Whether this is actually true or not has no bearing on the current discussion. Instead what is important is that so many martial artists believe this to be the case. Not many other Chinese arts share this distinction. White Crane in Fujian which may or may not have a connection to Wing Chun depending on who you ask is also said to have been the creation of a talented female boxer. Boat Boxing also from Fujian is reputed to have been developed by the wives of fishermen to defend themselves against the onslaught of pirates that infested the waterways of southern China for most of the late imperial period.
Female warriors also play an important role in the martial mythology of Yunnan Province, located at the very edge of the Chinese cultural sphere. Nor can one discount the literary power of figures like Hua Mulan.
But these examples, as interesting as they are, are basically the exceptions that prove the rule. The vast majority of martial artists in this period were male.
Exceptions did exist , but they were rare. Female heroes might appear in fictional stories, but they were a point of interest precisely because they were rare. This then raises some very interesting questions. To begin with, when people heard the stories of Yim Wing Chun, or Fang Qiniang, how did they interpret them? What sorts of meanings did they attach to them? There is no easy way to answer this question. The ultimate origin of this power is based on human psychology.
The psychological appeal of this story is universal. Individuals from all cultures have to navigate basically the same life-pathway that we see laid out here. It is no wonder that it has been so successful with modern audiences. Still, as the anthropologist Victor Turner pointed out, good symbols are always multi-vocal. They have more than one interpretation. In different situations they can adapt and take on new readings. This is why a really classic story or myth never seems to get old, no matter how many times we hear it.
