Through telling the story of Xiangzi, Lao She's "Rickshaw" moulds a woman in Hu Niu that is the antithesis of everything that a woman should be in the traditional society of that period. In the time-honoured Chinese culture, there has long been a strong prejudice against women of power. Every unfavourable image has been linked with particularly those who have proved especially formidable. Throughout the histories that have been written by mostly men where views as traditional as Xiangzi's have been prevalent, dominant women have been presented in the most unsympathetic light.
In similar fashion, our look at the character Hu Niu is relentlessly coloured by Xiangzi's harsh narrative. It is impossible to do a light reading of "Rickshaw" and hope to be presented a face for Hu Niu that is to true to her actual person. …
