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From Evil Women to Dissolute Rulers: Changes in Gender Representation across the Zuozhuan, Guoyu, and Shiji

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 September 2020

LEI YANG
LEI YANG*
Affiliation:
Carleton College, NorthfieldMNlyang3@carleton.edu
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Abstract

This article examines gender representation in early Chinese histories with a focus on Shiji 史記 (Records of the Historian). Presenting beautiful and evil women, rather than male rulers, as responsible for political crises is a long-standing practice of Chinese historiography. Previous scholarship contends that this practice began with such depictions in Shiji and thus stems from its model impact upon subsequent histories. By scrutinising the interplay between the two genders within royal houses, this article extends the scope of previous scholarly examination from women to their husbands, i.e. the male rulers. Comparison of the causation chains of political disasters as built in Zuozhuan 左傳 (Zuo Commentary), Guoyu 國語 (Discourses of the States), and Shiji shows that Shiji diminishes women's agency, describing them as neither the original cause of political crises nor a tool to shield rulers from criticism. Unlike its predecessors, Shiji presents political catastrophes as ruler-dominant consequences resulting from their own unrestricted desires and cross-boundary misbehaviour, explaining the rise and decay in history.

Keywords

Gender representationearly Chinese rulersZuozhuanGuoyuShiji
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society , Volume 30 , Issue 4 , October 2020 , pp. 721 - 736
Copyright
Copyright © The Royal Asiatic Society 2020

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References

1 Zhang Jing 张菁, ‘Zhongguo Gudai nühuo shiguan de yuanliu—cong “pijisichen” dao “bixingqingguo”’ 中國古代女禍史觀的源流—從“牝雞司晨”到“嬖幸傾國”,Shehui kexue zhanxian 社會科學戰線 11 (2013), p. 71.

2 Liu Jie 劉潔, ‘Cong liangxing guanxi bianhua kan xianqin qinhan funnü guannian de bianqian’ 從兩性關係變化看先秦秦漢婦女觀念的變遷, Anyang shifan xueyuan xuebao 安陽師範學院學報 4 (2004), p. 47. Yang Yun 楊允 and Xu Zhigang 許志剛 argue that Shiji inherits the nühuo concept from the pre-Qin period and uses it to interpret the dictionary of history in ‘He he zong zhou, Bao Si mie zhi---“nüse huo guo lun” ji qi wenxue biaoxian tanxi’ ‘赫赫宗周，褒姒滅之’— ‘女色禍國論”及其文學表現探析’, Shehui kexue jikan 社會科學輯刊 3 (2008), pp. 214–217.

3 Bret Hinsch argues that “although Zhou Dynasty writers sometimes criticized female malfeasance, the historian Sima Qian took a much more forceful line against powerful women in his influential Memoirs of the Historian (Shi ji), which set the standard for orthodox historiography”, in Women in Imperial China (Lanham, 2016), pp. 40–41.

4 Shiji (Beijing, 1959), Chapter 49, p. 1967. Although this proverb includes Mo Xi, Shiji does not mention her in the benji (basic annals) chapter that is fully devoted to the Xia Dynasty, nor any other section of the book. The parallel of all three women seems to be a popular proverb among several historical texts, rather than a creation of Sima Qian. The earliest is probably Guoyu, Chapter 1.7 (‘Jinyu’ 晉語). See Xu Yuangao徐元誥, Guoyu jijie 國語集解 (Beijing, 2002), pp. 250–251. Recent archaeological findings suggest that, by the end of the Eastern Han (25-220 ce), contempt for these three women had already modelled a notion of women as destructive. See Jiang Sheng 姜生, ‘Hujing Da Ji tu yu Hanmu Fengdu Liu tiangong kao’ 狐精妲己圖與漢墓豐都六天宮考, Fudan daxue xuebao 復旦大學學報 4 (2018), pp. 85–99.

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6 A general introduction to the niebi section can be found in Kinney's, Anne Behnke Exemplary Women of Early China (New York, 2014), p. xlviCrossRefGoogle Scholar. Some scholars claim that Shiji conveys the nühuo concept or represents the repression of women during the Han dynasty. Zhang Jing, ‘Zhongguo Gudai nühuo shiguan de yuanliu’, p. 72. Bret Hinsch argues that the figure of the depraved women conveniently helps to shield the king or emperor from significant criticism, allowing the historian (Sima Qian) to censure the self-destructive monarch. See Hinsch, Women in Ancient China, p. 105.

7 Hans van Ess briefly discusses the characterisation of Bao Si in Lienü zhuan. He argues that Sima Qian has a purpose differing from that of the author of Lienü zhuan. See his ‘Praise and Slander: The Evocation of Empress Lü in the Shiji and Hanshu’, Nan Nü: Men, Women and Gender in China 8, 2 (2006), pp. 222–223.

