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From Romance to Life: Feminism in Chinese Modern Media

  • 作家相片: 雨晴 刘
    雨晴 刘
  • 2022年12月18日
  • 讀畢需時 10 分鐘

已更新：2022年12月19日

Yvonne Yuqing Liu

Gender, Race & Class and Media FA2022--Final Project

Instructor: David Winters

Introduction


Feminism is a social, political, and ideological movement that seeks to advance the rights and status of women. The development of feminism in China has a long and complex history, influenced by both indigenous and external factors. In recent years, there has been a growing awareness and discussion of feminism in China, with a particular focus on issues related to gender discrimination, sexual harassment, and violence against women.


One area of concern within the feminist movement in China is the portrayal of women in media. Traditional gender roles and stereotypes often dominate media representations of women, and female characters are often depicted in a way that reinforces these roles. There is also a tendency for the media to focus on physical appearance and sexual attractiveness rather than on the intelligence, abilities, or accomplishments of women. In addition to these issues, there is also a growing recognition of the ways in which class microaggressions can impact women in China. These microaggressions, which can take the form of subtle or unconscious biases based on social class, can affect the opportunities and treatment of women in areas such as education and employment.


In this project, we will observe and analyze the media text Delicious Romance (2021), an episode series illustrating 3 girls in their development of romantic relationships and self-value recognition and accomplishment. Along with studies from various aspects, we will explore how were women described and demonstrated, what are the common power relationships between males and females, and Chinese feminism developed through media.

Ⅰ. Women & Romance

Women's fantasies of romance have a long history, and this is partly a reflection of women's sense of self and their response to a society that has long been dominated by patriarchy. Society often places certain expectations on women when it comes to romance and relationships. These expectations can influence the types of romantic fantasies that women have, as well as the way they feel about expressing and pursuing those fantasies.


Regarding the fantasy of romance, women show more desire and enjoyment of love itself, but also show their physical and mental thirst for the opposite sex. They also hope to escape temporarily from the oppression of social reality in romantic literature, because the patriarchal society's discipline of women and the desire for masculinity to express themselves have suppressed women's need for romantic objects. (Yousman et al., 2020)


For some women, romance and feminism may seem like conflicting ideals. However, it's possible to embrace both and to find ways to incorporate feminist values into your romantic relationships. For example, this could involve seeking out partners who respect and support your autonomy or working to create a more equal power dynamic in your relationship. This is discussed in Rudman and Heppen's study: the study shows that romantic fantasies have a helpful role in engendering a positive and stable intimate relationship, but at the same time romance is idealizing feminism and making them financially and socially dependent on men, thus having a negative impact on women's self-independence and value realization. (2003)


(Episode 6, 13:37)

In the episode, one protagonist, Liu Jing,

when confronted with two men, does not choose her mate according to the expectations of society and her family, but rather, as she always does, through her own romantic chemistry and sexual experience with each other. Her choice is based on her own preferences, and the episode also features her expressing her own unstinting fantasies and needs for sex.


( Episode 2, at 5:52 )

Another one of the protagonists, in this play, Fang Xin, has a beautiful fantasy of love and her fantasy is in line with society's precept that women return and serve the family while leaving the man as the head of the family. We can see that she is happy and joyful in the face of her love interest's marriage proposal. She also does not hesitate to choose between career advancement and marriage - she chooses to give up her job promotion in favor of becoming a wife. Although her marriage ends in tragedy, we can see from her performance in the episode that women's expectations of a spouse and their romantic fantasies have led them to give up their equal social power and status in the family and in relationships with partners of the opposite sex.

