Abstract：The increasing feminization of farming nowadays is rooted in the past in many ways under the collective economy, and is possibly a historical heritage from the practice of People's Communes. Such roots have largely been overlooked by researchers. This paper aims to systematically explore the feminization of farm work and its underlying reasons at the micro level based primarily upon a study of two villages in Inner Mongolia and Shaanxi province. It suggests that it was men who mainly held the management, technical and other off-farm positions during the People's Communes period. In addition, male laborers were often sent out to work outside the villages temporarily, seasonally or permanently. The number of women who were involved in farming activities as well as the percentage of farm work undertook by women often exceeded those of men's. In other words, the slogan of "Women Hold up Half the Sky" was not merely an official discourse or an ideology but a reality. Women's contributions to agricultural production contrasted sharply with their persistent disadvantages in social life and politics.
胡玉坤. 人民公社时期大田农作的女性化现象——基于对西部两个村落的研究[J]. 妇女研究论丛, 2016, 0(3): 71-82.
HU Yu-kun. The Feminization of Farm Work during the People's Communes Period:Based on a Study of Two Villages in Western China. , 2016, 0(3): 71-82.
2016, Vol. 0 
