The custom of foot-binding is the result of the evolution of social customs for thousands of years. It takes many years and pains to tie a pair of small feet, which has a great influence and change on women's lives.
First, there are differences between men and women.
Foot binding is a kind of gender-specific decoration. Almost all decorations emphasize the division of labor between men and women, which makes men and women naturally different, resulting in greater differences, highlighting the weak side of women, highlighting the characteristics of men's activities outside and women's activities at home-becoming the master of men and women, men are rough and tough, and women are delicate and weak.
The most primitive embryonic form of foot binding, whether it comes from a dissolute court family or a prostitute in a teaching workshop, originally aims to show special physical skills by winding her feet and wearing narrow bow shoes, which is somewhat similar to the effect of ballet. It turns in the air, showing a slender and restrained gait. The spread of the wind, coupled with the social and cultural requirements for women at that time, became a huge stream. This social trend is mainly the norm for women in reality, which requires women to be chaste, men and women are everywhere, men and women are different groups, and women must live in the boudoir, abide by the norms and obey the rules. Under this social trend, foot binding was soon found to be a good means to promote women's education. Zhu, a master of Confucianism, vigorously promoted the foot-binding system in southern Fujian as a tool to spread Chinese culture and teach men and women. After foot-binding, women's mobility is inconvenient and restricted everywhere, so it becomes the guarantee of observing the norms and the most powerful guarantee of polygamy in the era of the rise of male chauvinism.
Second, social norms.
For thousands of years, China has been a society guided by morality. Obeying discipline and discipline has become a higher standard than religion. Therefore, a stable society can be achieved without perfect laws.
When the custom of foot-binding gradually spread, at first, only women from wealthy families accepted it first. Soon, foot binding became a symbol of wealth, power and glory. In order to show that she is from a wealthy family in the upper class, and also to let her daughter marry into a rich family, every family is scrambling to bind her feet for her daughter. In Taiwan Province Province in the Qing Dynasty, there was a saying that "big feet are maids and small feet are mothers". Li Liweng's "With Delivery" said: "Guo Xiang, Zhou Yixing bought a beautiful woman with 1000 yuan and named her' Miss Bao'. Because of her small feet and inconvenient movement, every line has to be led by someone, hence the name." It's really hard for me to have such a small foot, but it's the object of the rich. Foot binding is also a necessary beauty technique for court officials and ladies. Girls in the middle and lower classes want to enter upper-class families. At that time, the key to getting a wife was to ask the matchmaker to listen to the woman. In addition to the other family, the most important thing is the size of a pair of feet. As long as there is a pair of proud feet, it will inevitably become the object of the matchmaker. When they got married, all relatives and friends got together to watch the focus, and it was on the bride's little feet.
Third, the family system
China people regard the change of body, mind and interpersonal relationship as an important way of study, education and practice. The ultimate goal is to completely change a person's future destiny through appropriate changes in the body. The traditional marriage system in China basically allows polygamy, and some people define it as monogamy and polygamy more clearly. The traditional marriage system has always acquiesced that successful men can have several concubines, and many concubines will inevitably compete for favor. In order to specialize in the house and gain a good impression, only painful efforts are made to decorate it, and foot binding provides a good direction for decoration. At the same time, it is inconvenient to move after foot binding, which is also quite beneficial for the husband to control the concubine and reduce the possibility of derailment or elopement with others.
Fourth, aesthetics.
