The videos I watched became popular in ancient times

During the Eastern Han Dynasty, there was a famous talented woman.

Those who admire her call her the female Confucius, while those who oppose her call her the biggest thief among women.

She herself could not have imagined that the article "Instructions for Women" she wrote for her daughter would influence China's two thousand years of feudal history.

This famous talented woman was not Cai Wenji, but Ban Zhao.

A celebrity once said that a serious spirit can lead to a wonderful life.

Women who live a wonderful life are often very clear-headed, such as Ban Zhao, the first female historian in China.

Ban Zhao's life is quite legendary. She was well-versed in history and current affairs, wise and intelligent, talented, and knew how to make choices and when to advance and retreat.

Even in the turbulent imperial palace, she was able to remain safe and sound, making her a role model of an ancient woman with excellent moral character.

"Ban Zhao was born into the prestigious Ban family in Xianyang in 45 AD."

"The Ban family has produced many outstanding men of letters and martial arts, which makes people admire them and marvel at them."

"Ban Zhao's great aunt was the famous talented woman Ban Jieyu, who was once the favorite concubine of Emperor Cheng of Han."

"Ban Zhao's father Ban Biao was a famous historian in the Eastern Han Dynasty, and her brothers were Ban Gu and Ban Chao, both of whom were famous in history."

"In ancient times, it was rare for three fathers and sons in one family to be famous people."

"And if there are women among the men, it is a rare opportunity."

"For example, the story of the famous Song Dynasty family of Su Xun, Su Shi and Su Zhe and their younger sister Su Xiaomei is a story that has been talked about for thousands of years."

"However, Su Xiaomei is a fictional character invented by the people, not a real historical figure."

"However, the three fathers and sons of the Ban family and the learned and talented Ban Zhao are real historical figures who are famous and actually existed."

"My father, Ban Biao, was a famous scholar in the Eastern Han Dynasty, and my two elder brothers are also famous historical figures."

"My brother Ban Gu is the author of the Book of Han, one of the Twenty-Four Histories. He is also a writer of the Eastern Han Dynasty and one of the four great writers of Han Dynasty prose."

"The other brother, Ban Chao, was a man of both civil and military talents, and a famous diplomat and military strategist in the Eastern Han Dynasty."

"At that time, the Eastern Han Dynasty was invaded by the Xiongnu, who constantly plundered the Han Dynasty's residents and livestock."

"Ban Chao was so angry that he threw down his pen and devoted himself to the army to make achievements."

"Ban Chao showed his extraordinary military talent right after he joined the army, and was sent as an envoy to the Western Regions."

"Once, Ban Chao arrived in Shanshan."

"The King of Shanshan was very happy to see them showing concern for him, but later he became cold."

"It turns out that the Xiongnu envoys have arrived, and the King of Shanshan is hesitant and may very well side with the Xiongnu."

"So Ban Chao took decisive action, personally leading dozens of warriors to attack the Xiongnu tent and kill the Xiongnu envoy."

"The King of Shanshan no longer had any worries and had no choice but to turn to the Han Dynasty. This shows that Ban Chao was a man of courage and strategy."

"Ban Zhao was already a talented and beautiful woman when she was 14 years old."

"Ban Zhao married Cao Shishu from the same county, and after marriage they treated each other with respect."

"But unfortunately, Cao Shishu died young, leaving only Ban Zhao and her son Cao Cheng."

"So Ban Zhao became a young widow."

"In those days, women could remarry in order to have a stable life."

"But Ban Zhao did not do so. Instead, she chose to focus on her career and study hard."

"The three fathers and sons of the Ban family and their daughter Ban Zhao can be said to be shining stars in the long river of Chinese history."

"Under the influence of her father and brother and her own efforts, Ban Zhao grew up to be an outstanding and talented woman of her generation."

“If a person’s thoughts are clear, his actions will be clear and his heart will be at peace.”

"Having desires but not being obsessed with them, having requests but not being bound by them, this is the insight of the talented woman Ban Zhao."

"However, the tree wants to be still but the wind does not stop, and the Ban family is suddenly involved in an inexplicable lawsuit."

Su Shi: Among the four great talented women, Ban Zhao is the real number one.

There has been endless debate about the four great talented women, Zhuo Wenjun, Ban Zhao, Cai Wenji and Li Qingzhao, from ancient times to the present, but it has never been truly established who is the real number one.

