Literature is often an excellent way to gain insight into a culture, as well as the overall accepted and perpetuated views of a certain subject held by said culture. Even more so are the genres of fiction and fantasy something that can be looked to for this kind of insight, as the settings allow for a full exploration of characters and their interactions, without the limitations of the rules of reality. For those reasons, the subgenre of homoerotic fictional literature is a great resource for the discussion of the topic of male-male homosexuality in Imperial China. With few contemporary sources written on homosexual relationships during this period, fiction is the main way in which historians are able to understand the popular, general public view of homosexuality. Generally speaking, it can be argued through an examination of these sources that representations of homosexuality in fiction written in Qing China set a precedent for how such relationships were viewed by the general public, as opposed to the reality of these relationships.

Before discussing their presence in fiction, it is necessary to establish the “standard” establishment of homosexual relationships in society. While there are few contemporary sources on the topic of homosexual relationships in reality, some scholars have been able to piece together a broad scope of the characteristics of these types of relationships. Similar to the relationships of this nature found in Ancient Greece and Macedonia, the most open and recorded relationships followed a strict hierarchy, mostly as a result of the difference in age or status between the two men involved. The main reason that this conclusion was reached was due to writings about elite members of society, who often engaged in sexual relationships with members of the same-sex and of the lower classes, including servants. The bland, numerical records of these relationships however do not provide any intimate details about what feelings, if any, the men involved had toward one another. That issue is where writing as a whole comes into play with analysis. For example, there was an instance of an elite man who had a relationship with a lower class man who was given to him as a “gift,” but the love that they grew to have for one another was exemplified through letters and poems that they wrote to one another. The circumstance becomes complicated by the local response to their relationship. A collective response, which was communicated to the couple via a letter by one of their close friends, was that the sexual nature of their relationship was wholly accepted while the intimate, emotional relationship between the two was not. Should the relationship between the two be purely sexual, it would have been considered similar to that of prostitution and to some degree beneficial for the physical health of the men to “release sexual tensions.” However, because there was a romantic aspect to it, it was seen in an incredibly negative light as a relationship without a woman would not allow for the elite man to produce male offspring that could continue his family line.

Despite the fact that there are few remaining records that are as in depth, and as well preserved as this one, there are a few ways in which historians have been able to identify how common same-sex relationships were for men of this period. One glaring point that allows for this estimation is the fact that there were laws created about the nature of these relationships during the Qing Dynasty. Many of these laws, first codified in the late 17th and 18th centuries, involved the punishment of crimes of a sexual nature. Heterosexual rape had almost always been considered a crime (of course, these rules had issues of there own in actually being implemented) but for the first time homosexual rape was codified as a crime - the issue that arose with such laws was the definition of rape in this instance, almost always concluding that, regardless of the situation at hand, the younger man would be considered the victim. Additionally, as a result of the rapidly skewed balance in male-female population demographics during this period, with significantly more men than women, many people were forced to live outside of the standard familial roles placed by society. However, living outside of this norm as a man would label him as a threat to the family order and was considered a “rogue male,” almost exclusively if he were the older of the two men in a relationship. Another reason that the codification of laws related to homosexual relationships came to be was due to the idea of masculinity present in Qing China. The act of sexual intercourse was considered something that solidified the adult gender roles of a relationship, between the standard of a husband and a wife, and therefore having a sexual relationship with the “submissive” member of a same-sex couple would be societally be considered an “attack” on his masculinity.

With the historical context of societal views and norms related to homosexual relationships established, the topic of male-male relationships in Qing fiction and short stories can now be discussed. A prominent example of one of these types of stories is called Huang Jiulang, written c. 1740. The story of Huang Jiulang, often translated as “Cut Sleeve” as a euphemism for male homosexuality, is a story categorized under the genre of zhiguai tales or “strange tales,” so titled because of the fantastical elements of the story. Huang Jiulang tells the story of a studio owner named He Shican and a fox spirit named Huang Jiulang, who the tale is named after. The piece tells of their deep love for one another throughout two different lives: first during their lives as lovers as He Shican and Huang Jiulang, and later as their reincarnated selves in a later life, with He Shican as a court censor and Huang Jiulang as the male concubine of a homosexual governor. The relationship between the two begins as friends, moves to a strong bond of “brotherhood,” then to lovers, but by the end of the story despite the attempts of He Shican to rekindle the relationships with Huang Jiulang, Huang remains the concubine of the governor and He marries the female cousin of Huang. 

One striking characteristic of Huang Jiulang, both in his initial life where he meets He Shican and in his reincarnated form, is the fact that he is highly feminized, the reason for this being two-fold. The first reason for this is the high demand for gentle, “feminine” male characters in fiction by the general audience during the Qing Dynasty. As a result of this high demand, it would appear that a large volume of fiction stories from this period included men with sensitive and feeble characteristics. The other reason involves the general view of homosexual relationships by society at the time. It can be inferred from many points throughout the story that this is not intended to be an accurate depiction of a loving, romantic relationship between two men, but rather a commentary or even satire of these types of relationships based on societal expectations and gender roles. Therefore, Huang Jiulang in this situation, through the feminization of his personality, appearance, and overall character, is being assigned the “chaste female” role in the relationship. Based on what has been established regarding the gendered expectations and societal standards for what should constitute a sexual relationship, it is clear that this story demostrates not an accurate account but more so reflects how these relationships fit into society as a whole during this period.

