Chinese Footbinding Essay -- China Culture Cultural Essays

Chinese FootbindingIn addressing the subject of footbinding, one primary difficulty becomes apparent - that much remains within the realm of the unknowable. Any factual knowledge about the practice may only be drawn from 19th- and 20th-century writings, drawings or photographs. In addition, many of these documents represent a intelligibly Western point of view, as they are primarily composed of missionary accounts and the literature of the various anti -footbinding societies.1 The historical origins of footbinding are frustratingly vague, although brief textual references conjure up that small feet for women were preferred as early as the Han dynasty. The first documented reference to the actual binding of a foot is from the court of the Southern scag dynasty in Nanjing, which celebrates the fame of its dancing girls renowned for their tiny feet and beautiful bow shoes.2 The practice apparently became the standard for feminine beauty in the imperial court, spreading descending(p renominal) socially and geographically as the lower classes strove to imitate the style of the elite. 3In its most extreme form, footbinding was the act of wrapping a three- to five-year old girls feet with binding so as to bend the toes under, break the bones and force the back of the foot together. Its purpose was to produce a tiny foot, the golden lotus, which was three inches vast and thought to be both lovely and alluring.4 It is believed that the origin of the term golden lotus emerged in the Southern Tang dynasty around 920 A.D., where the emperor Li Yu tell his favorite concubine, Fragrant Girl, to bind her feet with silk bands and dance on a golden lotus platform encrusted with pearls and gems. Thereafter, women inside and outside the court ... ...ive (Cambridge Cambridge University Press, 1990).Jaschok, Maria. Concubines and Bondservants (London Oxford University Press, 1988).Ko, Dorothy. The Body As Attire The Shifting Meanings of Footbinding in Seventeenth-Century Chi na. Journal of Womens History. Winter 1997, Vol.84.Levy, Howard S. The Lotus Lovers The Complete History of the Curious Erotic Custom of Footbinding in China (Buffalo, NY Prometheus Books, 1992).Llewellyn, Bernard. Chinas Courts and Concubines (London George Allen & Unwin, 1966).Lloyd, Carol. These shoe Pinch. New York Times Magazine. Oct. 27, 1996. p. 25.Mackie, Gerry. Ending Footbinding and Infibulation A Convention Account. American Sociological Review. December 1996, Vol.61, Issue 6.Paulshock, MD, Bernadine Z.. Chinese Footbinding. Journal of the American medical Association. August 12, 1992.