Ⅱ. The "Rich Bitch" Phenomenon

Another interesting phenomenon in exploring women's power positions and relationships in society is that powerful women who are capable are seen as a symbol of losing femininity, and even some powerful women with strong female expression are experiencing stigmatization from the opposite sex and society. This syndrome constantly appears in the discussion of women and feministic power and is described as the “Rich Bitch” phenomenon, which is introduced by Lee and Moscowitz in their studies of the class and gender relationship and discrimination from the Real Housewives series. Generally speaking, wealthier roles, especially female roles, go against patriarchal societal expectations of female participants as subordinates. (Yousman et al., 2020) Wealthier women mean having more abilities and resources, which in turn leads to the fact that women will acquire a higher social status than men. This is a threat to masculinity and patriarchy, so they will either obviously or subconsciously try to weaken the power and status of the female role in gender relationships and in social structures. Both men and women who are subjected to masculine discipline will engage in the harmful and stigmatizing treatment of the "rich bitch".


(Episode 2, 16:55)

As we can see in this episode, Xia Meng, one of the main characters, often faces accusations from both her boyfriend Wang Jichong, and her parents for being the one who earns more, has higher social status, and has more say in the intimate relationship. She is often asked to "be soft" and "be more feminine", which is just linked to her role as a capable VP. So much so that when she breaks up with Wang Jichong, she tries to weaken her physical power and economic strength to satisfy the male desire for protection and conquest and to make herself more attractive as a woman when faced with a new love interest.


(Episode 4, 6:38)

Another scene that shows women being demonized by powerful women is the matchmaking convention in the fourth episode. As a corporate investment manager, Li Juan is not appreciated by the opposite sex in the dating market for her outstanding expertise in her field. Instead, her high salary and high social status would make men less likely to see her as a potential mate. Ironically, they would instead use her as a resource to enhance their social status rather than as a relationship development partner. In contrast to Li Juan, there is another girl who is young and slender and presents her femininity in the way that men most appreciate. This girl said during the chat that she "wants to get married at 24, have children at 25, and have a second child by 30," which made her very popular among the male guests because she fulfilled men's expectations and submissive attributes about the role and responsibilities of women in the family.


The study of sex discrimination and female top managers is also a reflection of the limitations of a male-dominated society on "rich bitch". According to the sex ratio at birth data, the percentage of women in leadership positions is lower in areas where discrimination against women is more prevalent. And even when women do reach leadership positions, they are paid less on average than their male counterparts at the same level. There is much evidence that discrimination against women's social status, personal talents, and family functions hinders women's upward mobility in the workplace and stigmatizes and demonizes women who are doing well in their careers. (Gao et al., 2015)

Ⅲ. Gender Minority Groups Representation

Chinese media has a historically limited representation of gender minority groups, with stereotypical and often negative depictions being common. However, in recent years there have been some efforts to increase representation and inclusivity in the media industry, with a growing number of gender minority individuals appearing in film, television, and other forms of media. Despite these efforts, there is still a long way to go in terms of accurately and respectfully depicting gender minority communities in Chinese media. It is important for media outlets to prioritize diversity and inclusivity in their content and hiring practices in order to better serve and represent the experiences of all members of society.


According to Yang's research on the empowerment of Chinese sexual minorities, the representation, and voices of sexual minorities in China have increased in the social media era. In the Chinese context, the lack of attention to the LGBTQIA+ community comes from a lack of information and knowledge, but with the use of social media, information interactions have become more frequent, and sexual minorities in China have been empowered and have increased their capacity for publicity, social visibility, and promoting the acceptance of LGBTQIA+ individuals through disseminating knowledge about the community. (2018) In the digital world, sexual minorities, such as transgender and queers, have been empowered as never before and have increased their voice and group expression in the media world, and the consumerism culture, on the other hand, disseminates the illustration of sexual minorities as a "gender as consumption". (Yousman et al., 2020)


(Episode 14, 13:49)

This episode shows the representation of sexual minorities in the media and contemporary culture; Mr. Huang is initially misunderstood by Fang Xin as having an interest in himself, and he implies his sexuality through his choice of venue and the symbolism of the drag show while having dinner with Fang Xin. In their discussion, we can see that society is now becoming more open to sexual minorities, even though it is still a taboo subject for the mainstream media. The director and screenwriter take a very open approach here: there is no mention of the fact that Mr. Huang is gay and married to his ex-wife, and the reference to his ex-wife's "best friend" is also very flattering. We can see that media content is now discussing as much as possible about sexual minorities within the limits of the rules, and at the same time, this controversial topic is being used as a buying point for media content in the Chinese context.

