集部sublimetext2

BookReviews338Overt&CovertTreasures:EssaysontheSourcesforChineseWomen'sHistory.
EditedbyClaraWing-chungHo.
HongKong:ChineseUniversityPress,2012.
Pp.
xii+608.
$65.
00.
Inthissubstantialvolume,aninternationalgroupofscholarsundertheleadershipofClaraWing-chungHoexplorestherichsourcesforChinesewomen'shistoryfromtheearliesttimestotheearlytwentiethcentury.
Ineighteenchapters,anepilogue,andabibliographyofworksonmethodology,thebooknotonlycataloguestheextremelyabundantanddiversematerialsthatawould-behistorianofChinesewomenhasathisorherdisposal,italsoprovidesmanywonderfulexamplesofhowsuchmaterialscanbeused.
Thearticlesarearrangedinroughlychronologicalorder,withthevol-ume'scentreofgravityrestinginlateimperialChina.
Butalthoughabouthalfofthechaptersaredevotedtosourcesfromthefourteenththroughnineteenthcenturies,threeinvestigatesourcesfromtheWarringStates(475–221b.
c.
e.
)andHan(206b.
c.
e.
–c.
e.
220)periods,twoothersdescribetextsfromtheearlyimperialera(lateHanthroughearlySong,roughlythefirstthroughtenthcenturiesc.
e.
),andtwoextendtheiranalysisintothe1930s.
Thechapterssurveyawidespectrumofhistoricalandliterarygenrestodemonstratethat,whenapproachedwithcreativityandattention,evenapparentlyirrelevantorrecalcitrantsourcescanrevealintriguingandusefulinformationaboutthelivesofChinesewomeninpasttimes.
Intheopeningtothefirstchapter,editorClaraHocharacterizesthevolumeasasourceguide,intendedinparttodemonstratethecoming-of-ageofthefieldofChinesewomen'shistory.
Withinthisgeneralrubric,however,theauthorstakevaryingapproaches.
Severalauthors,likeHoherself,surveyabroadcorpusofmaterials,pointingoutingeneraltermswhereinformationonwomencanbefoundtherein.
ThisapproachistakenbyYiJo-lan,whooutlineswheresourcesforwomenappearintheChinesestandardhistories,andbyHarrietT.
Zurndorfer,whoinvestigatessourcesforwomeninChineseencyclopaedias(leishu類書).
Otherchaptersfocusmoreonthekindsofinformationthatcanbedrawnfromcertainsources.
ThechaptersbyLisaRaphals,EvaKitWahMan,PingYao,EllenWidmer,GraceS.
Fong,WeijingLu,andHon-mingYiparguablyfallintothiscategory.
Stillotherchaptersdiscusstheirsourcesinthecontextofaspecificresearchquestionoranalyticalproblem.
ThusthechaptersbyAnneBehnkeKinney,Jen-derLee,Wai-yeeLi,HuYing,JoanJudge,andWongManKongmightbecharacterizedasresearcharticleswithastronghistoriographicalcomponent.
Finally,PatriciaEbrey'sdiscus-sionofhowtouseillustrations,andLouiseEdwards'sconsiderationoftheroleoffictioninhistoricalwriting,arelargelymethodologicalinorientation.
Ihastentoaddthatthesecategorizationsoverlapandarebynomeansabsolute:virtuallyalloftheICSJournal58_FA01_20Dec2013.
indb33820/12/132:45PMBookReviews339chaptersofferresearchinsights,historiographicalinformation,andmethodologicalmodels.
Inadditiontotheirtextualexpositions,severalchaptersalsoprovidenoteworthytablesandchartsofsourcematerials:ClaraHo'schaptercontainsahelpfulchartofthecategoriesandsub-categoriesofthesibu四部(pp.
3–12);AnneBehnkeKinneytabulatesreferencestowomenoftheSpringandAutumnstateofWei衛asfoundintheBookofOdesanditsprefacesandcommentaries(pp.
86–102);YiJo-lanincludesatabledesignatingwherematerialonwomencanbefoundinthestandardhistories(pp.
132–33);HarrietZurndorferidentifiessourcesonwomenintenencyclopaediasfromtheSikuquanshu四庫全書(pp.
297–300);andGraceFongtabulatesbiographi-calmaterialfoundinfifty-sevenwomen'spoetrycollectionsdigitalizedintheMcGill-Harvard-YenchingLibraryMingQingWomen'sWritingsDatabase(pp.
