Which three wives and four concubines are these? In ancient times, it was actually a system of monogamy and multiple concubines. When the wife was gone, the concubines generally could not become regular wives.
"Three wives and four concubines" is an idiom, which refers to the number of wives and concubines. It is an adjective idiom, for example: "three thousand beauties" (imperial palace). This use of numbers to represent virtual fingers has a long history and has been around since ancient times. In ancient times, it was common for men with powerful positions in society to have more than one wife and concubines, or three wives and four concubines.
The marriage system in ancient feudal society was monogamy. However, those men who have status and power in society often have three wives and four concubines during the marriage process, and there are many women. According to records, there are principal wives, minor wives, side wives, subordinate wives, young wives, concubine wives ("Bai Yu Cong Kao"), and so on.
The third wife in "Three Wives and Four Concubines" is a virtual reference. However, some people say that the three wives refer to the main wife, the secondary wife and the subordinate wife. The first wife is the first wife that an ancient man marries. It is called the legitimate wife. It is the true embodiment of the formal establishment of monogamy. She has the highest status in the family. There is only one wife, and there is no second. A side wife, also called a side wife or a side wife, is a woman who does not live in the same house as the main wife. Regarding the lower wife, Yu Zhengxie, a scholar of the Qing Dynasty, bluntly said in his "Guisi Lei Manuscript": The lower wife is called a concubine? This shows what the status of the lower wife is. In fact, both the secondary wife and the inferior wife have the status of concubine. Comparing the two, it is just that the secondary wife has a higher status than the inferior wife.
The fourth concubine in "Three Wives and Four Concubines" is also a virtual reference. The fourth concubine refers to the maids who accompany the room. Some of these maids are brought by the head wife from her natal family, and are also called concubines. For example, in the novel "A Dream of Red Mansions", when Wang Xifeng married Jia Lian, the maid Ping'er was brought from her natal family as a dowry. Some are arranged by the elders in the family. For example, in the novel "A Dream of Red Mansions", Jia Mu arranged for her maid Zijuan to serve her granddaughter Lin Daiyu. There are many other theories. In any case, concubines are slaves, and they are the private property of the man's family. They can be given to others by the male master at any time, or used as property for trading, making transactions with others, etc.
Three wives and four concubines? The idiom first came from the novel "jinpingmei". There is only one sentence in the novel: It's like "three wives and four concubines". They buy laughter and chase pleasure, but it's another matter. In just a few words, there is no clear indication of which three wives?? Which four concubines? It can be seen that the idiom "three wives and four concubines" used here is an adjective, which means that the man has many women and lives a luxurious life, rather than actually referring to three wives and four concubines. There is no trace in this sentence. Three wives and four concubines? There is a specific reference.
In summary, the ancients often said that "three wives and four concubines" is an idiom, and does not actually refer to which three wives? Which fourth concubine?? It is an adjective, which generally refers to the number of women that men in ancient times had. Three wives and four concubines? is an imaginary number, not a real number.
Three wives and four concubines? This idiom, we know: In ancient times, it was a feudal society that favored sons over daughters, which was very unfair to women. Women have suffered many insults and bullying, and have no status at all in society, allowing themselves to be bullied by powerful men. Women are weak, and they have nothing to do in the face of men's tyranny. They can only endure the humiliation and live an ignoble existence.
Three wives and four concubines? The idiom exposes the evil of favoring sons over daughters in feudal society. At the same time, we are reminded to cherish today’s society where men and women are equal. Men should respect themselves. Women must dare to fight and not be afraid of the intimidation of men with three wives and four concubines. Men and women unite as one to make their own contributions to our gender equality, social peace, and happy life.
Three wives and four concubines? It is just a false reference to describe the large number of wives and concubines. In fact, it is a system of monogamy and polyconcubine, that is: in ancient times, the same adult man may have many concubines, but he can only have one wife.
Ancient my country’s social structure was stable and hierarchical, and the patriarchal system that matured in the Western Zhou Dynasty was indispensable, of which the husband and wife system was an important part.
The prototype of the concubine system existed among the aristocracy in the Western Zhou Dynasty. The official name at that time was the concubine system. "媵" means to marry or dowry. When the princes formally married their wives, the woman would bring some men and women as dowry. The men were called nieces and the women were called 娣娣.
Regarding this rule, "The Legend of Gongyang" explains this: Who is the nun? When a prince marries a country, the two countries will marry him and follow him as his nephew. Who is the nephew? My brother's son. Who is Di? Brother also. The princes once hired nine girls, but the princes never married again. ?
The meaning of this passage is: When a prince from one country marries a woman from another country, the marrying woman must also have two women and men from two countries with the same surname to send as dowries. The dowry woman is called For the sake of Di, the man who is dowry is called nephew. Generally, the princes could marry nine wives, including Di, at one time, and then never marry again. "媵娣" is an early concubine.
