women

• Overview of women- Traditionally, women were subject to the three obediences: obedient to their father when young, husband when married and son in old age. Women had arranged marriages, no property and no political voice. Mao had always been critical of this, stating 'Women hold up half the sky', and made real attempts to change the lives of women throughout his time in power.
• Traditional attitudes towards women- Many had arranged marriages where rich men wanted pretty adornments and poor men wanted another labourer. Their role was to provide children and they were not equal in marriage. Concubines were held by husbands alongside wives and dowries were often expected from the wife's family.
• Mao's views on marriage- Mao advocated for women's rights and was moved by Miss Zhao's suicide in 1919 due to her arranged marriage. He complained women were subject to the domination of men, politics and religion that constrained them. When he was 14, Mao was also forced into an arranged marriage by his parents to a woman 7 years older. He claimed he 'did not consider her my wife'.
• Foot binding- Many women were crippled by the ancient practice of foot binding as their feet would begin to be constrained at age 6. Her toes were taped under her feet with bandages to prevent them from growing. The bone structure would become deformed to meet the beauty standards of society. Men often found the small feet sexually attractive and mothers in law would scoff at larger feet, disapproving of the marriage. It was banned in 1911 but continued in Northern villages.
• Traditional attitudes to marriage- Women were inferior to men and it was enforced early. Girl babies were less valued as she would marry out of the family and unable to labour for them. Also, dowries were often required, an economic burden often of jewellery or clothing. Some families denied daughters food in favour of her brothers or resorted to infanticide. Having paid for marriages, many husbands treated their wives as private property and forced them into subservience. Many were beaten and even in cases of male death, women were forbidden to remarry under Confucianism.
• Attitudes of mothers-in-law- Once married, wives were subservient to their husbands and the rest of his family, especially his mother. Historians have said that traditional Confucian marriages were emotionally lacking so mothers would become close to their sons. They would get jealous when he married and be petty and spiteful. They would give the bride the most unpleasant chores and mistakes would result in beatings.
• Women's educational opportunities- Girls were not provided with educational opportunities because there was no incentive for them to go to school as they'd leave the home soon anyway. The parents would receive no economic benefit from her schooling. In rural China during the 1930s, 1% of females over aged 7 had literacy levels high enough to read a simple letter. 45% of males received education compared to just 2% of females.
• New Marriage Law (1950)- One of the first policies implemented by the CCP. It gave women legal equality to hold property and seek divorce. Dowries were forbidden and women had to be 18 before they could marry. Marriages had to be from free will. Mao considered the law to be his greatest achievement as it 'burst the feudal shackles' of Confucian marriages. It became clear, however, that it wouldn't be transformative for women's lives.
• Effect of the New Marriage Law- Between 1949-65, the number of underage marriages dropped from 18% to 2%. In the late 1940s, 30% of marriages were arranged compared to 1966 where 0.8% of marriages were arranged.
• Life under the Marriage Law- Although rape and domestic violence still continued, women made more calculated decisions on who to marry. They knew party cadres had access to commune banks, grain stores and travel documents. Women sought to take advantage of the new law that abolished arranges marriages. Article 19 did remove some autonomy of women though as those married to PLA soldiers struggled to obtain divorce.
• Problems of the Marriage Law- Enforcement of the law was difficult. Men who had paid for brides expected to reap economic benefit from their marriages and were angered by the law. Divorce rates rose with 1.4 million petitions filed in 1953. Many men had lost investments which was problematic in peasant families. The status of mothers in law were reduced as they couldn't force chores upon their sons' wives. Mobs attempted to reclaim divorced wives and snubbed husbands attacked wives in court proceedings. One man shackled his wife's ankles and forced her to dig for food for 6 weeks.
• Attitudes of cadres to the Marriage Law- Many cadres were hostile to the new law and feared that free choice in marriage would throw 'Heaven into turmoil'. They also thought only rich men would be able to find wives. A 1950 report found that cadres were more conservative and didn't understand the principle of women's liberation. Many cadres refused to uphold the law in their areas and sided with local population because they feared resistance and unrest.
• Attitudes to gender equality in Muslim areas- Traditional Muslims resented the change in traditions. In non-Han Chinese areas like Xinjiang, life for women continued as before, unchanged. Although the Marriage Law was pushed through propaganda, a second campaign was launched in 1953 to promote it as backlash had prevented consistent changes to women's lives.
• Intentions of the communes for women- The GLF relied on the mobilisation of men and women who were seen as a 'reserve of labour power'. Mao claimed women working would bring 'liberation through labour' and bring equality in pay for the work men and women completed. Productive women were labelled as iron women but they had to be freed from domestic labour to achieve their full potential. New nurseries were created and mess halls removed the task of cooking. However, equality didn't always improve their quality of life- double burden.