387–404).
Spacedoesnotpermitathoroughconsiderationofalltherichesthatthechaptersinthisvolumecontain:accordingly,inwhatfollowsIbrieflyreviewthecontentsofeachchapter,withthegoalofalertingreaderstochaptersmostrelevanttotheirindividualareasofresearch.
Toopenthevolume,ClaraHo'sessay,"AnInvestigationintotheSourcesforWomen'sHistoryintheSibu:InLieuofanIntroduction"(pp.
1–34),takesonnolessacorpusthanthe"FourCategories"(sibu)ofChineselearning.
Horeviewsthekindsoftextscategorizedunderthetraditionalbibliographicrubrics:theClassics(jingbu經部),theHistories(shibu史部),thePhilosophers(or,inHo'sapttranslation,theDisciplines)(zibu子部),andtheCollections(jibu集部).
Shepointsoutwherecertainsub-categoriesareparticularlyrichinmaterialsonwomen,takingnoteofimportantscholarshipthathasbeendoneusingparticulartypesofmaterialandintroducingrelevantindicesandothervaluableresearchaids.
ThewealthofintriguingmaterialsthatHohighlightsinthischapterseemcertaintoengender(punintended!
)dozensoffascinatingdissertations.
Inherchapter,LisaRaphalsconsiders"HowtheHistoryofWomeninEarlyChinaIntersectswiththeHistoryofScienceinEarlyChina"(pp.
35–59).
RaphalsexplorestheZuozhuan左傳,theHuangdineijing黃帝內經,theShiji史記,andrecentlyexcavatedtextsfromtheHanandpre-Hanperiods,searchingforinformationaboutwomen'sinvolvementinmedicine,ontheonehand,andin"theso-calledshushu數術cultureofnumbers,divinationandlongevitypractices"(p.
35),ontheother.
Raphal'sdiscussiondirectsthereadertoconsiderableearlydataconcerningwomenasbothrecipientsandpractitionersofthemedicalandmanticarts.
AnneBehnkeKinney'schapter,"TheMaoCommentarytotheBookofOdesasaSourceforWomen'sHistory"(pp.
61–111),arguesthattheBookofOdeswasacen-traltextforwomen'seducationduringtheHandynasty.
AftercarefulreflectiononICSJournal58_FA01_20Dec2013.
indb33920/12/132:45PMBookReviews340thecomplicatedhistoriographicalissuesthatsurroundtheOdesanditscommentaries,KinneyproceedstoinvestigatethelessonsHanwomenmayhavegleanedfromit,focusinginparticularonasetofpoemsandattendantcommentaryassociatedwiththestateofWei.
KinneyenhancesherdiscussionofthepoemsandcommentariesbyjuxtaposingthemwithrelatedhistoricalnarrativesfromtheZuozhuan.
Herfine-grainedanalysisnotonlysuggestshowtheseoften-opaquepoemsmayhavebeenreadbyHanwomen,itrevealsthepowerfulemotionalandmoralcomplexitytheycouldexpress.
EvaKitWahMan'schapter,"DiscoursesonFemaleBodilyAestheticsandItsEarlyRevelationsinTheBookofSongs"(pp.
113–30)likewisecentresontheBookofOdes(thoughherecalledTheBookofSongs).
RelyingonArthurWaley'stransla-tion,Manfocusesherinvestigationonthepoemsthemselves,analysingwhattheytellusaboutidealsoffemalephysicalappearance(and,forcomparison,malephysi-calappearance).
Shecataloguesaplethoraof(sometimescontradictory)imagesfoundinthepoems,andshowsthatmanylaterclichésoffemalebeautyandbehaviourwereforeshadowedintheSongs.
In"SocialStatus,GenderDivisionandInstitutions:SourcesRelatingtoWomeninChineseStandardHistories"(pp.
131–55),YiJo-lantracesthedifferentwaysearlyandlaterstandardhistoriestreatvarioustypesofpalacewomen,ontheonehand,andthecategoryofexemplarywomen(lienü列女),ontheother.
Yiusefullypointsoutthatinformationaboutwomencanbefoundinmanyareasofthehistoriesnotexpresslydevotedtothetopicofwomen,suchasthetreatisesoninstitutions.
Shereviewsthelimitationsofsourcematerialsonwomenfoundinthehistories,suchastheirbiasestowardpeopleofhighrankandpoliticalpower,ortowardcertainregionsofthecountry.
