Literary Criticism of “Preoccupation” through a Feminist Lens

By: Group –

Over the decades, a lot of various ways to analyze literature have been developed. One
of the approaches to literature that can be used in analyzing a literary work, such as a poem, is
the “feminist approach.” According to Spivak (1998), feminist literary criticism looks at
literature assuming its production from a male-dominated perspective. It re-examines canonical
works to show how gender stereotypes are involved in their functioning. Using the said literary
approach, Qui Jin’s “Preoccupation” will be analyzed by focusing on its speaker, the connections
of the characters involved to one another, the attitude of the author, and how all of these are
related to one another to discover its meaning.
The poem “Preoccupation,” written by Qui Jin, puts emphasis on the situation of the
speaker, who has to face inequality in different aspects of her life, including cruel and unjust
practices of beauty standards, particularly foot binding, and being imprisoned by an unhappy
marriage. Qui Jin’s aspiration for freedom and frustrations from society’s expectations and
restrictions on women are evident through showing in the poem that the speaker chose to be
independent in her life and go somewhere faraway, as she feels and thinks that women are
always in the dark of their lives because of sexism. Feminism is a movement among women
who aspire to achieve equality and seek to end the concept of sexism in society. In this literary
piece, Qui Jin plotted the idea of the effects of society’s expectations on women. Through this
idea, the author voiced out that women face oppression by obeying the expectations and rules
of society, such as when it comes to their physical appearance and their roles in society. Men
dominate women, and women plan and take various decisions and actions just to fit in with
society. Thus, making the less powerful women's lives harder to get out of. However, it was also
emphasized In this poem that women still have choice and power—choice and power to fight
for their rights, such as their right to freedom and to live their lives in peace, free from male
dominance.
The speaker in the poem is a Chinese woman who lives in a certain time period or
dynasty in China, as is evident in the fifth line, “Unbinding my feet I clean out a thousand years
in poison.” Foot binding was an ancient Chinese practice of changing young girls’ feet’ shape
and size by breaking them and wrapping them in a cloth. Furthermore, the fifth line reveals that
the speaker faces oppression against male dominance in the form of complying with society’s
expectations for women in her time, such as in relation to their roles based on their gender.
Foot binding, aside from being believed to be preparation for puberty, menstruation, and
childbirth, was also said to be a beauty standard in ancient China for having small feet and was
done to please the dominants, to be accepted by them, to secure a better social status in life,
etc. This practice limits the female’s mobility and symbolizes the female’s willingness to be
dominated by men. The gender stereotypes she experiences are also evident in the first,
second, seventh, and eighth lines: “Sun and moon have no light left, earth is dark;”; “Our
women’s world is sunk so deep, who can help us?”; “Alas this delicate kerchief here”; and “Is
half stained with blood, and half with tears,” as these express the extreme sorrow and pain she
feels in her situation as a powerless woman who is ruled by men in the society where she is
part of.
As the story in the poem continues, it is revealed that the speaker has an unhappy
marriage, as she tries to break the chain the society put on her by leaving the place where she
grows and letting go of her own family, her marriage, to go somewhere far away from them.
These are evident in the third and fourth lines: “Jewelry sold to pay this trip across the seas,”
and “Cut off from my family I leave my native land,” where she aspires to have her freedom and
live her life without being controlled by society, especially by men. Moreover, these exhibit the
clear truth that marriage causes women to steal their better lives away from them if male
dominance is present.
After analyzing the poem “Preoccupation” by Qui Jin using the feminist approach,
considering the portrayal of the speaker, the connection and impact of the characters to one
another, the tone of the author, and the relationships of all these elements or factors are
crucial in understanding the meaning of this literary work. The speaker in the poem is an
ancient Chinese woman who experiences gender stereotypes as she has connections and lives
in a patriarchal society with a lot of expectations and restrictions for women, such as when it
comes to marriage and certain ancient practices, but has an aspiration to change her life into a
better one by finding a place where she will fit and start the new life that she dreams of. Qui
Jin’s feelings about this poem, resentment for the negative view and unfair treatment of the
society against women, and her longing for equality regardless of the different genders that are
existing, are very important in revealing the meaning of her poem, which is the dream of ending
the patriarchy to have the opportunity for fair treatment and freedom among women in the
society they are living in. In connection with the poem and the real world, sexism still exists in
the present generation, and a lot of young girls and women suffer from its various effects. But
like the speaker in this poem, a lot of women in this generation support feminism for the sake,
betterment, and development of womanhood.