• Communal kindergartens- Mass kindergartens were run by the CCP and children could be separated from their mothers for weeks. Care provided was awful as economic development was prioritised. Children were kept in ramshackle buildings and in Daxing county, kids slept and ate on the floor. Measles, chicken pox and worms spread quickly. In on Beijing factory, 90% of kids got sick and in Shanghai, nappies remained unchanged all day. The famine meant adults stole the kids' food and the nurseries collapsed, making women to care for them again as well as work.
• Communal canteens- Mess halls were meant to release women from domestic duties. In reality, the quality of food and time it took to get to the mess hall meant it actually increased women's hardships. Food was allocated by the amount of work done meaning women were likely to receive less than men. Although women previously had domestic roles, they used it to make handicrafts that brought in money. This source of income was abandoned when working in the fields. When food ran low, women were neglected as men could make more money and go and search for food for the family.
• Work points system- Despite the commitment to gender equality, women recieved less work points than men because of their relative physical strength. Men could receive up to 10 points whilst women were often limited to 8 points. It provided disincentive for women to labour for the economy. It continued to reinforce gender roles as lower incentives meant they stayed at home rather than work in the fields.
• Abuse in the communes- Cadres took advantage of their position. Pregnant women continued to work and miscarried. In one commune, pregnant women who refused to work had to strip and break ice in the middle of Winter. Exhaustion through work and starvation meant women were more vulnerable and Dikotter says that 'rape spread like a contagion'. In one commune, 2 party secretaries forced themselves upon 34 women. In Hunan, local factory bosses forced women to work naked.
• Despair- As the famine spread, many women were forced into prostitution in return for food. Suicide was widespread. Rebecca Karl declares that 'women's double burden' became 'intolerably difficult'.
• The Women's Association- The organisation was created to encourage political activism, made by the Central Committee. It had 40,000 staff in 83 cities that produced propaganda about the CCP's achievements and prompting women to take a more active role in politics. It had 76 million members. The Association set up ploughing lessons, literacy classes and political study. Money was provided to help women make shoes and uniform for the PLA although it did reinforce gender stereotypes. The group promoted political and social advances whilst also helping them against issues like prostitution.
• Successes of the Women's Association- It allowed women a greater sense of self-confidence in their ability to stand up and address their grievances. Women also rose up to physically confront men who had beaten their wives. One man was attacked so aggressively that he promised to never beat her again and was send home with a warning. Also, women wrote to abusers warning them of the consequences of domestic violence. One woman poisoned her husband because he wouldn't accept a divorce.
• Women in the Cultural Revolution- Both women and men were politicised during the CR as they wore the same Maoist uniform, escaping from gender expectations. Many women and girls led RGs in their denounciation and once they had been politicised, they remained involved. Between 1958-66, 12% of party cadres were women but between 1970-4, 21% of cadres were women. They were shown in ballets to be revolutionary heroes who fought against the nationalists in the CW.
• Changes in education and employment- The communists succeeded in encouraging families to send girls to school. After 1959, 100% completed primary education compared to 38% in 1949. By 1978, 45% of primary school children were girls. In 1949, the PLA enlisted unmarried, educated female students for military academies in Xinjiang to become wives of soldiers. In Feb 1951, an ad in the New Hunan Daily aimed to recruit professionals, skilled workers and women to form a female work team in Xinjiang. They would exploit natural resources like gas and oil alongside being offered many incentives.
• Changes in education and employment 2- These incentives included paid study in the USSR, advanced tech teaching or acting in PLA entertainment troops. The ad had many responses, giving rural women the chance to escape poverty. The PLA promised that middle school graduates would be appointed as platoon leaders and college grads would become commanders. It allowed women who had been marginalised in their family background by exploiting classes a chance to progress and prove their commitment to the regime. However, once they finished at the PLA, they went back to domestic duties.
• Women in the CCP- Despite the New Marriage Law, the CCP didn't live up to promises of equality. Ding Ling said women had a degraded status and exploitation of women continued by leaders. In 1942, she wrote an essay noting women had to be 'hard as steel' but were subject to rumours and gossip that men weren't. Song Qing-ling also complained that as Vice Chairman of the PRC in 1959, she wasn't taken seriously in her high position. Most women at national government level owed their influence to their husbands, as seen with Jiang Qing, Madame Mao.
• The problems in changing traditional views- Many women understood land ownership was key to real equality and collectivisation and communes removed this power. After waiting so long to hold property, it was outlawed. It cannot be said that women became equal due to the double burden. Women also continued to hold less influential jobs. Divorcees were cut off from family support and modern contraception was rare.