Chinese Culture: Discussing the Unethical Practice of Footbinding - Research Paper Example

Chinese Culture: Discussing the Unethical Practice of Footbinding Due INTRODUCTION There are many practices from ancestral or ancient times that once seemed imperative, relevant, or necessary, now those by today’s standards no longer are. Once physicians “bled” patients of their sicknesses which was thought to be medically beneficial. We now know that is not the case. Ideas that are today oddities were once completely considered socially, traditionally, or culturally normal. Some practices might seem unwise, others may seem silly; however others, regardless of their origin and intent, prove to be the most shocking and horrifying. Once such ethically questionable practices was born in the ancient times is the traditional practice of ancient China’s Footbinding, which is the tightly wrapping of the feet of women to force them to remain small and shaped in a specific way. The process of footbinding is lifelong and results in a lifetime of discomfort, disability, and disfigurement. The practice of footbinding represented an unethical and tortuous attempt to supplicate women within ancient Chinese society, restrain feminine freedoms, and relegate female value to a sexual object existing for the purpose of pleasing men. HISTORY The historical origins of footbinding can be traced back to the Sung Dynasty who ruled ancient China between the years 960 and 1279. Why it developed still remains unclear to most scholars. However there are two folk stories that are often credited with inspiring the practice of footbinding that would essentially cripple 1000s of women over generations. The first story speaks of a Shang Empress who had been born with severely clubbed feet. In tribute and to be like their Empress Chinese women began binding their feet to imitate the Empress’s condition. However, historians today discount this theory because the Shang Empress they were referring to was not even born until after several generations after the practice had begun. Another tale seems to be more agreeable and fits better historically. An Emperor, Li Yu, was fascinated by concubines who wrapped their feet tightly in order to aid them in dancing on point, the tips of their toes. He found this to be incredibly desirable and beautiful; it became popular and desired thusly. Initially the practice was reserved for nobility, but it soon became a mark of beauty and propriety for elitists and commoners alike for more than 1000 years (Gillet 1). As can be seen in the photograph young girls, some as little as 4 years old, would begin the process of binding their feet. The ideal result is to bend the toes under (Chinese Footbinding) the foot, breaking bones, and ultimately permanently deforming the foot (Lau 196). The name given to the “nubbed” and shortened foot, that was considered both beautiful and sexual in ancient Chinese culture, was the “Golden Lotus.” The “Golden Lotus” restricted female children from running, playing, or even walking properly for the rest of their lives (Walker 236). The process itself, as well as, the final shape of the bound foot, also, changed over time. Scholars say that the original practice involved narrowing the foot and pointing the toes, leaving a flattened sole, however later the size would become much smaller and the process much more violent, painful, and deforming (McMahon 396). DISCUSSION Regardless of its historical origins and cultural influences the practice as a whole is incredibly unethical and directly impedes the function of women in ancient Chinese society and affects the quality of the life that they live. From just a little older than toddlers these female children, healthy and complete children, begin a mutilating process that will limit them their entire lives. Women in ancient China, like women of many countries, did not hold a high place in society and or have any influence over their world. Chinese women were taught that their contributions were to be physically pleasing to their husbands, be a good wife, and raise strong and “good” sons. After all they would not be educated in any academic fashion. This is clear repression of an entire gender presenting itself in the form of a deforming and heinous practice. The lack of education, mutilation for the sake of beauty and low societal status would bind their minds as surely as their feet (Liu 34). The ideal vision of a proper, classy, and desirable Chinese woman would, of course, have her feet bound. Once the practice became common throughout the different socio-economic classes the practice subverted the thoughts, ideas, and bodies of generations of women (Liu 34). Imagine not being able to walk across the room without aching pains in broken feet that never entirely healed or being unable to run properly or quickly when danger occurs; both could create great deal of depression and a consignment to their low status in society. The art of food binding truly represents an active symbol of the oppression and repression at the female perspective, experience, is self awareness. Having the joys of physical freedom are removed due to your gender can diminish your self-esteem, self value, and self image in so many damaging ways. They literally never learn how to “stand up” for themselves or for what they believe. They never self actualize. This practice guaranteed men the upper hand above the opposite sex. These women may never develop