Male dominance had always been present in multiple facets of traditional Chinese society, including the government, the family, and the arts. Because of this patriarchy, gender and sexual norms of how men and women should look and behave became established within society through depictions, interpretations, and visuals. One of the ways in which these gender and sexual norms were enforced and promoted was through visual portrayal in the Chinese opera. This is seen in the 1993 film, Farewell My Concubine. However, after the commencement of the Chinese Communist Revolution in 1931 and gradual influence from the West, these gender roles began to be called into question, concerning the ideas of what men and women were supposed to look and act. The 1993 film, M Butterfly, displays this blurring of gender norms during the mid-twentieth century in China as the Communist Revolution unfolds and the East becomes even more Westernized. In this, it shows the impact of the presentation of gender on one’s own sexual and gender identity. Both of the films, Farewell My Concubine and M Butterfly, show the contrast between
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Compared to Dieyi’s compliant, meek, and inferior “woman,” Juxian is much more driven, active, and headstrong. Throughout the film, Dieyi refers to Juxian as a “dragon woman,” comparing her to a wild, ferocious beast. However, while they represent different depictions of women and femininity, they are both reliant on the male, Xiaolou, and base their lives around him. In her analysis, Jenny Kwok Wah Lau argues, “Both consider their femininity and therefore their lives incomplete, if not non-existent, without the male.” This shows the solid establishment of patriarchal ideology in Chinese society. While Dieyi represents the more idealized vision of women with Juxian as the actual, more assertive woman, both characters are still integrated into the patriarchal
Compared to Dieyi’s compliant, meek, and inferior “woman,” Juxian is much more driven, active, and headstrong. Throughout the film, Dieyi refers to Juxian as a “dragon woman,” comparing her to a wild, ferocious beast. However, while they represent different depictions of women and femininity, they are both reliant on the male, Xiaolou, and base their lives around him. In her analysis, Jenny Kwok Wah Lau argues, “Both consider their femininity and therefore their lives incomplete, if not non-existent, without the male.” This shows the solid establishment of patriarchal ideology in Chinese society. While Dieyi represents the more idealized vision of women with Juxian as the actual, more assertive woman, both characters are still integrated into the patriarchal