A Daughter of Han: The Autobiography of a Chinese Working Woman

Within the common destiny is the individual destiny. So it is that through the telling of one Chinese peasant woman's life, a vivid vision of Chinese history and culture is illuminated. Over the course of two years, Ida Pruitt―a bicultural social worker, writer, and contributor to Sino-American understanding―visited with Ning Lao T'ai-ta'i, three times a week for breakfast. These meetings, originally intended to elucidate for Pruitt traditional Chinese family customs of which Lao T'ai-t'ai possessed some insight, became the foundation for an enduring friendship. As Lao T'ai-t'ai described the cultural customs of her family, and of the broader community of which they were a part, she invoked episodes from her own personal history to illustrate these customs, until eventually the whole of her life lay open before her new confidante. Pruitt documented this story, casting light not only onto Lao T'ai-t'ai's own biography, but onto the character of life for the common man of China, writ large. The final product is a portrayal of China that is "vividly and humanly revealed."

Biographies & Memoirs

Pruitt, Ida

Lao T'ai-t'ai, Ning

Community & Culture

Stanford University Press

A portrait of a prominent widow and her family provides insights into the social and cultural milieu of Peking during the 1920s and 1930s as well as describing the lifestyles of the wealthy class

Old Madam Yin: A Memoir of Peking Life

By the author of the classic A Daughter of Han, this is an affectionate, revealing portrait of an old, wealthy widow and her family in the Peking of the 1920s and early 1930s. Through the daily life and the memories of shrewd, forthright Lao Tai-tai, we are given an intimate glimpse into centuries-old way of life that was fast coming to an end.
 We explore the inner workings of an upper-class urban family: the relations between husbands wives and between wives and concubines, the interactions among brothers, the activities and family concerns of a widowed matriarch, and more generally the role of women in such a family. We go behind the high walls surrounding the family compound, and see how the houses, gardens, and courtyards are constructed according to precise rules derived from religious and aesthetic beliefs, and how the layouts of the rooms are closely related to their occupants' status and role in the family. We learn the enormous importance to the Chinese of protocol, etiquette, and reciprocal obligation, and we learn also of Peking's pleasures―traveling in rickshaws, eating in restaurants, visiting parks. Above all, the book captures the essence of prewar Chinese cultural and social values in the busy life and strong, complex personality of the memorable Lao Tai-tai.

History

Asia

Flight of an Empress (English and Chinese Edition)

Wu, Yung

Yung, Wu

Liu, Kun Chin Shih

Hyperion Pr

Born to missionaries, a little American girl tells of her upbringing in a Chinese village in Shantung province, not far from the Yellow Sea, during the late 19th century. Vivid narration of her every day life—every detail of her household, its people, architectural layouts of the courtyards, living arrangements and styles from a Westerner in China—gives us such insight into the life of an American living in China.

A China Childhood (Asian Library Series, No. 10)

Chinese Materials Center

This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the original. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions that are true to the original work.

A Daughter Of Han: The Autobiography Of A Chinese Working Woman

T'Ai-T'Ai, Ning Lao

Kessinger Publishing

Arts & Literature

This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the original. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions that are true to the original work.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Pruitt, Ida. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Pruitt, Ida

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Pruitt, Ida. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

A Daughter of Han: The Autobiography of a Chinese Working Woman

A Daughter of Han: The Autobiography of a Chinese Working Woman

Old Madam Yin: A Memoir of Peking Life

Old Madam Yin: A Memoir of Peking Life

Flight of an Empress (English and Chinese Edition)

A China Childhood (Asian Library Series, No. 10)

A Daughter Of Han: The Autobiography Of A Chinese Working Woman

A Daughter Of Han: The Autobiography Of A Chinese Working Woman

A Daughter Of Han: The Autobiography Of A Chinese Working Woman

A Daughter of Han: The Autobiography of a Chinese Working Woman