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相夫教子

*The explanations on this page are generated by AI. Please note that they may contain inaccurate information.

1. Basic Information

  • Pinyin: xiàng fū jiào zǐ
  • English Translation: Assisting one's husband and educating the children
  • Idiom Composition: 「相」（To assist or support (in this context, it refers to the role of a helper or advisor, similar to the '相' in 'prime minister')）＋「夫」（Husband）＋「教」（To teach or educate）＋「子」（Children）
  • Meaning: A traditional Chinese idiom describing the ideal role of a married woman: supporting her husband's career and personal growth while taking responsibility for the upbringing and education of their children.

2. Detailed Meaning and Nuances

「相夫教子」 contains the following nuances:

  • Traditional Gender Roles: This expression is rooted in the feudal social concept of 'men handle the outside, women handle the inside' (男主外，女主内 - nán zhǔ wài, nǚ zhǔ nèi). In modern times, it is frequently used to describe a woman giving up her career for domestic life.
  • The Meaning of 相 (xiàng): In this idiom, 相 (xiàng) does not mean 'each other' or 'mutual.' Instead, it means 'to assist' or 'to support.' It emphasizes the wife's role in contributing to her husband's success and the stability of the household.

3. Usage

「相夫教子」 is mainly used in the following contexts:

  • Lifestyle Choice: Used when a woman chooses to leave her career to become a full-time homemaker after marriage or childbirth. It can be used to describe a positive personal choice or a sacrifice.
    • Example:「婚后她辞去了高薪工作，安心在家相夫教子。」
      （After getting married, she resigned from her high-paying job to stay at home and assist her husband and educate their children.)
  • Praising Traditional Virtues: Used to honor a woman's lifelong dedication to her family's success and her children's upbringing. It is a somewhat old-fashioned compliment.
    • Example:「她一生相夫教子，把三个孩子都培养成了大学生。」
      （She spent her whole life dedicated to her husband and children, successfully raising all three of them to become college graduates.)

Additional Examples:

  1. 在这个时代，并不是所有女性都愿意回归家庭相夫教子。
    （In this day and age, not all women are willing to return to the family to be a traditional housewife.）
  2. 她虽然事业成功，但也希望能有时间相夫教子。
    （Although she is successful in her career, she also hopes to have time to care for her husband and children.）
  3. 传统的相夫教子观念正在发生改变。
    （The traditional concept of assisting the husband and educating the children is undergoing a change.）

4. Cultural Background and Notes

  • Rooted in Confucian (孔子 - Kǒngzǐ) values, this was considered the standard of virtue for women in ancient China. It is closely linked to the concept of 'men ruling the public sphere and women ruling the private sphere' (男主外，女主内 - nán zhǔ wài, nǚ zhǔ nèi).
  • In modern China, while still used to describe women who prioritize family, the term can be controversial. From a feminist or career-oriented perspective, it may be seen as an imposition of outdated values, so its use requires sensitivity to the context.
  • While the similar term 贤妻良母 (xián qī liáng mǔ) functions as a noun describing the 'person' (a virtuous wife and good mother), 相夫教子 (xiàng fū jiào zǐ) is more of a verb phrase describing the 'actions' and 'responsibilities' themselves.

5. Similar and Opposite Idioms

6. Summary

相夫教子 (xiàng fū jiào zǐ) represents the traditional domestic ideal for women in Chinese culture. While it historically praised the virtue of a wife's dedication to her family, in modern contexts, it is often used to describe a woman's choice to leave the workforce to become a full-time homemaker. It carries both a sense of traditional respect and a reflection of historical gender roles.

Idiom Essay

xiāng fū jiào zi
相夫教子
Supporting Husband and Educating Children
zài在xiàn dài现代shè huì社会，wǒ men我们cháng cháng常常tīng dào听到dà jiā大家tǎo lùn讨论gōng zuò工作、tán lùn谈论mèng xiǎng梦想。

In modern society, we often hear everyone discussing work and talking about dreams.

dàn shì但是，zài在chuán tǒng传统de的zhōng guó中国wén huà文化lǐ里，duì yú对于jiā tíng家庭jué sè角色de的fēn gōng分工，yǒu有yí gè一个fēi cháng非常jīng diǎn经典de的chéng yǔ成语，jiào叫“xiāng fū jiào zi相夫教子”。

However, in traditional Chinese culture, there is a very classic idiom regarding the division of family roles called 相夫教子.

zhè ge这个cí词de的zì miàn字面yì si意思fēi cháng非常gōng zhěng工整，sì gè四个zì字，fēn chéng分成le了liǎng两bù fèn部分。

The literal meaning of this term is very neat; four characters divided into two parts.

shǒu xiān首先shì是“xiāng fū相夫”。

First is 相夫.

