ABSTRACT
In the early spring of 2013, Mainland China’s television drama Good Wife (Xianqi 贤妻) hit number one in the country’s popularity charts. This TV series, broadcast by Hunan TV, revolves around a Chinese mother and housewife who, despite being betrayed and bullied by her in-laws, remains virtuous, respectful, kind and patient, and does whatever it takes to save her marriage and keep the family together. Television dramas such as Good Wife, focusing on marriage and family life, have become increasingly popular in China. Their narratives are built on Confucian key values such as the maintenance of hierarchical relations, preserving harmony and the fulfillment of one’s duties according to one’s role within the family or society. The portrayal of the woman as an obedient wife, mother and daughter poses a stark contrast with popular representations of women during the first decades of the Republic and the Mao years, when they were not merely confined to their position as housewife or mother but took on a wide range of roles, from tractor driver to red soldier. The growing popularity of television dramas such as Good Wife coincides with an overall resurgence of Confucian values since the end of the twentieth century. Party policy makers have been advocating a “revival of Confucianism” (Zhu 2008, 58-60), and since China is the biggest consumer of television dramas in the world, these series have become a vital channel to propagate ideological messages.
