Foot binding began late in the T'ang Dynasty (618-906) and it gradually spread through the upper class during the Song Dynasty (960-1297). During the Ming period (1368-1644) and the Ching Dynasty (1644-1911) the custom of foot binding spread through the overwhelming majority of the Chinese population until it was finally outlawed in the 1911 Revolution of Sun Yat-Sen. In fact, the only peoples to avoid this custom were the Manchu conquerors, The Hakka Chinese migrant groups in south China and the mean people, the lowest class of people in China who were below the social norms. The practice of foot binding lasted for approximately one thousand years. During this time, approximately one billion women had their feet bound.
There are several legends that endeavor to account for the inception of this custom, one is that the concubine of a Chinese prince named Yao Niang walked so gracefully that it seemed as if she "skimmed over the top of golden lilies. " At that time the "lily footed woman" or a woman with bound feet became the model in China. A second legend says that this concubine, Yao Niang, was ordered to bind her feet so that her feet would look like new moons. A third legend says that women bound their feet out of sympathy for an Empress with club feet. Another account is that foot binding was made stylish by court dancers, However this seems somewhat unlikely because women with bound feet had a hard time walking let alone dancing. The origin of foot binding may not bc dear, however the results or after affects are apparent. Foot binding stopped concubines and wives of the rich from straying or running away from beatings. Confucian teachings at this time stressed the superior status of men over women as a basic element of social order and this was certainly an effective method of restraint.
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I came across this article and as i was reading it an idea occured to me. If one can change the shape and form of feet maybe the same can be achieved with bantu noses. i mean can you imagine the burden of been born with a bantu nose and to have to curry such thing on your face all your life? I know, absolutely inhumane. So using the Chinese formula of foot binding the same concept can be used for bantu nose by using a clothespin or a crocodile clip to restrict the dimension of the nose in order to keep it within the accepted width, height, and length of the hooter. The benefit of such humanitarian work will be beneficial to to the world not to mention enviromentaly friendly as there will be more air for us to breath and also revers the damage in the ozone layer.
genius
