Preface
For thousands of years, our society has been patriarchal, and the low status of women is commonplace. Can the fate of women really be in their own hands? Or should even the most intimate matters of marriage be decided by others?
This article wants to take the famous "leftover women's tax" policy of Liu Bang, the ancestor of the Han Dynasty, as a clue to deeply analyze the situation of women at that time, and see if they really have a choice under the torrent of history.
1. Between life and death, how did Liu Bang start a business?
In 209 BC, Qin II died, the Qin Dynasty fell, and Chen Sheng and Wu Guang's rebel army soon failed. At this time, there was a small official named Liu Bang who decided to raise an army. He was originally the pavilion chief of Pei County, and he faced the doom of killing his head because of the delay. In order to turn over, he drew his sword and quickly gathered a group of men.
Seeing that the situation is getting more and more chaotic, Liu Bang is determined to seize this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. With the desperate pursuit of his subordinates, he fought all the way to Xianyang and occupied the land of the Han Dynasty. Subsequently, he led his army to defeat Xiang Yu, the overlord of Western Chu, and established the Han Dynasty. A small pavilion chief soared into the sky and achieved the emperor's business.
However, it is easy to seize power, but it is difficult to govern the country. Liu Bang soon understood that conquering the world was only the first step, and the real test was how to consolidate his rule and put the country on the right track.
Second, the government is very difficult, and all kinds of waste need to be lifted
In 206 BC, Liu Bang officially ascended the throne as emperor and was the ancestor of the Han Dynasty. The joy of dominating the world is still there, but I am also aware of the reality of a hundred wastes waiting to be rebuilt. The newly founded Han Dynasty faced a huge social crisis.
Years of war have led to economic collapse, depression in all industries, and hardships for the people. The reality that the people are not living makes Liu Bang worried. He understood that if the country and the people were to be safe, they had to find ways to revitalize the social economy. As a result, he vigorously pursued easing policies to encourage agricultural production and reduce taxes. For a time, the people gradually stabilized, and the farmland began to recover slowly.
However, there is another, more intractable problem – a severe underpopulation. Over the years, wars have caused a large number of deaths. The fertility rate is far lower than the mortality rate, which has seriously affected the overall strength of the country. Liu Bang was as anxious as an ant on a hot pot. He tried his best to increase the population, but with little success. It almost drove him crazy.
3. Frequent Tricks and Target Population Growth
In order to solve the problem of insufficient population, Gaozu tried his best to take various measures. But what he didn't expect was that the move brought polarized evaluations.
1. Implement a leniency policy to encourage people to have children
First, Liu Bang issued a pardon decree, announcing a nationwide amnesty for fugitives. At the same time, civilians who had been sold into slavery as a result of the war were released and their citizenship restored. In addition, he instituted preferential policies to encourage childbearing. For each additional newborn child, a certain amount of money and food is awarded. And promised that as long as they had more children, they would be exempt from taxes and forced labor forever.
This combination has had a noticeable effect. Many people have returned to their hometowns and returned to normal life. Fertility rates have also increased significantly. For a time, Liu Bang was complacent, believing that the population problem had finally been solved.
1. Forcibly pushing the "leftover women's tax" stirred up a thousand waves
Just when Liu Bang got carried away, statistics gave him a resounding slap in the face. Despite the improvement in fertility, the overall population is still on a downward trend. Liu Bang realized that the situation had not improved at all, and fell into anxiety and distress for a while.
After much deliberation, he decided that the crux of the matter was that women were reluctant to have children at an early age. In order to force women to speed up marriage and have children, Liu Bang formulated a leftover women's tax policy that shocked the whole country.
The core content of the law is that unmarried women between the ages of 15 and 30 are required to pay five times the annual tax. Violators are subject to heavy fines and even jail time. The move was immediate, and women were forced to accelerate marriage and childbearing. However, this coercive measure has also stirred up a thousand waves. It has become the focus of social controversy, and the evaluation is polarized.
1. Mixed Reviews Attitudes are very different
In the face of the unprecedented measure of the leftover women's tax, the reactions from all walks of life are mixed. Two camps with very different attitudes have clearly formed.
The men all applauded and applauded. They welcomed the policy almost instinctively. After all, in an era of preference for sons, the existence of a large number of leftover women seriously threatens men's rights and interests in marriage and love. The leftover women's tax has solved their urgent needs.
And the women hate it to the core. They pointed out with grief that this is simply wrapped in strong discrimination and highlights the disadvantaged position of women. It deprives women of their basic rights to choose a spouse and have children, which amounts to a total denial of women.
But in the face of power, women's cries are useless. Under the functioning of the state apparatus, they are forced to submit to this policy that is clearly contrary to morality. A 15-year-old girl is sent into an unfamiliar marriage, and a 30-year-old middle-aged woman is also under the pressure of taxes, and it seems that she has never been in charge of her own fate.
Fourth, the merit lies in the present world and the harm lies in the descendants
Whether it is good or bad, the leftover women tax policy has become a foregone conclusion. It did have the desired effect, a large number of leftover women were forced to marry and have children, and the population rose rapidly. By the time of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, the country's population had exceeded 50 million. Liu Bang's population growth target was finally achieved.
In the short term, this has led to socio-economic development. The large population brings abundant labor, which has significantly improved production efficiency and national strength. This laid the foundation for Emperor Wu to send troops to the Xiongnu in the future. In this sense, Liu Bang's credit is indelible.
However, the side effects of disenfranchisement are also becoming apparent. Forced early marriage and high-intensity childbirth have caused the majority of women to suffer great physical and mental pain. What's more serious is that unprepared minors are pushed into marriage, which also buries the hidden danger of intensifying family conflicts in the future. This left hatred for future generations and was a major failure of Liu Bang's administration.
V. Conclusion
Looking back at this period of history, we can't help but think deeply: Liu Bang's original intention of formulating the leftover women's tax was for the development and growth of the country and society; However, in the process of implementation, the rights and interests of women are seriously harmed. What kind of historical philosophy does this reveal?
First, it reveals the cruelty of history. In the functioning of the state apparatus, the fate of the individual is often subordinated to its needs. No matter how tragic your cry is, you will inevitably be "crushed" in the end. This is the coldness of history, and it is also its helplessness.
Secondly, it also reflects the warmth of history. Although individuals have no power to fight back under the macro situation, those sacrificed lives, their unwillingness and tears, have finally become precious materials for future generations to learn and Xi remember. It is precisely because of their existence that history is more humane.
Finally, behind the leftover women's tax incident, there is also a question worth considering: in this male-centered society, can women's fate really be autonomous, and how long will the injustices they suffer last?