[EBREY, Patricia (ed.), Chinese Civilization, New York: The Free Press, 1993, pàgs. 345-347]
Why am I writing this essay? Because I believe that the Chinese institution of slave girls is bad. First of all, slave girls are not treated like people, but tortured as if they were animals; in fact, some are treated even worse than animals. These slave girls have no one to tell their troubles to and no place to seek help. Looking at this from a human itarian point of view, this institution is indeed wrong. Secondly, since their masters do not treat them as human beings, the slave girls themselves never learn to behave as such. They set out to take advantage of their masters in everything they do. When they go shopping, they often lose money; when they are told to work, they are lazy and cut corners, not caring if their laziness causes inconveniences for other people; and when they cook, they purposely waste fuel, rice, oil, and salt. In the end it is the masters who lose out. For these two reasons we can agree that the institution of slave girls must be abolished.
Nowadays people who are imbued with new ideas understand these arguments, so I need say no more. But their proposals tend to be too lofty, too general in scope, too detached from reality. Although their ideas make sense, they are difficult to carry out. The ideas I have put down in this essay, however, are not merely empty talk, for they could easily be put into practice!
Why do I say that many people's ideas are too lofty and general? Nowadays people with new ideas are all talking about women's liberation, the liberation of all women. Isn't that too broad? There are already many independent women in our society who have no need to be liberated. Weaker, uneducated, and dependent women do need help and support in order to become selfreliant, but the help they need is not liberation. Women who do need liberation fall into the following three categories: (1) prostitutes, (2) concubines, and (3) slave girls. These women are virtually bound hand and foot by others. They have had their rights to freedom taken away from them, and their lives are often hard and bitter. In the name of humanity, how can we not first liberate these women whose lives are a living hell? Furthermore, if they are not liberated, not only will they themselves suffer, but many others will indirectly be made to suffer too. If we want to change our society, we must first liberate these women.
Since these three categories of people are different, our methods of liberating them should also be different. For example, it would be more difficult to liberate prostitutes and concubines, so in this essay I shall limit my discussions to how to liberate slave girls. I am not saying that prostitutes and concubines should not be liberated, nor even that their liberation can be delayed. But this essay is written for women with new ideas who I am hoping will carry out this liberation movement without help from men. In reality, it is easier for women to liberate slave girls than prostitutes and concubines, so we might as well begin with the simplest....
Why should women liberate slave girls without help from men? Since both educated women and slave girls are females, women might be more sympathetic. Moreover, slave girls usually work for women, so the power to free them is in the hands of women, not men. Therefore, I suggest that this job should be done by women themselves. As I see it, the job can be divided into two stages: discontinuing buying slave girls, and freeing the ones already owned.
There are two ways to free slave girls. Concerning the slaves you own yourself, since you have the power to free them, do so immediately. For example, if I own a slave girl and I want to free her, I can go ahead and do so. Concerning the slaves you do not own, you must persuade others to liberate them. For example, if my mother, sister, or neighbors own any and I want them free, I must persuade the owner to free them. If they do not heed me, I must try again; if they still do not listen, I should try a third time, a fourth time.... Eventually I will reach my objective. These two ways are the only ways to liberate slave girls, and they can be carried out by everyone.
But what is to be done after they are given their freedom? This is indeed a great problem. In my opinion, the best course is to take them into your family as your daughters. You should send the younger giris to school to be educated, and in their after-school hours they should be taught to work around the house. They should be encouraged to do any work which they are fitted to do, which would benefit the whole family, and which would not injure their health. As for the older girls, you could arrange marriages for them, or if you keep them at home, you should teach them housework as well as the ways of the world. When they marry, you must be cautious and think of their happiness instead of the amount of money you will get. If you treat them like this, they will then treat you like real mothers and not want to be dishonest or take advantage of you. You should instruct the glrls who have already acquired bad habits of cheating and not expect them to change their ways too readily. Sometimes punishment may be necessary as long as you are guided by your conscience. (In dealing with your own children, a certain amount of punishment is inevitable, but punishing them does not change the affection you feel for them). In sum, we must treat liberated slave girls as our own daughters.
Some people have pointed out that servant girls once had parents who, because they needed money, sold them into slavery. No matter how syrnpathetic we feel toward them, it would be much better to return them to their natural parents without demanding that the money be teturned. This idea sounds good but poses serious difficulties. First, more often than not, the parents of these slave girls have moved away and cannot be located. Second, if the parents have sold them once, can you feel assured that they would not sell thern again? That would be no liberation at all. Therefore this method should only be used with extreme caution.
I have been discussing how to free servant girls and care for them after they gain their freedom. There is one more thing I must mention. I find that no matter what a thing is, if only one person does it, the majority consider it strange and opposition to it is enormous. But if the same thing is done by many people, others consider it perhaps worth doing and opposition is slight. Therefore I suggest that if women are to liberate slave girls, it would be best to organize a society. If all unite and work together then this would be a simple thing to do. The society might adopt these rules:
1. The society shall be called the Society to Free
Slave Girls.
2. Members of the society must all be female.
3. The duty of each member is to free slave girls
she owns and to persuade others to free ones she does not own.
4. The society has no other business.
From these rules we see how easy it would be. Organizing this sociery could be done with a minimum of red tape since members need only quietly assume their responsibilities. Furthermore, this type of liberation frees one girl at a time; therefore it is easier to carry out than mass liberation. Since the girls would continue to reside in their former rnasters' houses as members of the households, it would be quite easy to carry out.
Some people might say, "This is all very well and good, but what about the slave owners who are not so enlightened? Might they not refuse to free their slaves at your suggestion and maltreat them as usual anyway?"
I would answer, "I have no doubt cases like that will occur. But if four or five people out of every ten free their slaves after listening to me, I will consider my efforts to be half successful." Those who agree to this liberation with their mouths and not their hearts must be persuaded again and again; and if we can convert one or two of them, our success will increase by yet another ten to twenty percent. As for those people who cannot be persuaded, they will soon lose the respect of their peers. Everyone wants face, and I am sure they will change their minds under the pressure of public opinion. Furthermore, the society should investigate the treatment and living conditions of freed slaves and attempt to raise the girls' level of consclousness about themselves and about the world around them. If these three steps are carried out simultaneously, how can the movement not succeed?
I am writing this essay in the hopes that others might carry out my ideas. Originally I intended to launch this movement myself, but then I realized that this society to free slave girls should be organized by women themselves. Since I myself do not own any slave girls, I have none to free. My duty is to write this article and hope that modern educated women will carry this matter to its conclusion.