Snake Shedding Skin Symbol in Lady Tan's Circle of Women

What Is the Snake Shedding Skin Motif?

The image of a snake shedding its skin appears as both a chapter title and a recurring metaphor in Lady Tan’s Circle of Women. Snakes periodically outgrow and discard their outer layer to allow for new growth. In the novel, this natural process becomes a symbol for personal transformation, the release of harmful emotions, and the ability to adapt to changed circumstances. The motif is most directly tied to the characters of Tan Yunxian and Meiling, whose lives undergo dramatic shifts that force them to shed old identities and expectations.

Where the Motif Appears

The phrase “A Snake Always Sheds Its Skin” is the title of Chapter 13, the point in the story when Yunxian travels to the Forbidden City and unexpectedly encounters Meiling dressed in court finery. The scene crystallizes the symbol: Meiling, once a poor midwife’s daughter, has been transformed into a confident attendant to the empress. Yunxian’s initial reaction is shock and a pang of envy, which Miss Zhao promptly challenges by reminding her that a Snake’s worst attribute is envy (chapter 13 evidence). The chapter title itself serves as a narrative cue to interpret the events as a shedding of former selves.

Earlier, in Chapter 7, Grandmother Ru warns eight-year-old Yunxian about her Snake birth year: “Snakes are blessed with lovely and smooth complexions, but inside they roil from stress and turbulent emotions.” This establishes the Snake as a creature of hidden intensity, capable of both beauty and turmoil—qualities that will require shedding throughout the novel.

Later, in Chapter 14, Yunxian and Meiling explicitly talk about “differences in our Snake personalities” while sharing a room in the Great Within. They acknowledge that their friendship is being reshaped by their new, nearly equal status inside the palace. The shedding of skin here is not just personal but relational: the two women must let go of the old dynamic where Yunxian held higher social rank.

Even in the closing chapter (Chapter 19, “White-Haired, Growing Old Together”), Yunxian wears a dress “that snakes out behind me like a pearly tail.” This final image suggests that the snake’s trail—the evidence of growth and movement—has become part of her identity as a matriarch and healer.

How the Meaning Changes

Initially, the motif warns against the dark side of a Snake nature (envy, hidden stress). Midway, it becomes an active choice: Yunxian must shed her envy of Meiling to preserve their friendship. By the novel’s end, the snake’s movement leaves behind a literal “train” of cloth, symbolizing the fruits of a life in which she has repeatedly adapted—from grieving daughter to learned healer, from obedient wife to independent matriarch.

Character and Theme Connections

Yunxian

Yunxian is born in the Year of the Snake, and her journey mirrors the animal’s need to molt. She sheds the role of helpless girl after her mother’s death, the role of silent wife when she begins healing against Lady Kuo’s wishes, and finally the role of passive woman when she publishes her medical book. Each shedding is painful but necessary for growth.

Meiling

Meiling’s transformation is more abrupt. The chapter “A Snake Always Sheds Its Skin” marks her shift from local midwife to palace employee. She appears “radiant, as though she’s swallowed a cupful of stars” (chapter 13). Her old skin—the humble, self-doubting Meiling—falls away as she steps into the Great Within. Later, she must shed her insecurities about class and infertility to fully embrace her new life.

Grandmother Ru

Though not a Snake by birth, Grandmother Ru is the one who teaches Yunxian about the Snake’s nature. She understands that emotions like envy, if not released, can poison a woman’s body—a literal application of the shedding metaphor. Her own death forces Yunxian to shed her dependence on her grandmother and become a doctor in her own right.

Miss Zhao

Miss Zhao acts as the moral voice in Chapter 13, calling out Yunxian’s envy: “A friend without faults will never be found.” She reminds Yunxian that a Snake’s worst attribute is envy, and that shedding this emotion is essential to true friendship. Miss Zhao herself sheds the role of concubine to become an older, wiser companion.

Theme: Female Friendship and Solidarity

The snake-shedding motif is central to the friendship between Yunxian and Meiling. Their bond is tested when Meiling rises in status, but the act of shedding envy allows them to relate as equals. The motif is explored in detail on the Female Friendship and Solidarity page.

