Ban Zhao's Lessons for Women - Book Report/Review Example

Essay, History affiliation In this text, Lesson for women, I think it portrays women in the most unrespectful manner. Laying a new born baby under a bed and giving her potsherds to play with only indicates the place of women in the society which according to the writer, is to be humble before others no matter what and also practice labor since her primary duty is to work harder every day. According to me, it is an abomination of the highest order to picture women in that particular manner. A woman is neither a weaker sex nor an object to be treated in any manner.

Women deserve to be respected just like men. There are messages too that are directed to other audiences in that women and mothers in law are generally taught how to relate to each other. Daughters in laws are expected to show uttermost obedience to their mothers in law. In this case, therefore, mothers are given a direct ticket to act as they please to the detriment of their daughters, an act which is not morally right (Zhao, 2015). Ban Zhao has however received a lot of criticism especially from a fellow writer, Lily Xiao-Hong Lee.

Lee is much concerned with gender. According to Lee in one of her essays,she shows a lot of pity and concern for women. She mentions the torture and anguish that women go through in their attempts to escape the war stricken areas and their children also ending up dying. Lee has a point here unlike Ban Zhao who had a more rigid opinion of women. Ban Zhao’s lessons for women is more focused on women’s place in the society instead of appreciating the hard work that women do to take care of their families.

It makes women objects of ridicule in the society and as a result end up being oppressed. Women have always gone through training for centuries whereby they are taught to be obedient and hold a lot of virtue. The article also questions the traditional view on Chinese women. It argues that the approach,by western feminists regarding the idea of agency is not appropriate to the understanding of Chinese women’s agency, but only shows a different concept of agency that is based on lessons for women, generated falsely out of the powerlessness of individual women, which is derived from family, community, indirect and conferred by others (Inventing Familial Agency from Powerlessness: Ban Zhaos Lessons for Women, 2015).

Women have been exposed to domination by men in every way of life, they are also made powerless with no voice in their families and even in the society as a whole. The oppressions they face may be either directly or indirectly depending on whatever they face in life. I have gained new insights regarding women and the false beliefs and teachings that people have been made to believe in. As for me, I think women deserve better treatments than what Ban Zhao depict in her teachings. They play important roles in our everyday lives and hence all honor and respect should be granted to them.

I found it very challenging and difficult to read Ms. Lee’s article since it was very complex and complicated too but upon re-reading, I managed to comprehend it a bit. Reference. Inventing Familial Agency from Powerlessness: Ban Zhaos Lessons for Women. (2015). Zhao, B. (2015). Lessons for women.