LeidenAsiaCentre: Seeking Western Men: Email-Order Brides Under China’s Global Rise

On 25 May 2023, the LeidenAsiaCentre has invited Monica Liu, author of the book Seeking Western Men: Email-Order Brides under China’s Global Rise, published by Stanford University Press to give a lecture. This lecture will take place in The Hague Humanity Hub from 16:00 – 18:00, followed by a reception.

The talk will summarise the research Monica Liu conducted from 2008 to 2019 in China where she explored the life histories and decision-making processes of Chinese women seeking to marry Western men whom they met through online dating agencies. The majority of these women were middle-aged (above 40), divorced, and from diverse socio-economic backgrounds. Monica’s investigation asked a number of questions: How did the inequalities that emerged during China’s transition from state socialism toward a global market economy shape these women’s desires to pursue out-migration via marriage? How did the women’s social and economic status in China affect their expectations about their new lives abroad? Join the discussion and sign up now!