Read the following poem by Elizabeth Croll. Croll describes the evolving identities of women in China. China is a very large country and contains varying attitudes. The following poem in her book describes an attitude that could be considered more traditional within China's culture.
After reading, please post a reaction to the poem. Do you think the different treatments of sons and daughters is fair? Do you think the depiction is realistic? If so, to what extent? What connections can you make to your own culture?
Please comment on at least one other post.
Daughter Order
When a son is born
Let him sleep on the bed
Clothe him with fine clothes
And give him jade to play with
How Lordy his cry is!
May he grow up to wear crimson
And be the lord of the clan and the tribe.
When a daughter is born,
Let her sleep on the ground
Wrap her in common wrappings
And give her broken tiles for play things
May she have no faults, no merits of her own
May she well attend to food and wine
And bring no discredit to her parents.
After reading the poem I think the different treatments of sons and daughters is not fair according to the morality nowadays and as I’m a Chinese I know the depiction is realistic because even now the concept of son is superior to daughter still existing in some area of China. I think this issue is not only happening in China, as well as many other countries including the Western ones, this is caused by the society since the man is taking responsible and gaining money for the whole families. By hearing the conversation among the elder generation, I remember once they said boys were more important because during the old days when a boy grew up he could help the family to improve their living condition by farming lands and a married daughter was like water that had been poured no longer belongs to her parents. However, their minds are changing with the development of society, now girls are treated equally as the boys, like my mother said only daughters will always take care of their parents when they get old.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading this poem by Elizabeth Croll , I think that the diffrent treatment between boys and girls is completly wrong. Boys and Girls should be treated equally. They are both childrens of God. They are both human beings, not a creepy creature or an alien. I find both boys and girls useful in life, and none are useless.
ReplyDeleteFrom the beginning of the poem "daughter order" by Elizabeth Croll, you can understand that there is inequality between the son and the daughter. This is due to the fact that the title is directed to the daughter but the poem begins emphasizing the son. I personally think that the treatment a daughter deserves should be the same of the son's because they are both the best thing parents might have. I think that both sons and daughter should deserve the same beautiful treatment from parents, because kids are the best thing a parent would want.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading this poem, i couldn't believe it, in now days, its not acceptable anymore that there is difference of treatment between son and daughters. I think the depiction of the poem would be realistic, many years ago. Not now in 2011, the difference between sexes is now a past thing, a part for some special countries. Honestly it is very difficult to find a connection between this poem, and italian culture. The only thing that would vaguely be similar is that still today it's the mother who cares a bit more for the caring of the house, and the dad cares for his work.
ReplyDeleteThe poem "Daughter Order" written by Elizabeth Croll reflects the different treatments between sons and daughters. I think that the different types of treatment is not fair because all human beings should be treated equally, no matter is they are black or white, woman or man, poor or rich. Said this, I think that this poem is an exaggeration of how Chinese people treat differently sons from daughters, there is something true, but it is mostly an exaggeration. There are no connections with my own culture because all human beings, especially the children, are treated equally.
ReplyDeleteFor Majid: I don't think they have to be treated equally because they are children of God, but mostly because they are their own children.
Roberto Dentice.
In the poem “Daughter Order” written by Elizabeth Croll, the writer shows the differences between female and male reflacting the Chinese culture. In fact, the sons are treat as “lord of the clan”, sleeping on a confort bed and fine clothes. Also, it is permitted to them to play with “jade” and when they are “grow up to wear crimson”. On the other hand, the daughters are not important as the sons. They must “sleep on the ground” with common clothes and play with “broken tiles.” In conclusion, the sons’ birth and growth look more important and wealthy then the daughter’s birth and growth.
ReplyDeleteOur century is different from the old centuries. May years ago in Europe was the same thing as in China. The men was much more important then the women’s one. They were considered strong, and the first-born the most important son in the family. Now females and males are the same, there isn’t anymore discrimination against women. Nevertheless, in some countries women are not respected as they should be, but are considered inferior as many years ago.
The poem "Daughter Order" by Elizabeth Croll explains the evolving identities of women in China. You can immidiately understand the difference from male to female "When a son is born Let him sleep on the bed", and "When a daughter is born, Let her sleep on the ground". In China women are not treated equally as men. Male have a superior than female in every content. In my opinion male and female should be treated equally in terms of laws, but in other other cases man and women could be treated differently. I think it is not only China's problem but much more in the Islam countries where women are forced to where burquas.
ReplyDeleteTo Aini:
I can certainly confirm to you that in many countries man has much more power that ladies and that they treat them as slaves.
After reading this poem I thought that China’s culture is really unfair, I obviously respect other cultures and I don’t want to judge, but sometimes this kind of discrimination between boys and girls just goes too far.
ReplyDeleteAs Majid said, we are all human beings, each one with his talents, merits, values and imperfections, that’s what makes us different than anyone else, but we are still connected by the same rights to be respected. China is not the only place with this kind of thought, for example in Africa there are still some cultures where infibulation is inflicted to all the girls by the age of 14 years old, or less. It’s an horrifying practice that is still part of a culture that simply didn’t move on. So will take a lot of time, for some places in the world, to get the same treatment between sons and daughters.
After reading this poem based on the inequalities between boys and girls,written by Elizabeth Croll. My first reaction to this poem was totally negative. I was against the ideas of the author.In my opinion there is no difference between male and females. Without any doubts boys are better in some things and girls are better in other things, but they are still humans, and humans are all the same.
ReplyDeleteThis poem by Elizabeth Croll explains in a very direct and straight to the point way how boys and girls are treated in China. I think its wrong to give all the importance to the boys because both men and women are usefull in life, they are good in different ways both phisically and emotionlly since the beginning of life, man was the one that had to do the "hard work", instead the woman was the one that used to stay home and give love and affection to the man. I think that this way of thinking i changing with this new society where every body is "equal". In Italy for example most of the women go to work and bring the money home.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading this poem by Elizabeth Croll, I think that the different treatement to the daughter and son is obviously unfair, why should the son have more importance than the daughter. Although I don't know of even know in China the parents act like this with their children I think that this is not realistic for the majority of the families. A connection to our culture can be a father that wants his son for example to be the best in some sport so he make him train severly.
ReplyDeleteThis poem gives a wrong message to the reader because now girls are independent as boys, but some people still think that men is the dominating sex, but they are wrong. We are completely equal.
ReplyDeleteafter i reading this poem I think that the diffrent treatment between boys and girls is not fair to the girls,well since i was chinese and i an boy i can tell i can fell the different between me and my sister but that is before in now have boys or girls is same but i know there still have this happen.
ReplyDeleteIf my eyes would see something of this type I think that they shall be closed forever. There is nobody on this planet that is so cruel to do something of this type, and the only able have died many years ago. China is a very particular state and there is still a very old and strict mentality. I think that nothing that that this poem is saying of has ever happened because between a Son and a Daughter there is only one difference, the age.
ReplyDelete