Dream of the Red Chamber 251Bao-yu’s paternal grandfather, is the matriarch of
Rong-guo mansion. She commands major domestic
decisions such as the arranged marriage between
Bao-yu and Bao-chai. Grandmother Jia’s seniority
allows her to protect her favorite, Bao-yu, from Jia
Zheng’s constant displeasure with him. Jia Zheng’s
repeated deference to Grandmother Jia exemplifies
respect for one’s elders, an important code of con-
duct in Confucian ethics. Grandmother Jia entrusts
her capable daughter-in-law, Wang Xi-feng, with
the day-to-day running of her 300-strong house-
hold. Xi-feng’s successful enforcement of discipline
among numerous maids and servants particularly
attests to her supreme management skills.
Relations hoping to solicit monetary aid, politi-
cal support, and education waivers vie for influence
with the affluent Jias. The countrywoman, Grannie
Liu, visits Rong-guo mansion on the pretext of pay-
ing her respects to Lady Wang but leaves with a gift
of 20 silver taels that allows her family to tide over
their impoverished circumstances. Poor relations
who cannot afford private tuition for their children
enroll them in a charitable private school run by
the Jias. When the lawless Xue Pan is found guilty
of manslaughter on two separate occasions, family
connections and bribery allow him to turn the law
in his favor. Law enforcers in the province know
better than to offend the powerful Jia family and the
Wang, Xue, and Shi households they are connected
to by marriage.
Although family solidarity is important to the
Jias, occasional bouts of disharmony inevitably
erupt in the household. A famous episode involves
Xi-feng’s harsh treatment of her cousin, Jia Rui,
who develops an illicit attraction toward her. When
Jia Rui falls seriously ill as a result of unfulfilled
longing, Xi-feng’s cruel refusal to provide him with
sufficient tonics from her stores partially contributes
to his death. Her maltreatment of her husband’s
kind concubine, You Er-jie, also leads to the latter’s
suicide. Another memorable episode sees Jia Huan’s
maliciousness toward his half brother culminate in
his deliberate framing of Bao-yu. Believing that
Bao-yu attempted to rape the maid Golden and
caused her suicide, Jia Zheng gives him a sound
thrashing until blood soaks his clothes. Chaos
ensues in the household when a greatly distressed
Grandmother Jia arrives on the scene.
For the Jias, practical considerations take pre-
cedence over matters of love where marriage is
concerned. Despite being aware of Bao-yu and Dai-
yu’s mutual affection for each other, Grandmother
Jia and Lady Wang choose the healthy and capable
Bao-chai over the sickly and ethereal Dai-yu to be
Bao-yu’s bride. Bao-chai’s practical nature marks
her as the more suitable wife to manage Bao-yu’s
household. Moreover, being an orphan, Dai-yu has
no parent to speak on behalf of her matrimonial
interests.
Servants form an important part of the novel’s
familial landscape. When Bao-yu and his best
friend, Qin Zhong, are insulted by Jokey Jin in the
clan school, Bao-yu’s rash but loyal page, Tealeaf,
wastes no time in admonishing the wrongdoer and
challenging him to a fight to save Bao-yu’s honor.
Grandmother Jia’s devoted maid, Faithful, hangs
herself upon her mistress’s death so she can continue
to serve her in the afterlife. In turn, masters and
mistresses tend to treat their maids benevolently.
Bao-yu’s touching goodbye to his maid, Skybright,
sees them exchanging undershirts as tokens of
affection for each other. Husbands are found for
Xi-chun’s maids when she decides to become a nun,
thus ensuring that they are well taken care of after
their period of service.
Cao Xueqin’s use of the Jias’ family life as a
backdrop in Dream of the Red Chamber provides
much cohesion to his highly episodic narrative.
Characters that live and interact with one another
in the mansions unravel their earthly fates based
on the web of familial relationships they have been
born into. This is also true for their maids, whose
individual fates are closely tied to the master or
mistress they serve.
Edwina QuekGender in Dream of the Red Chamber
Bao-yu’s famous likening of girls to water and boys
to mud underscores Dream of the Red Chamber’s
disparate treatment of gender. Young girls are sys-
tematically elevated above their male counterparts
in the spheres of literary talent and morality. While
the boys of the clan school are easily distracted