ABSTRACT
This chapter offers a critical examination of the conceptual construction of Chinese women as funü in the Mao era, arguing that the new Chinese translation of “women” as funü in Funüjie, rather than the previous translations of Nüshengjie or Nürenjie, is a political choice; it is part of the gender project in Communist China that aims to establish the status of a particular gendered political subject as representing women in China. Through a historicizing and decoding of funü, I assess both its positive legacies and historical exclusions, and discuss the challenge and opportunity for carrying out contemporary feminist struggles that build upon but go beyond funü
