How Foot Binding Worked

The foot binding process was long, excruciatingly painful and pretty gross. It generally began when girls were 4 to 7 years old, because at that age the bones in their feet were still fairly soft and pliable, and thus easier to reshape [source: Footwear History].

First, the feet were softened in hot water. After a few hours, any dead skin was scrubbed off, toenails were clipped as short as possible and alum was sprinkled between the toes to stop perspiration. Next came the actual binding. Cotton bandages, generally 2 inches (5 centimeters) wide by 10 feet (3 meters) long, were soaked in hot water so they'd shrink as they dried. Then the binder -- sometimes the girl's mother, other times an experienced woman in the village -- folded the girl's four small toes under her feet and began wrapping each foot with the bandages in a figure-eight pattern. The goal was to leave the big toe and ball of the foot largely intact, but keep the other four toes under the foot and bring the heel forward, towards the front of the foot. The bones in the arch and foot would break during the process. To ensure a tight bind and prevent the little girl from ripping off the bandages, the bandages were sewn together at several points. Once the binding was finished, a small pair of shoes was placed on the girl's feet and she was forced to walk around. The initial steps taken when feet were bound were incredibly painful [source: Footwear History].

Every day or two, the girl's feet were unbound, bathed and rebound. Slowly, the bindings became tighter and the shoes smaller, until her feet reached the coveted 3-inch crescent moon shape, a process that took about two years [source: Minnesota-China Connection].

During this lengthy process, many things could go wrong. If a girl's toenails hadn't been trimmed enough, they could cut into the bottom of her feet and cause an infection. Gangrene was also a worry; it could quickly set in if the bindings were too tight [source: Evans]. Even when everything had been properly done, it was common for bound feet to become swollen and pus-filled, then break open, causing even more pain, plus a terrible odor [source: Holman].

Perhaps the most unpleasant thing about foot binding was that it was never over. Even after a girl's feet were successfully bound, she had to meticulously tend to them for the rest of her life -- regularly bathing them to avoid infection, and always rebinding quickly after a washing. If her feet weren't rebound, they'd begin to lose their form, which some Chinese women said was as painful as the original binding [source: Holman].

Once foot binding became entrenched in the culture, it was impossible to stop. Bound feet became the norm; unbound feet were seen as freakish, lewd and ugly. And while mothers undoubtedly hated to inflict pain on their daughters, leaving their feet unbound was never considered. For if a mother didn't bind her daughter's feet, her daughter would be ridiculed by other women and would almost assuredly never snag a husband. A young girl could be lifted out of poverty if her feet were small and perfectly curved, because that was more important to men than her social status [source: Holman].

Foot binding also fostered the dominance of men over women. Since it was difficult for a woman to walk with bound feet -- the farthest she could walk was 3 or 4 miles (4.8 to 6.4 kilometers) -- Chinese women never strayed far from home, nor had much contact with others outside their villages. This made them more conservative and more willing to obey their husbands. Their diminished mobility virtually ensured they couldn't have extramarital affairs, or run away to escape a beating when their husbands were displeased. As foot binding became entrenched during the Song dynasty (960-1279), education for women was strictly curtailed and independent property rights outlawed [sources: Evans, Ross, Holman].

On a more positive note, foot binding also created strong intergenerational bonds among the women, since they did all the binding and also had their feet bound. Women were proud of their tiny feet. They regularly got together to sew their shoes, which were a major fashion statement [source: Gillet].

Beyond relationships, foot binding reshaped China's architecture. The Chinese began building only single-story homes because it was so difficult for women to climb stairs. Streets and lanes were very narrow because the women needed to lean upon walls or railings when they walked [source: Ross].

Amazingly, foot binding also affected the world's colonization. While Westerners were rapidly exploring the globe and colonizing vast swaths of land, the Chinese opted out. Their women couldn't travel easily or perform the difficult manual labor necessary when pioneering a new country, and the men didn't want to leave their women. The few Chinese who did settle new lands were almost all from the ethnic groups that didn't practice binding [source: Ross].

Perhaps the most intriguing and bizarre cultural effect of foot binding, however, was the development of foot fetishes and the sexualizing of the bound foot.

Once tiny feet and daintily decorated shoes became the focal point of a woman's body, they became highly sensual and erotic. A woman could be ugly or have a terrible figure, but men wouldn't care a bit if her feet were very small, perfectly curved and clad in beautiful shoes [source: Holman].

Ancient manuals instructed men in how to sensually fondle bound feet in innumerable ways, and use them to enhance sexual encounters. The Chinese also believed women with bound feet developed extra strong vaginal muscles because of the mincing steps they took, thus making sexual intercourse more pleasurable. Further, many women kept their feet bound throughout sexual encounters, enhancing their mystique while covering their grotesqueness. But some men liked to see the bare foot -- they would smell it, caress it, even put it in their mouth. Bizarre foot fetishes developed, such as drinking the water a woman had used to wash her feet, or placing nuts between her deformed toes, then eating them [sources: Holman, Evans].

The women's special lotus shoes got their name from the shape of the bound foot, which was said to resemble a lotus petal. Since they were considered intimate apparel and part of the sexual attraction, women carefully sewed their shoes with fine silk uppers, then added beautiful embroidery that reflected the women's personality and region of the country [source: Footwear History].

Lotus shoes were so important that a woman had to own at least four pairs if she wanted to get married, and ideally 16 -- four pairs per season. One pair -- the wedding shoes -- were always red and the most ornate. Since women weren't allowed to sleep solely in their bindings, a pair of sleeping slippers was also part of the trousseau. The slippers typically featured erotic embroidery on the inside, which the couple looked at together on their wedding night [source: Footwear History].

For many of us, it seems unbelievable that foot binding could have existed, especially for 1,000 years. Yet others note humans still do some pretty unusual things to their bodies, all in the name of beauty, such as plastic surgery, tattoos and piercings. And really, how much have we advanced if women are still cramming their feet into narrow, 5-inch high heel shoes and tottering around?