Lan Diagyuan on the Education of Women:
Lan Dianyuan was a Qing scholar living in the period from 1680-1733. He served as a magistrate for two counties in Guangdong province. He is known for his writings advocating for settlement of Taiwan and on female learning. This primary source, written in 1712, is from the preface of his book in support of female education.
The source starts out with saying, “The basis of the government of the empire lies in the habits of the people, and the surety that their usages will be correct is in the orderly management of the families, which last depends chiefly upon the females.” In this he is saying that women should be educated because they are the first line of education for the rest of the empire. He goes on to say that women are the, “sources of good manners,” and will pass them down to their families.
However, he is not advocating that women be educated like their male counterparts. He believes that men are free to devote all of their time to studying, but women are busy managing the household so their studies will be divided. Because women can not give their readings their undivided attention, they do not have the capacity to understand the readings. So even if a woman is sent to school with a man, it will not do her much good since she will be confused.
He then continues that women must be guided to understanding by the creation of a collection of works on distinguished women. The book should cover each topic clearly and quickly so to be easy for the female mind. He says that the book should cover such topics as duty to their husband or to their parents, how to maintain modesty and be content with her lot, how to avoid vice, and other lessons of female morals.
Lan Dingyuan hoped by doing this that the people of China would become more content and harmonious since the women were learning how to manage their families with propriety.
- He can be quoted as saying that an empire is only as strong as the orderly management of the families
- he attributes family management to women
- also says that women teach good manners and are generally more civil mannered than men
- believes women need to be educated differently than men since women have to care for their families and do not have time to study like men do
- since women won’t have the time to properly understand the books men read, a collection of celebrated women should be put together to teach women about how to be an exemplary woman
- women need to learn from example how to maintain their purity as to be able to teach manners to their offspring
- How did the Qing dynasty rely on men to run the kingdom and how did they rely on women to keep their kingdom running?
- How does this lead to women being undervalued and what are Dingyuan’s views on their value?
- What are other views during the Qing time about female education? What are the arguments for female education and what are arguments against it?
(Au: Car)