Yiconcludesherchapterbyremindingthereaderthatthehistorieswereshapedbytheexplicitintentionofapportioning"praiseandblame"andthuscannotbetreatedassimplereflectionsofthe"truth.
"PingYao'schapter,"WomeninPortraits:AnOverviewofEpitaphsfromEarlyandMedievalChina"(pp.
157–83),openswithabriefbutimportantdiscussionoftheevolutionofepitaphwritingfromtheHantotheTang.
Yaothencullsfromhersourcesdemographicinformationsuchaslifespan,ageatmarriage,andnumberofchildren.
Forthepre-Tangperiodthesurvivingtextsaresofewthatthisdemo-graphicinformationcanbelittlemorethansuggestive,buttherelativelylargecor-pusofsurvivinginscriptionsfromtheTangpermitsgreaterconfidenceinthefiguresYaoprovides.
Thosefiguresshowinterestingandfairlyconsistentdiscrepanciesbe-tweenageatdeathformenandwomen(mentendtolivelonger,aswemightexpectgiventhedangersofchildbirthforwomen).
Inthesecondhalfofthechapter,Yaoinvestigateshowthecontentsandemphasesofepitaphschangedovertime,ICSJournal58_FA01_20Dec2013.
indb34020/12/132:45PMBookReviews341suggestingthatbytheTangtheycametoplacegreateremphasisonthemultipleroleswomenplayedwithinthefamily.
Shealsodiscussesepitaphsforconcubines,notingthatthosefromTangmakeaclearerdistinctionbetweenthestatusofthewifeandtheconcubine,andaremorelikelytoacknowledgeaconcubine'slowlybirth.
Yaoconcludeswithvaluablecaveatsaboutthelimitationsofthegenreofepitaphs,especiallythattheinformationtheyconveycouldbealteredtoconformtotheidealconventionsofboththegenreandofthedeceased.
Jen-derLee'simpressivelyresearchedchapter,entitled"IshinpoandItsExcerptsfromChanjing:AJapaneseMedicalTextasaSourceforChineseWomen'sHistory"(pp.
185–215),examinesaJapanesemedicaltextcompiledin982,whichdrewonsometwohundredearlierChinesemedicaltexts,mostnolongerextant.
Bycompar-ingtheJapanesetexttosurvivingChinesemedicaltreatises,LeearguesthatwhereastheChinesemedicaltraditionfocusedonbodilydifferenceandsawmenstruationascausingmanyofwomen'shealthproblems,theJapanesetraditionwaslargelyunconcernedwithsuchtheoreticaldiscussions:theIshinpo醫心方servedinsteadasacompendiumofprescriptions.
LeesuggeststhattheChinesetheoreticalapproachhelpsexplaintheearlyestablishmentofanindependentfieldofgynaecologyinChina.
PatricialEbrey's"IllustratingChineseWomen'sHistory"(pp.
217–59)considerstheusesandabusesofillustrationinstudiesofwomen'shistory.
EbreycritiquesthesomewhatcavalierwaythatillustrationshaveoftenbeenusedinEnglish-languageworksonChinesewomen,suggestingthatauthorsoftendonotgivetheirreaderssufficientinformationtounderstandthecontextsornuancesoftheillustrations.
Shethenpresentsseveralexamplesoftheradicallydifferingwaysthatarthistorianshaveunderstoodcertainpaintings,demonstratingthecomplexityofimagesthatasingleillustrationcanconvey.
Ebreyconcedesthatillustrationscanprovidevaluable"incidentaldetail"toaugmenthistoricaldiscussions,butheroverallpoint—thatauthorsshouldbemorethoughtfulintheiruseofillustrations—iswelltaken.
In"GazetteersandtheTalentedWoman"(pp.
261–78),EllenWidmercastshersurveyoflocalgazetteersinveryconcreteandpersonalterms,sharingwiththereaderthetriumphsanddifficultiessheencounteredinusinggazetteerstoinvesti-gatethelivesofsixQingdynastywomenwriters.
Alongtheway,sheprovidesawealthofstrategiestoaidtheresearcherinusinggazetteersources(theseguidelinesaresummarizedintheclosingsectionsofthechapter).
Widmerobserves,forexample,thatalthoughwomenappearmostprominentthosesectionsofgazetteersdevotedtoexemplarywomenorcataloguesofwritings,valuableinformationaboutthemcanalsosometimesbefoundappendedtoentriesabouttheirhusbandsorfathers.
