This course on Chinese women's history takes three distinct approaches to deepening our understanding of women's lives in the past. To think about the ways basic features of Chinese society and culture provided the context in which women fashioned their lives, we look at gender ideology and the family system. To evaluate the degree to which women's situations changed over time, we look at three periods from the Song dynasty to the eighteenth century. To consider how the availability of different types of sources shapes what the historian is able to say about women's lives, we take the case of fiction as a source for understanding women's history and look at one important eighteenth century novel.

1.Reading all assignments before the session and active participation in the discussion, both online and in class. (20%)
2.A 3-page critical review of a listed article, summarized for the class at the appropriate time and turned in that day. (20%)
3.A 4-page critical review of a book on women in Chinese history summarized for the class at the appropriate time and turned in that day. (20%)
4.An 8-10 page critical essay examining a theme or element in the Story of the Stone in light of issues raised by authors we have read. Due on 3/6 (last day of class). (40%)

A packet of articles for purchase at Rams, plus 4 books to be purchased:

Ebrey, Patricia. The Inner Quarters: Marriage and the Lives of Chinese Women in the Sung Period. (1993)

Mann, Susan, Precious Records : Women in China's Long Eighteenth Century (1997)

Cao Xueqin, The Story of the Stone, vol. 1 and 2.

Everyone should post comments and/or questions on the readings by 9 PM the day before they are discussed. See "Discussion of Readings" to the left.