Leftover Women
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‘Leftover women’ in China: Emotional advert challenges the pressure on single women to get married
A new advert has been released challenging the traditional Chinese societal view that women should be married by the age of 25. Those unmarried beyond this age are often stigmatised as ‘sheng nu’ - meaning ‘leftover women’. The video begins with pressurising comments commonly heard by these women: you’re not a kid anymore; find someone to marry; I won’t die in peace until you’re married; don’t be so free-willed; she’s stubborn; and you’re too picky. A single woman starring in the advert says Chinese New Year is the most stressful time. “Everyone will be asking you – how old are you? Why are you not married? You’re no longer young.” “People think that in Chinese society, an unmarried woman is incomplete. You feel like an outsider.” A particularly uncomfortable moment in the advert is a parent speaking about her daughter’s singledom while she is present in the room. “We always thought our daughter had a great personality. She’s just average looking. Not too pretty. That’s why she’s leftover.” The advert features Shanghai’s marriage market which is a forum for parents to post their sons’ and daughters’ details in an attempt to find them a partner. The video culminates in the ‘leftover women’ delivering a personal message to their parents at the marriage market. Their profiles do not feature their age or income but defiant quotes like: “I don’t want to get married just for the sake of marriage. I won’t live happily that way.” The parents emotionally accept their daughters’ wishes, with one commenting that “the ‘leftover women’ are outstanding. The ‘leftover men’ need to try harder!” The advert was created by beauty brand SK-II and it has been viewed over 1.5 million times.
Emotional advert about China's 'leftover women' goes viral
An advertisement centred around "leftover women" in China has gone viral, provoking an emotional debate about single women in the country. The issue of unmarried females, often stigmatised as "sheng nu" or leftover women, has long been a topic of concern in a society that prioritises marriage and motherhood for women. Called the "Marriage Market Takeover", the four-minute long documentary-style video was commissioned by Japanese beauty giant SK-II. In a statement to the BBC, SK-II President Markus Strobel said the advert was part of "a global campaign to inspire and empower women to shape their destiny". "The film brings light to the real-life issue of talented and brave Chinese women feeling pressured to get married before they turn 27, for fear of being labelled 'sheng nu'". He also said the company was adopting "a positive approach in helping women face pressures". Image caption Accompanied by English captions, the video introduces us to the lives of China's "sheng nu", or 'leftover women' Heavy pressures from society By government definition, a "leftover woman" refers to any unmarried female above the age of 27. China's ruling Communist Party tries to urge single women to marry, to offset a huge gender imbalance caused by the recently ended one-child policy. But according to Leta Hong Fincher, author of "Leftover Women: The Resurgence of Gender Inequality in China", single Chinese women are at "a real turning point" and many are beginning to embrace a single lifestyle and push back the stigma. She told the BBC: "These are young women with strength and confidence, who are being specifically targeted by the state's deliberate campaign to pressure [them] into marrying. Chinese women today are more educated than ever before and they are increasingly resisting marriage." Image caption The advert also focuses on the parents of single women and their emotional interactions Ms Hong Fincher, who had a small consulting role in the video, said what made it particularly powerful was that it depicted "the actual state" of women in the country. "This is the reality and it was told in a very creative, moving and empowering way: that these women are leading great lives in many ways, in being single," she said. "But the torture experienced by the women in holding out against intense marriage pressure is also extremely real. It reflects the reality of so many young women professionals in China." Image caption "Maybe I am being selfish," this young woman says, before she breaks into tears 'An unmarried woman is incomplete' At the heart of the video is heartfelt testimony from the women themselves, with some breaking down when relating difficulties they face being single. "In Chinese culture, respecting your parents is the most important quality. And not getting married is like the biggest sign of disrespect," shared one woman, who later broke down in tears. Another woman said: "People think that in Chinese society, an unmarried woman is incomplete." Image caption 'She's not too pretty, that's why she's leftover' - The heartbreaking exchange between this woman and her mother The tough stances of the parents were also featured prominently. "We always thought our daughter had a great personality. But she's just average-looking, not too pretty. That's why she's leftover," said one mother, who sat next to her daughter who tried to fight back tears. But the video has proven popular online, resonating strongly with thousands of social media users. A YouTube video uploaded on the brand's official channel drew hundreds of thousands of global views and was shared widely among Facebook users. In China, the video received more than 4,000 likes and was shared close to 20,000 times on SK-II's official Sina Weibo account. It drew huge praise from vocal netizens on the popular micro-blogging site and prompted a serious discussion. Image caption Thousands of Chinese social media users praised the film and its empowering message for single women "Every woman's choice should be respected in civilised society," commented Weibo user Lotus Seed Core. Cecilia Leung from Beijing commented: "I am a single girl and I needed to see this ad, to tell me that I am not alone and I am not wrong for my choices. One can be happy without a man, and we shouldn't be punished for our choices in life when we have not wronged others." Another user had this to share: "Age is only a number and should not be used to gauge everyone's goals in life, it's different. To sisters who have yet to meet their soul-mates, don't give up hope and listen only to your heart. Not even your parents, for only you know what is right for yourself. And if you don't, do not grieve but celebrate your life." Image caption One mother visits a "marriage market" and finds a message from her unmarried daughter Image caption At the end of the advert, daughters and their parents bond over trying to understand each other better Ending on a positive note, the advert sees the single women and their parents visiting a "marriage market". These "markets" are usually a place for parents to leave posters listing the details of their unmarried children, in the hopes of finding a match. However, in this case, the parents are shown posters of their daughters, with positive messages for their parents. In one poster, a woman tells her parents: "I don't want to get married just for the sake of marriage. I won't be happy that way." "I am opposed to the term 'leftover woman'," says another, with her mother adding: "The 'leftover men' need to try harder." 'Only the beginning' But can the single women of China see real happy endings - where society will truly accept their choices? "At the moment, that is only a fantasy," says Ms Hong Fincher, adding that the "incredible angst, personal torture and societal pressures" depicted in the advert are still prevalent. "Marriage in China is extremely patriarchal and women need to see that being single is something to be celebrated, not to be ashamed of," she says. "But I believe that this trend of women who choose to be single and independent is going to increase and this is the beginning."