Ⅳ. Femvertizing

Femvertising, raised by Andie Zeisler (2017), also known as feminist advertising, is a type of advertising that promotes messages of gender equality and empowerment, as well as self-views and features of women, particularly targeting women and girls. These advertisements often highlight social issues and seek to break down stereotypes and biases and penetrate feminist ideals into popular culture. (Yousman et al., 2020) Femvertising can take many forms, including television commercials, print ads, and digital campaigns. With the development of the fourth-wave feminist movement, especially the discussion and activism on social media, advertising for feminist appeal has also gained a greater development. (Michaelidou et al., 2022) One of the main goals of femvertising is to create a positive and inclusive culture that celebrates diversity and challenges traditional gender roles. By promoting messages of equality and empowerment, femvertising aims to create a more equitable society for all. (Yousman et al., 2020)


(Episode 20, 33:23)

In the final episode of the series, we learn that Fang Xin and her PR agency are working on a media campaign for a new black wedding dress and that Fang Xin's colleagues' proposal focuses on "black is the new white" to break the stereotypes of weddings and brides. Fang Xin's proposal was to create a marketing concept of "wedding dresses for all women" based on women's dilemmas and self-development and choices. Both of these examples are advertising and marketing strategies that address the concept of feminism, focusing on the value and performance of women as consumers of products rather than on the stereotype of imposition. Meanwhile, Delicious Romance is a femvertizing product itself. It also promotes the concept of feminism and discusses the reality of women's dilemmas and ideal intimate relationships, which is one of the aspects of its acceptance by the public as a successful media product.

Audiences' Reception


In this project, audiences' reception was investigated and analyzed the comments from Chinese Audiences of the episodes. Audiences' reception was generally appreciative and supportive of the current status of women and feminist concepts that Delicious Romance presents and discusses through its plotting. Moreover, the majority of viewers believe that the show is a modern romantic comedy that has produced a phenomenal film and television presentation, among many other media productions in the same genre or discussing intimate relationships between the two sexes.

First of all, the episodes focus on genuine and realistic women in their lives, leaving behind all the hovering settings so that viewers can relate more strongly and focus on feminist issues and related topics from their own perspective, as well as thinking about gender, pan-gender and transgender and trans-orientation intimacy and social relationships.

Some audiences also praised the show's portrayal of women as a group. In past media productions with similar female themes, women are often categorized and subconsciously graded when they are portrayed as feminine. Delicious Romance conveys a positive and healthy perception of feminism in its portrayal of women, which is essentially a form of class discrimination, whereas feminism is not supposed to differentiate women.

One of the most important messages that this show allows the audience to receive is that it makes them start thinking about women's sense of self and the value choices they make based on their own sense. By interpreting and discussing contemporary women's choice between romantic and ideal love, and spreading the message of women's empowerment through femvertizing, the episodes enabled the audiences to receive a message that the desire for love is a legitimate demand of women, rather than one that should meet the constraints and oppression of patriarchal and marital power.

Conclusion


Feminism in China is growing rapidly with the development of the global fourth-wave feminist movement and the widespread penetration of digital media in our lives. Through the observation and analysis of the drama series Delicious Romance, in which women are the protagonists, we can dissect some of the concepts and phenomena of feminism in Chinese mainstream media today. From women's fantasies of romance to the power dynamics of women's social resources and status in relation to the opposite sex, and the presentation of sexual minorities, to femvertizing as a way to break down superficial stereotypes of women, we can understand that feminism and related discussions have been well represented in film and television. These films and television works are also supporting the development of feminist activism.

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