Books
Archived article from May 3, 2002
Why Chinese women bound their feet
Chinese footbinding ended more than half a century ago, yet it still provokes images that fascinate and repel: Tiny, child-size shoes handcrafted with exquisite embroidery; the crushed bones of a grown woman's feet, painfully manipulated to squeeze into them.
Unfortunately, it is the latter image that continues to dominate people's thoughts and feelings, according to Dorothy Ko, associate professor of history and women's studies at Rutgers. So much so that it has overshadowed the true origins and purpose behind the centuries-old practice.
In her new book, "Every Step a Lotus: Shoes for Bound Feet," Ko sheds light on the real reasons why Chinese women chose to wear shoes as small as 5 1/4 by 1 3/4 inches.
"The usual explanations of 'women were victims of beauty' or 'men fetishized tiny feet' are not entirely wrong, but they oversimplify," says Ko. "Without denying the very real pain involved, I do not view footbinding as a senseless or perverted act. Footbinding was a reasonable course of action for a woman who lived in a Confucian culture that placed the highest moral value on domesticity, motherhood and handiwork."
Born and raised in Hong Kong, the granddaughter of a footbinding resister, Ko stumbled on the idea for the book while researching shoes for bound feet for various museums. "I was convinced that there was a different story the shoes were telling."
Footbinding started as a literary conceit as early as the third century, which idealized the delicate tread of nymphs and maidens. But it was not until the 10th century that the literary ideal became an actual bodily practice, first among dancers. During the 11th century, footbinding spread to women of the gentry; by the 15th century it had become commonplace among all classes.
According to Ko, it was the intricate textile work that went into creating tiny shoes, as much as the fascination with small feet, that made footbinding so popular. Under Confucian ethics, an ideal woman was one known not for her beauty, but for her handiwork, including shoemaking. Textile work signaled a woman's moral and economic worth.
Footbinding became a victim of its own success, as elites came to view the practice as vulgar once its popularity spread to peasant women. Contributing to its decline was the circulation of 19th-century photographs of bound feet that subjected the practice to global scrutiny. It was then that the focal point of footbinding moved from the display of women's handiwork to the naked flesh and bones that filled it.
Through her book, Ko hopes that the focal point is shifted a few feet up from the ground. "I want people to think of the Chinese women as productive and skillful women whose lives were meaningful and busy and who passed on a female tradition that is part of regional and national cultures."
--Rochelle Runas
College 101
Although the Busch campus where Ernie Lepore teaches has changed dramatically in 25 years, his students' sense of academics seems much the same. They're still baffled about selecting a major, finding the best teachers, understanding the grading process and grasping a long laundry list of essential information. At one point, Lepore, director of the Center for Cognitive Science and a professor in the philosophy department at FAS-New Brunswick, even began compiling notes on the subject for a book or an article.
The topic came up one day with honors student Sarah-Jane Leslie, who agreed that many of her friends and acquaintances were clueless. Lepore was so impressed by her insights that he suggested that the National Merit Scholar collaborate with him on a self-help book aimed at making a student's college experience more fulfilling.
The result, "What Every College Student Should Know: How to Find the Best Teachers and Learn the Most from Them" (Rutgers University Press), is an easy-to-read guide that points out college is full of opportunities; students just need to know how to find and use them. The authors use fictitious case studies to walk students through everything from registering
continued...
Page 1 of 4
Next >
|
