What are the differences between the roles of women in classical India and China?

Scholars believe that in ancient India, the women enjoyed equal status with men in all fields of life. However, some others hold contrasting views. Works by ancient Indian grammarians such as Patanjali and Katyayana suggest that women were educated in the early Vedic period. Rigvedic verses suggest that the women married at a mature age and were probably free to select their husband. Scriptures such as Rig Veda and Upanishads mention several women sages and seers, notably Gargi and Maitreyi.

There are very few texts specifically dealing with the role of women; an important exception is the Stri Dharma Paddhati of Tryambakayajvan, an official at Thanjavur around c. 1730. The text compiles strictures on womenly behaviour dating back to the Apastamba sutra (c. 4th c. BCE).

The majority of women in ancient China lived oppressed lives. Even women of the nobility and the imperial family did not escape the oppression, though life was possibly slightly easier for them than for the large population of poor women. Women were considered inferior to men and from the moment of birth most women were treated as inferiors

Women in ancient China were considered inferior to men. This meant that their whole lives were spent being subservient to the men in their families. Generations of one family often lived in the same house together and older people were greatly respected. A grandmother became important if she outlived her husband as she would then be the oldest member of the household and would be afforded the most respect. Confucius taught that women's roles were to look after the men in their families. He believed that it was not acceptable for a woman to have her own ambitions and that she should have barely any life outside her own home. However he did teach that a woman's role as mother and mother-in-law should be respected. He taught that a 'woman's greatest duty is to have a son'.