tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8512320847423453564.post4536950639528541902..comments2023-10-04T20:13:17.920-07:00Comments on Alice Poon 潘慧嫻 : Brief History of the Chinese Courtesan CultureAlice Poonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09609401410736190370noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8512320847423453564.post-78607799138556912372022-11-29T17:11:40.835-08:002022-11-29T17:11:40.835-08:00Hi Anon:
Thank you for leaving a comment.
On the ...Hi Anon:<br />Thank you for leaving a comment. <br />On the subject of musicians in the "Pear Garden", I did mention that it was an imperial academy run by the Emperor himself. These were trained to become court entertainers, and might be picked to become the Emperor's consorts at his whim.<br />All the information shown in this blog post can be easily searched or gleaned from writings on the Chinese internet, mostly based on the book "中國娼妓史" (作者: 王書奴).Alice Poonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09609401410736190370noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8512320847423453564.post-70681697390643306892022-11-29T04:05:47.518-08:002022-11-29T04:05:47.518-08:00Thank you for your thorough explanation of the &qu...Thank you for your thorough explanation of the "royal academies" and jianmin status. I was looking for some answers after watching a drama set in the Northern Song era (which was inspired by the play Zhao Pan'Er). It's really sad to realize that there was a permanent hereditary underclass for hundreds of years. And that regular outbreaks of moralism did nothing to curtail the slave trade or the sexual exploitation of lower class women but arguably just made a lot of their lives worse. <br /><br />What you didn't touch on was the subject of musicians in the "Pear Garden" who weren't prostitutes. Apparently there was some difference in status there. But I don't know if this is based on historical sources or just a writer's imagination because virginity and unavira status was prized in a highly patriarchal society. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8512320847423453564.post-67973647289437821452020-02-19T10:16:33.332-08:002020-02-19T10:16:33.332-08:00
Hi Boireannach! Thank you for your comment. Yes, ...<br />Hi Boireannach! Thank you for your comment. Yes, gender and class discrimination was the double scourge for low-born Chinese women. Thank you for your interest in my forthcoming novel! Please check my blog for announcement of the release date.Alice Poonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09609401410736190370noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8512320847423453564.post-60852762111099644392020-02-19T07:01:42.865-08:002020-02-19T07:01:42.865-08:00Thanks for sharing. I've recently been watchin...Thanks for sharing. I've recently been watching Chinese fantasy movies and wondered why brothels figured so prominently in them and how the courtesans were cultured in poetry, dancing and music. People just took the brothels for granted. Your post explains the culture though I'm amazed by the way women were and are treated. I'll look out for your novel when it's published. It sounds fascinating. Boireannachhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12086489342679343453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8512320847423453564.post-76753953052160875782020-02-18T15:23:16.924-08:002020-02-18T15:23:16.924-08:00
Thanks! Announcement will be made as soon as prac...<br />Thanks! Announcement will be made as soon as practicable! Please watch this space :)Alice Poonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09609401410736190370noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8512320847423453564.post-18348110020677367362020-02-18T15:00:21.352-08:002020-02-18T15:00:21.352-08:00Looks like the book will be a must read then. Plea...Looks like the book will be a must read then. Please let us know when it becomes available.<br /><br />JoelAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08856949733490379783noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8512320847423453564.post-76636338017417615922020-02-18T14:17:44.431-08:002020-02-18T14:17:44.431-08:00Thank you for leaving a comment, Joel! I'm gla...<br />Thank you for leaving a comment, Joel! I'm glad you enjoyed this piece. My upcoming novel "Tales of Ming Courtesans" deals in depth struggles and love relationships of three famous late-Ming courtesans.Alice Poonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09609401410736190370noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8512320847423453564.post-27228811834505703222020-02-18T14:04:42.876-08:002020-02-18T14:04:42.876-08:00Thanks Alice for this fascinating account. I had n...Thanks Alice for this fascinating account. I had no idea the practice went back two and a half millennia. The connection with poetry is very interesting and gives the practice an added dimension. Some of the dynamics of such relationships was beautifully dealt with in the film Raise the Red Lantern by Zhang Yimou with Gong Li. Although set in the 1920s it gives you some idea of the jealousies and intrigue that must have taken place.<br /><br />Joel Schiff<br />AucklandJoel Schiffhttp://jschiff.comnoreply@blogger.com