What is a girl who dresses herself?

Self-grooming girl:? It means that women, like married women, curl their hair to show that they will never get married and remain single until they die. After death, they are called pure women, which is a female culture in ancient China. ?

In the backward feudal period in ancient China, women were regarded as the accessories of men, and their status could be imagined, especially in the Qing Dynasty. In order to restrict women from going out, women's scope of action was restricted at home, and foot binding was invented, which would do harm to human health, so that thousands of feudal women endured deformed pain. However, born in that era, women were helpless and unable to resist under the social status that men were superior to women. They can only educate their children at home and regard their husbands as their lives.

What is this? Self-decorating girl? ? On the status struggle and compromise of ancient women in China

With the development of social economy, this phenomenon gradually presents a new situation. At the end of the Qing Dynasty, although the status of women was still very backward, a number of pioneers appeared in Zhuhai, Guangdong. They are the representatives of independent women in that era. They dared to resist the feudal system, break through the traditional shackles and strive for their own freedom. Are they representatives of modern industrial women workers in the Pearl River Delta? A girl who dresses herself up.

In China's traditional society, women must abide by three obedience and four virtues, needless to say, they can read and write, even if they are seen in public, they will be criticized. At that time, after a woman got married, her husband was all they had, her husband was gone, and her son became the only one in their lives. In short, at that time, women's lives were all around men at home, and there was no self at all.

Since modern times, self-decorated women have appeared in the Pearl River Delta region, which has broken through people's views on women in the past. Self-grooming? A ceremony to show one's mind, resist marriage, and gain social recognition through constant struggle and compromise. Although the freedom they fought for was still limited in the social background at that time, it was a great progress as a struggle for women since ancient times.

What is this? Self-decorating girl? ? On the status struggle and compromise of ancient women in China

At the end of the Qing Dynasty, China's modern handicraft industry flourished, especially in the coastal areas of Guangdong. During the Republic of China, due to the development of national capitalist economy, the number of factories increased greatly, and the demand for workers was also increasing. The mild climate, interwoven rivers and fertile land in the Pearl River Delta region made the silk industry here particularly developed, so it was very prosperous during the Republic of China.

In Guangdong, especially in the Pearl River Delta region, men have been fishing in the sea since ancient times, while women are reeling at home. With the development of silk reeling factory, women have become the main workers in modern industry. According to statistics, in the 1920s and 1930s, a silk factory was set up in Shunde, with 60,000 industrial workers, mostly women workers, most of whom were self-employed.

At this point, everyone will inevitably have doubts in their hearts. Why are there a large number of self-grooming girls in the silk factory? The reason is still because of the social background at that time. Many local women have mastered the techniques of mulberry planting, sericulture, silk reeling, textile and embroidery since childhood, but in feudal society, only men can go out to work, so women have only one skill, and they really can't display it. Therefore, they are urged to make changes. At that time, due to the needs of development, many factories were scrambling to recruit female workers, so there were both men and women in the factory at first.

What is this? Self-decorating girl? ? On the status struggle and compromise of ancient women in China

This phenomenon is normal now, but it was a big problem in those days. At that time, men and women were absolutely not allowed to live in the same room, so if men and women worked in the same factory, they would be criticized. Therefore, in order to get a better job and stop those idle mouths, many women show their determination not to marry for life through self-grooming ceremony, which is the biggest struggle women have made since ancient times.

Coincidentally, with the development of self-grooming women's groups, more and more women have seen women's struggle and seen that women can stand on their own feet in society, without relying on their husbands. Therefore, the team of self-grooming women has gradually grown. At the peak, it is said that nearly one-third of women in a village are self-grooming girls. In addition to resisting feudal society and fighting for their own freedom, there is a large part of the reason that drives them to become self-grooming women, that is, their disgust and fear of marriage.

What is this? Self-decorating girl? ? On the status struggle and compromise of ancient women in China

At that time, women's marriage life was mostly miserable. They clearly see the pain that women suffer in their in-laws after marriage, and they don't want to be accessories of men, do they? Four dynasties and nine skirts? Fear of married life, they are satisfied with not getting married, is also natural. More importantly, after women have an independent source of income, they are no longer a burden at home, but an important pillar of family income, which also enables them to stand up straight and have the confidence to compete with men. Naturally, their parents will not urge their daughters to get married when they have economic income. So this is also the most successful struggle that women have made for themselves since ancient times.

Although self-grooming women are a rare group of women in feudal society, which exudes the charm of independent women and looks really glamorous on the surface, they have to make some compromises when they return to real life and the big environment. It can even be said that the only freedom they get is the compromise.

What is this? Self-decorating girl? ? On the status struggle and compromise of ancient women in China

The so-called self-grooming girl is a woman who pulls up her hair and vows never to marry. It is precisely this that makes it impossible for girls who dress themselves to have love. From the moment they decide to be self-dressed girls, they will break their word and must remain chaste. If they do anything deviant, they will be severely punished by the villagers, tortured or drowned in pig cages. Therefore, if a woman decides to be a girl who dresses herself, she must give up the right to love and die alone. From a certain point of view, women are forced to give up their right to happiness in order to fight for their social rights, which is a compromise.

In addition, due to ancient feudal superstition, people paid great attention to their own affairs. At that time, the custom stipulated that self-grooming girls could not die in their parents' homes or relatives' homes, but could only be carried outside the village. Therefore, many girls who dress themselves will make many compromises so that they will have a burial place after death and their souls will not be lonely ghosts.

Now that you have vowed never to marry, you can't really become husband and wife with a man. For their century-long plans, they often choose to pay for their nominal husbands to get married or marry the deceased, so that they can be buried in their husbands' graves after death. Self-grooming women fought against fate in such a humble way, which shows the low status of women in feudal society.

What is this? Self-decorating girl? ? On the status struggle and compromise of ancient women in China

In order to have a place to live and a partner who helps each other in life and depends on each other in spirit when they are old, most self-grooming girls often find another self-grooming girl who is in love with them to get married. Is this called a knot? Jin Lanqi? .

And they usually choose to build it at their own expense? Menstruation's family stay with each other and live together, feeling like lovers. This imitation of the family also makes up for the lack of self-dressing of women's families to a certain extent, and creates a new companion life mode. In this family situation, although there is no blood relationship, they can live together for a long time. It is also very rare.

From the above struggles and compromises, we can not only feel the indomitable and independent spirit of such outstanding women in feudal society, but also deeply feel the helplessness and forbearance of their lives.

What is this? Self-decorating girl? ? On the status struggle and compromise of ancient women in China

They seem to be strong and brave, but in fact they are lonely after aging, so it is really not easy to self-modify women living in that era. They are role models for a generation of women. They have broken through people's views on traditional women and deserve our respect and admiration. With the passage of time, the last generation of self-grooming girls in China gradually aged and gradually withdrew from the historical stage of China. The history of this struggle can never be forgotten, so it is necessary for everyone to have a certain understanding of this history.

References:

Ye Chunsheng, Lingnan Folk Culture

Shunde self-grooming girl

Liu Zhiwen Guangdong Folk Customs Grand View