Disgraceful Matters: The Politics of Chastity in Eighteenth-century China

"Paradoxically, the Qing chastity cult itself had profoundly destabilizing consequences for a late imperial gender order based on the dichotomy of the inner domestic realm and the outer public realm. To an unprecedented degree, private female virtue became meaningful only through a very public process of interpretation that made it inseparable from public reputation and integral to public discourse on the nature and aims of the state. Women of the inner quarters were the most public of women. Their bodies and the most intimate aspects of their lives were among the most prominent issues in public discussion, whether statecraft debates, trial proceedings, or community conflicts." --"Introduction," p. 13.

By Janet M. Theiss.