According to the statistics of “The health survey of Chinese elderly people” in 2005, one significant difference between elderly women and men (Zhou, 2007) is that more elderly women depend on their children. Only eleven percent of elderly women have their pensions in contrast to 32 percent of the elderly men. The ratio of wives depending on their husbands is three times those of the husbands depending on their wives. So far as Beijing in concerned, 57.49 percent of the elderly women live off their own pensions, while 84.31 percent of the elderly men do the same (An, Jiang, & Wang, 2005).

Six interviewees have their pensions and the other five do not because pension is related to one’s employment history. The six interviewees once worked in state-funded operational units, such as schools and factories, through which they receive medical insurance and pensions to cover their everyday cost after retirement. Their children will provide them with financial support if necessary. But the elderly women who have long been farmers in the countryside do not have pension or medical insurance because of the dual structures of urban and rural division in the Chinese system.⁵

These elderly women have to depend on their children as they have no other source of income. By contrast, the elderly women who have their own income do not need to depend on their children as they are financially independent. Li Zhenyu said that “I definitely satisfy by my living since I receive my pension every month even I spend all of my money for the month. I don’t need to worry about money and can buy anything I want.” Piao Mingshu, who depends on her child, told that her daughter offered RMB 5,000 when she was in the hospital for the cerebral thrombosis treatment in 2004, apart from RMB 500 which her daughter and son-in-law offer her every month to cover her costs. She has joined the dance team and said that she needs to pay RMB 200 per year for the membership fee as there is no way to take part in any activities without money. As shown by the above examples, these elderly women would have higher satisfaction with their own independent income than those without it. But the situation will change if the elderly person’s children have successful careers. For example, Li Zhenji had been a farmer for years until she moved to Beijing. Although she has no pension, she has a rich son, who is the richest among all the sons of the elderly women in the dance team. Her son donated RMB 5,000 to the dance team in case that she was discriminated against for her background in the countryside. “I have high prestige in the dance team. Although many grannies in the team don’t know my name, they know I’m the granny whose son has donated RMB 5,000.”

The education of some of these elderly women has been impaired as a result of their native family’s poverty and gender-based discrimination. Jin Aizi discussed that her mother died early when she was 13 years old. Although she has two older brothers, she had to take up all the housework since she was the oldest daughter. She managed to finish her primary school despite her family’s opposition. In other words, her life was influenced by the traditional gender-based division of labor dictated by patriarchal values as she had to bear all the housework even when she was still a young girl. Yu Meizi recalled:

My mother had to borrow money for my school and the villagers gossiped her for borrowing money to pay for a valueless girl’s education. My mother cried at home after she heard of it……My father did not think highly of women and scolded my mother for often going out (to borrow money) at night. My mother was reproached outside and inside home (crying).

She luckily finished college with her mother and sister’s persistent support. There were 12 young people who passed the entrance examination of the college in my hometown and only two were girls. The number of girls was as few as in her class in the college. Patriarchal values and practices in the family that discriminate against women have put women at a disadvantage in access to education. As a result, many women experienced unequal treatment in their lives and careers. Among the six interviewees who have pensions, four of them were primary school teachers and the other two, Yu Meizi and Li Zhenyu, once worked in academic institutions. Moreover, most of these elderly women have not advanced in their careers as highly as their husbands simply because they were busy with housework and caring for the children. As a result, their pensions are less than their husbands.’⁶

All of the interviewees do housework. Yu Meizi said all the burden of housework fell on her alone although she also had a paid job outside the home and graduated from the college as her husband did. She points out that the men of Korean nationality commonly regard that it is wives who should stay at home and finish all the housework. But during the two years that she was sent to attend training in advanced studies in Japan at the end of the 1980’s, her husband took charge of all the housework. In fact, her husband not only boiled water but also served coffee during the interview. He even cooked the lunch for us. The husband of Li Zhenyu does not cook. He is therefore always a little dissatisfied when Li goes out to dance for he has nothing to eat but kraut and catsup soup.

Every interviewee looks after the grandchildren. Her son has enough money and the daughter-in-law is willing to hire a nanny to do cleaning and cooking, but Li Zhenji would like to do housework as long as her health is OK. She takes charge of the housework and the hired nanny does housecleaning once a week.

