中国的男子，普通要受三种有系统的权力（指政权、族权、神权——编者）的支配，……至于女子，除受上述三种权力的支配以外，还受男子的支配（夫权）。这四种权力——政权、族权、神权、夫权，代表了全部封建宗法的思想和制度，是束缚中国人民特别是农民的四条极大的绳索。农民在乡下怎样推翻地主的政权，已如前头所述。地主政权，是一切权力的基干。地主政权既被打翻，族权、神权、夫权便一概跟着动摇起来。……夫权这种东西，自来在贫农中就比较地弱一点。因为经济上贫农妇女不能不较富有阶级的女子多参加劳动，所以她们取得对于家事的发言权以至决定权的是比较多些。至近年，农村经济益发破产，男子控制女子的基本条件，业已破坏了。最近农民运动一起，许多地方，妇女跟着组织了乡村女界联合会，妇女抬头的机会已到，夫权便一天一天地动摇起来。总而言之，所有一切封建的宗法的思想和制度，都随着农民权力的升涨而动摇。
——《湖南农民运动考察报告》（一九二七年三月），《毛泽东选集》第一卷第三三——三四页
A man in China is usually subjected to the domination of three systems of authority [political authority, clan authority and religious authority].... As for women, in addition to being dominated by these three systems of authority, they are also dominated by the men (the authority of the husband). These four authorities - political, clan, religious and masculine - are the embodiment of the whole feudal-patriarchal ideology and system, and are the four thick ropes binding the Chinese people, particularly the peasants. How the peasants have overthrown the political authority of the landlords in the countryside has been described above. The political authority of the landlords is the backbone of all the other systems of authority. With that overturned, the clan authority, the religious authority and the authority of the husband all begin to totter.... As to the authority of the husband, this has always been weaker among the poor peasants because, out of economic necessity, their womenfolk have to do more manual labour than the women of the richer classes and therefore have more say and greater power of decision in family matters. With the increasing bankruptcy of the rural economy in recent years, the basis for men's domination over women has already been undermined. With the rise of the peasant movement, the women in many places have now begun to organize rural women's associations; the opportunity has come for them to lift up their heads, and the authority of the husband is getting shakier every day. In a word, the whole feudal-patriarchal ideology and system is tottering with the growth of the peasants' power.
— "Report on an Investigation of the Peasant Movement in Hunan" (March 1927), Selected Works, Vol. I, pp. 44-46.*

团结起来，参加生产和政治活动，改善妇女的经济地位和政治地位。
——为《新中国妇女》杂志的题词，一九四九年七月二十日《新中国妇女》创刊号
Unite and take part in production and political activity to improve the economic and political status of women.
— Inscription for the magazine "Women of New China", printed in its first issue, July 20, 1949.

要求保护青年、妇女、儿童的利益，救济失学青年，并使青年、妇女组织起来，以平等地位参加有益于抗日战争和社会进步的各项工作，实现婚姻自由，男女平等，使青年和儿童得到有益的学习；…… 
——《论联合政府》（一九四五年四月二十四日），《毛泽东选集》第三卷第一零六五页
Protect the interests of the youth, women and children - provide assistance to young students who cannot afford to continue their studies, help the youth and women to organize in order to participate on an equal footing in all work useful to the war effort and to social progress, ensure freedom of marriage and equality as between men and women, and give young people and children a useful education....
— "On Coalition Government" (April 24, 1945), Selected Works, Vol. III, p. 288.*

有组织地调剂劳动力和推动妇女参加生产，是我们农业生产方面的最基本的任务。
——《我们的经济政策》（一九三四年一月二十三日），《毛泽东选集》第一卷第一二六——一二七页
[In agricultural production] our fundamental task is to adjust the use of labour power in an organized way and to encourage women to do farm work.
— "Our Economic Policy" (January 23, 1934), Selected Works, Vo1. I, p. 142.*

为了建设伟大的社会主义社会，发动广大的妇女群众参加生产活动，具有极大的意义。在生产中，必须实现男女平等，只有在整个社会的社会主义改造过程中才能实现。 
——《妇女走上了劳动战线》一文的按语（一九五五年），《中国农村的社会主义高潮》上册第三五七页
In order to build a great socialist society it is of the utmost importance to arouse the broad masses of women to join in productive activity. Men and women must receive equal pay for equal work in production. Genuine equality between the sexes can only be realized in the process of the socialist transformation of society as a whole.
— Introductory note to "Women Have Gone to the Labour Front" (1955), The Socialist Upsurge in China's Countryside, Chinese ed., Vol. I.

在合作化以后，许多合作社感到劳动力不足了，有必要发动过去不参加田间劳动的广大的妇女群众参加到劳动战线上去。……中国的妇女是一种伟大的人力资源。必须发掘这种资源，为了建设一个伟大的社会主义国家而奋斗。
——《发动妇女投入生产，解决了劳动力不足的困难》一文的按语（一九五五年），《中国农村的社会主义高潮》中册第六七四——六七五页
With the completion of agricultural cooperation, many co-operatives are finding themselves short of labour. It has become necessary to arouse the great mass of women who did not work in the fields before to take their place on the labour front.... China's women are a vast reserve of labour power. This reserve should be tapped in the struggle to build a great socialist country.
— Introductory note to "Solving the Labour Shortage by Arousing the Women to Join in Production" (1955), The Socialist Upsurge in China's Countryside, Chinese ed., Vol. II.

使全部妇女劳动力，在同工同酬的原则下，一律参加到劳动战线上去，这个要求，应当在尽可能短的时间内，予以实现。
——《邢台县民主妇女联合会关于发展农业合作化运动中妇女工作的规划》一文的按语（一九五五年），《中国农村的社会主义高潮》上册第六六页
Enable every woman who can work to take her place on the labour front, under the principle of equal pay for equal work. This should be done as quickly as possible.
— Introductory note to "On Widening the Scope of Women's Work in the Agricultural Co-operative Movement" (1955), The Socialist Upsurge in China's Countryside, Chinese ed., Vol. I.