The Fragile Scholar: Power and Masculinity in Chinese Culture

Product Description

The Fragile Scholar examines the pre-modern construction of Chinese masculinity from the popular image of the fragile scholar (caizi) in late imperial Chinese fiction and drama. The book is an original contribution to the study of the construction of masculinity in the Chinese context from a comparative perspective (Euro-American). Its central thesis is that the concept of “masculinity” in pre-modern China was conceived in the network of hierarchical social and political power in a homosocial context rather than in opposition to “woman.” In other words, gender discourse was more power-based than sex-based in pre-modern China, and Chinese masculinity was androgynous in nature. The author explains how the caizi discourse embodied the mediation between elite culture and popular culture by giving voice to the desire, fantasy, wants and tastes of urbanites.

Review

“Song Geng exemplified an impressive range of knowledge not only about the field of sinology but also about critical theories of gender. This book examines the historical legacy of the Chinese discourse of masculinity while incorporating discussions of va

“This is a most fascinating study of a most significant subject – the caizi figure in Chinese literature. I am especially impressed by the author’s subtle negotiation through a wealth of classical texts in Chinese literature which unfolds an unusual richn

About the Author

SONG Geng is Assistant Professor of Chinese Literature and Cultural Studies at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.