Transgender Persons in Traditional Chinese Culture
China is heavily influenced by Confucian thought, with its principles of decorum and moral
concepts. The patriarchal society established on the basis of Confucian culture puts an emphasis
on the Three Cardinal Guides and Five Constant Virtues, requiring that individuals not transgress
established custom or break with convention. At the same time, China has a strong tendency
towards regarding men and boys as superior to women and girls.
Filial piety is the core of Chinese culture. Precepts such as “Your very hair and skin belong to your
parents, and preserving them from injury is the first act of filial piety” (Classic of Filial Piety) and
“Injury to yourself brings grief to your parents” (Standards for Pupils) emphasize that everything
relating to an individual’s body is a gift from his or her parents and as such must be cherished and
protected against all injury. Changing one’s gender and appearance therefore goes against the
moral precepts of the Cardinal Guides and Virtues and is considered a gravely disrespectful and
unfilial act.
Although traditional Chinese culture is conservative and restrictive, the concept of binary sexuality
is not unbreachable.41 China has a very long history and a diverse culture in which the existence
and discussion of gender identity is far from rare. China’s classical historical records, journals of
literati and literary works also contain accounts of transsexuals, especially during the Han dynasty
(206 BC - 220 AD), Wei-Jin period (220-420 AD) and Ming-Qing dynasties (1368-1912).42In these
documents, people changed genders because of unexpected incidents, serious illness or in order
to covertly perform an act of filial piety.43
The
Chinese
have
traditionally
regarded females as inferior to
males partly because of a reliance
on agriculture which made males
the
principal
source
of
labor.
Thus, in literature at least, for a
man to change into a woman was
considered shameful, while a woman
changing into a m [