05355nam 22008775 450 991038955490332120190828104755.00-8248-6936-20-8248-6392-51-4416-1985-210.1515/9780824863920(CKB)1000000000788083(OCoLC)436458831(CaPaEBR)ebrary10386697(SSID)ssj0000219878(PQKBManifestationID)11184759(PQKBTitleCode)TC0000219878(PQKBWorkID)10248149(PQKB)11364303(MiAaPQ)EBC3413301(StDuBDS)EDZ0001558057(MdBmJHUP)muse11485(DE-B1597)484062(OCoLC)1024028255(OCoLC)1029835423(OCoLC)1032677273(OCoLC)1037980763(OCoLC)1041901776(OCoLC)1046610587(OCoLC)1047011957(OCoLC)1049633112(OCoLC)1054874806(DE-B1597)9780824863920(EXLCZ)99100000000078808320190828d2008 fg engurcn|||||||||txtccrPerforming Grief Bridal Laments in Rural China /Anne E. McLarenHonolulu : University of Hawaii Press, [2008]©20081 online resource (225 p.) Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph0-8248-3232-9 Includes bibliographical references (p. 189-200) and index.Frontmatter -- Contents -- Preface -- Introduction -- PART I: The Bridal Laments of Nanhui -- Chapter 1. Imagining Jiangnan -- Chapter 2. The People of the Sands -- Chapter 3. The Hollow Cotton Spool: Women's Labour in Nanhui -- Chapter 4. Seizing a Slice of Heaven: The Lament Cycle of Pan Cailian -- PART II: Lament Performance in China: History and Ritual -- Chapter 5. Weeping and Wailing in Chinese History -- Chapter 6. Shaking Heaven Laments and Ritual Power -- Afterword -- Appendix 1 Nanhui Lament Transcription -- Appendix 2 Translation: The Bridal Laments of Pan Cailian of Shuyuan, Nanhui -- Notes -- Glossary -- Bibliography -- Index -- About the AuthorThis is the first in-depth study of Chinese bridal laments, a ritual and performative art practiced by Chinese women in premodern times that gave them a rare opportunity to voice their grievances publicly. Drawing on methodologies from numerous disciplines, including performance arts and folk literatures, the author suggests that the ability to move an audience through her lament was one of the most important symbolic and ritual skills a Chinese woman could possess before the modern era.Performing Grief provides a detailed case study of the Nanhui region in the lower Yangzi delta. Bridal laments, the author argues, offer insights into how illiterate Chinese women understood the kinship and social hierarchies of their region, the marriage market that determined their destinies, and the value of their labor in the commodified economy of the delta region. The book not only assesses and draws upon a large body of sources, both Chinese and Western, but is grounded in actual field work, offering both historical and ethnographic context in a unique and sophisticated approach. Unlike previous studies, the author covers both Han and non-Han groups and thus contributes to studies of ethnicity and cultural accommodation in China. She presents an original view about the ritual implications of bridal laments and their role in popular notions of "wedding pollution." The volume includes an annotated translation from a lament cycle.This important work on the place of laments in Chinese culture enriches our understanding of the social and performative roles of Chinese women, the gendered nature of China's ritual culture, and the continuous transmission of women's grievance genres into the revolutionary period. As a pioneering study of the ritual and performance arts of Chinese women, it will be of interest to scholars and students in the fields of anthropology, social history, gender studies, oral literature, comparative folk religion, and performance arts.Country lifeChinaSocial life and customsOral traditionChinaLamentsChinaRural familiesChinaSocial conditionsWomenChinaSocial conditionsBridesChinaSocial conditionsArranged marriageChinaMarriage customs and ritesChinaChinaSocial life and customsElectronic books. Country lifeSocial life and customs.Oral traditionLamentsRural familiesSocial conditions.WomenSocial conditions.BridesSocial conditions.Arranged marriageMarriage customs and rites392.50951LB 60440rvkMcLaren Anne E., 948780DE-B1597DE-B1597BOOK9910389554903321Performing Grief2564271UNINA