Widmeralsosuggeststhat,whenresearchingwomen,countygazetteerstendtobemoreusefulICSJournal58_FA01_20Dec2013.
indb34120/12/132:45PMBookReviews342thanthoseencompassingwidergeographicalareas.
ThischapterwillbeespeciallyusefultothosewhoareinterestedinthespecificQingwomenWidmerstudies(WangDunashu王端淑,GuiMaoyi歸懋儀,WangDun汪端,GuTaiqing顧太清,WangQingdi王慶棣,andShanShili單士釐),butherfrankdiscussionofdeadendsandfortuitousdiscoveriesalsomakesthischapteranexcellentintroductiontothejoysandfrustrationsofresearch.
Withitsemphasisonthevalueofperseverance("MorethanonceIconcludedthattherewasnothingonmysubjectonlytodiscoverIwaswrong"[p.
266]),thiswouldbeawonderfulchaptertoassigntostudentsabouttobegintheirdissertationresearch.
HarrietT.
Zurndorfer'schapter,"WomeninChineseEncyclopedias"(pp.
279–305),canitselfbecalledencyclopaedic.
Itopenswithafascinatinghistoryofthegenrewhichalsohighlightssomeofitsgenericconventions,suchasthehierarchicalorderingofmaterial.
ZurndorferthenprovidesadetailedsurveyoftheencyclopaediascontainedintheSikuquanshucollectanea,includingdiscussionofearliersecondaryscholarshipthathasdealtwiththoseencyclopaedias.
Shenextnarrowsherfocustotheten(outofsixty-five)encyclopaediasthatincludesubstantialsectionsonwomen.
DescribingthreetextsfromtheTang,threefromtheSong,andtwoeachfromtheMingandQingperiods,shecomparesthecircumstancesoftheircompilationandthechangingattitudestowardwomenexpressedinthem.
ZurndorferconcludeswithabriefdiscussionoftheTrousseauHistory(Lianshi奩史),the"firstmajorencyclo-pedicworktofocusentirelyon'femalematters'"(p.
295),stressingthatithaslittletosayaboutthe"chastitycult"soprominentinthisera.
Zurndorferconcludesthat,overall,theseencyclopaediasshowthattheSikueditorsdidnotupholdanyonepar-ticularrepresentationofwomen.
LouiseEdwards'schapterexplorestherelationshipbetween"GenderedFictionsandChineseWomen'sHistory"(pp.
307–35).
Shepointsoutthat,althoughintheChinesecontextbothfictionandhistoryweremeanttobedidactic,fictioncouldbeironicandmulti-vocal,andcouldencompasstopicsthatwereconsideredbeneaththepurviewofthehistorian.
Notingthatfewfictionsourcesbywomensurvive,shesuggests(followingEllenWidmer)thatthegenreoftanci彈詞providesapotentiallyfruitfulavenueforexploringapre-twentieth-centuryfemalenarrativevoice,andshehighlightsthepotentialvalueofmale-authoredfictionasasourceforincidentalinformationaboutwomen'slives.
Edwardsconcludesbyproposingthatfiction,andpornographyinparticular,canproviderareinformationaboutsexualideologyandaboutthecomplexrelationshipbetweenfemalesexuality,reproduction,andvirtue.
In"RomanticRecollectionsofWomenasSourcesofWomen'sHistory"(pp.
337–67),Wai-yeeLianalysesmen'simagesofwomeninasetofromanticmem-oirscomposedbetweenthemid-seventeenthandmid-nineteenthcenturies.
ListressesICSJournal58_FA01_20Dec2013.
indb34220/12/132:45PMBookReviews343thatallofhersourcesweremarkedbynostalgia,fragmentation,andaromantic-aestheticsensibility.
Alldepictbeautiesofrefinedtasteandsublimetalentwhore-sideinexquisitely-appointedandsecludedrooms.
Lisuggeststhattheephemeralglamourevokedinthesememoirsis"allthemoretreasuredandcelebratedpreciselybecauseitisrecognizedasaprecariouslysustained,carefullywrought,andpassion-atelydefendedillusion"(p.
341),inwhichromance,sex,andmoralityareperfectlycompatible,andinwhichwomen'sliterarytalentisvalorisedand(forthemostpart)unproblematic.
AlthoughLiultimatelyconcludesthatthesestoriesareabout"romanticandaestheticidealsaboutwomen"(p.
361),anddon'ttellusmuchaboutthelivesofactualwomen,herevocativeandinsightfulanalysisofthesememoirsisapuredelighttoread.
