[1] The four books are: In Lessons for Women, Ban Zhou, China's foremost female scholar, expounds on general principles and philosophical points.

Aside from Ban Zhao, there is also Liang Hongyu, who beat war drums in battle to encourage her husband, a Song dynasty general.

She wrote that a woman should practice "reverent submission", respect for the three obediences and four virtues, and "set her husband on a par with Heaven".

Regardless of content, the Four Books were designed to teach women to read, a controversial and progressive idea at the time.

All four books were written by accomplished women, a point many editions underline by including biographical sketches and drawings of the authors in scholarly regalia.