Making Sense of âDisharmonyâ: The Hidden Politics of Divorce Among Kitan Princesses
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Abstract
This article examines the high frequency of divorce among Kitan princesses during the Liao dynasty (916-1125), challenging the prevailing view that these separations reflected female autonomy. Through a philological analysis and a reconstruction of the socio-political background of each divorce, this study reveals that âdisharmonyâ (buxie) was often a euphemism for politically motivated separations orchestrated by the emperor or the court. The rigid marriage system between the Yelü imperial clan and the Xiao consort clan limited marital flexibility, making divorce a strategic tool for realigning alliances. Clan and faction struggle in the first half of the eleventh century enabled the normalization of divorce, which then profoundly influenced memorial politics at the end of the period. In the historical records, however, these separations vaguely attributed to âdisharmonyâ were misunderstood by later annalists, including the Yuan compilers of the Liaoshi, who saw them as moral failures of the Kitan regime.
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Making Sense of âDisharmonyâ: The Hidden Politics of Divorce Among Kitan Princesses
In: NAN NÃSearch for other papers by Adrien Dupuis in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Abstract
This article examines the high frequency of divorce among Kitan princesses during the Liao dynasty (916-1125), challenging the prevailing view that these separations reflected female autonomy. Through a philological analysis and a reconstruction of the socio-political background of each divorce, this study reveals that âdisharmonyâ (buxie) was often a euphemism for politically motivated separations orchestrated by the emperor or the court. The rigid marriage system between the Yelü imperial clan and the Xiao consort clan limited marital flexibility, making divorce a strategic tool for realigning alliances. Clan and faction struggle in the first half of the eleventh century enabled the normalization of divorce, which then profoundly influenced memorial politics at the end of the period. In the historical records, however, these separations vaguely attributed to âdisharmonyâ were misunderstood by later annalists, including the Yuan compilers of the Liaoshi, who saw them as moral failures of the Kitan regime.
| All Time | Past 365 days | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract Views | 105 | 105 | 6 |
| Full Text Views | 7 | 7 | 1 |
| PDF Views & Downloads | 32 | 32 | 2 |
