SOURCE: Brandauer, Frederick P. “Women in the Ching‐hua yüan: Emancipation toward a Confucian Ideal.” Journal of Asian Studies 36, no. 4 (August 1977): 647‐60.

In the following revised essay, originally presented in 1975, Brandauer warns against judging Li Ju‐chen's treatment of women in his novel according to the ideals of modern Western feminism.

The Ching‐hua yüan,¹ the work of vernacular fiction by Li Ju‐chen (ca. 1763‐1830) shows remarkable diversity in both narrative content and purpose. Critics have observed that it is encyclopedic in scope,² and suggested that it reflects the wide range of interests and activities prevalent among scholars in early nineteenth‐century China.³ The author's intention has been variously interpreted as private entertainment,⁴ display of erudition,⁵ or social criticism.⁶ In his recent anthology of Chinese popular fiction and drama, H. C. Chang⁷ gives us what may be the most succinct statement of this diversity when he describes...