On the other hand, the traditional gender division of housework has changed somewhat although it still works. Some husbands returned home after retirement. For example, the husband of Xu Zhenshu was not accustomed to staying at home day after day for he had been busy with work as a leader of a work unit for years before retirement. He has learnt to do cooking following the example of some men of Han Chinese nationality since moving to Beijing. Some people in the dance teams of Han Chinese nationality asked if he was able to cook and he said yes. They reminded him that “Cooking means not only to do rice but also do dishes.” He laughed when he relayed that conversation to me. Besides learning to cook, he added, he has been liberated from the pressure of local public prejudice since moving to Beijing. He recalled that he had to covertly bucket water at dark in order to avoid people from laughing at him in Yanbian, the city where his family lived when he was a youth. At present, he and his wife, living in the top apartment of 202㎡, share housework and the hired nanny does housecleaning once a week. He is in charge of wiping the floor and his wife, Xu Zhenshu, does the cooking. He take the bus to the market to buy traditional Korean food if he is free. Occasionally, he cooks, too.

These elderly women have internalized the traditional values in the gender division of labor and they are willing to take charge of housework alone although their husbands have returned home and learnt to do housework by following some examples of Han Chinese men. For instance, Yan Jingshi said, while she was discussing the changes she had to make since retirement, that she had to study Zhouyi (周易)，a traditional Chinese classical writing, until after midnight because she alone was responsible for caring for the children and grandchildren. She asked her husband, who is good at handwriting, to use good table and room, or even live in the quiet suburb so as to improve his handwritings. As for herself, all the burden of housework has fallen on her. One conclusion to be drawn from these above examples is that the women have internalized sex stereotypical expectations and that they work hard to shoulder more housework.

The census in 2000 enumerates that 32.25 percent of women age-60-years and over have lost their husbands, by contrast, only 14.04 percent of men at the same age lost their wives (An, Jiang, & Wang, 2005). Six of the eleven interviewees have lost their husbands and they informed that many elderly women of Korean nationality have the same experience.⁷ The lonely widows have contact mostly with their children and the members of the dance team in their everyday lives. But their children are busy with work and spend little time with their mothers. Li Zhenji said that there are only three persons at home, namely, her, her son and the daughter-in-law since her grandson is studying abroad. Her son is busy with work and playing golf at the weekends so he only talks for five minutes with her every day. She can get a little more time with her daughter-in-law, who is also busy with work and social activities, but the time is far from enough. Cui Jinzi also said that she is the only person at home most of time. In spite of her son and daughter- in-law who are filial, the conversation between her and them is so few. She usually watches her favorite TV programs aim her room and her son dose the same in the sitting room, when her daughter-in-law surfs the net.

When I asked them to whom they will talk if there is something upsetting them, most of interviewees said that they would keep to themselves and speak to nobody. They would not talk to the children, either, to keep the latter from worrying. Only Che Jinnv and Li Zhenyu, who have daughters, said that they would talk with their daughters. Xu Zhenshu said that she would grumble a little with her husband.

Although their children are highly filial and respect the interviewees for the children were brought up by the value of filial piety and usually support them with money but not with the time of heart-to-heart talk. They can get enough money and do not worry about material life but they feel lonely since they have lost their friends or relatives after moving to Beijing from their hometowns especially for those women who had lived in the countryside for most of their lives. Zheng Yumei complained that “(I) always stay at home, boring……there is nothing to do except watching TV……There is always by myself at home. I hope to return my hometown.”

The elderly women of the dance team, whose main dance is the traditional dance of Korean nationality, usually practice twice a week and more if there are important activities or competitions. They do not often rest even on the weekends. Because of lack of resources, they have to raise money and find the exercise room by themselves. For example, the backbones of the team often donate money to buy a recorder and drums. Sometimes they will help the poor members to buy the traditional dress of Korean nationality, which is needed for the performance. The husbands of Xu Zhenshu and Li Zhenyu set up the cheering squad for the dance team, which is composed of the husbands of the elderly women in the dance team. If there is a male role in the dance, they will join in. They will accompany the members of dance team if they need to go on trips for performance or competitions.

Xu Zhenshu has booked the elderly exercise room in her community centre for the team to practice. Che Jinnv mobilizes her granddaughter and step-son to choreograph, choose songs and teach. In line with the themes of their dance pieces, the dance team designs proper dance moves and costume. All of the members devote themselves to making their costumes both beautifully, appropriately and economically.

