period of
transition, when a far more prosperous and dynamic society rose up to replace
the aristocratic caste system. The era following the fall of the Eastern Han
dynasty is often referred to as medieval. At that time, power, wealth, and
prestige became closely tied to genealogy. A person’s obligations and oppor-
tunities were usually predetermined at birth. Although the uppermost elite
usually lacked noble title, historians nevertheless refer to them as aristocrats
because they inherited their privileged status.2 Aristocratic families intermar-
ried for generations, creating an exclusive caste. Though small in number,
they dominated politics, the economy, and culture. This social framework
endured until the end of the Tang dynasty.
As the rulers of the Tang dynasty steadily lost control of China’s periphery,
the dynasty went into a long decline. Finally in 907 a warlord deposed the last
Tang emperor, bringing the dynasty to a close. As the state collapsed, bandits
pillaged the main cities, targeting the aristocracy in particular. The elite had
congregated around the capital city of Chang’an, as many of them served in
the central government. By gathering together in such a small area, they made
1