1 / 18

Footbinding

Footbinding in ancient China was a painful yet culturally revered practice that highlighted beauty, status, and femininity. This tradition, often accompanied by poetry and longing, is exemplified in Ye Xiaoluan’s poem, where bound feet create delicate footprints on the green moss, symbolizing both beauty and isolation. As women like Hu Shilan reflected on their childhoods and the physical constraints imposed on them, the profound impact of footbinding on their lives becomes evident. This practice not only shaped women's identities but also perpetuated a cycle of devotion and suffering, leaving an indelible mark on Chinese society.

mimir
Download Presentation

Footbinding

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Footbinding http://www.reuters.com/news/video?videoId=60839

  2. In response to Ye Xiaoluan’s poem by Shen Yixiu.They say she leaves her footprint on the green moss lightly,Only as she stands alone, lost in thought.He hears tinkling of jade ornaments from afar,Only because she shifts her bound feet slightly.The slender, slender feet, creating lotuses at every step,The Duke of Donghun cannot but be indulgent.The slim, slim socks as they move,Inspire the pity of Cao Zhi in his verse.As spring befalls the emperor’s garden,The fallen petals make a fitting companion.As she walks the treasure house in the moon,the fragrant greens become more lovely. Childhood memories by Hu Shilan. Remember those bygone days in the depth of my inner chambers, Fragrant pieces of jade adorned my tender skin. My little maid stood by me under canopy of flowers, So that my tiny shoes wouldn’t slip on moss so green. Little did I know that in mid-life I would have to roam around, Braving the scorching sun and furious storms.

  3. "...Very rarely would a Chinese man ever see a bound foot without the white bandages covering it. He might know what every other part of the woman's body looked like, including the genitals. Her body was very real to him, but the feet were literally shrouded in mystery. ..." p. 107 Splendid Slippers: A Thousand Years of an Erotic Tradition New book by Beverley Jackson

  4. Venetian Footbinding: the twenty-inches chopines

More Related