Footbinding

The practice of footbinding, which existed in China from the mid-900s to 1949, usually began for girls between 4 and 6 years old; some started at age 2, and some between 7 and 12. The goal was to make the feet 3 inches long. The four smaller toes were usually broken, tucked underneath, pulled toward the heel, and wrapped with bandages. Each time the feet were unbound, the bandages and feet were cleaned. Any dead skin, blisters, dried blood, and pus were removed. The feet were rewrapped even tighter, before the blood drained back into the feet, in hopes this would lessen pain, and then perfumed to mask the stench of rotting flesh. Mothers, grandmothers, or older female relatives were first to bandage the girl's feet. This process could cause paralysis, gangrene, ulcération, and death. Estimates are that 1 in 10 girls died from footbinding or its effects. Binding the feet continued for the rest of the girl's life. Decorative shoes and leggings were worn over the bandages and differed with times of day and special occasions.

The “golden lotus” foot originated in China around 900 CE before and during the Sung Dynasty, 960-1279. The exact origin of the practice is unknown. Most agree that it began because of a male erotic fascination with the shape and point of a ballerina's foot while dancing. Although footbinding began in the upper classes, it spread rapidly. In poorer families who could not afford the bandages or lack of labor constituted by a hobbled woman, the feet were not bound until the girls were older. Once the girl married, the bandages were taken off and she reentered the workforce.

Footbinding was viewed as a rite of passage for young girls. It was believed to be preparation for puberty, menstruation, and childbirth. Footbinding symbolized the girl's willingness to obey. Footbinding ensured a girl's marriagability in patrilineal Chinese culture, and a shared bond between daughters, mothers, and grandmothers.

When Confucian thought reigned, from the 10th to 20th centuries, women were devalued, had certain roles in the family, were essentially disabled, and were geographically restricted to the house. The process of footbinding kept women subordinate to men, increasing the differences between the sexes, and limiting women's power in all institutions. Chinese men found the foot to be both erotic and a prestige symbol, and the popular belief was it increased fertility because the blood would flow up to the legs, hips, and vaginal areas.

During the Manchu rule, K'ang Hsi banned footbinding in 1662, but withdrew the ban in 1668 because most Chinese were still practicing footbinding. Anti-footbinding became popular when missionaries traveled to China to argue that footbinding was cruel; missionaries also pointed out that the rest of the world looked down at footbinding, urged exposure of the naked bound foot, and thus changed their ideas about gender. With the Nationalist Revolution in 1911, footbinding was outlawed in 1912. However, footbinding finally ended with the creation of the People's Republic of China in 1949.

[Page 332]Footbinding has been compared with other ways to “perfect” the female body such as corsets and female genital cutting or mutilation.

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