History of Asia. Lu Xun’s “My View On Chastity” Essay

Introduction

Background of the Writer

Born in Shaoxing, Zhejiang province, Lu Xun, who was first named Zhou Zhangshu and later renamed Shùrén (literally, “to nurture a person”), is one of the major Chinese writers of the 20th century. Considered the founder of modern baihua literature, Lu Xun was a short story writer, editor, translator, critic, and essayist. He was one of the founders of the China League of Left-Wing Writers in Shanghai (Wikipedia, n.d.).

Lu Xun hailed as commander of China’s cultural revolution by Mao Zedong, is typically regarded as the most influential Chinese writer who was associated with the May Fourth Movement. He produced harsh criticism on the social problems of China, particularly in his analysis of the Chinese national character. Called a “champion of common humanity” by some, he helped bring many fellow writers to support communist thought (Wikipedia, n.d.).

Lu Xun and his works have become a widely accepted topic of research not only because of his remarkable contribution in the field of literature but also because his views provide clues for us to gain insight into the complex social reality of his time. The literary images in his writings were not merely faithful reflections of real-life characters but were molded and created by him with certain specific messages. His contribution in the field of language and literature is enormous, thus, most of the commentators have viewed his greatness primarily from the angle of literature. However, the point that he played an important role in the overall historical development of Chinese society, which was highlighted by Mao, has not been examined in depth (Bhattacharyya, n.d.).

Lu Xun wrote a great number of stories and essays during his time. Most of his writings reflect Chinas’ socio-cultural system. His target of criticism was the dominant culture which was based on Confucian-Mencian morality and ethical values. Lu Xun could be considered anti-feudal and anti-imperialist, and a voice against the Confucian orthodoxy.

His concrete ideology is to bring change in the cultural behavior of the people of China.

A Short Background of “My Views on Chastity”

Considered one of Lu Xun’s greatest works, “My View on Chastity” reflects a time of great political and social tumult in the early twentieth century in China, a time when women were subjected to the cruelness of war and to the effects of modernization and transformation, as well as brisk social change. In this essay, Lu Xun talks about theoretical and practical issues revolving around the plight of women. Here, he brings an insightful observation and discussion on the lives of Chinese women in the context of the significant events that shaped China in the twentieth century.

Discussion

Chastity is defined by Merriam Webster (2008) as ‘purity in conduct and intention,’ ‘restraint and simplicity in design or expression’ and ‘personal integrity.’

On the other hand, feminist ethics is an attempt to revise, reformulate, or rethink ethics that depreciate or devalue women’s moral experience. First, it shows little concern for women’s rights as opposed to men’s interests and rights. Second, it dismisses as morally uninteresting the problems that arise in the so-called private world, the realm in which women cook, clean, and care for the young, the old, and the sick. Third, it suggests that, on average, women are not as morally developed as men.

Fourth, it overvalues culturally masculine traits like independence, autonomy, separation, mind, reason, culture, transcendence, war, and death; and undervalues culturally feminine traits like interdependence, community, connection, body, emotion, nature, immanence, peace, and life. Fifth, and finally, it favors culturally masculine ways of moral reasoning that emphasize rules, universality, and impartiality over culturally feminine ways of moral reasoning that emphasize relationships, particularity, and partiality (Jaggar, 1992).

In his essay, “My Views on Chastity,” Lu Xun criticizes the Confucian thinking that views women unfavorably. He argues that orthodox ideas such as chastity of women and discriminatory treatment against them deny them their rights and freedom. Such ideas, for him, are against the laws of nature. He writes: “We have no means of ascertaining what happened in China in remote antiquity, but by the end of the Zhou Dynasty the retainers buried with their masters included men as well as women, and widows were free to marry again. From the Han to the Tang Dynasty no one advocated chastity. It was only in the Song Dynasty that professional Confucians started saying: ‘Starving to death is a small matter, but losing one’s chastity is a great calamity.’ (Lu Xun in Batcharaya, n.d.)

Xun adds that cruel treatment of women is a form of perverted morality that could only be created by a society where each cares only for himself without regard for others and where women are required to remain chaste while the men are allowed to be polygamous. Such morality becomes more demanding and cruel with each passing day (Bhattacharyya, n.d.).

