When Wang Ping was nine years old, she secretly set about binding her feet with elastic bands. Footbinding had by then been outlawed in China, women s feet liberated, but at that young age she desperately wanted the tiny feet her grandmother had deformed and malodorous as they were. By first examining the root of her own girlhood desire, Wang unleashes a fascinating inquiry into a centuries-old custom. Aching for Beauty combines Wang s unique perspective and remarkable literary gifts in an award-winning exploration of the history and culture surrounding footbinding. In setting out...
When Wang Ping was nine years old, she secretly set about binding her feet with elastic bands. Footbinding had by then been outlawed in China, women s...
An exploration of the history and cultural practice of footbinding in China reveals the traditions that contributed to and surrounded its thousand-year enforcement, as well as its related literature, music, contests, and rewards.
An exploration of the history and cultural practice of footbinding in China reveals the traditions that contributed to and surrounded its thousand-yea...