The beauty of a woman is wealth, and many women can sacrifice their health and mobility in exchange for being praised for their beauty. After the custom of foot binding gradually formed, the fragile and delicate girl became the idol of men's love. In the eyes of lovers, her trembling posture, holding the wall and touching it, is a feeling of being on cloud nine, a secret charm that attracts people's imagination. In this environment, aesthetic standards require a slender and subtle gesture, like a weak willow. Before the Tang Dynasty, women's aesthetics in China was healthy and lively. At that time, many moving dance dramas were performed by female dancers, but current events shifted. In the Qing dynasty, except prostitutes, few female dancers were seen, and prostitutes were amazed at their skills of walking rope and kicking the altar. Women can't express their beauty in sports and dance. Only by sewing all day and skillfully designing and beautifying a pair of feet can we see all kinds of foot ornaments designed for women with small feet, which are extremely luxurious and dazzling. When advocating the liberation of small feet, we found that after the liberation of feet, there were no suitable foot ornaments for the upper-class women with big feet to wear. In such a big environment, who can break through the layers of norms and liberate foot binding?
Verb (abbreviation of verb) is a representation of social status.
Throughout the history of foot binding for thousands of years, the fashion of foot binding is mainly spread among rich, powerful, educated and prostitutes. Generally, among peasant women and working maids in mountain villages, the proportion of foot binding is very small. If there is foot binding, it is often rough. The average family needs considerable conditions to make girls wrap their feet very small. First, someone must do everything for her. Even in the tangled years, people often need support. This is not easy to do in a well-off family. Being able to entangle a pair of enviable feet shows that her family life is rich. In a leisurely and wealthy family, it is the most important competition for little girls to get together with their peers. Relatives and friends praise and criticize girls' feet, which makes the custom of foot-binding go deeper into ordinary families. If we have a deeper understanding of the role of feet in bed play at that time and the changes in women's figure after foot binding, I am afraid we can better understand that after a thousand years, in one of the most powerful ancient civilizations,
Foot-binding originated in China, which is a system that follows and respects the ancient system. Many ancient systems and laws have been preserved in foot binding.
Come down and become a living fossil of culture. This custom lasted for 1000 years, involving about 2 billion women. It is the largest human body decoration in human history. Foot-binding originated from the Han nationality's way that men are superior to women, hardworking and restrained, and parents educate women. It has profoundly influenced the life style, customs, gender relations and family life of China people for more than 1000 years, and even affected the development of the whole nation.
When did the custom of foot binding begin?
There are different opinions in history, which should not be initiated by one time, one place or one person, but gradually evolved for the social environment. In the early days, you can use cloth instead of socks to wrap your feet for shoes. Textual research on ancient and modern things began with da ji in Shang Dynasty, and Miscellaneous Symphony recorded a paragraph describing the beauty of women's feet in Han Dynasty. These two books were written by later generations, and the evidence is weak. In the Six Dynasties, there was a Yuefu poem "Two-way Entanglement", which said, "Silla embroidery is so entangled that it is as beautiful as spring. Others don't say good things, only I know pity. " "Silla Embroidery Wrapping" means wrapping the feet with cloth and embroidering the colors on them, that is, only wrapping the feet with cloth. "Southern History" records: "Carve gold for the land of lotus, so that Pan Fei can walk on it, saying that lotus is born in one step." This paragraph describes Pan Fei walking on the golden lotus instead of Pan Fei's feet like the golden lotus. It should not be used as evidence of foot binding in the Six Dynasties, but some people think that this is the beginning of calling feet "golden lotus".
The popularity of foot-binding should be in a prosperous era, singing and dancing, starting with nobles, musicians and artists, and gradually being accepted by the whole people. There are rich legends and poems about foot binding in the Tang Dynasty, and many people take Yang Guifei as an example. After returning from exile, Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty wrote "Inscription for Leaving Luosocks": "Luosocks are full of fragrance, round and thin, with a narrow bow in the ground and the first month in hand." Qun Tan also wrote a poem "Yang's Socks Poetry": "Not far from XianLing Bo, I left the pointed socks on Mawei Mountain alone. Poor, not three inches, I have traveled all over Wan Li in the Central Plains. " From these narratives, we can see that even the ornaments on the feet of beautiful women are appreciated, and perhaps the shapes of the feet at that time may be somewhat different.
