Thanks @nyanncath for the rec!

I’m starting on Homoerotic Sensibilities in Late Imperial China by Wu Cuncun, a native scholar. It’s about Beijing opera culture in Qing, which was said to be obscured from history thanks to the influence of Western colonization (yea no shit )

You can read up on her work here.
http://web.chinese.hku.hk/main/staff/academic-staff/prof-wu-cuncun/
I’m only at the intro but from what I’ve read, it’s a good jump-off from Hinsch’s work. You can also find this book from the usual places (you know la)

Late Ming dynasty apparently: “ladies and gentlemen and those who aren’t either, time to have kinky sex!”

Then the Manchu Qing was like “whoa time to put a stop to that”

Pinhua baojian — 60 chapters, more than 500k words. Famous homoerotic novel. Sound familiar?

The Chinese title is品花宝鉴 if anyone wants to read it for the greater good

Lest your sensibilities be offended, I’ve read Bian er chai and UH it’s very explicit

the reaffirmation that it has nothing to do with “identity”

A clear power difference in the Qing dynasty (unlike other earlier dynasties where r/s could be more egalitarian)

Feels like sexism plays into this as dan (the opera actor boys who took on female roles) were praised for their feminity as being superior to women, able to replace them entirely

I’m finding that in pockets of history, the literati were shockingly individualistic. DEATH TO CONFUCIAN IDEALS!

Wu asserts that these young actor-prostitutes had a lasting effect on the popularity of Beijing opera, much more than its artistic merits.

As Beijing opera is considered a national treasure, its rise with the involvement of these actors was deliberately obscured by officials

I will gather up my feelings at the end of this book, but currently? I feel sad for the boys from the south who were exploited for the city-literati’s pursuit of pleasure

the book is very clear that while feminity in the dan (opera actors who did female roles) was idealized by the literati, it’s specifically seen as a male aesthetic; they were not looking at them to be women

I find it a parallel to BL works where the shou is quite often feminized in some way but not a woman — except of course, the consumers here are young women whereas the consumers of the Qing dynasty were male literati

and this is where I’m wondering if there’s some connection for this correlation to happen

It was about power (I.e. exploitation)

I can’t deal with these Ming dynasty sexists ugh they really said if only boys could give birth there would be no need for women

So in Beijing and Jiang-zhe area MSM activity was mostly related to power and exploitation while in Fujian (with the adopted brother marriages) it was far more egalitarian

Yes ah the mention of 翰林风月 ([Hanlin] Academy Romance) as a term for homosexuality

“Fondling fresh spring onions” by god will the euphemisms ever cease

hey a mention of a Japanese work (The Great Mirror of Male Love) directly influenced by Longyang yishi!

I personally can’t romanticize the role of a xiaochang (entertainer boys, who were on the surface hired to sing) even in fiction bc... damn that exploitation >< it’s too much for me

Yeet me back to earlier dynasties where at least it was about political favour sigh

OMG THE EASTERN DEPOT LOL

I mentioned this earlier — feminity =/= womanhood but sexual subservience

I can’t deal, they were discarded after they started to develop hair on the face and voices which broke, and had no role beyond the gratification of male sexual desire [late Ming]

I am suddenly very angry at these ancient Chinese libertines

To look up: Li Yu’s Rou putuan (The Carnal Prayer Mat) vernacular erotic fiction

Lang here being translated as beau... I love it. Beau Yan...

“Family responsibilities were a duty not to be confused with romantic love” it’s sad really

And later on when he set him up with a family of his own, he could not help but be jealous of his lover’s bride

Yesssssss finally questioning the status quo

Looking up the poet of this tweet (Chen Weisong 陈维崧) and he calls his lover Ah-Yun and Yun-lang, wehhhhh https://twitter.com/anonflail/status/1250302641168478208

I’m reading this Chinese article and it says they 公开在水绘园中搞起了同性恋 (openly engaged in homosexuality [the western-influenced term] in Drawn-in-Water Garden) idk how to tl 搞起 but it’s rather crass way of saying it lol

Again the mention of wife (furen)

the impoverished scholar and the opera actor trope is real... and was much celebrated in Qing dynasty circles, amazing

oh no he gave up his career to follow his scholar-minister partner

omg there’s a mention of “biting his own arm” here which I vaguely recall is a euphemism for love? devotion? IDK ONE OF THESE

Verse for Li-lang [Beau Li]

ok this is why I need to look up original poem in Chinese cos every researcher uses their own translation

anw the term is 啮臂为盟 (nie bi wei meng) literally bite arm to form an oath

Here is the original and the translation

Rabbit was used to refer to catamites in the Ming and Qing dynasty, that’s where 兔崽子 came from (meaning bastard [offensive], literally baby rabbit)

There’s also a god for homosexuality originating in Fujian ahaha https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tu%27er_Shen

:)

Grinding ink as an act of subservience and intimacy... Ahhh... This is nice imagery (and it needs to be ground properly, for the ink not to froth, so that the calligraphy can be best wrought)

Ok I managed to find a drawing of Xu Ziyun (Purple Clouds, his entertainer name, his lover called him Xu-lang, Ah-yun and Yun-lang at different times :3)

lol if you search the painting’s name on Weib* there aren’t many results...

so I can’t recall which of the literati it was credited to, but one of them was poor and was dressed averagely, having just passed the examinations, was not expecting the actor to choose him, and he got stared at by the actor but he was still thinking NAH couldn’t be

so the actor went to knock on his door the next morning

bold and efficient

In 2020 Zhang Xuecheng would be throwing down with Yuan Mei on weib*

“I refuse to pass a single night without a flower” YUAN MEI you’re a ho alright

DOUBLE LOTUSSSSSSSS DOUBLE L O T U S

Author of this book: Yea, Yuan Mei was a ho.

Ok Mr Yuan I forgive you for being a ho

Suggest looking up Hu Tianbao if you want to look up the Rabbit God in charge of all gay matters!

Yuan Mei’s friend Chunjiang-gongzi also had egalitarian ideas — he was very beautiful and mistaken for an actor once, but did not get angry

I’m only 37% through this book I’m learning so much!