Image of a slipper that was worn
on the bound feet of females.
It is certainly hard to believe that such a painful and barbaric practice lasted for over 1000 years legally.
It is not certain when exactly foot binding began. Though it is thought to have begun in the Tan dynasty (618-906) but did not catch on fully until the Soong dynasty (960-1297). During the Soong dynasty the custom gradually spread through the Chinese upper class. Then during the Ming period (1368-1644) and Ching dynasty (1644-1911) the practice of foot binding swept trough China to the majority of its population.
In 1911 during the revolution of Dr Sun Yat-Sen foot binding was officially outlawed, liberating many feet. However, some women still have bound feet to this day. Although granted not many, but it is highly surprising that women are still holding onto this custom.
There are several legends that endeavour to account for the beginning of this custom. One is that Yao Niang, a concubine of a Chinese prince walked so gracefully that it seemed as if she “skimmed over the top of golden lilies”. Hence the name given to bound feet.
Another legend states that Yao Niang was ordered by the prince to bind her feet so that they would resemble new moons. A third fable says that women took up binding their feet out of sympathy towards an empress with “club feet”.
One other legends says that the last emperor of the Tang dynasty, Tang Li Yu, allegedly ordered his concubines to dance in front of him in bound feet on top of a “golden lily platform”. The binding of feet instantly became a symbol of feminine beauty and that of royal approval. There is also a legend that says that a prince had a fetish for small feet and ordered his concubines to bind their feet to make them as small as possible. It is not unlikely that foot binding began in any one of these fabled stories.
The origin of foot binding is not altogether clear or known. Foot binding stopped concubines and wives of the rich from straying or running away from being beaten. Confucian teachings at this time stressed the superior status of men over women as a basic element of social order. This method certainly proved itself as an effective restraint. It is not beyond the realms of possibility that this is one of the main reasons that foot binding became a custom.
Over the years having bound feet was of major importance to a girl who wished to marry well. Marrying well was what Chinese parents wanted the most, as it meant that the family could gain ‘face’ and maybe move higher up in the social hierarchy Also the richer the groom’s family, the more they would pay the bride’s family. As in Chinese marriages it is not the female who takes a dowry to her husband, it is the male’s family who pay for the wedding and the privilege to marry the daughter.
If a girl could not marry however, then she would forever be dependant on her parents and family, costing them money and loss of ‘face’ as she would become known as a spinster.
A bride and groom would usually not see each other properly until the night after they were married. However, the groom could inspect his bride’s feet to see is their size was adequate enough. If he thought them to not be “lilies” he could reject her and her parents would then have to pay the groom’s family to compensate for this outrage.
The girl was then unmarryable in almost all cases, no matter how beautiful or clever she was. An occurrence of such would cause her family an enormous loss of ‘face’.
Comparison of a pair of shoes, approximately 100 years old,
worn by Chinese women who had bound feet with a woman's size 5 shoe.
I must say that find the thought of having my feet bound extremely sickening and mortifying. However, this could be because I have grown up in a western country with many western thoughts, although I was brought up with many of the Chinese customs and traditions as well.
If you were to think about all of the ways that people have tried to change themselves throughout the world you could go on seemingly forever.
Corseting, some might say is equally as barbaric as foot binding. It squashes the waist, alters the structure of the ribs and causes some organs to move out of their normal positions. Often making it hard to eat and breath.
Painting faces with lead based paint and filling mouths with lead, slowly poisoning the person. Are these not as or even more outlandish and absurd than foot binding, once you put it all into perspective?
You cannot judge foot binding in respect to your own culture because it just doesn’t work. You need to attempt to understand eastern customs and the custom of foot binding in China’s cultural terms.
In America not so long ago, small feet were also the fashion. Women would go out and buy shoes that were several sizes too small and squash their feet in so that it appeared as if their feet were much
smaller than they actually were. Although this was not binding, it must have caused some deformities in the feet. In effect, could this have been the modern western equivalent to Chinese foot binding?
Even though foot binding in China was prohibited, many women whose feet had been bound for even a few years were unable to relinquish their feet. This was because as the foot had been broken, contorted and constricted into that shape for so long, that to release the foot now would increase the level of pain. The only outlet for the pain of bound feet was to soak the feet in either hot or cold water.
I am not sure that I could ever imagine having bound feet or the pain of it. I can’t help thinking of this custom as being barbaric and without any sensible aim. However, then I wonder why foot binding was tolerated for so many years, not just decades but over one thousand years.
In conclusion I will leave you to find your own view on the subject of foot binding. Most likely you will feel that foot binding is most definitely not a good thing. This opinion could be because this piece of writing is unfortunately biased.
A bound foot, without the bindings or a slipper.