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The study of the impact of globalization on women in China examines the role and status of Chinese women relative to the political and cultural changes that have taken place in the 20th century as a consequence of globalization. Globalization refers to the interaction and integration of people, products, cultures and governments between various nations around the globe; this is fostered by trade, investment, and information technology.〔Carnegie Endowment for the International Peace. (2009). ''What is Globalization?''. Retrieved November 26, 2009. Retrieved from www.globalization101.org/What_is_Globalization.html.〕 Globalization affected women's rights and the gender hierarchy in China, in aspects of domestic life such as marriage and primogeniture, as well as in the workplace. These changes altered the quality of life and the availability of opportunities to women at different junctures throughout the modern globalization process. The dynamics of gender inequity are correlated with the ideological principles held by the ruling political regime. The imperial era was dominated by the social paradigm of Confucianism, which was a pervasive philosophy throughout the Orient. Confucian ideals emphasized morality, character, social relationship, and the status quo.〔Main Concepts of Confucianism. (n.d.). Retrieved November 28, 2009. Retrieved from http://philosophy.lander.edu/oriental/main.html.〕 Confucius preached ''jen'' (humanity) and the equality and educability of all people;〔Ng, R.M. (2009). College and character: What did Confucius Teach Us About the Importance of Integrating Ethics, Character, Learning, and Education? Journal of College & Character, vol 10(4), pp 1-7.〕 Neo-Confucianists and Imperial leaders used his beliefs in social hierarchy, particularly in the family setting, for the physical and social oppression of women. As the Chinese government began to re-assimilate themselves into the global community in the late 19th to early 20th century, it shifted away from conventional Confucian ideals and women’s role in society changed as well. After Mao Zedong established the People’s Republic of China in 1949, a change in traditional gender roles came about. Mao’s death marked the beginning of the current communist administration and an influx of international communications in the areas of commerce, politics and social ideals.〔Sung, Y. W. (1991). The China- Hong Kong Connection: The Key to China’s Open Door Policy. pp. 1-183. New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-38245-9〕 Since the 1980s, under the new communist party, the women’s rights movement has gained momentum and has become a national issue and a sign of modernization. In rural areas, women traditionally work alongside their family to produce crops like tea and rice. In urban areas, women work in factories, living away from home. Most of these factory workers are young girls that send their income to their families. To help maintain the rights of women in factories, labor unions and organizations were built. In their homes, women take care of their children and cook. ==Western bias== Western scholarship has historically used ideas of subordinance and victimization to characterize traditional Chinese womanhood. These beliefs were largely constructed on the basis of ideological and political agendas, and were widely accepted despite their ethnocentrism.〔Teng, J. E. (1996). The construction of the “traditional Chinese woman” in western academy: A critical review. ''Signs'', Vol 22 (1), pp. 115-151.〕 Early European writings pertaining to Chinese women were produced by missionaries and ethnologists at the conclusion of the 19th century.〔 The goal of the missionaries was to “civilize China,” and highlighting weakness and victimization provided for the continuance of their work.〔 This belief prompted scholars to use female subordination as a means to validate Western ideas about Chinese culture and Confucian principles.〔 In the 1970s, as the feminist movements were forming, they began to affect the literature surrounding women in China. Studies on Chinese women from this period were concerned with women’s liberation, and were sympathetic to the feminist movement. This sentiment largely influenced the topics and methodology of the research.〔 With this shift in perspective, the focus of discourse remained on subordination, patriarchal oppression, and victimization. These studies examined such issues as foot binding and the chastity of widows.〔 Literature formulated by feminist writers did nothing to dispel the myth of the weak, subservient woman. These works provided a new bias that had not before been articulated. Feminists believed that Chinese women were a part of a “universally subordinated womanhood".〔 This line of thinking illustrates the cultural superiority inherently felt by Western women. Writings on Chinese woman rarely account for differences in time, ethnicity, class, region or age, preferring to describe the status of women as a static, unitary fixture of Chinese culture, despite the political and geographic boundaries that defined different regions and the economic and social changes that occurred throughout history.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Globalization and women in China」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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