Footbinding John King Fairbank

756 Words2 Pages

Footbinding The republic of China officially banned the traditional Chinese practice of footbinding in 1911. In “Footbinding”, John King Fairbank tells the story of what he learned about the Chinese tradition of footbinding. Footbinding became popular and a symbol of upper-class status, but it then spread to the lower class and soon became a necessity for marriage. Footbinding started out as a sexual erotic way to control women but in turn was more harmful than good. The binding of feet is extremely dangerous. Women today still harm themselves in a different kind of “binding”. What was once a fetish called footbinding, the forcible deformation of feet into the shape of a lotus, was the necessity of a lifestyle dangerous to oneself; although …show more content…

Years later during the Ming and Ch’ing eras it became wide spread among all status levels. Footbinding is a mutilation of the feet by wrapping them up weeks upon weeks to force them into the shape of a lotus flower and keep them at a length of three inches. (p.366) “Small feet became a prestige item to such an extent that a girl without them could not achieve a good marriage arrangement and was subjected to the disrespect and taunts of the community.” (p.364). Eventually lower-class women began using binding to find wealthy husbands. The eldest daughter would have her feet bound and be married off to a rich man, while her younger sisters would be sold off to the same family as bond-servants or slaves. Girls with unbound feet would become concubines to rich men or be married off to a laboring man so they could work out in the field alongside their husband. …show more content…

They are doing so by messing up their arches and forcing far too much weight on the balls of their feet. Women who wear heels on a daily basis are more at risk of harming themselves. When high heels are worn, this can be a heel of two inches or higher, the feet slide forward forcing the toes into the unnatural shape of the shoe and it redistributes weight improperly. The weight against the toes makes the body tilt forward to compensate for the incline of the foot. While the body tilts forward, typically the reaction is to lean backwards but that will over arch the back creating a straining posture for the lower back, hips, and knees. Over time, constant wearing of heels will lead to chronic pain and destruction of

Show More
Related

  • Bound Feet And Western Dress Analysis

    883 Words  | 2 Pages

    I will be explaining the role of women in society in Bound Feet and Western Dress. The Chinese have traditions that are generations old and are very serious in their culture. These Chinese traditions have been deeply established. In Bound feet and Western Dress, a dispute between Chinese traditions and Westernization of Chinese women begin to emerge. The women in traditional China were treated unequally and were basically looked upon as property for their husband. The women were taken in by the husband’s family and had to always obey their husband and also had to take orders from the husband’s family as well.

    Read More

  • Summary Of The Video 'A World Without Fathers Or Husbands'

    684 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the video “A World Without Fathers or Husbands” is set in Lijiang, China, which is in Southwest China. Women in Lijiang is wear traditional clothing, which remind them of a time women were held to a very high status and were respected more than anyone else. This was a time when both women and men did not marry. Neither gender were forced to marry or be tied to one person, they both could have as many boyfriends or girlfriends they wanted, and this was something nobody complained about at all, they were actually quite pleased to do without the ritual of marriage. However, this did not last due to Prince Yung gaining the throne of China in 1723. When the Prince sent representatives out into the field to improve this land in any way possible,

    Read More

  • Gender Hierarchies In Tang And Song China

    885 Words  | 2 Pages

    Following a rough period of half a century, the Song dynasty took power in 960. This began a “Golden Age” of Chinese society. However, the role of women did not advance all across the board. It was more in the northern regions that were influenced by nomads. Unfortunately, the new Neo-Confucian influences held almost everywhere else, with the new influences of Buddhism and Daoism. (Strayer 371) In fact, conditions were terrible everywhere else, if not more so than they ever had been before. One example of the terrible factors women had to deal with was foot binding. Foot binding involved the wrapping feet tightly with gauze and stuffing them into specially designed “lotus shoes”. (Foreman) his process, repeated over many years, shrunk a woman’s feet at the expenditure of vast amounts of pain and broken bones. An outside onlooker would ask themselves ‘Why would people do this to their daughters?’, and the answer is quite

    Read More

  • Celia A Slave Thesis

    831 Words  | 2 Pages

    Slaves during the mid-1800s were considered chattel and did not have rights to anything that opposed their masters’ wishes. “Although the slaves’ rights could never be completely denied, it had to be minimized for the institution of slavery to function” (McLaurin, 118). Female slaves, however, usually played a different role for the family they were serving than male slaves. Housework and helping with the children were often duties that slaveholders designated to their female slaves. Condoned by society, many male slaveholders used their female property as concubines, although the act was usually kept covert. These issues, aided by their lack of power, made the lives of female slaves

    Read More

  • Bound Feet And Western Dress

    904 Words  | 2 Pages

    Traditions in Chinese culture are long-rooted and are taken very seriously from generation to generation. However, there must always be room for modern change in order for society to grow and strive across the globe. In Bound Feet and Western Dress the conflict between Chinese traditions and modern change arises. With this conflict it is important to discuss the different meanings of liberation for men and women and they way in which Chang Yu-I was able to obtain liberation throughout her life.

