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Originally posted by *~LiSa-LoO~* Ya...wasn't it also a sign of wealthy or royalty or something?

Appartenly all classes did it...

Here's a bit of history and the process of foot binding (OUCH!).

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Once foot binding began, it spread quickly from the north, where it begun, to all parts in China. In the beginning, the custom was practiced only by court dancers, followed by all the women in the court. In 1273, the Mongols took over the Sung dynasty and started the Yuan dynasty. The Mongols supported foot binding for all the women in China (Chinese Girl 2). They supported mainly because it made the women less likely to be able to succeed (Jackson 19). In the mid-1300s, the Ming dynasty took the place of the Yuan dynasty. Foot binding footpic.gif (88129 bytes)continued to spread from the royalty, to the wealthy (Levy 26). Eventually, all classes of people had their feet bound. Poor people did so in hopes of improving their social status (Cummings 2). The process of foot binding started for the young girls anywhere from the age of four to six. It was done so early in her life so that the arch did not have much time to develop. The mother who was the one to bind the feet, and usually started the process late in the fall or winter, so the foot would be numb and the pain would not be as severe. The daughters' feet would first be soaked in warm water or animal blood and herbs (Jackson 39). The special potion that was used for this caused any dead flesh to fall off (Levy 12).She would have her toe nails cut as short as possible therefore not allowing them to grow into the foot. After she received a foot massage, the four smallest toes on each foot were broken (Chinese Foot Binding 2) This was not even the worst of the pain. The mother soaked silk or cotton bandages in the same liquid the girl's feet were soaked in. The bandages, which were ten feet long and two inches wide, were wrapped around the smallest toes and pulled tightly to the heel. Every two days, the binding was removed and rebound. This part of the process went on for two years. By this time her feet were three to four inches long. To assure the feet staying small, the ritual continued for at least ten more years. The process was very painful; every time the feet were rebound the bandages were pulled tighter. But besides just the pain of the process, there were many after affects that were detrimental to the young girls' health. The pain of the bound feet never stopped. The most common consequence was infection (Hwang 1). There were many ways a girl could get an infection. One was the ball of the foot would folding directly into the heel. A second was that the toenails continued to grow, eventually curling into the skin. This led to flesh rotting off, and sometimes even a toe. The worst part of the process was that the feet would practically die after three years. The feet being dead caused a terrible smell the girl carried with her everywhere (Chinese Footwear 1). Diseases followed infections, and death could even result from foot binding (Hwang 1).

http://www.ccds.charlotte.nc.us/His...ns/hutchins.htm



These stories are sad: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=8966942

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Originally posted by Intangible Appartenly all classes did it...

I think my mom was telling me that it originated with the wealthy classes. I found this video that confirms that it was once a symbol of wealth.

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Disgusting.

that's not a foot anymore.

It's a flipper.

she seems happy about it. who cares.

You have to remember that your all viewing it from the point of view of your time, and not in the time of their standards. A lot has changed in the past 100 years and will keep on changing. How will we all be judged 100 years from now. How ludicrous will our ways be viewed then?

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Well actually, if her foot was shaped over time to be pointed, her shoes would feel a lot more comfortable than mine do.

Also, the Chinese are nuts.

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Originally posted by Prometheus Xex How ludicrous will our ways be viewed then?

lol. i bet this will be soooo true.

i mean, even look at some of the ridiculous things people wore back in the 80s. or how they did their hair.

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Originally posted by StereoPrincess lol. i bet this will be soooo true. i mean, even look at some of the ridiculous things people wore back in the 80s. or how they did their hair.

It wasn't that long ago, yet that was "da shit" at that time. We might laugh now, but just wait until we are laughed at... and maybe not that long from now if you use the 80's time-frame comparison.

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quote:

Originally posted by Prometheus Xex It wasn't that long ago, yet that was "da shit" at that time. We might laugh now, but just wait until we are laughed at... and maybe not that long from now if you use the 80's time-frame comparison.

uhm, I wouldn't compare hairspray and breaking feet... It's like it would be cool to have knees backward, elbows straight and head locked in a little box...

still, ewwwww.... lol imagine porn with feet like that?

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Originally posted by kotov still, ewwwww.... lol imagine porn with feet like that?

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