The magazine was known for its cover-girls, beautiful women who appeared to be active, "modern girls in motion."
The motion was really performed by the girls inside the magazine playing sports, while the cover-girls presented modern women, attractive to men in their non-traditional western clothes and implied activities.

The women were modern girls, appearing to not be dressed up looking for men, but living their lives and doing what they enjoyed doing.
The modern girls of Shanghai appeared in the city's artwork, including magazines such as The Young Companion and Ling Long, but also in the advertisements of the city and calendars.
They were shown as actively living their lives, "driving motorcycles, swimming, horse riding, horse racing, rowing competitions, and participating in social assistance."
The term modern girl normally applies to Japanese women of the time, but "the image of modern Chinese women became incorporated into that of the 'Modern Girl' in Japan."
Guan Zilan, Liangyou-cover-girl for issue 45, who was a Chinese student and artist who went to Japan to study, was labeled modern girl in this fashion.

Modern scholar Maura Elizabeth Cunningham points out that in spite of the idea of the independence of the modern girl circulating in the period, the magazine showed women how women's sports could be used to satisfy the male gaze and give examples of a "model of femininity for female viewers to reproduce."
She also pointed out that the magazine showed progress, with pictures inside the magazine not only showing beauty, but also women actively doing sports, something unimaginable a generation earlier.
The magazine was known for its cover-girls, beautiful women who appeared to be active, "modern girls in motion." The motion was really performed by the girls inside the magazine playing sports, while the cover-girls presented modern women, attractive to men in their non-traditional western clothes and implied activities.
The women were modern girls, appearing to not be dressed up looking for men, but living their lives and doing what they enjoyed doing. The modern girls of Shanghai appeared in the city's artwork, including magazines such as The Young Companion and Ling Long, but also in the advertisements of the city and calendars. They were shown as actively living their lives, "driving motorcycles, swimming, horse riding, horse racing, rowing competitions, and participating in social assistance." The term modern girl normally applies to Japanese women of the time, but "the image of modern Chinese women became incorporated into that of the 'Modern Girl' in Japan." Guan Zilan, Liangyou-cover-girl for issue 45, who was a Chinese student and artist who went to Japan to study, was labeled modern girl in this fashion.
Modern scholar Maura Elizabeth Cunningham points out that in spite of the idea of the independence of the modern girl circulating in the period, the magazine showed women how women's sports could be used to satisfy the male gaze and give examples of a "model of femininity for female viewers to reproduce." She also pointed out that the magazine showed progress, with pictures inside the magazine not only showing beauty, but also women actively doing sports, something unimaginable a generation earlier.
The Young Companion