Beyond the "Pattern of Heaven": Gender, Kinship and the Family in China

1. Han Patrilineal Kinship

1.1. Patrilineal surname passed down through male descent

1.2. Could range from several hundred members to over ten thousand.

1.3. Marriage arranged outside of broad family groups

2. Han Chinese Women

2.1. inferior position in society

2.2. defer first to father; then to husband

2.3. prone to infanticide

2.4. at marriage, moved from birth kin group to another

3. Other Chinese ethnic Groups

3.1. The Lahu

3.1.1. high degree of gender equality

3.1.2. "chopsticks only work in pairs"

3.1.3. Husband and wife share workload throughout all aspects of life.

3.2. The Mosuo

3.2.1. SW China

3.2.2. matrilineal kin group

3.2.3. Society functions without husbands or fathers.

4. Chinese ethnic groups breakdown:

4.1. 92% Han Chinese culture

4.2. 8% (100 million people) divided among 55 other minority groups

5. Han

5.1. Han Dynasty 206 B.C. - 220 A.D.

5.2. Confucian tradition

5.3. Patrilineal kinship

6. Han Confucianism

6.1. open system

6.2. join through self cultivation, not birth

6.3. "Filial piety is the pattern of heaven"

6.4. emphasis on the five relationships (wu lun); benevolence on part of superior and obedience on part of inferior

6.4.1. ruler/minister

6.4.2. father/son

6.4.3. elder brother/younger brother

6.4.4. husband/wife

6.4.5. friend/friend