Consumption and Being Consumed: Women in the Western-style Dining Space of the Republic of China

During the 1920s and 1930s,women in western restaurants,cafes and other western dining places were either female customers pursuing fashion or waitresses with professional status.The appearance of female customers and hostesses is the symbol of women entering the public space of society.However,under the influence of urban consumption culture and patriarchal consciousness,they become the objects of consumption and have to bear the moral ridicule and criticism of the patriarchal society.The situation of women in western-style dining places reflects the relationship between gender and power in urban consumption space,and also reveals a paradox in the life changes of women in the republic of China:the process of women entering society is also the process of them becoming consumer goods.This situation shows the difficulty in the process of "social human" of women in modern China.