“Foot Binding” Painful Tradition of Chinese Women in History

Foot binding is a tradition for beauty at the price of pain for many women in history. Today, ACU PAY will take you to find out the reason why women in ancient times had to bind their feet and how to do it. If you’re ready, let’s take a look together.

Why did Chinese women have to bind their feet?

In China, the foot binding for women in ancient times has a very long history. The common norm in that time was the smaller the feet were, the more beautiful. Women with small feet were considered fabulous. Any women who had smaller feet had a higher chance to marry wealthy men. Foot binding, therefore, was seen as a must thing to do and women did not hesitate to do so despite all the pain they faced through.

The bound feet were called “Lotus” and the different sizes of feet referred to different kinds of lotuses. The feet that were bigger than 4 inches are called ‘Steel Lotus’, the feet which were 4 inches were called “Silver Lotus” and the feet which were 3 inches were called “Gold Lotus” The word “3 inches Gold lotus” did not only mean 3 inches in size but the feet also had to be bent. “The Gold Lotus” which were 3 inches in size was considered to be the most beautiful feet at that time.

Foot binding could not be done at any time they wanted to do, but had to be done at the young age of 4-8 years old. The younger the girls were, the easier. The foot binding was normally done by the elderly. However, the girls that had their feet bound at a very young age could barely walk when they got older due to the foot binding.

Since the beginning of the foot binding, the girls were in pain for 4-5 years long before everything was in place. It was the most painful time in these little girls’ lives who were forced to bind their feet. They had to bind their feet all the time to prevent their feet from growing. The clothes used in binding can be unbind when they wash their feet. It took around an hour per time to wash their feet.

At that time, not every girl could bind their feet. The foot binding would be done to girls born in upper-class families, because the foot binding required lots of time to do so. The girls who had their feet bound had difficulty walking which needed a family to take care of, which required a lot of time and money. Ordinary people who had no time and money would not do foot binding. In that time, women that could have their feet bound meant that their families were rich.

How to do Foot Binding

First, the girl who would have their feet bound needs to soak their feet in the herb water mixed with animal blood. Then, cut their toe nail as short as possible to soften the feet for easier binding.

After the preparation, the most painful part is pressing all toes down to the feet which will break the bones, then bind four of the toes and foot sole to the middle of the feet. Once the feet are bound with clothes, the feet will be tightly bound and the outer clothes will be sewn, causing the girls to never unbind the clothes by themselves, done. Some people may use slate or bamboo tubes to smash the feet bone to make it easier for foot binding. A proverb says, “A pair of women’s feet, a basin full of tears.”

How does foot binding affect women's health?

This has a serious impact on women’s health both physically and mentally. Women who had their feet bound are at risk of developing various foot-related diseases such as:

Arthritis: Due to the toes being bent down to the foot sole, various joints in the feet have deteriorated.
Osteoporosis: Due to calcium deficiency from walking and standing difficulty.
Flat Foot: Due to deformity of the foot bones
Dermatitis: Caused by dampness and infection

Bound feet are often infected by germs that pile up in the feet. In addition, blood circulation is abnormal. In ancient China, many young women died from bloodstream infections.

Foot binding seems to have another hidden purpose: inconvenient walking due to small feet. The foot binding for women can prevent women from going out of the way. Small-footed women’s walking can also attract men’s attention because it is gentle, beautiful, and sexy. It is more aroused sexually than normal women. In 1930, a young woman in Shanxi province had a-small-foot contest, where women would sit and show their feet in front of the house. A judge would come and check through the house.

The tradition of foot binding reflects sexual injustice in ancient Chinese society. In the 19th century, the trend of gender equality began to spread into Chinese society. Foot binding began to become more resistant. When there was more opposition, it really changed in 1949, when China was communist. Since communists viewed everyone as equal, everyone had to work, regardless of whether it was a woman or a man. Since the women who had their feet bound would not be able to work, the communist government declared that it was illegal to bind the foot, which made foot binding gradually disappear from China.

What is your opinion on foot binding, the painful tradition of Chinese women in history that ACUPay has brought for you? As you know, tightly binding the feet would cause a woman to suffer and suffer both body and soul. The smaller the feet, the better both for social acceptance and for the future of their marriage, but that is the belief of ancient Chinese people. Nowadays, foot binding has gone.

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