They are so happy and united regardless of the high or low education, whether or not they have registered permanent residence in Beijing, are rich or poor. The deep sisterhood bond among them has become clear.⁸ Xu Aishun, who is a little younger than Li Zhenji, calls the latter as her “sister.” It’s noticeable that they call the others directly by their names instead of whose mother or whose grandmother, which means they are the independent subjects, not affiliated to somebody.

The members of the CPC in the dance team are very strict to themselves. Xu Aishun said that “There are seven members of the CPC besides me among the 16 members of the dance team. I always go to the exercise room earlier in order to clean it……After all, I have sworn to the CPC so I will try my best all the time.” Li Zhenji emphasized the membership of the CPC when she introduced the teammates to me. All of the members of the CPC are warm-hearted and very friendly. Most of the backbones of the dance team are the members of CPC, who become prestigious through their excellent qualities of being a member of CPC. They are active agents so they always volunteer their services for the dance team.

Every interviewee hopes to be happy for the rest of her life and nobody wants to be oppressed or fall in troubles in the dance team. The name of the dance team has just been changed for the members are dissatisfied with the former captain, so they quit the former team individually and reorganized the team. The team spirit has increased in the dance team so that they willingly obey the team. If their other personal activities contradict with the ones of the dance team, the latter will be placed at first.

The dance team is so important for the members that they do not know what to do when the team takes a break and hope that it would organize activities as early as possible. Compared to the dance team made of Han Chinese nationality, this dance team of Korean nationality is different in that the former is composed of people living in the same community and have access to their exercise room given by the Residence Committee of the community. Most of the dance team members of Korean nationality live in different communities and do not register as the permanent residence in Beijing, so they have no access to a permanent exercise room.⁹ The exercise room they use then is rented.

The dance team is extremely important for the members. All of dance team members expressed that they would be dressed beautifully and do makeup such as wearing lipstick when they are together. On other days when they are not together, they would be sloppy all day, dressed badly, hair not combed, if they stay at home all day. They have become younger, more energetic and healthier since they joined the dance team. All of their children, therefore, support them to participate in the dance team.

By now, the dance team has become the important social support network for its members. Li Zhenyu said that they sometimes learn how to cook from each other and that whoever brings her delicious homemade meals, others will learn it from her. Besides studying and practicing the dance, they also talk about the lives they have had, such sharing which helps and encourages each other. When some women join in the dance team in order to forget the sorrow brought by the death of their husbands, the members will encourage them to move on and help to reduce the sadness.

Eating lunch and playing poker ganes together become the common leisure activities besides dancing, all of which have increased friendship and team spirit. These women have expressed that they very much look forward to having lunch together and they have lunch at a nearby restaurant paid individually if they do not bring their homemade meals. Sharing recipes and knowledge about health is often the main topic when they eat and meet together. They also share information about which hospital helps new migrants better. If someone in the dance team is to take her physical examination, many others will follow. They often celebrate fellow member’s birthdays and other occasions worthy of celebrating. Gradually, the dance team has become the most important social support network for its members.

These elderly women have lived a very colorful life in Beijingand have many chances to contact with the outsider world through their organization of the dance team. Besides the activities organized by the sub-district, district and municipal administrative offices in Beijing where they take part in, the dance team has taken part in activities held as far as in Mudanjiang (a city in Heilongjiang province), Yantai (a city in Shandong province) and Hong Kong, and they have even been to South Korea, Japan, Singapore and Malaysia. Not only do they have many chances to go aboard but also have won many awards.

These women have increased their confidence and broadening their horizons through the dance team. Che Jinnv proudly told me that

When we are performing our dance at the Tian’an Men Square before the beginning of the Olympics, one foreign reporter, who is very tall, interviewed me. My face has been shown in the TV program of the Beijing TV station. Every member of the dance team is very proud for their performance at the Tian’an Men Square. They are very happy and feel themselves “useful,” younger and more energetic although the dance is exhausting and costly.

As elderly women, most of them have been constrained in many ways by endless housework and the caring for other family members. They not only have to routinely repeat the housework again and again but also need to establish accord between housework and everything else they do. Moreover, they have to answer demand from every direction at home and prepare to be disturbed to drop what they are doing at any time. But they still try to change and search for ways to make their lives better. In the end they find their solution in the dance team. They have shared together many good times that they forget the troubles and pressure as well as the repeated housework in their everyday lives. The activities of the dance team offer not only the social interaction they need, but also help them increase their ability to do housework, such as how to cook more delicious and nutritious dishes, do exercise but also make friends.