But in my opinion, Ban Zhao is undoubtedly the most talented woman.

First, his character and integrity are admired by the world.

Ban Zhao married Cao Shishu, who was from the same county, at the age of fourteen, but Cao Shishu died young.

Ban Zhao was very obedient to women and never remarried throughout her life.

Second, he had outstanding literary talent and wrote the "Eastern Expedition Fu" in imitation of his father's "Northern Expedition Fu".

There were also prose works such as fu, ode, inscription, book and edict that were circulated in the world, but they were lost later.

She even compiled "Female Commandments", and the female concepts she advocated became the code of conduct for women.

The third, and most important, point is the compilation of the "Book of Han".

The Book of Han was originally written by Ban Zhao's brother Ban Gu, but he was not completed because he was implicated and killed.

Ban Zhao spent ten years compiling and editing all of Ban Gu's unfinished and unorganized works.

Moreover, from a historian's perspective, there is no difference between this article and the previous articles written by Ban Gu.

Writing history is an extremely tedious task and requires one to be knowledgeable and have a solid foundation.

A person who writes history books alone must be well-read and well-read.

Fourthly, she was the first woman who was not a member of the royal harem to participate in political affairs.

Because Emperor He of Han died early, Empress Dowager Deng ruled the country from behind the scenes and often consulted Ban Zhao about state affairs.

Throughout Chinese history, there are only a few people who can write history books independently.

Moreover, as a woman, she created so many firsts that no one has broken, making her one of the most extraordinary women in the world.

Cai Wenji, Zhuo Wenjun and Li Qingzhao all had considerable attainments in literature, but did not achieve much in other areas.

Therefore, based on comprehensive evaluation, Ban Zhao is the most talented woman in China.

"Ban Gu inherited his father's will and continued to compile the Han Shu. Unexpectedly, he was falsely accused of compiling the national history privately and thrown into prison."

"At that time, privately compiling national history was a serious crime. Someone was falsely accused of forging prophecies and was quickly executed."

"Under this dire situation, the Ban family was extremely nervous and worried about Ban Gu's safety."

"Ban Chao, who was far away from the Great Wall, was worried that his brother would be tortured and unable to speak, so he rode his horse to Luoyang to seek justice from Emperor Ming of Han."

"This matter attracted great attention from Emperor Ming of Han, who specially summoned Ban Chao."

"Ban Chao told Emperor Ming of the Han Dynasty that his father and brother had worked hard for decades to compile history and spread the virtues of the Han Dynasty. The prefect of Xianyang also sent the confiscated books to the capital."

"Emperor Ming of Han read the manuscript and was very impressed by Ban Gu's talent."

"He praised the manuscript as a masterpiece and ordered Ban Gu to be released, thus temporarily bringing Ban's lawsuit to an end."

"Ban Chao still lived outside the Great Wall for a long time in his later years."

"The aged Ban Chao missed his homeland very much and wrote to the court to request to return home, but was unexpectedly rejected by the emperor."

"The Ban family only had a daughter, Ban Zhao, in the Han Dynasty. Ban Zhao wrote a letter to Emperor He of Han on behalf of her brother."

"Ban Zhao explained in the book that her brother Ban Chao was determined to sacrifice his life for the country when he first went to the frontier. He was in difficult situations many times and narrowly escaped death. He survived thanks to your majesty's blessing."

"More than 30 years have passed, and those who were with Ban Chao outside the Great Wall have long passed away."

"Now Ban Chao is over seventy years old and weak and ill. Even if he wanted to serve his country, he is no longer able to do so."

"I heard that in ancient times, people joined the army at the age of 15 and returned home at the age of 60, and there was time to rest in between, so I risked my life to ask for Ban Chao to return home."

"Ban Chao served his country in the desert when he was young, but was abandoned in the wilderness when he was old. This is really pitiful."

"Ban Zhao's memorial was so touching and moving that it deeply moved Emperor He of Han."

"Finally, Ban Chao was able to return to his hometown in his twilight years."

"A general who served his country all his life is a mark of our admiration and admiration."

"Ban Zhao's 'Petition for My Brother Chao to Replace Me' was highly praised by later generations and has been passed down through the ages."

"Ban Zhao's most outstanding achievement was to compile and continue writing the official history of the Han Dynasty."

"The Book of Han is an important historical book after Sima Qian's Records of the Grand Historian, and is also one of the Twenty-Four Histories of China."