GraceFong'schapter,entitled"Auto/biographicalSubjects:Ming-QingWomen'sPoetryCollectionsasSourcesforWomen'sLifeHistories"(pp.
369–410),surveysagroupofwomen'sliterarycollectionsfromtheMcGill-Harvard-YenchingLibraryMingQingWomen'sWritingsDigitizationProject,whichencompassessomeninetycollectionsbywomenauthors.
Fongisinterestedparticularlyinthebiographicalmaterialcontainedinwhatshecallsthe"paratext"sectionsoftheseliterarycol-lections(prefaces,postfaces,appendedbiographies,commentaries,andsoforth).
Shesystematicallyanalyseseachparatextcategory,explainingitsliteraryandsocialfunctions,discussingtheformsoftextscommonlyfoundtherein,andevaluatingtheusefulness(ornot)ofthosetextstounderstandingthelivesofthecollections'authors.
FongconcludesherextremelyusefulsurveybyemphasizingthatthelegacyofMingandQingwritingwomenwascentraltotherapiddevelopmentofwomen'seducationintheearlytwentiethcentury.
WeijingLu'scontribution,"PersonalWritingsonFemaleRelativesintheQingCollectedWorks"(pp.
411–34),arguesthatmen'swritingsabouttheirfemalerela-tivescompriseanimportantandstillunderusedsourceforthehistoryofChinesewomen.
Luopenswithabriefsurveyofthehistoryof"collectedworks"asagenre.
Shedelineatesthedifferentkindsoftextstypicallyfoundincollectedworks,payingspecialattentiontothecategoriesoftextsmentendedtousewhentheywroteaboutwomen.
ThebulkofLu'schapterthenpresentsanassortmentoflivelyandeffectiveexamples,drawnfromQingcollectedworks,ofmen'swritingabouttheirmothers,theirwives,theirdaughters,andoccasionalotherfemalerelatives.
Ineachcase,Lusuggeststothereaderthekindsofhistoricalconclusionsthatwemightdrawfromthecitedpassages,foregroundingtheinsightstheyprovideintoemotionallife,familydynamics,andwomen'spowerwithinfamilies.
Luacknowledgesthatmen'saccountsoftheirfamilymembersmustbe"takenwithagrainofsalt"(p.
430),butsheshowsthatsuchaccountscanadddepthandtexturetoourunderstandingofwomen'slives.
ICSJournal58_FA01_20Dec2013.
indb34320/12/132:45PMBookReviews344Attheoutsetofherinnovativechapter"Women'sCharacters:CalligraphyasaSourceforWomen'sHistory"(pp.
435–60),HuYingraisesthreequestions:"Istheregenderincalligraphy""WhatcancalligraphytellusaboutthehistoryofChinesewomenthat.
.
.
sourcessuchaspoetryandbiographycannot"And,"Isthereasignificantdifferenceinthewaycalligraphywaspracticedbywomenattheendoftheimperialerafromthewayitwaspracticedinthetwomillenniaprior"(p.
436).
Sheanswersthefirstquestionwithasuccinctgenderedhistoryofcalligraphy,inwhichshepointsoutboththeimportanceofwomenaspractitionersofcalligraphyandthesystematicbiasestowhichtheyweresubjected.
Theremainingtwoquestionsareansweredbymeansofabrilliantinvestigationofthevariant,thoughalwaysgendered,rolesthatcalligraphyplayedinthelivesandhistoricallegaciesofthreeearlytwentieth-centurywomen:therevolutionarymartyrQiuJin秋瑾;thewriterandcalligrapherWuZhiying吳芝瑛;andthecourtesan/concubineSaiJinhua賽金花.
Hushowsthatcalligraphy"meant"verydifferentthingsinthesewomen'slives,thoughshearguesthatinallcases"theirhandwriting.
.
.
endowedthe[ir]respectivecauseswithauthenticity"(p.
455).
HuYingconcludesthatherstudy"tell[s]usmoreabouthowhistorians(professionaloramateur)writehistory.
.
.
thanhowindividualsexperiencehistory"(ibid.
),butherchapterprovidesanexemplarymodelofhowcal-ligraphicsourcescanbedeployedinserviceofhistoricalinquiry.
JoanJudge'schapter,"AKaleidoscopeofKnowledgeaboutWomen:TheChi-nesePeriodicalPress,1872–1918"(pp.
