The Reclamation of the Feminine in Fin de Siècle Splendor Although removing gender markers from culture may appear progressive and egalitarian, the defeminization of women in China during the Cultural Revolution suppressed gender expression altogether, and created an oppressive and regressive gender sameness instead. Defeminization, by removing the feminine characteristics from gender, created a population that was masculine by default, thus characterizing femininity as expendable and masculinity as the default state. In Fin de Siècle Splendor, Zhu Tianwen expresses a reaction to this defeminizing regime. Her protagonist, Mia, lives her life in femininity; her career is centered around fashion, and she fills her house with flowers. Mia is
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Mia is free to express her femininity as she pleases, without being reprimanded by male coworkers or other men in her life. As a clothing model, she fills her career with aesthetic beauty. She also preserves flowers, attempting to capture their beauty in a permanent form and fascinated by the results. All of this may seem frivolous and superficial, but Mia makes her living off her own beauty and the beauty of clothing, making the frivolous femininity simultaneously practical, proving that hobbies and pretty clothes also have their value. While Mia accepts the gifts of her lover, she and her friends agree that “earning money and supporting themselves is a matter of pride” (Zhu 447). By emphasizing the practical purpose of Mia’s interests, Zhu reminds the reader that traditionally feminine interests and characteristics are inherently valid. Mia’s personal affinity for color and scent, as seen in her obsession with various shades of color and the lingering perfume of her dried flowers and herbs, is linked inextricably with her emotional memories of her past. This connects the emotional aspect of femininity to her superficial, aesthetic femininity. Mia’s feminine emotion, which is usually perceived as an insult rather than an asset, is correlated directly …show more content…
While some of Mia’s friends express their identities through their sexuality and their relationships with men, others embody their femininity through business and becoming career women. As Ann’s description notes, alongside her role as a beautician – also a female-coded career – she “does not need men; Ann says she has her vibrator” (Zhu 445). This statement highlights the independence of women in this era. Zhu asserts that although women and the feminine are typically seen as needing a husband and masculinity to provide money and guidance, women have the choice of their own futures. This is further evidenced by the phrasing of the following sentence, which states that Ann chose her lover. Some of Mia’s friends, on the contrary to Ann, choose men, marriage, and a domestic life; Baby and Wanyu both marry. To some extent, however, judgement is passed on them for their decisions, but this judgment tends to fall on how they behave in these roles; that Wanyu deserves time to herself, and that Baby attempted to tell Mia how to live her life. In truth, the choice of marriage is portrayed as equally valuable as choosing not to marry. This presentation of all forms of femininity as equally valid is a profoundly feminist and progressive
Mia is free to express her femininity as she pleases, without being reprimanded by male coworkers or other men in her life. As a clothing model, she fills her career with aesthetic beauty. She also preserves flowers, attempting to capture their beauty in a permanent form and fascinated by the results. All of this may seem frivolous and superficial, but Mia makes her living off her own beauty and the beauty of clothing, making the frivolous femininity simultaneously practical, proving that hobbies and pretty clothes also have their value. While Mia accepts the gifts of her lover, she and her friends agree that “earning money and supporting themselves is a matter of pride” (Zhu 447). By emphasizing the practical purpose of Mia’s interests, Zhu reminds the reader that traditionally feminine interests and characteristics are inherently valid. Mia’s personal affinity for color and scent, as seen in her obsession with various shades of color and the lingering perfume of her dried flowers and herbs, is linked inextricably with her emotional memories of her past. This connects the emotional aspect of femininity to her superficial, aesthetic femininity. Mia’s feminine emotion, which is usually perceived as an insult rather than an asset, is correlated directly …show more content…
While some of Mia’s friends express their identities through their sexuality and their relationships with men, others embody their femininity through business and becoming career women. As Ann’s description notes, alongside her role as a beautician – also a female-coded career – she “does not need men; Ann says she has her vibrator” (Zhu 445). This statement highlights the independence of women in this era. Zhu asserts that although women and the feminine are typically seen as needing a husband and masculinity to provide money and guidance, women have the choice of their own futures. This is further evidenced by the phrasing of the following sentence, which states that Ann chose her lover. Some of Mia’s friends, on the contrary to Ann, choose men, marriage, and a domestic life; Baby and Wanyu both marry. To some extent, however, judgement is passed on them for their decisions, but this judgment tends to fall on how they behave in these roles; that Wanyu deserves time to herself, and that Baby attempted to tell Mia how to live her life. In truth, the choice of marriage is portrayed as equally valuable as choosing not to marry. This presentation of all forms of femininity as equally valid is a profoundly feminist and progressive