Abstract

This book chapter/article discusses Ban Zhao's subtle and strategic negotiation of gender politics during the reign of the imperial and patriarchal Han dynasty (206 BCE - 220 CE). I argued that contrary to the received opinion, she is arguable the first woman philosopher in ancient China. Beyond her famed Lessons for Women, I explored (and translated) her less known but powerful official memoranda and poetry. They demonstrate Ban Zhao's exceptional bravery, intelligence, and literary achievement in advancing women's causes by her writings and actions, as a woman public intellectual, amid immense social and political pressure in the first-century China.