The Disturbing Dangers of Devaluing Women

The excerpt we read from The Woman Warrior was a powerful, yet disturbing piece of literature. This piece was a true story, with some embellishments, about the author, Maxine Hong Kingston, imagining what life must have been like for her aunt whom she never knew. Her aunt committed suicide because of the treatment she received due to a suspiciously timed pregnancy while her husband was away in America, and she was in China. To me, the most disturbing aspect of this story is that whoever this person was who impregnated her, she had to have known them well.

“He was not a stranger because the village had no strangers. She had to have dealings with him other than sex” (pg. 1509). To me, this is perhaps the most disturbing part of the story. Kingston is not sure whether the pregnancy was due to rape or, perhaps the sex was consensual. Both possibilities are  equally troubling. If the man was an attacker, it meant that Kingston’s aunt would had to see the man around the village regularly, constantly reminded of the abuse that she took from him. Also, if the man was a consensual lover, then it meant that he stood by and said nothing while she took the brunt of the hatred from the other villagers. The fact that if he was a lover, and he got involved with a married woman should also say something about him. In both cases, it is clear that whoever this man was, he clearly did not care about her.

I think that the scenario that her aunt finds herself in speaks volumes about the mistreatment and the disrespect given to women throughout history. The passage, “Women in China did not choose. Some man commanded her to lie with him and be his secret evil,” (pg. 1509), explains this perfectly. If their feelings were mutual or not, it did not matter. He viewed Kingston’s aunt as below him, so she had to do what he said. Perhaps she was in love with him, but did not want to have sex. This didn’t matter, she had to do what she was told. This story shows perfectly what can happen when women are viewed as second class citizens and have no power to speak out.

The public shaming of her also shows what kind of things happen in a culture where women are looked down upon and treated poorly. In modern America and other countries where women are treated more equal than before, divorces and other such goings on are not public matters that are laid out for everyone in the community to see. “The villagers had also been counting. On the night the baby was to be born the villagers raided our house,” (pg. 1507). In modern times, at least in America and other western nations, nothing like this would happen. Matters relating to families are more private and couples can choose what they want to disclose and not disclose to others. Matters such as divorce, adultery and the like should not be dealt with by the public, but instead should be a private matter dealt with by only those that the couple wants involved.

I think this excerpt raises some interesting questions and points about what happens in a culture that devalues women. Because in many of these cultures women lack, or have lacked in the past, a say in many aspects of their life, they are unable to control many of the things that happen around them. This leads to situations that are harmful to everyone involved, and this is just one of the many reasons that women should be given full equal footing with men all around the world, regardless of the situation. This excerpt is a strong reminder of the dangerous stress, pressure, and physical and emotional turmoil that result in a culture where women are belittled.