DRAFT:

FEMINISM: RAISE THE RED LANTERNSon

- Songlian must as Ward mentions in her book, “swallow such customs as breaking and binding
little girl’s feet.” Every evening, a red lantern is lit in front of the courtyard of the wife Chen
chooses to sleep with.
- The relationships between Chen and his wives are purely sexual.
- Rather than helping each other out and raising their status within the family, the wives are
constantly fighting among themselves to win favors from Chen.
- The wives who live in separate houses must compete for the affections and privileges of the
master in accordance with his customs.
- In the patriarchal structure of the home, power rested most on the Master, who was a male.
The Master had relatively more power than his mistresses, who were females.
- The Master had the power to decide on whose quarter he would stay for the night or whenever
he wanted to, thereby choosing among his mistresses who would get a foot massage, who
would be allowed to decide what food she wanted to eat, and who would receive the most
attention from him and from the servants.
- In fact, power rested most on the Master to the extent that he could manipulate events within
the home in accordance with his interests.
- Of course, it was not in the interest of the Master to be called a “murderer,” that is why he
attempted to “brainwash” Songlian and to manipulate the details of the incident by
saying’that she saw nothing, and that she was mad.
- Second, let us talk about the power of the mistresses over the Master. Although relatively less
powerful, power was also held by the mistresses – who were females – because the physical
desires of the Master, and his desire of having children (particularly male children), would not
have been satisfied if it were not for their help.
- This was very evident in the character of Songlian. She was able to deceive the Master, the
mistresses and the servants that she was pregnant, until, of course, Dr. Gao told the Master
that she was not pregnant. Before the discovery of Songlian’s fake pregnancy, everything was
happening according to her plans.
- I, as a viewer, felt her desire for someone to make her feel loved, or to simply to be her
company. In Songlian’s case, I think that Songlian desired to have Feipu as her company with
the aim of getting rid of her feelings of loneliness and lack of purpose.
- Based on the hierarchical relations within the home, the mistresses had power over the
servants. That is why when Songlian had to be subjected to the family rules for claiming that
she was pregnant (although she as not), she revealed Yang’s secret about the red lanterns in
her room. Songlian would not allow herself to be subjected to the family rules without Yang
being subjected to the rules as well.
- Finally, let us focus on the politics of the home. All the actors in the conceptual diagram were
bounded by family rules, custom and tradition. That is why those who attempted to challenge
those rules had to deal with the consequences of their actions.
A. Yang had to kneel on the snow until she admitted that she was wrong in secretly lighting
lanterns in her room;
B. Meishan had to be hanged secretly in a room at the top of the roof after the discovery of
her affair with Dr. Gao
C. Songlian did not win the Master’s attention anymore after deceiving everyone about a
fake pregnancy
- The film “Raise the Red Lantern” was an effective medium for political socialization in an
“emotionally cold” way. The film portrayed marriage without any “intimate affection” toward
one’s partner.
- This feeling was aggravated because there were four mistresses who competed against one
another for the attention of one person, the Master.
- the viewers would acquire political beliefs and values that would be either in favor of or
against the portrayed power relations of actors within the home in China in the 1920s.
- Ultimately, rules prescribe and fashion our roles/functionality within the society. In reference
to the film, the role performed by women within the household is dictated by the hierarchical-
character of the hundred-year traditions and customs of the Chen family. They define how
concubines within the house should socialize with the master and with one another.
- For example, in the concubine-master relationship, the concubines should always bear in
mind the fact of their lives of enticing the master using their wits, skills, looks, whatever they
have, into sleeping with one of them.
- In addition, the presence of certain facets of the norms and traditions reinforces these macro-
structural household rules. The embededness of incentives and rewards, such as the lavish
foot massages, scores of red lanterns being lit, and the favors of the master, within these
family norms and traditions greases the engine of competition among the four wives and at
the same time, affirms the stability of such rules.
- Songlian's economic situation before her entry into the household.
- one way for her to stop responding to the dictation of society while protecting herself from
punishment for non compliance (death) is through becoming insane.
- the wealth of the master affirms his superior position over his concubines and servants within
the hierarchical (patriarchal) character of the household.
- This circumstance justifies the master's right to command the individuals within his
household. In a nutshell, the established social roles accorded to women are all penned by
society
- in light of this, we can identify the mother as the primary offender of women's rights in the
film. She does not have the right to dictate her daughter's decision since Songlian, at the age
of nineteen, is already mature enough to decide for herself and has even received education
from a university
- At this point, one can label the master a violator of women's rights. Their confinement within
the thick and towering concrete walls of the Chen's compound is an indicative circumstance.
In the end of the film, the master's decision to kill the third concubine further implicated him
as a violator of women's rights.
- At this point, one can label the master a violator of women's rights. Their confinement within
the thick and towering concrete walls of the Chen's compound is an indicative circumstance.
In the end of the film, the master's decision to kill the third concubine further implicated him
as a violator of women's rights.

- The film reveals China’s culture on marital arrangement way back 1920s

- Women would be submissive on the society

- Belief of acceptance of polygamous marriage, allows men to marry as
many wives as they want as long as that the man can provide all the
needs of his big family