461–85)arguesfortheimportanceofthelatenineteenth/earlytwentieth-centuryperiodicalpressasasourceforwomen'shistory.
Shemakeshercasebyinvestigatingthefraughttopicoffemalechastity.
Judgedemonstratesthatperiodicalsfromthisperiodexhibitedamultiplicityofviewsonfemalechastity:somemaleauthorscontinuedtocelebratechastewomen,whileothersborrowedrhetoricfrommenofearlierdynastiestocriticizethechastitycult.
Moreimportantly,aswomenbegantoairtheirviewsinthepublicpress,theytooexpressedadiversityofopinion:evenassomewantedtoseethevirtueofchastityadaptedtothenewnationalistcontext,otherspassionatelyarguedthatthechastitycultwasinimicaltomodernwomanhood.
Observingthatthelater(andlargelymale)MayFourthcritiqueofthechastitycult"occludedthisextensiveearliercritique"(p.
478),Judgemakesapersuasivecasethattheturn-of-the-centuryperiodicalpresscanhelpusrecoupamorecompleteandnuancedpictureofwomen'shistoryattheturnofthetwentiethcentury.
ThesameperiodicalpressisalsothesubjectofHon-mingYip's"BetweenDrawingandWriting:ProstitutesintheDianshizhaiPictorial"(pp.
487–542).
Yipcataloguessomeforty-twoillustrationsofcourtesansandprostitutesdrawnfromalatenineteenth-centuryillustratednewsmagazine,theDianshizhaihuabao點石齋畫報,providingabriefhistoryoftheperiodicalandexploringwhatcanbeknownoftheICSJournal58_FA01_20Dec2013.
indb34420/12/132:45PMBookReviews345illustrators.
Sheexaminessomeofthecommonthemesinthepictures,observingthattheillustrationsofcourtesanswereoftenpositive(forexample,showingthemgivingcharity),whilethoseofstreetwalkerswereoverwhelminglynegative(p.
492).
Shealsonotesthetensionbetweentheillustrations,whichwereoftensomewhatshocking,evenerotic,andthecaptions,whichtendedtomoralize.
Yipconcludesthatthesesourcesamplydemonstratethe"contradictionsandambiguities"(p.
497)experiencedinthisperiodofChina;thehappyinclusionofallforty-twoillustrationsallowsthereadertoseetheseambiguitiesherself.
Thefinalchapterofthevolume,WongManKong's"TheStoriesofUrbanChristianWomeninNineteenth-centurySouthChina:WithSpecialReferencetoMissionary-relatedSources"(pp.
543–70),tracesthebiographiesoftwoChineseChristianwomenwholivedinthelatenineteenthandearlytwentiethcenturies.
Thestoriesofthewomenthemselves(especiallythatofMargaretWongTuan-keng黃端瓊),containmanyfascinatingelements,andthematerialWongpresentsmakesitveryclearthatthesewomen'sEnglishlanguageskillsandconnectionswithforeignersallowedthemsubstantiallymorestatusandfreedomofaction(atleastwithinforeign-relatedcircles)thanmostoftheirpeers.
Wongconcedesthatmanydetailsofhersubjects'livesremain"somewhathazy"(p.
563),butheraccountdoesshowthatsourcesfrommissionaryarchivescanbeusedtoaugmentourunderstandingofthecomplexwaysChristianityaffectedsomeChinesewomen'slivesinthisperiod.
Thebookcloseswithbriefcomments(pp.
571–78)fromDorothyKo,AngelaKiCheLeung,Jo-shuiChen,andRobinD.
S.
Yates,cataloguingsomeoftheaccom-plishmentsofthevolumeandsuggestingnewavenuesforinvestigation.
Thevolume'sfinalpagesaredevotedto"ASelectedBibliographyofUsefulWorksontheMethod-ologiesofChineseWomen'sHistory,"compiledbyKar-keeLo盧嘉琪andHoi-lingLui呂凱鈴.
Thoughbrief,thebibliographyprovidesaconvenientreferencetomethodologicalwritingsinbothChineseandEnglish.
Takentogether,thechaptersandothermaterialsinthisvolumerepresentavalu-ablecontributiontothefieldofChinesewomen'sstudies,especiallyfortheimperialera.
TheeditorandtheChineseUniversityPressaretobecommendedforseeingitintoprint.
BeverlyBosslerUniversityofCalifornia,DavisICSJournal58_FA01_20Dec2013.
indb34520/12/132:45PM