| Abstract: | The rise of the Neo-Confucian movement marks an important transition in the history of Chinese women. Before this mode of thought became widespread, customs regarding divorce, remarriage, and education generally allowed women a relatively high degree of personal freedom. The Neo-Confucian movement changed this by reinterpreting the Confucian classics in ways that sharply limited the range of social options open to women. Most significantly the Neo-Confucians emphasized the flawed nature of yin, the basic feminine element, enshrining this antipathy in their complex metaphysical systems. These philosophic abstractions soon influenced works ranging from history to family management. In this way the attitudes expressed by Neo-Confucians slowly spread into the popular consciousness. Thus many of the popular notions held toward women in China today date from the beginnings of Neo-Confucianism. |