"After his father Ban Biao wrote the Sequel to the Records of the Grand Historian, he died of illness. His eldest son Ban Gu inherited his father's will and wrote the Book of Han during the Western Han Dynasty. Unexpectedly, he was implicated and died unjustly in prison."

"The manuscript of the Han Shu is in disarray and unfinished, and needs to be repaired and sorted out, otherwise it will be destroyed in the long river of history."

"Both her father and her eldest brother Ban Gu had passed away, and her other brother Ban Chao was away from home, so the burden of continuing the revision of the Han Shu fell on Ban Zhao."

"Emperor He of Han knew that Ban Zhao was a talented woman who was well-versed in ancient and modern times, so he issued an edict to allow Ban Zhao to continue to complete the "Book of Han" in the Dongguan Library, the royal library at that time."

"Ban Zhao had long wished to carry on her father and brother's legacy and continue compiling the Han Shu, so she spent years in the library reading a large number of historical books and sorting out and reviewing the scattered chapters left by her father and brother."

"In this way, the Book of Han, which records a total of 230 years from the first year of Emperor Gaozu of Han to the fourth year of Wang Mang of the Xin Dynasty, was completed. It took more than years to complete it."

"Although the Han Shu was completed by four people, even if there were continuations, it was very coordinated, which shows that Ban Zhao was indeed a remarkable figure among ancient women."

Cai Wenji: Compared with "Book of Han", Ban Zhao is most famous for "Instructions for Women".

The core content of the entire article "Instructions for Women" is the so-called Three Obediences and Four Virtues.

The Three Obediences refer to that a woman should obey her father before marriage, obey her husband after marriage, and obey her son after her husband's death.

Anyway, at different stages, women must follow the man who is in charge of the family and cannot make decisions on their own.

The four virtues refer to women's virtue, women's speech, women's appearance, and women's work.

Anyway, the overall point is that women cannot be too ostentatious and must be based on men.

Take good care of the family, be friendly to family members, and assist your husband to run the family better.

At that time, when this article was officially circulated, it instantly caused an uproar.

Regarding this article, both supporters and opponents have their own reasons for their attitudes.

There was a profound meaning behind Ban Zhao's writing of this article at that time.

As a talented woman, Ban Zhao has achieved the highest level of accomplishments in Chinese studies and historical research.

Therefore, Ban Zhao's perspective on many issues has gone beyond the simple measure of interests and has directly touched the essence of the problem.

In Ban Zhao's view, natural disasters continued to hit the Eastern Han Dynasty and the country was becoming increasingly difficult.

Ban Zhao did not believe in those stories about gods, ghosts, and monsters, and did not believe that natural disasters suddenly increased because Empress Dowager Deng was in power.

But Ban Zhao also believed that it was indeed not good for the country for Empress Dowager Deng to be in power for too long.

The reason for this is that it involves the division of labor between men and women.

Under production conditions, production for men and women is different.

For example, in many heavy physical labors, women are at a clear disadvantage.

These labors can basically only be done by men. Then women and men form a family and live as a family.

Then men do heavy physical work and women are responsible for household chores.

For a long time, people have always believed that the division of labor between men and women is normal.

However, during the Eastern Han Dynasty, this default phenomenon gradually began to be broken.

Because during the Eastern Han Dynasty, there were many cases of external relatives interfering in government affairs.

Even in Ban Zhao's time, Empress Dowager Deng had full control over the country as a female monarch.

This phenomenon of external relatives interfering in government affairs directly led to the emergence of a key problem.

That is, whether women can enjoy completely equal political status with men.

However, because the production of men and women is different, if we force gender equality, society will be in chaos.

Then the country will collapse, and this result is undoubtedly unacceptable to everyone.

Simply put, if the maternal relatives continue to interfere in politics and women hold the highest power for a long time, it will lead to the general learning of the middle and lower classes of society.

And when women from the middle and lower classes of society began to learn from Empress Dowager Deng, they wanted to gain supreme control over the family.

It is almost human instinct to fight for social dominance.

Then, there will definitely be large-scale conflicts between men and women in society.

Later on, the family organizational model will be questioned by everyone.

Once problems arise in most middle and lower class families, the country will be in big trouble and will gradually collapse.

It was because of this problem that Ban Zhao began to write the article "Nujie".

Of course, Ban Zhao's original intention was to use this to advise other women, especially Empress Dowager Deng.

