Kick-Ass Women from History #3: 吴藻 (Wú Zǎo) - The TTRPG network

You can easily go through your entire life in the west having never heard the name Wu Zao [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wu_Zao] (courtesy name Wu Pinxiang). It’s almost as if she’s been erased from western scholarship. (Almost.) In the few places you’ll see her mentioned, there’s a very good chance, however, like the linked Wikipedia article, that you’ll get the facts of her being a lyricist, a poet, a guqin player, and a literary scholar. One of the key facts of her identity, however, will not be shared typically. Which is weird because she’s celebrated in China partially for these very key facts. (Well, that and she’s actually a very accomplished poet; poetry being an art still beloved in Chinese culture.) So let’s explore a bit more what makes this woman worthy of being a “Kick-Ass Woman from History”, shall we? ## Just the Facts, Ma’am Let’s get the dull facts out of the way first. Wu Zao was born in 1799 in the Qing Dynasty to a wealthy merchant family in Renhe (modern day Hangzhou). She was married (unhappily: this is called foreshadowing!) to another wealthy merchant. Her literary talent was demonstrated and recognized from a very young age; her clear intellect and poetic talent well-known among her peers. The Qing Dynasty is a period marked both by a flourishing literary culture, but also very strict gender norms. Despite this she entered the literary scene in her twenties with a huge splash: with, specifically the 杂剧 (Zájù) [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zaju] play 喬影(Qiáoyǐng or “The Fake Image”). Specializing in 词 (cí) 曲 (qū) lyric forms, both noted for refined emotional expression, she had a meteoric rise in the arts scene and her songs were sung China-wide in her lifetime. In her later years she withdrew to Buddhist contemplation, eschewing her poetry and favouring religious/philosophical study. She died in 1862 leaving behind several Kunqu and Zaju operas, along with three volumes of Ci poetry, as well as a detailed and insightful critique of the famed novel A Dream of Red Mansions. Her works are categorized into four main themes: lyrical self-expression, poetic exchanges and dedications, metaphorical self-reflection, and appreciation of beautiful scenes and are known for vivid imagery, clever allusions, and refined rhetorical techniques. They are significant for both their artistic achievement and their role in the development of female literary consciousness in China. Wu Zao is correctly celebrated as one of the most distinguished female lyricists and poets of the Qing Dynasty. Her lyric verse and poetry was widely sung and admired during her lifetime. She was recognized for her unique voice, emotional range, and influence on later generations of women writers in China. In addition she wrote in a style that sometimes adopted masculine literary conventions, further challenging gender norms of her time. If we stopped here she’s already quite the impressive woman. To achieve such widespread recognition in her own lifetime in a field dominated by men and a society that gave little value to women is a magnificent accomplishment already. I could stop this essay right here and you’d think that perhaps she has already earned the title of a “Kick-Ass Woman of History”. But she was so much more. ## Teasing Hints The first teasing hint as to the nature of where she really kicks ass is that in all her poems and songs, all her paeans to love and passion (the focus of much of her work) … … there is absolutely no mention, direct or indirect, of her husband. Now this should not come as a complete surprise to a modern reader given that I already said her marriage was not a happy one. But it runs VERY STRONGLY against the conventions of the time: if women did art, they praised their husbands. And she didn’t even mention hers. ## Sapphic Poet And the reason for this (and the likely reason for a loveless marriage) is quite simple: Wu Zao was openly sapphic, expressing romantic and sexual love for women in her poetry, especially for female courtesans Her poems contain direct and passionate language about her relationships and desires for women, making her one of the few historical Chinese poets whose sapphic identity is clear in her literary work. Her sapphic themes are not mere subtext but are explicit, distinguishing her from most of her contemporaries. She was known for her wit, talent, and the admired “personage spirit” of her era, all while she maintained close relationships with women, including female courtesans and disciples, who were often the subjects of her poetry. Her poetry and life embodied the image of a gifted woman (才女), but also subverted expectations through her overt sapphic themes and literary self-fashioning. Employing flirtatious and sensual language, especially in her arias, her works both reflected her personal desires and defied the conventions of the genres she worked within. Today, Wu Zao is especially noted for her openly sapphic poetry and is frequently cited as a historical lesbian poet (though “lesbian” is as much a social construct as is “woman”; it is, however, the closest term we have to what she would have been called in her own time). Her poetry covers themes of love—especially between women—using imagery and wording of longing, sorrow, friendship, and unfulfilled passion. Her open sapphic identity and literary self-fashioning make her a rare and important figure in Chinese literary history, and that is why she deserves the title of a “Kick-Ass Woman of History”. Isn’t it a shame she’s barely heard of in the west, and when she is her sexuality is glossed over if mentioned at all?

