Interpretation Of The Female Images And Female Conception On The Biographies Of Women

"Biographies of Women" was not only the earliest history work of the Women in China, but also one of the excellent literary biography works. About 110 female characters were shaped in the book. Although they were different in status and appearance, everyone of them was an indispensable component of a literary landscape. Some of them were talented and moral, some of them bided by the etiquette strictly as saints. Some women were prefer justice to their lives, some women were full of courage and wisdom, as well as some were evil women who had damaged nations. Two types of people were distinguished by appearance, one was beauties with evil soul, the other was ugly women with rich talents. In the " Biographies of Women ", plot fictional narrative, personalized language, author's remarks highlighted the heroines characters and contributed to a good artistic effect, as well as revealed author's political aspirations. But compared to the former biographical literature, most heroines in this work had more in common characters but less in personality. In any case, the book still had far-reaching impacts on future literature. It created two kinds of category in literary genres, one kind was biographical literature with novel properties, the other was female type biographical literature. And it took a literature lead in shaping women groups' images. It greatly subverted the concept of literature in the beauty and ugliness, as well as provided an example in shaping "ideal type people". Through reading the book, we can find out a kind of unique conception of female. This conception of female was not only an extension of the previous traditional view of women, but also the concepts' reflection of the elites in Western Han Dynasty. At the same time it was unique character of Liu Xiang "Biographies of Women". It demonstrated characteristics which were limited by the times but also went beyond of the times, characters with strong ideal vision and contradictions that can not solve by its own. This "wandering" status showed the book's location among the rivers of traditional Chinese conception of female, the gateway where the system of traditional gender stereotyped. "Biographies of Women" given women multiple values with glorious ideal views. But it did not change the status of women's inferiority, but strengthened people with the view that female was "secondary" identity, which was a fundamental issue.