    Read More

  • Chinese Footbinding

    1751 Words  | 4 Pages

    The ancient Chinese custom of footbinding caused severe life-long suffering for the Chinese women involved. When researching the subject of footbinding, one of the difficult things is finding factual knowledge written before the 20th century. Most of the historical data has been gathered from writings, drawings and photographs from the 19th and 20th centuries. Additionally, the research indicates that the historical documentation was mainly from missionary accounts and literature from various anti-footbinding societies. These groups had a bias because of their opposing viewpoints. The first documented reference to footbinding was from the Southern Tang Dynasty in Nanjing (Vento 1).

    Read More

  • The Cause Of Pain In Sever's Gymnastics

    1015 Words  | 3 Pages

    The pain is from the swelling in your heel plates, which allows them to rub together creating the pain (”Sever’s Disease”). Some symptoms of Sever’s Disease can include: “swelling and redness in the heel, difficulty walking, discomfort or stiffness in the feet upon walking, discomfort when the heel is squeezed on both sides, an unusual walk, such as walking with a limp or on tiptoes to avoid putting pressure on the heel,” (“Sever’s Disease”). These symptoms will worsen after physical activity and will get better with rest. Not only is gymnastics a physical activity, but one that requires the constant landing of a heel, making gymnasts more prone to getting this

    Read More

  • Socially Constructed Childhood

    2173 Words  | 5 Pages

    Also in China girls are made to bind there feet up at an early age so

    Read More

  • Analysis Of RYKA Women's Joyful Walking Shoe

    811 Words  | 2 Pages

    The footbed is molded for maximum comfort. When you have conditions like Plantar Fasciitis, heel spurs, or neuropathy, you have to be careful about the types of shoes you wear. RYKA customers have specifically mentioned how much the shoes have helped their foot pain and issues. You don't want to give up walking because you have foot pain, but walking can be painful and almost impossible with some conditions.

    Read More

  • The Song Dynasty

    786 Words  | 2 Pages

    ... Song times was sometimes blamed on Neo-Confucianism. Foot-binding also began during the Song Dynasty. This is the practice of binding the feet of girls with long strips of cloth to keep them from growing large. Moms wanted them to be judged more beautiful.

    Read More

  • Plantar Fasciitis Essay

    514 Words  | 2 Pages

    Plantar fasciitis is the number one cause of pain in the heel. The plantar fascia is the ligament connecting your toes to the heel bone. This ligament provides support to the foot’s arch. If the plantar fascia is strained, it swells, gets inflamed and becomes weak. This is what causes pain in the bottom of the foot or heel when you stand or walk. Plantar fasciitis commonly affects middle-aged people. There are cases where it affects young people who spend long hours on their feet such as soldiers and athletes. This condition can affect one or both feet depending on the use.

    Read More

  • Research Paper On Ethos Pathos

    403 Words  | 1 Pages

    Irrespective of the choice of a nice pair of shoes including high-heeled or flats, slippers or flip-flops, riding boots, stilettos or platform shoes, shoes define a distinct style and precise typology of woman. Is Shoeosis a dangerous condition? Definitely

    Read More

  • Dorothy Ko's Article: The Body As Banning In Seventeenth-Century China

    754 Words  | 2 Pages

    In her article "The body as attire," Dorothy Ko (1997) reviewed the history about foot binding in seventeenth-century China, and expressed a creative viewpoint. Foot binding began in Song Dynasty, and was just popular in upper social society. With the gradually popularization of foot binding, in the end of Song Dynasty, it became generally popular. In Qing Dynasty, foot binding was endowed deeper meaning that was termed into a tool to against Manchu rule. The author, Dorothy Ko, studied from another aspect which was women themselves to understand and explained her shifting meaning of foot binding. Dorothy Ko contends that “Chinese Elite males in the seventeenth century regarded foot binding in three ways: as an expression of Chinese wen civility,

    Read More

  • Bound Feet

    575 Words  | 2 Pages

    A Modern Descendent of Bound Feet: The High Heel Conundrum In an age where virtually everything can be improved, our bodies are spared none of the pressure. In fact, whether addressed through permanent modifications or temporary accessories, such pressures to “be beautiful” have always existed. Cross-cultural variations of this recurring human phenomenon are quite fascinating. Moreover, though these variations may seem to be independent of each other, they are not without similar patterns and trends.

    Read More

  • Importance Of Anatomy And Physiology

    1020 Words  | 3 Pages

    The human foot is an incredibly complex part of the body, it is made up of twenty-six bones which is fully twenty-five percent of the bones in the entire body. The structure of the forefoot includes the five metatarsal bones and the phalanges. The metatarsal bones are for forward movement and provides attachment for several tendons. The phalanges, also known as the toes, movement take place in the joints. The foot movement only has two movements; inversion and eversion. All the joints in the hindfoot and midfoot contributes to these complex movements. The foot has two significant functions: weight bearing and impulsion, which both requires a high degree of stability. The foot must also be flexible so it is able to adapt to uneven surfaces. The various bones and joints of the foot are what allows the foot to be flexible. In order for the foot to be able to support any weight the various of bones must form an arch. The foot has three arches that are maintain by the shape of the bones and by the ligaments. The arches are supported by the muscles and tendons. A foot is a strong, flexible, and durable it allows us to daily activities as we please while carrying all the

    Read More

More about Footbinding John King Fairbank

Open Document