Hua Mulan - Woman Warrior & Modern Role Model

Keeping in theme with our discussions about strong women defying the patriarchy and traditional forms of storytelling, in this week's episode we explore the legend of Hua Mulan, historic female warrior of the Chinese Northern & Southern Dynasties period via Disney's 1998 animated film. 

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   Icon image is 'Mulan (木蘭)' from Gathering Gems of Beauty (畫麗珠萃秀), Qing Dynasty. Currently located National Palace Museum, Taipei. 

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The documentary Meaghan reference's is the 2016 film 'The Eagle Huntress' that follows the story of Aisholpan, a 13-year-old Kazakh girl from Mongolia as she attempts to become the first female eagle hunter to compete in the eagle festival at Ulgii, Mongolia. Shan Yu's bird is Hayabusa the Falcon and gestures toward the 4,000 year old Central Asian tradition of falconry.

To read more, visit: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/in-sight/wp/2015/08/21/the-4000-year-old-art-of-falconry-is-dying-out-in-mongolia-see-some-of-the-last-eagle-hunters-in-the-world/

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'The Medieval Cinderella' article by Kathryn Walton can be found at: https://www.medievalists.net/2020/08/medieval-cinderella/