{Chinese Women}

In Fu Xuan's, How To Be A Woman, he gives a striking view on what it was like to be a Chinese woman in the third century. While he was very sympathetic towards women, he still gave an honest interpretation of how women were treated and expected to behave. Referring to women, Xuan says in the poem, "Nothing on earth is held so cheap". Men are full of power and considered to be like gods, while women are close to nothing. In comparison to Fu Xuan's poem, Liu Xijun writes from a woman's perspective regarding a woman's situation. She states that she was married off by her family and living in a poor situation. She only wished that ".. I were a yellow swan, returning to my old holmstead." Women are expected to leave everything they know and marry a man that they ahve never met. Women were under-valued and taken completely for granted, as they still are. In both of the poems it gives an explanation of women's roles. They are to be kept, so called, secret. They are not supposed to look a man in the eye and they have no power. Marriages are set up and the women are expected to work and stay out of the men's way. In both poems, the women are sent off to be married, both longing for home. In Fu Xuan's poem, a woman's leaving is everything but sad or upsetting, "No one cries when she leaves her home-". A woman is married off and her family does not miss her.  An ideal marriage is a woman sent from home to work for a man that she does not know. And forever be afraid of him. Even in a marriage, men are the powerful figure and are in charge of everything. The women are just expected to work and keep to themselves. Neither of the poems mention children, but I assume that they are expected to produce sons for their husbands. The women have to become humble in order to serve the men. Like said in Fu Xuan's poem, "She must humble herself even to the servant". Women were considered the lowest of lows in China during the third century. While it was their culture, the women are still human beings and deserved to be treated like one. Yes, some people do believe that men have the upperhand, but women do deserve to be acknowledged. They were not even supposed to look a man in the eyes. With current times, I hope that the women of China have earned some of their own rights.