Splendid Slippers: A Thousand Years of an Erotic Tradition
by Beverley Jackson
Publisher: Ten Speed Press
ISBN: 0898159571
Footbinding existed not too long ago in China. I lived with my grandmother for about two years when I was a little kid. I still remember she had bound feet, but never thought about it until I read Beverley Jackson's new book, Splendid Slippers: A Thousand Years of an Erotic Tradition.
There are few studies about footbinding though it has existed for almost a thousand years. This book is a great effort by Beverley Jackson to inform people of this topic and to help them understand Chinese culture and Chinese women. The author wrote the book with the following questions in mind:
"How and why did the torturous tradition of footbinding evolve and continue well into the 20th century? Did the men make them do it? Was it an erotic turn-on? Or was it a way to keep women and girls under male control?
- The book has ten chapters:
- The treasure was her tiny feet
- The three-inch golden lily
- Splendid slippers for lotus feet
- Gilding the lily
- Spinning cloud silk for the Gods
- A night at the opera
- Sex and the bound-footed girl
- Sacrifice at the altar of beauty
- The end of an era
- One Door closes, another door opens
In the first chapter, the author gives some general information on footbinding, including the theory of the origin, and a list of reasons for footbinding. "Small is beauty" can be applied to footbinding. As the author stated "the key attribute of the perfectly bound foot, of course, was the length. Three inches, or even less, was the ideal, and only a foot this size earned the title of Golden Lily." The author did an in-depth research about the three-inch golden lily, including the procedures of footbinding and how to make a lotus shoe.
The shoe became a representation of the wearer; "Shoemaking reached its height of importance in preparation for a girl's marriage. Her finest embroidery skills were called into play to decorate the dowry shoes, for these shoes would be examined very closely by the bride's new family and their friends."
The vast collection of photographs is fascinating, including many pictures of rare shoes in the book. This review is only a glimpse of the book and there are just a lot more you can learn from the book. It is truly a great book.
Jun Shan, your Guide for Chinese Culture