From the works of the Tang Dynasty, we can clearly understand the situation of foot binding at that time. In the Tang Dynasty, Du Mu wrote a poem: "The cymbal ruler is reduced by four points, and the slim jade bamboo shoots are wrapped in light clouds. Wuling boy bullied him into getting drunk and drew a skirt in front of the flowers with a smile. " The cymbal foot is about less than four points 17 cm. It is thin and tender. Describing feet as sharp and thin, wrapped in light clouds, seems to mean foot binding! Xia Houdun's poem "Embroidered Shoes in the Quilt" mentioned that he would wrap his feet into crescent-shaped hooks and wear sleeping shoes in the quilt for Yu Lang to rub and charm the night. Bai Juyi's poem also mentioned: "Small-headed shoes and narrow clothes, thin eyebrows and long eyebrows, outsiders should laugh when they don't see them, and make up for them at the end of the year." It means that pointed shoes were popular at the end of Tianbao. Toes are small, and feet must be pointed and thin. In his Xie Jin Fu, Wen clearly pointed out that women bound their feet and said, "Let the Weaver Girl bind her feet."
There are many figurines in the cultural relics of the Tang Dynasty. Male musicians have small bows and toes, while female figures wear small shoes and narrow clothes. These figurines all appeared in Shaanxi Province. This lively dance style originated from the nationalities in the western regions; The trunks of early bow shoes were like nomadic or fast-loading shoes. From this point of view, both men and women in the Tang Dynasty had the custom of foot-binding, in order to imitate the grassland people riding and dancing.
In Song Dynasty, Zhang Bangji first made textual research on the origin of foot-binding. His "Mo Zhuang Man Lu" said: "Women's foot-binding began in modern times, but there was no such thing in previous lives. However, Daoshan News described that the Southern Tang Dynasty made a six-foot platform in the shape of a golden lotus, and the girls in the palace of life wrapped their feet with silk and danced on the lotus platform with plain socks, making their feet slightly bent into a crescent shape and whirled like lingyun. Tang Gaoyun: "The lotus is more beautiful, and the clouds are always new last month. Because mom makes it, everyone can do it, and it is best to be slim. "This statement is the most widely accepted, and most people think it is the most well-founded statement-foot binding originated in Nanjing, the capital of the Southern Tang Dynasty. But after careful investigation, such a statement is doubtful. I'm afraid it's not easy to produce the custom of foot binding in the Yangtze River valley. The Five Dynasties is a turbulent era, and foot binding is not conducive to avoiding disaster. Li Yu is an affirmation of civilian culture and new culture. He may just be preaching what was popular in Qinhuai River in his palace. Mother's foot-binding is a crescent-shaped foot produced after foot-binding in the old days, not foot-binding. The northern climate is dry and cold, which is more suitable for foot binding. Sitting on the kang is a normal way of life for northern women, and it is also a kind of etiquette. Instead, it has formed a social posture. In sitting position, you can see and touch your feet at any time. This kind of life may be a hotbed of foot binding.
In the Song Dynasty, there were more and more evidences about foot binding. At that time, Ji Xu had a poem saying: "I planted pine and cypress myself, and I also entrusted dust and mud." I don't have time to wrap my feet, but I know my limbs frequently. " At that time, not binding feet seemed a bit out of date. The story book "Rolling Jade Guanyin" describes Xiu Xiu's "Xiaoqu Bow with Half-folded Lianbu" and "Su Hao Meets Yingying" describes a woman's "One-folded Lianbu Embroidered Shoes with Bow and Buckle". At this time, the novelist has begun to describe a pair of tangled feet with a golden lotus bow.
Song Shenzong's foot-binding was not popular before, but became popular after Yuan Feng. For example, Su Zhe, one of the eight famous people, once wrote poems about feet.
