英文摘要
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The bamboo poems (竹枝詞) penned by the Chinese envoys in the Ryukyu Kingdom(琉球王國)during the Qing Dynasty are discussed in this paper, particularly in how the female and social life was perceived in Ryukyu bamboo poetry(琉球竹枝 詞). The Chinese envoys’ view of the feminine in Ryukyu is profiled in narratives mentioning female clothes, jade hairpins and hand tattoos. Other than regular women, the Ryukyu bamboo poems contain motifs of local prostitutes attired in red. The jade hairpin present by the Chinese envoys serves both as a symbol of the emerging status of the red-garbed local prostitute and Chinese-Ryukyu cultural interaction. Further down we see the tattoo on the women’s hand, a special adornment innate to Ryukyu. These images and icons offer vivid images of the female in the Kingdom of Ryukyu. It's worth noting how the Chinese envoys spared no effort in describing the vast differences between China and the Kingdom of Ryukyu in regards to their economies and gender-ties. The Chinese envoys saw women in Ryukyu as hardworking while the men were layabouts. This might have been a misconception on the part of the Chinese envoys due to the cultural differences between their agrarian backgrounds and marine-based Ryukyu society. To the Chinese envoys, "the female" in Ryukyu is represented by the red-clothed local prostitute and other hardworking women who reflected their cultural preference. For these envoys, the red-garbed local prostitutes and hardworking women composed the unique landscape in the Kingdom of Ryukyu that inspired their poetry. The poetry of Cai Dading in Ryukyul give Chinese and Ryukyu women distinct attributes and the suggests a degree of culture shock experienced by the Chinese.
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