A Study On Female Reading Subjects In The Ming And Qing Dynasties

The theme of reading is one of the themes in ancient Chinese painting.During the Ming and Qing dynasties,the themes of reading underwent changes,not only in terms of quantity,but also in terms of character identity and creative form.After entering the late Ming Dynasty,the character images in book themed paintings were no longer limited to adult males,and a large number of works with the theme of "female reading" emerged.The works depicting women’s reading have been greatly expanded and presented with vibrant vitality.This article conducts research on this phenomenon.This project takes the theme of female reading in the Ming and Qing dynasties as the research object,deeply analyzing the artistic expression of female images and the atmosphere creation of environmental elements,in order to clarify the characteristics of the four types of female reading theme schemas.Based on the analysis of a large number of works on female reading themes,combined with the influence factors of the era background and the creative subject,this paper explores the function and significance of female reading images from a male perspective,and further analyzes the reasons why male literati created and appreciated a large number of female reading themes during the Ming and Qing dynasties from a sociological perspective.The paper is divided into three parts.The first chapter mainly sorts out the situation of female reading themes before and during the Ming and Qing dynasties,in order to compare and prove the prevalence of female reading themes in the Ming and Qing dynasties.In the second chapter,based on the roles played by women in the painting,the reading images of women are divided into four schemas:"lesson diagram","spring thought diagram","companion diagram",and "portrait diagram",and discussed separately.On the basis of this classification,the characteristics of four types of schemas in character shaping,environmental atmosphere,creative ideas,aesthetic taste,and other aspects are extracted.The third chapter summarizes the common characteristics of female images in the four schemas:presenting the characteristics of "the weak" and "the other".In response to this phenomenon,further analyze the underlying reasons for the aesthetic appreciation of male literati.Finally,examine the function and significance of female reading themes,in order to explore the reasons for the rise and popularity of female reading themes during the Ming and Qing dynasties.Painting is a skill,but it is also a way of observation and thinking.The theme of female reading vividly reproduces the living conditions of women during the Ming and Qing dynasties,providing rich image resources for studying the daily life and social status of ancient women.Through a systematic and in-depth study of female reading images from a male perspective,it is not only helpful to deeply explore the impact of changes in literati’s mood on painting creation,but also to comprehensively understand the social status of women in the Ming and Qing dynasties.This is also the true significance of intervening in the field of female reading research from a gender perspective.