With the gradual collapse of the traditional feudal system, some nobles declined and sank from generation to generation. The scope of application of the concubine system expanded to the common people, and the concubine system as we understand it gradually took shape.
Under the system of monogamy and multiple concubines, a man can only have one main wife, but there is no specific limit on the number of concubines (according to his ability).
Correspondingly, there is the difference between direct concubine and concubine.
The first wife refers to the first wife and her children, so the first wife is also called the first wife?; the concubine refers to all the concubines and their children outside the main wife. In some film and television works, it seems that there is not much difference between the two; but in reality, the difference between them is simply breathtaking.
In terms of background, when marrying a wife, it is important to have a good match, while concubines are almost always from low-status or poor families;
In terms of the marriage process, marrying a wife must be strict According to the standard process of traditional marriage, such as divination, following the parents' orders, the matchmaker's words, and preparing three books and six rituals?; the wedding ceremony is also extremely grand, both parties prepare enough betrothal gifts and dowry, and the man opens the middle door on the wedding day. , draped in red and colorful colors, and in the presence of relatives and friends, they bowed three times and kowtowed nine times, worshiped their ancestors, and registered in the genealogy. To describe it in four words, it means that the matchmaker is getting married.
In contrast, the process of taking a concubine can be described as sad for those who hear it and tears for those who see it?: Which girl does the man fall in love with? After negotiating the price, he pays a certain amount of money to buy the concubine? Afterwards, there is no need for any etiquette process, no welcoming procession, just a small sedan, sneaking into the door through the side door, and at most inviting a few family members to liven up the ceremony in a small area. Of course, the woman does not need to provide a dowry.
After entering the man's house, the difference in treatment between wives and concubines becomes even greater.
Generally speaking, although men were superior to women in ancient society, within a family, the legal status of the head wife was equal to that of the husband. She was the head of the household and was not only fully responsible for managing all the affairs of the family, but also She was responsible for managing the concubines and, if necessary, punished those who broke the rules.
The value of a concubine in a family generally has three aspects: satisfying the desire of the male master, carrying on the family line, and serving as a slave. Not only do they have to serve their husbands, they also have to be submissive to their wives and allow them to be dominated by them. They will never be listed in the clan list in their lives, unless the children born to the mother are particularly favored and respected.
Generally speaking, a wife cannot be reduced to a concubine, nor can she be divorced easily, unless she commits the seven sins, namely, childlessness, adultery, neglect of aunts, talking, and theft. , jealousy, maladies; even if you have committed seven crimes, you cannot be divorced if any of the three do not go?, that is: marrying with nothing to return to (having no natal family to return to), and mourning for three more years (having had no family to return to) Those who observed mourning for their parents-in-law for three years), who were poor and then became rich (accompanying their husbands from poverty to wealth).
But concubines do not have this kind of treatment. They can be bought and sold like commodities without any protection. However, if the head wife of a family dies or is divorced, and the male owner is willing, the concubine can become a wife after going through strict procedures and ceremonies.
Of course, the difference between wives and concubines is also reflected in the children they give birth to. Children born to the first wife are called legitimate children, while children born to concubines are called common children. Although both parties have the same father, their status is clearly distinguished. The eldest son has the unquestionable right to inherit the family, followed closely by the eldest grandson. , other legitimate sons; the status of legitimate daughters is also higher than that of concubines.
In many literary works, the distinction between wives and concubines and concubines is described very profoundly.
For example, in A Dream of Red Mansions, Jia Zheng’s wife is Mrs. Wang, and his concubine is Aunt Zhao. The former can yell and curse at the latter, even worse than ordinary servants; the son born to them is : Although Jia Baoyu and Jia Huan are both sons of Jia Zheng, in Jia's house, one of them enjoys the treatment of many stars, while the other is disliked by everyone, laughable and pitiful.
Also in the Dream of Red Mansions, while the concubine Jia Tanchun was ordered by his wife, Mrs. Wang, to temporarily take care of the family affairs, her biological mother Aunt Zhao forced her to increase the funeral reward for her uncle Zhao Guoji; According to the provisions of the patriarchal system in "The Rites of Zhou", the principle of treating the aunt as the only mother was adhered to, and only Wang Ziteng, the brother of his aunt, Mrs. Wang, was recognized as his uncle in the clan. He emphasized that his uncle Zhao Guoji was just a servant in Jia's house, and rejected the idea. Aunt Zhao's request, this performance made the Jia family full of admiration.
The distinction between wives and concubines reflects the special marriage system in ancient patriarchal societies. In contrast, in contemporary society, under the system of monogamy and no concubines, everyone is equal and enjoys the same dignity. This is the progress of civilization.