Women on the Threshold in the First Chapter of Liu Xiang’s Lienü Zhuan

The Gendered Concepts of Nei 内/Wai 外 and the Way of Women (Fu Dao 婦道)

Authors

  • Sabrina Ardizzoni University of Bologna, Italy

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.4312/as.2020.8.3.281-302

Keywords:

womanhood, Confucian ethics, Lienü Zhuan, Liu Xiang

Abstract

Enquiring into the first chapter of Liu Xiang’s Lienü Zhuan 列女傳, this paper points out the consolidation of the spatial distinction of nei/wai and the ethical construction of womanhood in the Former Han period. In this analysis we will underline the “in-between” position of women depicted by the author and consider their position as based on a metaphorical—but sometimes even physical—threshold. It highlights six categories in Liu Xiang’s work that help us understand a traditional vision of woman that is reviving in modern times. Even today, the Way of Women (fu dao 妇道) is one of the principles on which social harmony is based; breaching the Way of Woman leads to disruptive consequences both within the family and outside, within society.

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Published

22. 09. 2020

How to Cite

Ardizzoni, Sabrina. 2020. “Women on the Threshold in the First Chapter of Liu Xiang’s Lienü Zhuan: The Gendered Concepts of Nei 内 Wai 外 and the Way of Women (Fu Dao 婦道)”. Asian Studies 8 (3): 281-302. https://doi.org/10.4312/as.2020.8.3.281-302.