CHINESE MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE IN TRANSITION- DIVORCED WOMEN BEING TRAPPED

摘要

While marriage leading to reproduction thus extending the family line has been taken for granted in traditional Chinese culture, divorce has been regarded as its evil opposite which is to be condemned. All, particularly women, should preserve their marriage and prevent its dissolution at all cost. To what extent have these values been changed in a modern Chinese society - Hong Kong? Reviewing local studies related to marriage and divorce, including two studies conducted by the author on meanings of divorce, this paper attempts to examine how divorce has been constructed and experienced by women in the Chinese society of Hong Kong. The specificity of Chinese meanings of divorce with reference to the uniqueness of the Hong Kong cultural context can be identified which reveals that marriage and divorce have been changing in the past few decades from traditional to modern models. Yet, the extent of changes is different when comparing the dominant values of marriages and divorce. Implications on social work intervention with divorced women who are caught in this transition are then drawn.