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Thread: Chinese “Leftovers” More Than Enough For American Appetites

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[quote=1STWORLDVIEW,527220]The authors of the original bilateral trade agreements between the Peoples Republic of China and the Unites States never saw this coming: A Chinese export so tantalizing, American men would spend thousands of dollars to acquire it.  And yet it's popularity is only now catching on.  It's known as "Sheng Nu".  Leftovers. 
 
       Specifically: Chinese "leftover" women.
 
       Despite a surplus of over 20 million men in Chinese society, Chinese women in their late 20's and above are finding it difficult to find a husband.  This, despite being attractive, professionally employed, and eager to settle down.  China's women have abundant opportunities to find work and earn a good living.  What is it, then, that prevents so many from finding their way to the alter?  In fact, it's the very culture they thrive in.
 
       For years, the Chinese government sponsored Women's Federation has been pushing fast-tracking females to let go of professional pursuits in exchange for life as a stay-at-home wife and mother.  "If you're still unwed by age 27," the widely-read Federation website says, "You'll be 'leftover' and unwanted."  The negative connotation of the "Sheng Nu" label is so strong, many observers say, it renders a stigma that scares away potential suitors.  And Chinese men, according to the South China Morning Post, are deeply obsessed with finding a less accomplished, more submissive women to marry.
 
Sociologist and author Leta Hong Fincher, writing for the New York Times Opinion pages, accuses China's government of fomenting chauvinism by sponsoring tabloid articles like "Do Leftover Women Really Deserve Our Sympathy?"  "Eight Moves to Escape the Leftover Women Trap."  And then there's the article, published on - of all days - International Womens Day, which accuses single, independent women of having poor morals:
 
       "Many highly educated 'leftover women" are very progressive in their thinking and enjoy going to nightclubs to search for a one-night-stand, or they become the mistress of a high official or rich man.  It is only when they have lost their youth and are kicked out by the man that they decide to search for a life partner."
 
       Is a smear campaign, designed to demean China's most independent-minded women into marriage, the government's answer to China's staggering sex-ratio imbalance? Leta Hong Fincher thinks so.  "What better way to upgrade population quality than to frighten 'high-quality' women into marrying and having a child for the good of the nation?" The chauvinist campaigns don't stop at marriage.  Post-nuptial relationship advice is also given. "When you find out he is having an affair, you may be in a towering rage, but you must know that if you make a fuss, you are denying him 'face' ... no man is capable of spending a lifetime being loyal to an outmoded wife who never changes... Try changing your hairstyle or your fashion."
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