Theme: Women’s Medicine and Healing

Healing in the novel requires practitioners to shed fixed ideas. Yunxian must shed her reliance on male doctors’ authority, and Meiling must shed her fear of failure. The snake’s renewal mirrors the medical principle of restoring balance—what is old and diseased must be discarded. See Women’s Medicine and Healing.

Theme: Duty vs. Self-Fulfillment

Yunxian repeatedly sheds duties imposed by others to pursue her calling as a doctor. The metaphor captures the tension between what is expected and what brings fulfillment. More on Duty vs. Self-Fulfillment.

Theme: Class and Gender Hierarchy

Meiling’s rise from poverty to palace life is a literal climb up the social ladder—she sheds her low-status “skin” without losing her identity. The motif highlights how rigid hierarchies can be temporarily suspended, as seen in the context of the Class and Gender Hierarchy theme.

Theme: Sacrifice and Resilience

Shedding skin is not comfortable. Both Yunxian and Meiling endure physical and emotional pain to change: Yunxian’s depression after Grandmother Ru’s death, Meiling’s sacrifice of leaving home. The resilience required is explored in Sacrifice and Resilience.

Study Questions with Answers

1. Why does Miss Zhao scold Yunxian in the boat scene of Chapter 13, and how does this relate to the Snake shedding skin motif?

Answer: Miss Zhao rebukes Yunxian for feeling jealous that Meiling has been chosen for the palace. She says, “I’m disappointed in you…. A friend without faults will never be found.” She explicitly reminds Yunxian that one of a Snake’s worst attributes is envy. The lesson is that for a friendship to survive, Yunxian must shed this jealousy—just as a snake sheds its old skin. The scene shows that shedding negative emotions can be as essential as shedding physical roles.

2. How does the snake-shedding motif appear in the physical description of Meiling when Yunxian first sees her in the Forbidden City?

Answer: Meiling is dressed in a red damask gown and black silk jacket, with an elaborate hairdo, looking “radiant, as though she’s swallowed a cupful of stars.” Her appearance is so transformed that Yunxian almost does not recognize her. The narrator then states, “A Snake always sheds its skin.” This juxtaposition makes clear that Meiling’s new skin is her court attire and confident demeanor—she has shed her former humble identity to become a credible figure in the imperial household.

3. What does Grandmother Ru’s warning about Snake-born women reveal about Yunxian’s internal struggles throughout the novel?

Answer: Grandmother Ru says, “Snakes are blessed with lovely and smooth complexions, but inside they roil from stress and turbulent emotions.” This foreshadows Yunxian’s tendency to suppress her feelings, which later manifests as depression after Grandmother’s death and as envy of Meiling. The motif implies that simply looking calm on the outside is not enough—the internal roiling must be addressed. The “shedding” process for Yunxian involves not only social transformations but also emotional purification.

4. In what way does the snake-shedding symbol connect to the novel’s theme of women’s medicine and healing?

Answer: Healing in the novel requires women to shed outmoded beliefs and harmful emotions. For example, Yunxian must shed her reliance on male doctors and her fear of defying her mother-in-law to practice medicine. Meiling sheds her self-doubt to treat the empress. The snake’s renewal mirrors the medical principle that the body must eliminate what is old or diseased (as in the Decoction of Four Substances, which “moves and breaks up Blood”). By shedding their old skins, both women become more effective healers. For deeper analysis, see the Women’s Medicine and Healing page.

Conclusion

The snake shedding its skin is one of the most layered symbols in Lady Tan’s Circle of Women. It operates on multiple levels: as a literal biological fact referenced in a chapter title, as a cultural warning about envy, and as a metaphor for the transformations that Yunxian and Meiling undergo. From Grandmother Ru’s early admonition to the final image of Yunxian’s serpentine train, the motif reminds readers that growth always requires letting go of something old. The novel invites us to consider what skins we might need to shed in our own lives—envy, fear, or a comfortable but confining identity.