Female Space in the Forbidden City

Student report (2022)

Authors

H. Lai Architecture and the Built Environment

Contributors

S. Tanović Teachers of Practice / A - Architecture and the Built Environment (supervisor 1)
Faculty
Architecture and the Built Environment
Copyright: © 2022 Hongrui Lai
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Published Date

14-04-2022

Language

English

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Faculty

Architecture and the Built Environment

Abstract

In the feudal society of ancient China, women's social status had always been inferior to men. Especially with the spread of Neo-Confucianism, abstinence thought became the mainstream. It emphasized the " Three Fundamental Bonds and Five Constant Virtues ", suppressed women's status, making women gradually become men's vassal. This relationship was also reflected in the design of the royal palace. As the largest royal palace in China, which has a history of more than 500 years, spanning two dynasties, the Forbidden City is a typical example. Taking the female space of the Forbidden City as the research object, this paper analyzes the female activities in the inner court space, restores the scenes of women's daily life, and investigates the architectural space and components related to women. I hope to arrive to a sort of categorization of space that can be informative of how architecture was used to maintain social hierarchies.