| Women's writing between late Ming Dynasty and the beginning of the Republic of China has long been ignored in literary studies. Few researches, if any, have gone deeper than case studies of individual writers, or, at most, general survey of a certain group of writers or a certain type of literature. No overall perspective or research has ever been done, not to mention a just and objective evaluation. Great changes have taken place in women's writing ever since late Ming Dynasty. There appeared a vague awakening of women's subjective awareness, which was not as obvious as that during the New Cultural Movement. Moreover, some of the questions raised in women's writing of that period have been perplexing women ever since and remains unsettled even today. This dissertation attempts to make a comprehensive survey of the subjective awareness of the women's writing groups between late Ming Dynasty and the beginning of the Republic of China in order to find out its track of development as well as its impact on modern and contemporary women's literature. This is still an area unexplored up to the moment.In addition to introduction and conclusion, the whole paper consists of the following three parts:I. The Rise of Women's Writing Groups in the Ming and QingDynasties: The first appearance of women writers in groups occurred in late Ming Dynasty. However, women's writing groups did not become powerful and influential in literary arena until the mid-19th century. The economic and cultural flourish in the Ming and Qing Dynasties provided historical opportunity and material possibility for the rise of women's writing groups. The appearance and development of capitalism in mid-Ming Dynasty led to individual liberty and enlightenment in late Ming Dynasty, which went through ebb and flow in the following years and became concealed until the New Cultural Movement by the Movement of Saving the Nation from Extinction. One focus of the Enlightenment was advocating women's emancipation, which was most apparent in the support and appraisal of women's writings. Thereby, women writers came onto the historical stage as groups for the first time.II. Vague Awakening: Women writers in the Ming and Qing Dynasties produced in their writings a different focus from that in male writers' works. To a great extent, women's writings reflected the historical progress of Chinese women's emancipation. Works by women revealed the perplexity and difficulty of women's awakening. Unconsciously, they revealed the unique characteristics of women's thinking and the unique ways of expressing women's emotions. Though, on the whole, they did not transcendthe range and thinking modes stipulated for them by male enlighteners, their writings actually began to display some characteristics unique to females. While male writers focused their criticism on form, women writers expressed their genuine feelings and experiences in their works. As a result, rather than being restricted to what the males intended them to say, women writers exposed some truths about women, which were unlikely for males to experience and find out. III. Women Writing and the Movement to Save the Nation from Extinction: By the end of the 19th century, saving the nation from extinction became the mainstream of revolution. During this historical process, elite male intellectuals advocated the second movement of women's emancipation. This time, the focus was on individual obedience to the state and the nation. National interest is put a higher premium on over individual interest. Such a mode of thinking directly influenced the Chinese society from 1920s to 1970s. It produced more disadvantages than advantages to women's emancipation. On the other hand, with the passage of time, this Enlightenment did have some positive effect in promoting women's awakening. Under the influence of elite male intellectuals, some advanced women identified women's emancipation with liberation of the nation. They contributed women's emancipation to the liberation of the nation. Thereby,<...
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