As the saying goes, "Don't worry about the footsteps of Lotus, but when I went to Ling Bo with socks, I saw the dance back to Phoenix, but there was no trace of it. I sneaked through the palace and stood up. It's hard to say it's wonderful, but I have to see it from the palm of my hand. " Qin Guan also has the saying that "the shoes on his feet are four inches". About after Xuanhe, women wear patterned shoes with bows at the bottom. Che Ruoshui's "Berberi Collection" said: "When did women's foot binding begin? I don't know what's the use of letting children suffer infinite pain and pestering them? " This is the earliest record of opposing foot binding.
After the Song Dynasty crossed to the south, foot binding became more popular. The centenarian's book "Crab at the Maple Window" mentioned that at that time, there was a prescription that could make women's feet wrapped small and well-"Thin Golden Lotus Formula" was introduced to the south. The Jin people who captured Bianjing also imitated the foot ornaments of Han people in Xuanhe period. "History of the Song Dynasty Five Elements": "Li Zongchao's imperial court people tied their feet straight and soon became famous." The women's feet in the figures of Soushan and Zaju in the Southern Song Dynasty are not only slender, but also have obvious bent toes. In recent years, tombs in the Song Dynasty have been unearthed continuously. The tomb of Huang Sheng unearthed in Fuzhou, Fujian Province belongs to a court official. His wife died at the age of 17. When unearthed, her feet were still wrapped in foot wrap, 2 10 cm long and 9 cm wide. There are six pairs of shoes in the tomb, which are13.3-14cm long and 4.5-5cm wide. A pair of silver bow shoes appeared in the tomb where Shi Shengzu, a Confucian scholar in Quzhou, Zhejiang Province, was buried with his stepmother Yang. The unearthed silver shoes are all made of silver pieces. The shoe is 14 cm long, 4.5 cm wide and 6.7 cm high, with a pointed toe and the word "Luo Shuangshuang" engraved on the sole. The original lady's silver shoes were buried with her.
In the Yuan Dynasty, it was not clear whether the nomadic people in the north bound their feet, but the custom of foot binding in the Han area seemed to be more prosperous than that in the previous generation. Does the recitation of Jin Ping Mei in literary works also cut squid racks? /p & gt；
Foot-binding in Ming Dynasty can be seen in ladies' paintings, erotic paintings, novels and archaeological relics. Members of the court in the Ming Dynasty all wore bow shoes embroidered with small golden flowers. Ceng Yun, Hu Yinglin: "Even a boy who is five feet tall knows jealousy." It can be seen that the system at that time took foot binding or not as the dividing line between nobility and aristocratic class. Therefore, the degree of female foot-binding in Ming Dynasty seems to be further than that in Yuan Dynasty.
In the Qing Dynasty, when Han women were used to wearing clothes, they all said that men were superior to women, and women's foot-binding was even worse than before, even to the point where they were ashamed of their feet and proud of them when they got married. It can be seen that the wind of foot binding is more prosperous in past dynasties. Therefore, the average woman is struggling to wrap her feet as a kind of "beauty".
1, let others know their class and identity through body deformation, so as to win honor and get self-satisfaction.
2. In the patriarchal society, the female body has become an aesthetic object and a carrier with exchange value.
3. It reflects some similarities between Chinese and foreign pre-civilization industrial societies in social, political and economic forms, social classes and other aspects, as well as the exchange value of women relative to men at that time.
The difference between (China) foot binding and (Western) waist binding;
1, different aesthetic ideals
China culture emphasizes expression, which is the independence of beauty and art, while western aesthetic ideal embodies the pursuit of reason and logic.
2. Different body concepts
For China's art, the body can only be covered, not exposed. Under the guidance of this concept, clothing rarely highlights the sexy beauty of the body itself, but pursues implicit charm, physical beauty after dressing, and dynamic implicit beauty shown by restraint of limbs. Compared with China, the attitude of the west towards the body is relatively calm. The body and nudity can be directly presented in art, and the beauty of the body has always been the highest pursuit of western art. ..