Pay attention to social division of labor, respect social traditions, and try to maintain the division of labor model in which men work outside and women work inside.

Because only with this basic model can the country maintain long-term stability and avoid chaos again.

Ban Zhao actually had good intentions when she wrote this article, and she never intended to restrict women in future generations.

But the problem is that after this article was written, Ban Zhao had no control over how events would develop.

"When a great historical work like the Han Shu came out, many people did not understand it."

"So many scholars at that time became Ban Zhao's disciples, learning from her and accepting her guidance."

"Emperor He of Han also summoned Ban Zhao to the palace several times, asking the empress and concubines to worship her as their teacher and learn from her Confucian classics, astronomy, mathematics, poetry, and other subjects."

"For this reason, Ban Zhao became famous and was honored as Lady Cao by the emperor and his concubines."

"Whenever foreign countries presented tribute, the emperor would ask the learned Ban Zhao to compose poems and essays."

"However, Ban Zhao was a woman of great learning and talent."

"But because it was set against a historical background of strict feudal ethics, it was deeply poisoned by feudal ideas."

"Ban Zhao grew up to be a serious female teacher of moral education."

"In addition to teaching Confucianism to the concubines in the harem, Ban Zhao also wrote "Instructions for Women" to regulate their daily behavior."

"It stipulates seven feudal doctrines, including humility, husband and wife, respect, women's behavior, concentration, obedience, and uncle and sister, which can be said to have influenced Chinese women for more than a thousand years."

"In fact, Ban Zhao's "Instructions for Women" was originally a private tutorial for Ban's daughters. Unexpectedly, it was circulated wildly by the aristocratic families in the capital, and soon became popular throughout the country."

"Perhaps the society at that time needed to regulate women's words and deeds, and this just catered to the needs of the market, and Ban Zhao was also controversial for this."

"Ban Zhao was not only an outstanding female historian with extensive knowledge and talent, but also a master of poetry, lyrics, and prose."

"She not only compiled the Book of Han, but also wrote fu, ode, inscription, book, and theory."

"Ban Zhao was also highly regarded by the court in her later years."

"Emperor He of Han died after Ban Zhao's brother Ban Chao died. As the new emperor was still young, Empress Dowager Deng took over the throne."

"Because of his appreciation of Ban Zhao's talent, he summoned her to the palace to participate in government affairs."

"Whenever she encountered an undecided matter, Empress Dowager Deng would ask Ban Zhao for advice."

"Ban Zhao had no choice but to participate in politics and did a lot for Empress Dowager Deng."

"For this reason, Ban Zhao's son Cao Cheng was granted the title of Marquis of Guannei and served as prime minister of Qi."

"In the Han Dynasty, he was able to be appointed as a prime minister and given a title of nobility."

"Unless this person has made great contributions, it is not something that ordinary people can do."

"This shows how much the imperial court valued the heroine Ban Zhao."

"In 120 AD, Ban Zhao, a talented and learned female historian who was over 75 years old, passed away suddenly at the age of after a legendary and extraordinary life."

"When Empress Dowager Deng learned about this, she gave Ban Zhao a high-level funeral."

"He personally wore plain clothes to mourn for his teacher of many years, and his eyes could not hide the sorrow."

"He also sent messengers to supervise the funeral and gave him the honors he deserved after his death."

"Being able to receive the highest courtesy from the person who actually held power at the time, Ban Zhao, an outstanding and talented woman of her generation, died without regrets and her reputation will live on forever."

"Ban Zhao's life was brilliant and legendary, intelligent and wise."

"Although she is a girl, she knows how to make choices."

"Although she became a widow at an early age, she was willing to live a simple and frugal life."

"He continued to write brilliant masterpieces tirelessly, which were admired by people of his time and future generations and will be remembered forever."

"As the daughter of the Ban family, she is cautious in her actions out of consideration for her siblings."

"The words were witty and euphemistic, yet sharp, and ultimately led my brother to return to his hometown."

"She is the teacher of the emperor and his concubines, but she knows her limits and is sensible, and she doesn't take advantage of her favor to become arrogant."

"As a result, he was highly valued in the treacherous palace and was ultimately safe."

"Only when a person lives soberly and transparently can his life be meaningful."

"This is the case with Ban Zhao, a talented historian of her generation. Her deeds will forever shine brightly in the thousands of years of history."

Yang Yuhuan: Ban Zhao, a talented woman of her time, received mixed reviews for her essay “Nujie”.

