Life Stories of Chinese Women in Taiwan's Military Enclaves

Abstract

This thesis examines the life stories of Chinese women who live in military dependents’ villages life stories in Taiwan. Reviewing their narratives that span the era of China’s revolution from the early twentieth century to wartime (World War II and civil wars) through to post-war society of Taiwan, this study seeks to illustrate how these Chinese women comprehend and fulfill their social gender roles in accordance with their own ideologies, family disciplines, the newly established rules during wartime and in their journey of exile. Using standpoint theory and the concept of intersectionality to analyze fieldwork and oral history data, I examine gender issues and analyse women's distinct personal experiences which constitute their agency in particular socio-political formations. In addition, I suggest adopting the notion of diaspora to perceive Chinese women’s traumatic experiences as the displaced minority group in Taiwan. Diaspora—as a life situation characterized by uncertainty and the need to adapt to changes—may be embraced and practiced by some refugee groups and forced migrants as a way to comprehend their sudden disconnection from their homeland and their temporary (or long-term) liminal status in the host society (Brubaker 2005:12-13). This understanding may also further assist them in better preparing for the challenges of their new lives. Specifically, I conducted in-depth interviews with 44 Chinese women between the ages of 74 and 103 across 28 military enclaves in Taiwan. Research participants were Chinese migrants and refugees who witnessed China’s civil war and came to Taiwan with the defeated Nationalist government in the 1949 great retreat. Living under severe military controls and residing in the isolated and enclosed environments have been both perceived by these Chinese-born women as the crucial factors that changed their attitudes towards living and their future paths in the society of Taiwan. Moreover, as war-affected girls and women who often experienced power and resource deprivation due to gendered and migratory inequities and inequalities, the participants of this research were frequently compelled to remain silent and confined within military communities. To conclude, this research finds that during times of political oppression and social upheaval, the women’s insecure social gender roles as females in the military system and as diasporas lacking of local connections often forced them to bear the brunt of masculine violence and domestic abuse that came from the demands of political authorities (e.g., village heads and superiors) as well as from household heads (e.g., fathers, husbands, and even sons). In addition, whereas boys and men were more likely to be recruited into the power systems and hence held solid positions in public sphere, girls’ and women’s status were often regarded as less important, inferior ones; or, even worse, to be seen as the polluted and unproductive members that hindered the development of the country. As a result, Chinese diasporic women’s lives and voices were marginalized, which profoundly affected their sense-of-self and social participation at both personal and political levels.