The Subjugation Of Women In Chinese Culture: A Study Of Pearl S. Buck’s The Good Earth

Abstract

Women in the Chinese society were powerless and were confined to their houses. They were severely oppressed and were also denied the opportunity to participate in public life. The patriarchal Chinese society viewed women as social burdens. Female infanticide was very common in China, as the birth of girl children was considered as a source of misery and disgrace for the families. It was also practiced as a way to protect family resources from getting wasted. The Good Earth, reflects the predicament of women in the Chinese society. The novel The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck was published in the year 1931. It is the first book in her House of Earth trilogy, followed by the novels Sons and A House Divided. The Good Earth is Pearl S. Buck’s most renowned novel. Being one of the most celebrated works of that time, it was translated into more than thirty languages and was also made into a movie in the year 1937. It was the bestselling novel in the United States for two successive years and has also won the Pulitzer Prize in the year 1932. The Good Earth addresses the family life in the early twentieth century traditional Chinese society, particularly the subjugation of women.