How Chinese Foot Binding Works

At some point during the Sung dynasty, wealthy Chinese women started doing something peculiar to their daughter's feet. Instead of allowing them to grow naturally, they bound them tightly, toes folded under to the heels. For years, young girls would walk on what were almost stumps, developing a unique swaying walk unique to the Orient that became unavoidable when the feet were bound. Their toes might fall off, they might suffer from falls and terrible infections, but beauty must be served.

This was the tradition of foot binding, a unique mutiliation that lasted from about the first millenium AD through the early 20^th century.

History of Foot Binding

The origin of foot binding is lost in antiquity, and there are several legends associated with it. In one, the prince Li Yu of the Sung Dynasty was so enamored of the way his favorite concubine Yao Niang walked on her tiny feet that the rest of the female court found ways to match her (perhaps an Oriental version of Cinderella?). In another, the same Yao Niang was ordered to bind her feet to make half-moons so that she might dance on her toes; considering the terrible pain of foot binding even for young girls whose bones are still somewhat flexible, this is a doubtful story.

In another legend that is perhaps more plausible, the last empress of the Shang Dynasty had a clubbed foot, a deformity that looks somewhat similar to the bound foot; she ordered that the female court bind their feet so that her foot did not stand out.

Regardless of its beginning, we do know it started during the Sung Dynasty, and though foot binding at first was fairly mild, it soon grew extreme and became a sign of wealth. Women with bound feet could not easily work in the fields, and were more ornamental than helpmeets. Ultimately, however, even poor women bound their daughter's feet in hopes of improving their social standing.

The Foot Binding Process