8 For female characters described in Zuozhuan, see Gao Fang 高方, Zuozhuan nüxing yanjiu 左傳女性研究 (Ha'erbin, 2010).

9 Schaberg, David, A Patterned Past: Form and Thought in Early Chinese Historiography (Cambridge, 2002), pp. 5–6Google Scholar. For the relation between Zuozhuan and Guoyu, see Zhang Yiren 張以仁, ‘Lun Guoyu yu Zuozhuan de guanxi’ 論國語與左傳的關係, Lishi yuyan yanjiusuo jikan 歷史語言研究所輯刊 33 (1962), pp. 233–286.

10 For example, Li Changzhi 李長之 contends that, even though Sim Qian revered Confucius and studied with Confucian scholars, he believed in Daoism and Shiji is a Daoist text. See his Sima Qian zhi fenggeyu renge 司馬遷之風格與人格 (Taipei, 1963). In contrast, Stephen Durrant believes that Sima desired to be the second Confucius and that Shiji is Confucian history: see his Cloudy Mirror: Tension and Conflict in the Writings of Sima Qian (Albany,1995). Other scholars’ viewpoints are summarised in Zhang Mingxin 張明信and Yu Zhanghua 俞樟華, Sima Qian sixiang yanjiu 司馬遷思想研究, v.10. in the collection Shiji yanjiu jicheng 史記研究集成, (ed.) Zhang Dake 張大可 (Beijing, 2005), pp. 317–326.

11 The Cambridge History of China: Ch'in and Han (221 B.C.- A.D. 220), (eds.) Denis Twitchett and Michael Loewe (Cambridge, 1986), pp. 731–732. Zhang Lingxu 張凌虛, Xihan Zhengzhi Sixiang Lunji 西漢政治思想論集 (Taipei, 1988), pp. 78–83. Durrant, Cloudy Mirror, p. 56. For differences between the thinkers, see Goldin, Paul R., ‘Xunzi and Early Han Philosophy’, Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies 67 (2007), pp. 135–166Google Scholar.

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13 Xiucai Zheng examines the changes of women's representation from Zuozhuan to Shiji. This discussion suggests that, by replacing women's motivation, actions and power in its narratives, the latter text reduces women's agency from the former and sets up the gender type. See ‘From Zuo zhuan to Shi ji: Changes in Gender Representation in Sima Qian's Rewriting of Stories’, Chinese Literature: Essays, Articles, Reviews 36 (2014), pp. 149–174.

14 Geng Chao 耿超 Liu Shan 劉珊, ‘Chunqiu shiqi funü de canzheng yu liangxing guanxi’ 春秋時期的婦女參政及兩性關係, Guanzi Xuekan 管子學刊 2 (2002), pp. 97–101.

15 van Ess, ‘Praise and Slander’, p. 228.

16 Shiji Chapter 49, p. 1967.

17 All translations are my own unless otherwise indicated.

18 See David S. Nivison's study of the notion of de in early Chinese thought: ‘“Virtue” in Bone and Bronze’, in The Ways of Confucianism: Investigations in Chinese Philosophy, (ed.) Bryan W. Van Norden (Chicago and La Salle, 1996), pp. 17–30. Chao Fulin 晁福林, ‘Xianqin shiqi “de” guanxian de qiyuan yu fazhan’ 先秦時期 “德” 觀念的起源與發展, Zhongguo shehui kexue 中國社會科學 4 (2005), pp. 192–204. Pankenier, David W., ‘The Cosmo-Political Background of Heaven's Mandate’, Early China 20 (1995), pp. 121–176CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

19 Shi Ding 施丁 argues that in addition to the role of Heaven in the course of history, the historical figures such as emperors, kings and generals are decisive. See his ‘Lun Sima Qian de tong gujin zhi bian’ 論司馬遷的通古今之變, Lishi yanjiu 歷史研究 2 (1980), pp. 139–140.

20 Jo-lan, Yi, ‘Social Status, Gender Division and Institutions: Sources Relating to Women in Chinese Standard Histories’, in Overt and Covert Treasures — Essays on the Sources for Chinese Women's History, (ed.) Ho, Clara Wing-chung (Hong Kong, 2012), p. 135Google Scholar. Liu Jinxian 劉錦賢, ‘Rujia zhi hunyin guan’ 儒家之婚姻觀, Xingda zhongwen xuebao 興大中文學報 21 (2007), pp. 7–8.

21 For a summary of other possible interpretations, see van Ess, ‘Praise and Slander’, p. 228.

22 Watson, Burton, Ssu-ma Chi'en: Grand Historian of China (New York and London, 1958), p. 111Google Scholar. The fall of the Western Zhou is also briefly recounted in the bamboo manuscript, Xinian 繫年, a recent archaeological finding published in 2011.

