Ibn Ḥazm of al-Andalus and Cáo Xuěqín of China: Love and Gender in Collapsing Social Structures

In this paper, we discuss the opinions of Ibn Ḥazm and Cáo Xuěqín on love, sex and gender. The Ring of the Dove and Dream of the Red Chamber were written when their authors’ respective societies experienced multifaceted crises. Ibn Ḥazm and Cáo Xuěqín were both of noble birth, but the decline of their societies forced them to leave their ranks and look at society in a new light. We discussed their views on the topics of reason and love, ideal and real love, and the nature of love. We observed that Ibn Ḥazm concluded his opinion on love with an ideal but imaginary vision, on the other hand, Cáo Xuěqín came to a more complex and protest conclusion for love in his novel. Finally, we try to demonstrate how and why Ibn Ḥazm and Cáo Xuěqín take steps to critique the patriarchal structure of their collapsing feudal societies, reconceptualize love, and make an early case for gender equality.