Lecturer's view on women's virtues triggers controversy
- By Li Jingrong
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E-mail China.org.cn, May 24, 2017
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Ding Xuan speaks at a cultural forum held in Jinzhou, Liaoning Province. [A screenshot from an online video/Sina.cn] |
A recent university lecture by a well-known expert on traditional Chinese culture and values for women has drawn criticism from both students and commentators on the internet.
The lecture was delivered on May 14 at the Jiujiang University in southwest China's Jiangxi Province. It focused on women's virtues, especially "how to be a virtuous woman in the new era."
The controversy started shortly after a student leaked some screenshots of the PowerPoint lecture slides to the internet, with the sentences apparently coming into view such as – "A girl's best dowry is chastity" and "A woman wearing revealing clothes is vulgar and will be a jinx to her husband, her parents and her children."
The lecturer Ding Xuan is a 63-year-old expert on traditional Chinese culture and women's issues. She is a member of the China Women's Development Foundation and is often invited by educational institutes, governmental organizations and enterprises to discuss such topics related to traditional Chinese culture.
Ding's remarks at Jiujiang University have drawn wide attention over the past week, with many netizens criticizing her "feudalistic thinking" and "going against gender equality." Someone even questioned why Ding was provided a platform at the university to spread her ideas that "bring harm to society."
In response, the Publicity Department of Jiujiang University announced in a statement that the screenshots of PowerPoint slides shared on the internet quoted remarks out of context, and "the lecture of that day did not contain anything inappropriate."
On May 22, Ding finally responded to the controversy in an exclusive interview with BTimenow, during which she confirmed she had been personally invited by Jiujiang University to give a lecture on women's issues.
"The university valued my lecture a great deal; its publicity department director attended it and the vice president made a welcome speech," Ding said.
However, she did apologize for the controversy, saying, "Perhaps I delivered my speech in the wrong way." She still defended her stance, though. She insisted the sentences on the screenshots quoted her remarks out of context, as mentioned in the university's statement.
As for the remarks on women wearing revealing clothes, Ding explained that those who criticized her had not attended her lecture and probably did not understand the circumstances. "There were some students wearing revealing clothes that day, so I raised this issue. At the time, only a few people were opposed and they left early."
Ding hoped students could understand she was speaking for their own good. "They are now nice-looking ladies who want to dress up, but they shouldn't dress as if they are not wearing anything at all, or reveal their thighs and expose their cleavage…We bear the responsibility to teach our children, don't we? Women should dress properly to protect themselves – firstly to prevent getting sick, secondly to prevent sexual harassment."
Speaking of chastity, Ding also backed her point of view. "We should remind girls about retaining their chastity, which can guarantee the blessing of marriage. Who is willing to marry a woman who has had an abortion before marriage, and who was someone's mistress?"
"Of course, people can also have their own point of view, I don't object to that," She added.
Talking about women's virtues, Ding said a virtuous woman should "treat her parents with filial respect, comply with her husband, and love her children dearly.
"Abortion is a very painful thing for a young girl. I am not against gender equality, but I advocate a woman should mind her conduct," said Ding, insisting she only wanted women to have a lasting marriage and harmonious family as she takes a strong stand against frequent divorces.
Ding said her lecture was meant for female students to "respect themselves and find happiness." She stressed it is not her intention to make women do everything she says, and that her lectures just reflect her personal experiences and point of view.
"My grandmother and my mother taught me this way. It is how I live and how I teach my daughter to live," she said.
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