23 Lüshi chunqiu 呂氏春秋 (Master Lü's Annals of Spring and Autumn) narrates an event, fenghuo xi zhuhou 烽火戲諸侯 (making fun of the regional lords by lighting the beacon fire), which is not recounted in Guoyu. Both archaeological and textual findings show that the Marquis of Shen later restored his grandson as King Ping 平王 (r. 770-720 bce) in the eastern capital, ending the Western Zhou period. Ma Yinqin 馬銀琴 reconstructs the historical facts regarding the fall of the Western Zhou. She points out that King Ping claimed the title ‘Heavenly King’ while King You was alive, positing that this challenge to King You's authority was the real cause of dynastic collapse. See ‘Bao Si mie Zhou gushi yu Shijing xiaoya zhengyue de xingzhi’ 褒姒滅周故事與《詩經•小雅•正月》的性質, Journal of Peking University 55 (2018), pp. 99–103. For more discussion of Bao Si in Shijing, see Paul R. Goldin, The Culture of Sex in Ancient China (Honolulu, 2002), pp. 49–51.

24 The scribe predicted the inauspicious outcome of a military campaign launched by Lord Xian 獻公. According to the scribe, a woman would endanger the lord's state. For details, see the third case study regarding Lady Li in the next section.

25 Xu, Guoyu jijie, pp. 250–251. This passage does not provide the exact date of this conversation. According to Shiji, the scribe speaks of the predestined collapse in 780 bce, the second year of King You's reign.

26 For a full analysis of the theories of earthquakes and the energies of yin and yang, see Schaberg, A Pattern of the Past, p. 103.

27 Xu, Guoyujijie 16, pp. 473–475.

28 This event may be borrowed from the Lüshi chunqiu. The beacon fire is a military emergency signal that the king used to call for assistance from the regional lords. In this text, only the barbarians attacked the Zhou capital.

29 Shiji Chapter 4, pp. 147–149.

30 See Guoyu jijie 7, p. 255. For a full examination of the evolution of Bao Si's story in early historiography, see Feng, Li, Landscape and Power in Early China: the crisis and fall of the Western Zhou 1045–771 BC (Cambridge, 2006), pp. 198–203CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

31 Shiji 4, p. 147.

32 Kroll, Juri L., ‘Toward a Study of the Concept of Linear Time in the Shiji’, in Views from Within, Views from Beyond: Approaches to the Shiji as an Early Work of Historiography, (eds.) van Ess, Hans, Lomová, Olga and Schaab-Hanke, Dorothee (Wiesbaden, 2015), pp. 31–39CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

33 Li Jixiang 李紀祥 examines Shiji's chapter ‘The Table by Years of the Twelve Lords’ (十二諸侯年表) and argues that Sima Qian highlights the significance of the decline during King Li's reign as a turning point in the entire Zhou history. See ‘Sima Qian's View of Zhou History in Shiji’《史記》中司馬遷的周史觀, Views from Within, Views from Beyond, pp. 41–66.

34 Schaberg, A Patterned Past, p. 103.

35 See Guoyu jijie 1.10, p. 27; Shiji 4, p. 146. Note, the Shiji refers to Shi Bo as Bo Yangfu.

36 Gao, Zuozhuan nüxing yanjiu, pp. 79–84.

37 Yang Bojun 楊伯峻, Chunqiu Zuozhuan zhu 春秋左傳注 (Beijing, 2009) vol.1, Lord Zhuang 28.2, pp. 239–240.

38 Yang, Chunqiu Zuozhuan zhu vol.1, Lord Xi 4.6, p. 299.

39 Guoyu 2.8, p. 279.

40 Zheng, ‘Gender Representation in the Shiji’, pp. 158–160.

41 Shiji 39, p. 1640.

42 The translation is based on Zhao Hua and William H. Nienhauser Jr.'s translation with minor modifications. See Nienhauser, , The Grand Scribe's Records: The Hereditary Houses of Pre-Han China (Bloomington, 2006) vol. 1, pp. 305–309Google Scholar.

43 The story of Xuan Jiang is addressed in several odes in the Book of Odes. The Mao Commentary depicts her as a negative model, but the Preface on Mao no. 43, ‘Xin tai’ 新臺 (New Tower) blames the lord for appropriating her. See Kinney, Anne Behnke, ‘The Mao Commentary to the Book of Odes as a Source for Women's History’, in Overt and Covert Treasures — Essays on the Sources for Chinese Women's History, (ed.) Ho, Clara Wing-chung (Hong Kong, 2012), p. 81Google Scholar. Like Bao Si and Lady Li Xuan Jiang is also placed in the group of niebi in Lienüzhuan, 7.4, p. 148.

44 The creation of the word in early China, zheng, indicates that people in early China needed to talk about this odd relationship. In Zuozhuan, offspring born of zheng tend not to have a happy end, and contribute the added consequence of a disruption to the line of succession. See Goldin, Paul, ‘Copulating with One's Stepmother—Or Birth Mother?’, Behaving Badly in Early and Medieval China, (eds.) Rothschild, Harry N. and Wallace, Leslie V. (Honolulu, 2017), p. 57Google Scholar.

45 For a full storyline, see Kinney, ‘The Mao Commentary’, pp. 80–81.

46 Yang, Chunqiu Zuozhuan zhu v.1, Lord Huan 16.5, pp. 145–146.

47 Modified version of Goldin's translation in ‘Copulating with One's Stepmother’, p. 57.

48 Shiji Chapter 37, p. 1593.