The Changing Role of Women in China: A Study of a Social System in Transition

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women, history, China, gender roles, society and culture, sociology


Asian History | Asian Studies | Chinese Studies | Gender and Sexuality | History of Gender | Sociology | Women's Studies


Within the borders of China lies the largest population in the world today. For centuries, even before the Christian era, this country was nominally under the rule of the government, often controlled by various barbarian invaders. These "foreign devils" established dynasties for a time, and then were conquered in turn by stronger invading groups. But in actuality, the life of the people was detached from the government, and although the government changed, the patterns of life in the villages and in the families remained essentially the same. Then in the 19th century the seeds of revolution were sown, and in the early 20th century, in 1911, the last ruling dynasty of China collapsed. Since the fall of the last dynasty, China has undergone and is presently undergoing the most rapid internal change any society has ever experienced in human history.

Department 1 Awarding Honors Status

Sociology and Anthropology

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