Bridal laments in rural Hong Kong.(Chinese women social aspects)

This study examines Chinese women's perceptions of fate by looking into the custom of bridal laments that had been practiced in rural Hong Kong for over three centuries. Traditional Chinese marriage rites are delineated, showing how ritual actors, the bride and her kinsfolk, demonstrate their tacit understanding and acceptance of the cultural ideals embodied in the ritual rules regarding womanly obedience.

The bridal lamentation afforded a special ritual space for Chinese women to express themselves publicly. The analysis here shows that the voicing of the suffering of women through the ...

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