As the empress dowager's teacher, Ban Zhao was directly involved in the decision-making of state affairs.

At that time, Ban Zhao had almost become a female prime minister and had great influence.

But it was this person who caused huge controversy as the "Instructions for Women" spread.

Especially the article itself, which caused the entire aristocratic family at that time to start a heated discussion.

The core content of this "Instructions for Women" can be summarized in four words: Three Obediences and Four Virtues.

Those who support this article believe that it is a rare story for all time and can be regarded as the Four Books and Five Classics among women's reading materials.

Ban Zhao, who wrote this article, should be revered as a female saint in the future.

From now on, all women should act according to the requirements of this article.

Those who oppose this article believe that it is a piece of garbage and there is nothing good about it from beginning to end.

Moreover, the various moral concepts mentioned in it are completely untenable.

If this article is allowed to spread widely, it will easily harm women all over the world and cause endless harm.

Because these two views are too contradictory, and both sides insist on their own views and no one is willing to compromise.

So soon, a big discussion surrounding this article began to sweep across the entire Eastern Han Dynasty.

As the author of this article, Ban Zhao became the focus of controversy.

In fact, analyzing from the historical background of Ban Zhao, there is no big problem with this "Nu Jie".

Because the article "Female Admonitions" was written by Ban Zhao in her later years for women from aristocratic families and nobles in the palace.

At that time, Ban Zhao was already seriously ill, and the women in the clan were almost reaching marriageable age.

Ban Zhao was afraid that they did not know etiquette and would lose face for their husband's family and humiliate their own family after marriage, so she wrote the article "Female Admonitions".

In fact, this article has a deeper meaning. Ban Zhao wanted to correct the prevailing trend of the time through the article "Nujie".

Because at that time Ban Zhao discovered that women in the Han Dynasty royal family had interfered in state affairs, and that relatives by marriage also showed signs of abusing power.

Ban Zhao decided to save the country in a roundabout way and wanted to avoid this situation by writing articles. It can be said that she had good intentions.

However, as the article gradually circulated, the related controversy grew larger and larger, and the matter soon got out of Ban Zhao's control.

Ironically, the first person to stand up and oppose was none other than Empress Dowager Deng.

Empress Dowager Deng and Ban Zhao were both teachers and friends, and their relationship was beyond words.

But judging from the article itself, if Empress Dowager Deng approved of Ban Zhao's article.

That means that her current power is illegal and she must give up power immediately and leave everything to the little emperor.

This result was obviously unacceptable to Empress Dowager Deng.

In addition to her obsession with power, more importantly, Empress Dowager Deng was very clear about one thing.

If he gives up power now and the little emperor takes over, the country will definitely be in big problems.

Because the young emperor on the throne at that time was too young, he was simply unable to cope with the frequent natural disasters.

So in the end, less than a year after Ban Zhao finished writing "Instructions for Women", Empress Dowager Deng ordered Ban Zhao's son to be transferred out of the capital.

At the same time, according to Ban Zhao's own theory, after the husband's death, the wife follows the son, so Ban Zhao must take office with her son.

In this way, Ban Zhao left the capital and completely escaped from the center of the political whirlpool.

In a sense, this is both a form of demotion and a disguised form of protection.

At least, Ban Zhao lived for another seven or eight years after escaping the center of public opinion, and finally died peacefully at an advanced age.

After learning of Ban Zhao's death, Empress Dowager Deng personally wore plain clothes to mourn her.

Obviously, in the eyes of Empress Dowager Deng, she had long regarded Ban Zhao as her closest elder.

But at the same time, due to their different standpoints, Empress Dowager Deng was destined to be unable to accept the principles written by Ban Zhao.

However, what Empress Dowager Deng did not expect was that the turmoil caused by this article did not end with Ban Zhao's departure.

After that, although the debate was temporarily put on hold, both sides still did not compromise on their views on the article.

In the many years that followed, many people who supported this article gradually praised "The Admonitions for Women" to the sky.

After that, this article really became the moral code for countless women.

The idea of ​​the Three Obediences and Four Virtues advocated in it severely restricted women in later generations.

As for the fact that people in later generations used the Three Obediences and Four Virtues to strictly restrict women, this was actually something Ban Zhao could not have expected.

It was just that the rulers of successive dynasties used Ban Zhao's article to strictly restrict women in order to strengthen their rule. This can't actually be blamed on Ban Zhao. (End of this chapter)