"In 'My Lady of the Chinese Courtyard,' Elizabeth Cooper offers the reader a translation of two series of letters by Kwei-li, the wife of a high-rank Chinese official.
The first series is addressed to her husband whilst he is on a world tour with Prince Chung in the late 19th century.
The second series of letters is from 25 years later and are addressed to her mother-in-law. Political intrigue is raging in China and the country is on the verge of a revolution.
With these letters, Cooper hoped to 'give a faint idea of the life of a Chinese lady,' 'a woman who had by education and environment exceptional opportunities to learn of the modern world, but who, like every Eastern woman, clings with almost desperate tenacity to the traditions and customs.'
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Elizabeth Cooper, born Eslick (1877-1945) was an America author. Originally born in Homer, Iowa, she spent most of her adult life in Asia, and dedicated much of her work to the depiction of life, especially women’s, in countries such as China, Egypt, Turkey and Japan. Some her work includes: 'My Lady of the Chinese Courtyard,' 'Drusilla With a Million,' and 'Living up to Billy.'"
""I hope that this book, based on letters shown me many years after they were written, will give a faint idea of the life of a Chinese lady. The story is told in two series of letters conceived to be written by Kwei-li, the wife of a very high Chinese official, [the first series were written] to her husband when he accompanied his master, Prince Chung, on his trip around the world."
The second series of letters were written 25 years later to Kwei-li's mother-in-law as China faces revolution and political intrigue. "They are, therefore, the letters of the present-day Chinese woman of the old school, a woman who had by education and environment exceptional opportunities to learn of the modern world, but who, like every Eastern woman, clings with almost desperate tenacity to the traditions and customs of her race." (Summary by MaryAnn with material from the Preface)"
