The Birth of Chinese Feminism: Essential Texts in Transnational Theory

by Lydia H. Liu (Editor), Rebecca E. Karl, Dorothy Ko

He-Yin Zhen (ca. 1884-1920?) was a theorist who figured centrally in the birth of Chinese feminism. Unlike her contemporaries, she was concerned less with China's fate as a nation and more with the relationship among patriarchy, imperialism, capitalism, and gender subjugation as global historical problems. This volume, the first translation and study of He-Yin's work in English, critically reconstructs early twentieth-century Chinese feminist thought in a transnational context by juxtaposing He-Yin Zhen's writing against works by two better-known male interlocutors of her time.

The editors begin with a detailed analysis of He-Yin Zhen's life and thought. They then present annotated translations of six of her major essays, as well as two foundational tracts by her male contemporaries, Jin Tianhe (1874-1947) and Liang Qichao (1873–1929), to which He-Yin's work responds and with which it engages. Jin, a poet and educator, and Liang, a philosopher and journalist, understood feminism as a paternalistic cause that liberals like themselves should defend. He-Yin presents an alternative conception that draws upon anarchism and other radical trends. Ahead of her time, He-Yin Zhen complicates conventional accounts of feminism and China's history, offering original perspectives on sex, gender, labor, and power that remain relevant today.

Genres: Feminism, China, Nonfiction, History, Politics, Philosophy, Race

328 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 2013

About the author

Lydia H. Liu 劉禾 is the W.T. Tam Professor in the Humanities and Professor of Chinese and Comparative Literature at Columbia University. She teaches in the Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures and at the Institute for Comparative Literature and Society at Columbia University. Professor Liu also holds a joint professorship at the School of the Humanities and Social Sciences at Tsinghua University 清華大學 in Beijing.

(from http://www.columbia.edu/~ll2410/)

Reviews

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is worth the price just to read He-Yin Zhen's (1884-1920) essay "On the Revenge of Women" where she traces women's historical oppression in China from marriage and funeral rites to the language and writing system all the while skewering traditional Confucian wisdom. She's a bit of an anarchist, which I dig, arguing the unequal distribution of property, religious institutions, legal system and even the state itself must all be remade for women to gain true social equality. Her central themes are told through the exploration of the Chinese words Nannu (gender and class) and Shengji (livelihood). Another good section is "On the Liberation of Women." Strong, original and thought provoking.

[Raymond Li · Rating 4 out of 5]

A study of the works of three thinkers in modern Chinese history. Among them, the works of Liang Qichao and Jin Tianhe clearly reflect the ideology of two male progressive intellectuals who associate feminism with nationalism and claim that gender equality is a necessary condition for the national renaissance. This is very typical of feminism that is subject to patriarchal discourse. In contrast, the work of He-Yin Zhen, another thinker in the book, reflects her feminism as seen through the eyes of a female anarchist.

[Cubierocks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Essential reading for all global feminists! Learned so much from this book and the incredible essays of He-Yin Zhen!!!

[michaela · Rating 3 out of 5]

ok it was pretty good. in a "i kind of disagree with you sometimes" but its fine because she was super cool way. me when i forgot about this since like... october

[Helga · Rating 5 out of 5]

Das Buch bietet Einblick in chinesischen Feminismus um die Jahrhundertwende 1900. Es vereint frühe Texte zweier Feministen (Jin Tianhe und Liang Qichao) und spätere Texte von der Feministin und Anarchistin He-Yin Zhen mit Biografien der Schreiber_innen und einer historischen Einbettung.

Während Jin und Liang sich eher als "Retter der Frauen" sehen, formulierte He-Yin Ideen, die der westliche Feminismus erst Jahrzehnte später aufnahm oder die selbst heute nicht selbstverständlich sind. Außerdem ist sie radikaler als die beiden Männer. Diese argumentieren vor allem für Bildung und mehr (nicht unbedingt gleiche) politische Rechte für Frauen. Zu was Frauen nun genau fähig sind und was ihre Beteiligung in der Politik bedeutete, bleibt widersprüchlich.

Dagegen belegt He-Yin erst ausführlich die mannigfaltigen sexistischen Traditionen des feudalen Chinas und sieht die Lösung im Kommunismus. Sie problematisiert die Spannung zwischen Erwerbs- und Reproduktionsarbeit von Frauen und korrigiert die Annahmen der Schreiber, die hoch-rangige Frauen im Blick hatten. Absolute Gleichberechtigung und Gemeinbesitz sind ihre Lösungsansätze, dann erübrige sich die Trennung von Mann und Frau (dabei erhält sie gleichwohl das heteronormative System).

Mit der derzeitigen Entwicklung Chinas wäre sie vermutlich äußerst unzufrieden, wird es doch zunehmend wieder zum kapitalistischen Geldstreben auf dem Rücken junger Frauen.

Insgesamt ein spannendes Buch, das Einblicke in die chinesische Geschichte und wichtige Impulse für Feminist_innen liefert.

[Anthony Caruso · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an amazing book and I highly recommend it to anyone who studied Chinese history (Boxer Rebellion > May 4th Movement > Cultural Revolution, etc). I might be a little bias because Rebecca Karl was my favorite professor at NYU and I think the lady is brilliant.

[Antje Schrupp · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hab nur die Texte von He-Yin Zhen gelesen, nicht die der Männer...

http://www.bzw-weiterdenken.de/2015/0...