Two other aspects that are important to note regarding the tale of Huang Jiulang are the seemingly one-sided nature of the romance between the two men as well as the unforgettable aspect that makes this story a zhiguai tale, that being the fact that Huang is in fact a fox spirit. The first of the two, the one-sided and obsessive nature of their romance, ties into the idea that Huang Jiulang satirizes homosexuality. While Huang does end up as the lover of He Shican for a time during the story, it takes an incredible amount of convincing by the part of He to make Huang break the barrier between friends and lovers. Prior to this occurring, when Huang learns of He’s intentions, Huang calls him an “animal,” implying that his homosexual tendencies are animalistic and overall dehumanizing him as a result of his sexuality. As time goes on, He becomes so obsessed and wholly consumed by the idea of a relationship with Huang that he begins neglecting not only his professional responsibilities but also any responsibilities of personal care, leading to him falling very ill. The clearly unhealthy obsession that He has with the fox spirit provides a lot of insight into the generalized view held regarding same-sex relationships; they were accepted as a part of life and often tolerated as a normal relationship, but they were not exactly promoted as something that was considered a happy or healthy relationship.

The second aspect, relating to Huang Jiulang’s identity as a fox spirit, ties into not only this imbalance but also to the consequences of engaging in a sexual relationship with another man. When He Shican falls ill, Huang finally gives into his pleas and they become lovers. He’s illness appears to get better at first but he once again falls ill, this time according to a doctor, it was a result of him being possessed by a fox spirit. It is at this point that Huang’s true identity is revealed to He and Huang tells him that to continue their relationship how it is would result in only further damage to He; however, the damage had already been done and He passes away. The consequence that befalls He, death, is implied to have been a consequence of his sexual activities, given the fact that Huang unintentionally had a direct hand in the illness that leads to He’s death.

Despite the death of He being an almost direct result of his sexual activities, it is quite possible that this was not a result of the fact that the act was homosexual in nature as opposed to heterosexual. The ideals that were strongly held by Confucian moralists tended to make their way into many forms and genres of literature during the Qing Dynasty and one of these strongly held beliefs involved the concept of sexual restraint. These ideas of sexual restraint did not single out homosexuality but instead were meant to apply to everyone. As a result, a good amount of the judgment that is projected toward sexual acts in the story of Huang Jiulang can be justified by this instead rather than concluding that it is a singling out of the nature of the relationship depicted, as this type of “warning” of sorts for engaging in sexual activities is present in a significant amount of romantic fiction from this period.

While this justification does not excuse the satirical depiction of He Shican’s obsession over Huang, the story is indicative of something that was unique to the Qing Dynasty. During the late Qing, male romance in literature was flourishing, becoming much more popular than it had been before despite having been solidified as a genre during the early years of the dynasty. After the estimated publication of Huang Jiulang, around 1740, there appears to have been a bit of a shift in the genre, moving away from satire and more toward stories depicting genuine romance between men. Some of the characteristics of this shift include moving away from romance being based in appearance, like He’s infatuation with Huang’s feminine appearance, and more toward attraction to devotion and to one’s soul. With no massive historical events or notable societal shifts having occurred during the small window following the publication of Huang Jiulang, the reasons for this change in the genre can only be left to speculation. One potential, speculative reason for this shift toward a more “wholesome” standard for same-sex romance could be the rapid increase in demand for these specific kinds of stories, alongside the proven increased demand for same-sex homosexual fiction in general, but that is simply conjecture.

Literature is a mystifying topic, filled with nuance and an array of genres and subgenres that would take an incredible amount of effort to fully analyze, as each is a complex subject of its own. That is why, even when fully delving into the topic of homosexuality in Qing Chinese fiction, it is impossible to entirely understand every aspect of the subgenre. Much of the characterization was influenced by reader demand and, most importantly, through the generalized societal views at the time of same-sex male relationships, especially of a sexual nature. Through a cross-examination of poems written by real men in homosexual relationships and stories like Huang Jiulang and others such as Cao Xueqin’s novel Dream of the Red Chamber and the Qing version of “The Legend of Pan Zhang & Wang Zhongxian” that show representations of homosexuality in fiction written in Qing China, it becomes clear that these fictional tales set a precedent for how such relationships were viewed by the general public, as opposed to the true reality of these relationships.

REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING

Disclaimer: some of the sources may contain triggering material

Cuncun, Wu. Homoerotic Sensibilities in Late Imperial China. RoutledgeCurzon/Asian Studies Association of Australia East Asia Series. London: Routledge. 2004.

Huang, Martin W. “Male-Male Sexual Bonding and Male Friendship in Late Imperial China.” Journal of the History of Sexuality 22, no. 2 (2013): 312–31.

Sommer, Matthew H. “Was China Part of a Global Eighteenth-Century Homosexuality?” Historical Reflections / Réflexions Historiques 33, no. 1 (2007): 117–33.

Stevenson, Mark, and Cuncun Wu. Homoeroticism in Imperial China. [Electronic Resource] : A Sourcebook. Routledge. 2013.

Whyke, Thomas William, and Joaquin Lopez Mugica. 2021. “Love, Friendship, Fraternity, and Sexual Pleasure Between Men in Pu Songling’s Qing Dynasty Tale Huang Jiulang (c. 1740).” Sexuality & Culture: An Interdisciplinary Journal, November, 974-993.