a sense of self and men never have to tolerate any upheaval from the female gender (Walker 236). Because footbinding had become a symbol of female sexuality; women with the “Golden Lotus” were the most desirable, more sexually stimulating, and more arousing. The bound foot had become sexual fantasy and an erotic tool, so to speak. The area of the bound foot in the center, the cavern created by the under-turning of the foot, was considered to be incredibly erotic location at the time. There were even books and manuals explaining interesting ways to make love to women with bound feet. The idea of the time essentially being that it mattered little what a women looked like, her shape, or her weight, as long as her feet were bound the she would be the most incredibly desirable. All of these women pictured would have been the most beautiful and sought (Chinese Footbinding) after of their time; representing sexually and beauty for generations. The bound foot was more attractive the smaller it was bound. An ideal of 3 or 4 inches, as seen in the (Chinese Footbinding) measurement above , was most desired. This "sexualization" of females not to mention the mutilation for pleasure, clearly an unethical act was committed against all of the women forced or influenced into the process (Walker 236). The most unethical aspect of the practice revolves around the medical and healthcare aspects of the practice. By pursuing and endorsing socially acceptable mutilation of women allowed the practice to flourish throughout the land. If the footbinding process was not done properly or changed regularly the woman might develop bacterial infections. Also, if toenails are not properly manicured throughout the process they can puncture the skin causing dangerous infections, which of left untreated could lead to loss of limb. Of course, the most devastating damage is the physical deformity to the foot. In the latter half of the 1800s a German physician wanted to examine the damage of footbinding. However, cultural modesty among Chinese women of the time made getting them to reveal their feet was not easy. In fact, very often, only prostitutes would be willing to do so. Below can be seen, the naked disfigurement of the bound foot exposed and to the right we see the internal skeletal damage of the practice (Ross 311). (Chinese Footbinding) Fortunately, the practice was already being discouraged in China by the late 19th century before it was officially banned in 1898 (Liu ). It was deemed unethical and no longer a reasonable expectation of women, who by this time were, also, starting to be educated formally. Despite this ban and the continuing work of Christian missionaries to end the practice they considered “barbaric,” the practice was deeply entrenched in Chinese culture and in the psyche of Chinese women that the tradition still continued until the 1950s (Lau 199) Today there are only a few women left alive who still have their feet bound; most are quite elderly having begun the practice when they were a child. perhaps 60 years ago (Gillet) Despite the rather oppressive, mutilating, and dark associations with the practice of footbinding it has gained a rather “cult” following. Private collectors are willing to pay top dollar for authentic “Golden Lotus” slippers true to that era. Like the examples pictured they vary in style, colors, and level of adornment. (Chinese Footbinding) Here in the Western world we have a different time attempting to understand this level of painful body modification. Footbinding is so extreme and horrid, something that most Western women would never consent to. However, that is not entirely true. The purpose of footbinding was to point the toe, elongate the foot, make the image more petite, and create a specific silhouette; is this really that different from the modern woman’s relationship with high-heeled shoes? Some experts say that the some of the damage present in bound feet can, also, be seen in women who wear high heeled shoes for long periods of time over a course of many years. CONCLUSION In the end, men have demanded and women have submitted to any number of customs to attain beauty, be attractive to the opposite sex, and earn the marriage proposals of suitable men, However, footbinding goes far beyond highlighting one’s features with make-up, wearing sexually revealing clothing, coloring their hair, or painting their nails; it crosses the line into repressive mutilation that causes pain and permanent disfigurement that cannot be undone. It is beyond unethical what makes it worse is that the tradition was enforced upon children, when they are most open to influences and suggestions of their environment, be it negative or positive. The indoctrination into oppression came much too early to ever be considered ethical. Fortunately, this practice has been relegated to the past. However, we cannot forget the damaging effects, short and long term, of such traditions; in hopes of never repeating the past. There is no longer a place in the modern society for any ideology that works t supplicate women, deny them the most basic and humane freedoms, and defines women by their sexual value to men. Women, all over the world, have worked too hard and come too far to free themselves of antiquated male dominance; footbinding is one of the many reasons why. WORK CITED Gillet, Kit. “In China, Foot Binding Slowly Slips Into History.” Los Angeles Times (2012): 1. Web. 27 Mar. 2014. . Read More