Bound for Beauty
In Steinfeld’s interview with Jo Farrell, the article states that,
“They were proud of what they achieved,” Farrell says.
“Most will show the size of their feet and explain that they used to be smaller. They were the most beautiful in their village because of their small feet.”
Foot binding – a widespread custom in China that lasted for more than a 1,000 years – involved incredibly tight cloth bindings being applied to the feet of young girls to stifle growth. Women with small feet were deemed beautiful and could marry better if they had “lotus feet”, as they were often referred to. (Steinfeld)
For numerous centuries, many new practices have been performed in hopes of achieving beauty. Some of these practices have been successful and others have people questioning why they even existed. One of the many misunderstood practices in China happens to be foot binding. Many people suppose that it is a disgusting custom; however, when it was practiced, it had a much deeper meaning. Chinese footbinding
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Chinese girls would get their feet bound by their mothers between the ages of three and seven (Pendergast, Pendergast, and Hermsen). The first step in the process was the four smallest toes being broken and bent back to touch the bottom of the foot. Next, a ten foot long and two inch wide wet cloth was wrapped around the foot tightly which forced the the foot to become short and narrow. After that, the heel and toes were pulled closer together into a curved arc. Pendergast, Pendergast, and Hermsen also stated that the cloths were continuously applied to the girl’s feet every night for around two years to form three to four inch feet, the desired length. This intense process severely and permanently injured the women both during and after it was completed, and it would continue to haunt them throughout the years to
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.
The fast foot work in both Black Bottom and in tap dancing showed the similarities of the styles of dance. Although tap dance is less about the upper body, unlike Black Bottom and dances like the Charleston, and more about the movement of the feet and sound of the taps, there were obvious similarities between Black Bottom and tap. Tap dance and Black Bottom are fairly similar, only by adding metal plates to the bottom of shoes, creating “tap shoes”, the new style of dance was born. This style of dance however, focusing on the lower body movements and the sounds the tao shoes are making when they stick across the floor, is less about the movement of the arms and upper
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.
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.
This was written in one of the letters given to Miss Breed by Louise Ogawa. Many young girls looked up to her and wrote her letters. This supports how she acknowledges the natural beauty instead of materialistic things. To others, it would just be another village or a view of the everyday work we live in. But she was just grateful for the fact she got to see such a magnificent view of nature.
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).
A custom common at the time, it ensured the prevention of growth in the feet of young girls. The coveted result was one of pain and disability, however, was considered one of beauty, prestige, and social standing. Those with bound feet, or "lotus feet," were admired for their dainty feet and the beauty that was acquired through painful bindings around the feet. This is a portrayal of the status of women in society as well as the males' population's perception of women. A representation of the aristocratic hierarchy present in China, the prevalence of those with small feet were often among the wealthy and they possessed a higher position in society as a result of their husband. Due to the nature of the bindings, women would develop a careful and cautious walk composed of tiny steps. The nature of their walk asserted that women were seen as mere items of pleasure to men, as their walk did not enable them to work. This limited mobility may reflect the limitations women suffered in politics and society as they were perceived as less adept and competent as their male counterparts. As items of pleasure and service, the role of women in society may be illustrated in the tradition of foot
O-lan's physical appearance showed her as a very modest woman. When Wang Lung sees her, he stares at O-lan seeing that, "plain though her face was and rough the skin upon her hands the flesh of her big body was soft and untouched . . . her body was beautiful, spare, and big boned yet rounded and soft" (26). From her physical qualities, it is clear that O-lan isn't a spoiled woman who sits around all day, but a hard worker. She is described as an ugly, flat-footed, stolid-faced woman. Many times, Wang Lung secretly wishes that O-lan didn't have such big feet. During the time of this book, women's feet were bound so they would be smaller. O-lan had big feet because they were never bound. This was another aspect of Chinese life that seemed designed to make women suffer was the practice of altering the feet of girls so they could barely walk. The Chinese custom of foot binding was meant to please men esthetically and to enhance a man's status by showing he was wealthy enough for his wife or concubine not to work.
Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China begins with author Jung Chang’s grandmother, who was born in 1909 with the name Yu-fang. In traditional Chinese culture, for any hopes of marriage, the mother must first bind her daughter’s feet. Though a long and painful process, foot binding was considered a beautiful trait in Chinese men’s eyes. By the age of two, Yu-Fang’s feet were bounded and were referred to as “Lotus Feet”. Having one’s feet bounded during this time period, made it difficult for a woman to walk, and spent their life in pain due to the broken arch and constant bending of the toes. Her father, Yang, was determined to have his daughter’s social status...
“If you are a dreamer, come in” (Silverstein 9). The opening line in Where the Sidewalk Ends, the first book in his popular trilogy, Shel Silverstein offers the reader a seat by his fire and a few tales to hear. He sets out his theme, for this book and others, of adventure, imagination and creativity. Silverstein’s style of poetry is often referred to as peculiar or unconventional. Each of his poems, though off the wall, has an underlying message or advice on life, love, school, family and many other topics. Shel Silverstein teaches his readers life lessons through his quirky and eccentric poems.
Examples of cultural constructions can be seen throughout history in several forms such as gender, relationships, and marriage. “Cultural construction of gender emphasizes that different cultures have distinctive ideas about males and females and use these ideas to define manhood/masculinity and womanhood/femininity.” (Humanity, 239) In many cultures gender roles are a great way to gain an understanding of just how different the construction of gender can be amongst individual cultures. The video The Women’s Kingdom provides an example of an uncommon gender role, which is seen in the Wujiao Village where the Mosuo women are the last matriarchy in the country and have been around for over one thousand years. Unlike other rural Chinese villages where many girls are degraded and abandoned at birth, Mosuo woman are proud and run the households where the men simply assist in what they need. The view of gender as a cultural construct ...
The aim of this essay is to demonstrate how to apply Darwin’s Theory of Evolution to the development of high heels. This essay begins by explaining the evolution of the high heel. It will then focus on application of five characteristics of evolution.
Women’s hanbok reflected the Confucian ideal of modesty. Although people generally considered that modesty could be achieved by concealing the female form, the hanbok’s unique design was concealing, yet revealing at the same time. According to Kyung (2010) “the status and rank of their husbands defined the dress of women during the Joseon dynasty” (para. 17). Sumptuary laws mandated that certain fabrics and accessories could be worn only by those who held an appropriate rank. Nonetheless, the categories were eroded over time, and restricted articles came into general use. Kyung (2010) found that geumseonhye, high-quality silk shoes once reserved for members of the royal family, became popular among ordinary people during the nineteenth century (para. 17). Confucian tenets stressing the importance of brides to families as the bearers of sons of the next generations resulted in elaborate marriage clothing that copied the court’s, such as the wearing of marten fur or deep-green-dyed clothes along with jokduri, coronets, and binyu, hairpins, both of which were prohibited several times by special edicts. When women went out in public, a seugae, or veil, was worn to hide their faces from men. Jangot, a long coat, was another type of face-covering headdress used by upper-class women, as it was worn over their heads to cover their faces in public (Kyung, 2010, para.21).
The Chinese burial customs of the 1890s to 1930s are very different than what we see from burial customs now. There are many different, interesting things about the early 1900s Chinese burial customs:: The steps taken when a family member dies, the superstitions about burials, and the difference between our burial customs and the burial customs of the Chinese people during those times.
There are many cultural differences of body modification in the Eastern world because the Eastern world’s views and ways of self expression are different to those in the Western world.