This study analyzes The Diary of Ma Yan through the liberal feminist theory by Mary Wollstonecraft and Betty Friedan to explore the representation of women’s education in rural China. It examines the social, economic, and geographic barriers faced by girls like Ma Yan, whose educational opportunities are restricted by a patriarchal mindset and poverty. The research focuses on Ma Yan and her mother as main characters of resistance—Ma Yan through her persistent desire to study and selfexpression via writing, and her mother through physical labor and sacrifices to support her daughter’s learning. Utilizing qualitative methods and feminist literary critique, the study reveals how Ma Yan’s diary summarizes both personal and structural struggles for equality, highlighting education as a tool for emancipation and social change. The findings illustrate that Ma Yan’s story goes beyond her diary, creating effects of change, solidarity, and hope within her family and community, and reinforcing liberal feminism’s assertion that access to education is essential for women's empowerment and societal progress.