Women make up almost half of the world’s population (McCallion, n.d.); hence, their inclusion in society’s prosperity must also be given importance. History tells us that China was dominated by men, and women were not given equal rights in public service. Women in the context of Confucian teaching were confined in the private sphere of their homes. Their roles were limited to listening and obeying their fathers and doing the household chores, and serving their husbands and children.

Women during the time were not encouraged to speak out their minds or their feelings. Women then were expected to be quiet and show humility in any aspect of the family as well as a social matter. According to McCallion (n.d.), they did not even have the power to control or teach even their own children, especially their sons. Worse, they were expected to obey their sons when their husband dies.

This is actually the central theme of Lu Xun’s essay. For him, these roles of women in the society which were heartily embraced by the Chinese are ways of depriving women of their rights and freedom. These are also ways of not recognizing women’s abilities and their equality with their men. For Lu Xun, women could do more than just staying at home and doing a plain housewife’s role. For him, a change in women’s social function should be done. Women should be allowed to get involved in public affairs, get office posts as men do, and make a big difference in society.

It has also been suggested that Lu Xun was disappointed with the values of the feudal culture of which he believed inflicted a sense of insecurity and loneliness upon him for a long time admitting, “…. this sense of loneliness grew from day to day, entwining itself about my soul like some huge poisonous snake,” (Lu Xun, 1992, p. 33).

In addition, Lu Xun argued against the views of Confucian scholars on women, children, and the political system claiming that the orthodox ideas of chastity of women, filial piety of the children, autocracy, patriarchal authority, and treating children, young and women in a derogatory way as well as limiting their rights or freedom are against the laws of nature. Lu Xun was quoted saying, “We have no means of ascertaining what happened in China in remote antiquity,” (Lu Xun, LXSW, p 17).

Conclusion

Lu Xun’s “My Views on Chastity” is an attack on the entire edifice of Confucian social doctrine. Here, he openly and boldly criticized the doctrines and the old of traditions China which molded the Chinese people for a very long period of time.

“My Views on Chastity” explores virtue and sexuality in the culture and history of China. It does not only examine how Confucian thought emerged and became dominant dogma adhered to by the people but also considers all the negative sides of the Confucian thought — how the teaching could have possibly perverted the minds and the lives of the people; how it controlled the society; and how it denied the women of their rights and their importance in the society. It challenged China’s old culture and lifestyle, gave emphasis on the importance of women in society, as well as dignified women.

It is consistent with his story, “The New Year’s Sacrifice,” where he depicted a poor widow who had to endure traumatic events brought in part by her circumstance and mainly by the anti-woman thinking of the society in which she lived. The New Year’s Sacrifice, in fact, drives home the main points of his essay, that the old thinking badly needed to be reexamined.

With all the thoughts and views of Lu Xun encompassed in “My Views of Chastity,” it can be said that Lu Xun was a pro-feminist, who hailed and respected the rights and freedoms of every woman, or even children as much as Chinese men would want to. Lu Xun assailed the prevailing Chinese culture of his time to become a voice of the oppressed women and children, a feat that lesser-willed ones would not dare.

Finally, Lu Xun’s works contributed to shaping not only a better China but a better world as well. His works which mirrored and diagnosed China’s social sickness brought healing to social injustices in the country, thus making China a better place for women to live in, and helping the whole world realize the importance of women in society. His ideas should, therefore, be evaluated in terms of how successful he was in infusing modern thinking into the Chinese culture and bringing about cultural change.

References

Bhattacaryya, Manik, “The Lofty Height of a Writer: My Evaluation of Lu Xun,” Indira Gandhi National Center for the Arts. Web.

Jaggar, Allison, M (1992). Feminist ethics. In L. Becker and C. Becker (eds.), “Encyclopedia of Ethics.” New York: Garland Press, 363-4.

Lu Xun. 1992, “Preface to Call to Arms,” Web.

Merriam Webster On line, 2008. Web.

McCallion, Maureen, “Chinese Women: Incorporating Women in the Lessons in China,” Web.

Wikipedia, “Xu Lun,” Wikipedia. Web.