China’s ‘Leftover’ Women
BEIJING — The headlines scream like sensational tabloids: “Overcoming the Big Four Emotional Blocks: Leftover Women Can Break out of Being Single.” “Eight Simple Moves to Escape the Leftover Women Trap.” And my personal favorite: “Do Leftover Women Really Deserve Our Sympathy?” These eye-catching topics do not appear in supermarket-aisle gossip magazines. They are articles about single, professional women published on the Web site of China’s state feminist agency, the All-China Women’s Federation. The Communist Party founded the Women’s Federation in 1949 to “protect women’s rights and interests.” In 2007, the Women’s Federation defined “leftover” women (sheng nu ) as unmarried women over the age of 27 and China’s Ministry of Education added the term to its official lexicon. Since then, the Women’s Federation Web site has run articles stigmatizing educated women who are still single. Take this uplifting column from March 2011 that ran just after International Women’s Day: Pretty girls don’t need a lot of education to marry into a rich and powerful family, but girls with an average or ugly appearance will find it difficult. These kinds of girls hope to further their education in order to increase their competitiveness. The tragedy is, they don’t realize that as women age, they are worth less and less, so by the time they get their M.A. or Ph.D., they are already old, like yellowed pearls. After knocking some good sense into those misguided women who pursue a higher education, the column accuses educated, single women of sleeping around and having degenerate 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 look for a life partner. Therefore, most “leftover women” do not deserve our sympathy. Glad we got that straight. Now, why would China’s state feminist agency conduct a scare-mongering campaign against single, educated women? Curious, I searched the Women’s Federation Web site and found that it posted its first article on “leftover” women in 2007, shortly after China’s State Council issued an edict on strengthening the Population and Family Planning program to address “unprecedented population pressures.” These pressures include the sex-ratio imbalance — which “causes a threat to social stability” — and the “low quality of the general population, which makes it hard to meet the requirements of fierce competition for national strength,” according to the State Council. The State Council names “upgrading population quality (suzhi)” as one of its key goals, and appoints the Women’s Federation as a primary implementer of its population planning policy. 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 Women’s Federation columns on sheng nu all share the same goal: convince single, educated women to stop being so ambitious and get married already: The main reason many girls become “leftover women” is that their standards for a partner are too high … As girls are not too picky, finding a partner should be as easy as blowing away a speck of dust. Some of the columns have been reposted several times over the years and list helpful tips, such as “seduce but don’t pester” and “be persistent but not willful”: When holding out for a man, if you say he must be rich and brilliant, romantic and hardworking ... this is just being willful. Does this kind of perfect man exist? Maybe he does exist, but why on earth would he want to marry you? Since 2008, local population planning commissions in cities such as Nanjing and Ningbo have carried out “interventions” to address the “leftover women crisis.” Local Women’s Federation branches have arranged matchmaking events for “highly educated, high-quality” women. This March there was a drive in Pinghu, Zhejiang Province, for “leftover women to speedily find conjugal happiness.” And once a “leftover” woman finds marital bliss, what should she do if her husband has an affair? The Women’s Federation comes to the rescue, with the headline, “Faced With A Marital Crisis, Women Need to Improve Themselves”: When you find out that 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 the man “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. Women must constantly change for the better. In short, it’s the woman’s fault for refusing to get married, and once she is married, it’s the woman’s fault if her husband has an affair. Of course.
Knowledge Graph
Examples
1 Among well-educated circles, so-called “leftover women” are very common now; the bad news is that 30 is just the new 27.
2 If you look at the latest SK-II ad on Leftover Women, which aims to break the stigma around single women, close family is usually where the most hurtful jabs fire.
3 Single at 27 and you’re a “leftover woman”; single at 30 – well, you're as good as dead.