Kick-Ass Women from History #1: 郑一嫂 (Zhèng Yī Sǎo) - The TTRPG network

If I were to ask you who the most successful pirate in history was, I’m guessing you’d come up with names like Captain Kidd or Blackbeard or any number of others of that crowd in the Caribbean. But what if I told you that history’s most successful pirate was in China, and was a woman? Would that surprise you? Intrigue you? Prepare to be intrigued as I introduce you then, today, to one of the single most feared pirates in all of history: Zheng Yi Sao (this is the name I will be using here; she went by others), the pirate queen who was hunted by not one, not two, but three imperial powers, yet who retired peacefully and died not of violence, but of old age. ## Humble Beginnings Zheng Yi Sao—born 石阳 (Shí Yáng) in approximately 1775 somewhere around Xinhui, Guangdong—was a Tanka who worked as a prostitute-later-procurer on a floating Tanka brothel in Guangdong (or so the story goes). ## Marriage Details of her early life are not well-documented, but what is know is that around 1801 she married the pirate privateer Zheng Yi. (Her name literally means “Zheng Yi’s wife”. Welcome to patriarchy.) A year after their marriage, Zheng Yi took over a pirate fleet from a captured and executed cousin and became, after some heavy infighting among the pirates off the coast of Guangdong, and with the natural organizational skills of Zheng Yi Sao, the commander of a unified fleet of pirates. By 1805 Zheng Yi and Zheng Yi Sao had wrangled together a confederation of pirates with colour-coded fleets of red, black, blue, white, yellow, and purple. Commanding the massive Red Fleet of … You know what? This is too much about her husband and not enough about who we really want to talk about. Let’s move on. ## Inherited Command Short version: Zheng Yi, by now the head of the confederation, with his adoptive son Zhang Bao now commanding the Red Fleet, was blown overboard in a gale in 1807 and died. Zheng Yi Sao effectively inherited the loose control her husband had had over the confederation, and Zhang Bao took formal command over the Red Fleet. After entering into a sexual relation with Zhang Bao she cemented control over the pirate confederacy and became the queen of the pirates she would later be famous for. ## Queen Year after year Zheng Yi Sao got more and more ambitious and ruthless. She incorporated cast-iron discipline among the pirates with harsh penalties for everything from theft of booty to rape of female captives. Despite a major setback in 1809 with the absolute destruction of the White Fleet, she became such a terror to the Chinese authorities (and the East India Tea Company), destroying fleet after fleet sent to engage her confederacy, that the Chinese empire looked to “barbarian” empires to help. The Portuguese agreed to help and managed to blockade the Red Fleet in 1809 … only for the two imperial powers to be fought to a standstill and stalemate as unfavourable winds kept the pirates from breaking free. Finally the winds changed and the fleet broke free, humiliating two imperial powers in their wake. ## The Winds of Change In 1810, seemingly at the height of its power, the confederacy surrendered to the Great Qing. The motives for this surrender are unclear, but it is speculated that the confederacy was in such a powerful state that it could dictate the terms of its surrender and the Qing would gladly agree to them just to finally be rid of the scourge that was harrying their coastlines and rivers. Other theories suggest that upon the British entering the fray Zheng Yi Sao saw the writing on the wall and knew it was time to quit while she was ahead. ## Surrender On April 20, 1810, Zheng Yi Sao and her adoptive stepson Zhang Bao officially surrendered with 17,318 pirates, 226 ships, 1,315 cannons, and 2,798 assorted weapons. (24 of those ships and 1,433 of the pirates were under her personal command.) Zhang Bao was awarded the rank of lieutenant, and was allowed to retain a private fleet of up to 30 ships. The pair were also given permission to officially marry. (Don’t think too hard on this.) Pardons were issued to all of the surrendering pirates, and the regular seamen were given pork, wine, and money along with a general amnesty. Along with that amnesty, Zheng Yi Sao was also given land in Guangdong where she operated a successful gambling house. ## Post-surrender Life Not a lot is known in detail about Zheng Yi Sao’s post-surrender life. It is known that she gave birth to a son in 1813. It is also known that she gave birth to a daughter, but little else is known about her. (Welcome to patriarchy.) Aside from a legal case (which was dismissed by the emperor) over some money, she led a pretty unremarkable life, dying in 1844 at the age of 68-69, having run a successful (and infamous) gambling hall on Hainan in the intervening time. ## Influence For a woman almost completely unknown in the west, Zheng Yi Sao has had an enduring fascination and appeal here in the east. She appears as a character in films, in television, in literature, in graphic novels, and in video games. Scholarly works have been written about here from shortly after her death onward. Places have been named (both officially and unofficially) after her. She has cemented her place in history … and justly so. Oh, and that thumbnail image for this essay? That’s the only known photograph of the great pirate queen herself.

This child wanted to be a Transformer for Halloween - The TTRPG network

Another fortnight, another fountain brush. - The TTRPG network

I already showed one of mine [https://ttrpg.network/post/9974154], but here’s another. This is a 莫兰迪 (Mòlándí) brand and it’s … ah … decidedly inexpensive. Everything you see in this picture (the brush with suction reservoir, 50 ink cartridges, ten copybook pages for calligraphy practice) cost the equivalent of about $1.40. After shipping. That being said, though cheap, the only part that really badly plated plastic of the brush mount and the little plated plastic disks top and bottom. The cap and barrel are decent metal with fairly good what seems to be electrostatic vapour deposition coloration. (I chose “champagne” coloured.) Disappointingly, though the barrel is long enough for it, something inside of it prevents putting a spare ink cartridge inside of it. It will only hold one. It has one advantage over the linked one, however: it’s long enough that I can use the standard grip for Chinese calligraphy making it a perfect practice pen to carry with me. (Carrying a traditional pen and an inkstone is not practical.) This means I’m likely to start learning how to do it soon.

I thought I'd share my current working pens. - The TTRPG network

This is a Pixelfed post for further information. [https://pixelfed.social/i/web/post/559201471896821472] TL;DR summary: Wooden barrels with machined brass section adapters and caps.