zhè lǐ这里de的“xiāng相”，shì是fǔ zhù辅助、bāng zhù帮助de的yì si意思。

The 相 here means to assist or help.

zài在gǔ dài古代，zǎi xiàng宰相fǔ zhù辅助huáng dì皇帝zhì lǐ治理guó jiā国家，yě也yòng用zhè ge这个zì字。

In ancient times, the prime minister assisted the emperor in governing the country, and this same character was used.

suǒ yǐ所以，“xiāng fū相夫”bù jǐn jǐn不仅仅shì是zhào gù照顾zhàng fū丈夫de的yǐn shí qǐ jū饮食起居，tā它gèng更hán yǒu含有yī zhǒng一种“zhī chí支持”de的yì wèi意味——zài在bèi hòu背后zhī chí支持zhàng fū丈夫，ràng让tā他méi yǒu没有hòu gù zhī yōu后顾之忧。

Therefore, 相夫 is not just about taking care of a husband's daily life; it carries a sense of support—supporting him from behind so he has no worries about the future.

qí cì其次shì是“jiào zi教子”。

Next is 教子.

zhè这hěn很hǎo好lǐ jiě理解，jiù shì就是jiào yù教育zǐ nǚ子女。

This is easy to understand; it means educating one's children.

qǐng请zhù yì注意，zhè lǐ这里yòng用de的shì是“jiào教”，ér而bú shì不是“yǎng养”。

Please note that 教 is used here, not 养.

zhè这shuō míng说明，tā它qiáng diào强调de的bù不jǐn jǐn仅仅shì是bǎ把hái zi孩子yǎng dà养大，gèng更zhòng yào重要de的shì是péi yǎng培养hái zi孩子de的pǐn dé品德hé和xué shí学识。

This shows that it emphasizes not just raising a child, but more importantly, cultivating the child's character and knowledge.

yǐ qián以前，zhè这shì是shè huì社会duì对nǚ xìng女性de的yī zhǒng一种dào dé道德yāo qiú要求，shèn zhì甚至shì是yī zhǒng一种shù fù束缚。

In the past, this was a moral requirement for women, or even a form of constraint.

dàn但zài在jīn tiān今天，zhè ge这个cí词de的yòng fǎ用法fā shēng发生le了yī xiē一些wēi miào微妙de的biàn huà变化。

But today, the usage of this term has undergone some subtle changes.

xiàn zài现在，dāng当wǒ men我们yòng用dào到“xiāng fū jiào zi相夫教子”shí时，wǎng wǎng往往shì是zài在miáo shù描述yī zhǒng一种rén shēng人生de的“xuǎn zé选择”huò zhě或者“zhuǎn huàn转换”。

Now, when we use 相夫教子, it is often to describe a life choice or transition.

nǐ你kě néng可能huì会zài在xīn wén新闻lǐ里tīng dào听到，mǒu某wèi位nǚ xìng女性zài在shì yè事业hěn很chéng gōng成功de的shí hòu时候，jué dìng决定“huí guī回归jiā tíng家庭，xiāng fū jiào zi相夫教子”。

You might hear in the news that a certain woman, at the height of a successful career, decided to return to the family to 相夫教子.

zài在zhè zhǒng这种yǔ jìng语境xià下，tā它bù zài不再shì是bèi pò被迫de的，ér shì而是yī zhǒng一种zhǔ dòng主动de的qǔ shě取舍。

In this context, it is no longer forced, but a proactive choice.

tā它yì wèi zhe意味着yí gè一个rén人yuàn yì愿意zàn shí暂时fàng xià放下wài miàn外面de的guāng máng光芒，bǎ把zì jǐ自己de的zhì huì智慧hé和jīng lì精力，quán bù全部tóu rù投入dào到jiā tíng家庭zhè ge这个“nèi bù内部shì jiè世界”de的jīng yíng经营zhōng中qù去。

It means a person is willing to temporarily set aside external glory and invest all their wisdom and energy into managing the internal world of the family.

suǒ yǐ所以，lǐ jiě理解“xiāng fū jiào zi相夫教子”，bù不xū yào需要qù去píng pàn评判tā它shì fǒu是否guò shí过时。

So, to understand 相夫教子, there is no need to judge whether it is outdated.

tā它zhǐ shì只是zài在gào sù告诉wǒ men我们，zài在zhōng guó中国rén人de的guān niàn观念lǐ里，jīng yíng经营hǎo好yí gè一个jiā tíng家庭、jiào yù教育hǎo好xià yí dài下一代，běn shēn本身jiù shì就是yī xiàng一项xū yào需要zhì huì智慧hé和nài xīn耐心de的jù dà巨大gōng chéng工程。

It simply tells us that in the Chinese mindset, managing a family well and educating the next generation is itself a massive project requiring wisdom and patience.

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