More on this book
Community
Kindle Notes & Highlights
But in truth I don’t mind observing the rules for men. They get to concern themselves with how things should be done, while women must comply with everything that isn’t allowed.
“Swordsmanship isn’t about swords, but strength of will.” I repeat what Father has told me many times.
When two opponents are equal in skill and weaponry, strength of will comes into play.
Often the outcome of a contest is decided before either party unsheathes a sword, Father has told me time and again. If your opponent believes you to be invincible, then it’s almost as good as if you are.
Mulan means magnolia. I am named for the flower, which Mother loved for its noble beauty, rather than for Heart Sea.
Muyang is gone. No matter how I pretend, I can never be him. Why can’t you see that? Why can’t I be enough as Mulan, your daughter? What must I do so that you will stop treating me as the inferior imitation of your son?
I prized the strength, agility, and power that resulted from my training. I treasured the thought that I would never be at the mercy of any man. That I needed no father or brother to shield me. That I was my own shield.
Before you can beat others, you must learn how to get beaten is a fundamental tenet of martial arts.
It made both the emperor and the people think something was being done. And we have all, at some point, confused doing something—anything—with actually solving the problem.”
Father never instructed me in yiqi, the code of honor and brotherhood that governs righteous conduct for men. A woman is not expected to be righteous. She is expected to serve her father, then her husband.
A woman’s conduct is judged almost entirely on her chastity, obedience, and self-effacement.
“My ancestors’ voices have been lost to time; I will only ever know what their opponents thought of them.”
sometimes, as I’m beginning to realize, language is history.
