On Ann Pang-White’s “Reappraising Ban Zhao: The Advent of Chinese Women Philosophers”

Abstract

Ann Pang-White’s talk, titled “Reappraising Ban Zhao: The Advent of Chinese Women Philosophers,” focused on Ban Zhao 班昭 (45–117 CE), the author of the work Lessons for Women (Nujie 女诫). The presentation also examined a wide range of Ban’s writings, including her poetry and memoranda, and was thus able to reappraise Ban’s philosophical stance and her distinctive approach to gender politics and the subversion of traditional gender norms. While acknowledging Ban’s conservativism, Pang-White contextualized Ban mainly as a public actor and intellectual, someone who created a new genre of women writing for women, and opening the door for many other female authors.

Notes

1 The recording of this lecture is available at: https://www.sihaiweixue.org/recordings.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Maja Maria Kosec

Maja Maria Kosec is a doctoral candidate, teaching assistant, and junior researcher at the Department of Asian Studies, Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana. She holds a Master’s degree in Sinology with a thesis on the preservation of Confucian traditions in the Chinese diaspora. Her previous research focused on the religious and political practices of the Chinese diaspora in Cuba, while her current research focuses on the history of ideas from a comparative perspective. She is particularly interested in modern and contemporary Chinese philosophers and their theories on the origins of Chinese culture and Chinese religion.