Patrick Lee

Geography 431 Gender and Geography

11 February 2016
The Good Earth The Life of O-Lan
I. Introduction
The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck is a fictional chronicle of the life of a
man named Wang Lung through his successes and failures. A very influential
person in Wang Lungs life is his wife, O-Lan. Because of the importance that
O-Lan plays in Bucks novel, a narrative of her life can be read. It is through
this descriptive narrative that an analyses of the different identities and
powers in the spaces of O-Lans life can be conducted.
Book Context:
The novel takes places prior to the Xinhai Revolution of 1911, in which
the last Chinese Dynasty was overthrown. It is during this time in premodern
China, that Confucian principles in which the virtue of filial piety, the
continuity of the family name, and ancestor worship served as a powerful,
cultural basis for gender oppression (Ronselee, 9). As a result, women were
in submission to men in their everyday lives. Despite, being highly
submissive to men, they contributed much to society and to the household.
Through O-Lan, we can see the oppression that women face and the
contributions they make in pre-modern Chinese society.

Background of O-Lan:
O-Lan was sold as a slave as a young child and worked as a kitchen
servant in the House of Hwang until she was placed in an arranged marriage
with the main protagonist of the novel, Wang Lung. O-Lan was not
considered attractive in Chinese standards because of her plain look and
big feet. What she lacked in her physical appearance, she made up with her
resourcefulness and life skills she picked up as a slave. As Wang Lungs wife,
O-Lan obediently and quietly worked the field and helped run the household
by his side. It is through her hard work and dedication that Wang Lung is
able to achieve prosperity in the end, despite the turbulent journey. The
changes in his attitude towards O-Lan are evident as he becomes wealthier
and gains prestige.
Analyses:
This paper will examine O-Lans narrative through a series of scales
and places. Before looking dissecting the different places that O-Lan has
lived, two scales will be examined: society and family.
Two different scales will be used to assist in dissecting the identities
and powers of O-Lans life: premodern Chinese society, and her immediate
family with Wang Lung. Through the examination of pre-modern Chinese
society, the root cause of the oppressions that O-Lan lives through can be
seen. The oppressions that O-Lan faces from society are not only based on
gender, but by social class as well. By narrowing the analysis scale to O-

Lans immediate family with Wang Lung, the identities and powers of O-Lans
life can be examined.
After looking at scales, three different locations will be used to continue
dissecting the identities and powers of O-Lans life: The House of Hwang,
Wang Lungs and O-Lans home in the early years of their marriage, Wang
Lungs and O-Lans home prior to her death. O-Lans identity changes
dramatically as she escapes slavery through her marriage and then as Wang
Lung gains prestige and fortune. By looking at these three places, the
dynamic nature of the identities and powers of O-Lans life can be seen.
II. Scale: Society
As stated earlier, Bucks novel takes place prior to the events of the
Xinhai Revolution of 1911 which gave birth to modern Chinese society. This
places the O-Lan in a period in which Confucius principles were widely
followed by all of society. These principles created the gendered roles as
well as the system of social classes seen by pre-modern Chinese society.
The two different systems of oppression at the societal scale have influenced
the powers and identities that O-Lan faces throughout her life.
Gendered Roles:
It is through the virtue of filial piety, the continuity of the family name,
and ancestor worship that has created the cultural basis for gender
oppression during pre-modern Chinese society (Ronselee, 9). All three
elements of the Confucian principle listed above created the framework

leading to the gendered roles of society. Furthermore, this framework has

led to the systematic oppression of women.
During childbirth, the birth of a boy was preferred over a girl, in
following the Confucius emphasis of the continuity of the family name. This
meant that women were placed lower than men in most families as they
could not continue the family name and could not perform the same amount
of labor as men. Frequently, women were either sold or married off to ease
the burden of feeding another person in the household.
Social Class:
In addition to the gendered roles that Confucianism creates, Confucius
writings have also created the four categories of people. The four
categories of people were the shi (scholars), the nong (farmers), the gong
(artisans), and the shang (merchants). While the categories were broad, the
principle of the four categories of people served as the basic framework
that has led to the pre-modern Chinese social structure.
The social structure of pre-modern China was based on the amount of
education and spirit of the work performed. At the top of the social structure
were the scholars who typically had to pass a series of civil service exams.
Only men held these positions of power. Below the scholars were the
artisans and farmers who performed tasks that benefitted all of society. The
bottom of the social structure were the shang because they were deemed to
self-absorbed due to the nature of their business. Movement was scarce in

pre-modern China due to the education needed to attain the status of artisan
or scholar.
For women, movement was even scarcer. Gender acted as a ceiling for
women as men dominated most positions of power.
III. Scale: Family
The scale of family is smaller than that of society, but allows for an
intimate view of the day to day life of O-Lan. Continuing on the discussion
about the role of women in pre-modern Chinese society from the previous
section.
IV. Place: The House of Hwang
The House of Hwang was the home of O-Lan for ten years as she
served the Hwang family as a kitchen slave. She was sold as a slave by her
family for money during financial crisis, which was extremely common during
this time, due to the little value that was placed on women by family. This
was only testament to the oppression that females faced in pre-modern
Chinese society.
V. Place: Wang Lungs and O-Lans Early Home
Wang Lung and O-Lan had a modest home at the beginning of their
marriage. It was a quaint house in the middle of farmland the land in which
they made their living off of. The relationship that the two shared was
relatively equal as they both worked the land together from dawn to dusk.

VI. Places: Wang Lungs and O-Lans Late Home

Wang Lungs late home is radically different from his early home due to
his significantly increased fame and prestige. Rather than just being a place
for shelter, Wang Lungs late home is also a place for pleasure it is
exorbitant and has quarters for his concubine. The home was no longer
served as a safe space in which one could wind down from the day and relax
from the world outside. It was now a place of oppression, as she now had to
deal with the increasingly abusive Wang Lung as well as neglect due to her
old age. She was not as attractive as his many concubines Lotus or Peach
Blossom. Every time she saw Wang Lung interact with them she had a deep
and sullen anger (Buck, 200).
O-Lans identity as Wang Lungs wife and as the keeper of the house
faded as she was slowly being replaced by his mistresses. She did not have
anywhere to escape the oppression she faced as Wang Lungs first wife.
She became alienated by the members of her household (mistresses, sons,
Wang Lung), and had to go through this until her death.
VII. Comparison of Places
The House of Hwang and Wang Lungs late home shared many
similarities in that they were places of both pleasure and living. Pleasure
was derived from the use of women acting as mistresses or concubines who
served their masters. In these two places, O-Lan was oppressed because of
the nature of the treatment of females in pre-modern Chinese society.

However in Wang Lungs early home with O-Lan, O-Lan had an opportunity to
express herself and be on relatively equal grounds with her husband. They
both worked together on the fields.
VIII. Conclusion
O-Lan had difficulty for most of her life to produce her own identity.
The male-dominated society of pre-modern China prevented this. The
identity that she has throughout her life were given to her. The powers of
oppression from family and society put her in this position.