Body Modification : A Common Delicacy

The feet of little girls between the ages of three and five were bound tight with strips of cloth to retard growth. The arch was broken; the four smaller toes were broken and folded under the palm of the feet so that the feet resembled half-moons. It was an extremely painful process that was perpetuated in the name of beauty. It was only during the revolution of 1911 that the practice was finally banned.

Body modification has become increasingly popular due to the influence of media and social trends. As the popularity of body modification increases, the stigma and stereotype that has followed it for generations is gradually losing its prevalence (Keyser, 2017). Social media is a major influence on the popularity of body modification; it has brought body modification into the mainstream and due to this, is becoming more socially accepted (Murphy, 2015). However Cassar (2017) believes ‘Tattoos and piercings are no longer unique”, resulting in the more extreme forms of body modifications as people strive to be unique and stand out from the crowd. The survey conducted shows that 78.6% of the participants had a form of body modification. Out of

I do not believe that body modification is a bad thing nor that it leads to risk behaviors. In the study conducted by researchers using the Problem Oriented Screening Instrument, it is stated that "Although unlikely, it is possible that body modification may lead to substance use, perhaps mediated by entrance into a peer group engaging in drug use. The reverse may also be true, that substance use may lead to body modification by way of a peer group".  A person who revels in body modification makes a decision to accentuate their body, much as a person who drinks makes the decision to drink. Deciding on whether to drink or do drugs is not based on appearance of an individual being,but rather on their thought process and how the substance could "help" them. Living an alternative lifestyle simply means

Some early evidence for it comes from the tomb of Lady Huang Sheng, the wife of an imperial clansman, who died in 1243. Archaeologists discovered tiny, misshapen feet that had been wrapped in gauze and placed inside specially shaped “lotus shoes.” For one of my pieces on camera, I balanced a pair of embroidered doll shoes in the palm of my hand, as I talked about Lady Huang and the origins of foot-binding. When it was over, I turned to the museum curator who had given me the shoes and made some comment about the silliness of using toy shoes.

Beauty of a woman was very important to men because it often showed wealth. Footbinding was a cruel way to show a woman’s beauty in Ancient China, especially during the Song dynasty. It is thought that foot binding began in around 900 AD during the Tang dynasty and continued until 1911 when it was finally banned. "The practice of binding feet was originally introduced about a thousand years ago, allegedly by a concubine of the emperor. Not only was the sight of women hobbling on tiny feet considered erotic, men would also get excited playing with bound feet, which were always hidden in embroidered silk shoes” (Wild Swans) Footbinding was considered very attractive and was very common. Many times, a girl who did not have bound feet were rejected by

According to Mackie (1996: 1001) the practice of foot binding spread from the imperial palace, transmitting down through the classes until it was nearly universally adopted. Thus, foot binding can be seen as symbolising one's status. Foot binding came to symbolise gentility, and it was only the absolute lowest of the lower class who were the exception to the convention. Such destitute individuals could not afford for female family members to be foot-bound when their manual labour was needed (Mackie 1996: 1001). However, to avoid such disgrace, many poor families preferred to “struggle along for a precarious living, bringing up their daughters with small feet” (Doolittle 1865: 201). This is in keeping with Veblen's (1934) view that foot binding is a costly display of a family's wealth (Mackie 1996: 1002). Likewise in Africa, female mutilation reportedly spread partly due to individuals wanting to emulate their higher status neighbours who had already adopted the practice (Mackie 1996: 1004). In addition to symbolising wealth, Mackie suggests that female mutilation symbolises a family's commitment to values of purity and chastity (Mackie 1996: 1000, 1008). Given the costs and risks associated with female mutilation, that a family would choose to commit to the practice shows how willing they are to ensure that males can be confident in terms of paternity. With this intention, female mutilation can be seen as symbolising a female's purity and future fidelity (Mackie 1996:

When girls were school age their feet began bending to make them smaller. Their feet were swathe in bandages and drawn towards their heels which caused the bones to break creating a small 3 inch foot. Unfortunately, because of this custom many girls had complication which caused them to have infections, paralysis and some even died because of this gruesome tradition. The Chinese thought that this tradition of binding feet would give a young lady of the affluent class the opportunity of getting a good husband. The lower class and peasants did not divulge in this tradition because the women were needed to work in the

Family and culture is shown negatively in this story when the narrator learns about her grandmother’s bound feet and has to change her life to benefit her family. An example is, “Disappointment made me protest. ‘But you said I had to give up the lessons so we could bring her from Hong Kong,’ I said. ‘Well, she’s here.’ Dad hesitated and then set the boxes down. ‘Try to understand, hon. We’ve got to set your grandmother up in her own apartment. That’s going to take even more money.’” (Yep 32 and 33). This shows how the narrator had to stop taking dance lessons because they had to use the money from the dance lessons to help a certain family member. It impacted the narrator’s life negatively because she could no longer dance even though it was probably one of her favorite activities to do. In addition, “However, she wasn’t quick enough, because I saw her bare feet for the first time. Her feet were like taffy that someone had stretched out and twisted. [...] “There was a time back in China when people thought women’s feet had to be shaped a certain way to look beautiful. When a girl was about five, her mother would gradually bend her toes under the sole of her foot” (Yep 69 and 76). This demonstrates how the narrator learned about the Chinese tradition of foot binding when her mother had to explain to her why her grandmother’s feet were abnormal after she

Our book defines sociology as, "the systematic or scientific study of human society and social behavior, from mass culture to small groups and individual interactions (Ferris)." So, quite literally sociologists study individual, group and cultural behaviors and actions as a way to assess society as a whole. Body modification is any alteration to a person 's body from its natural state. Practices of body modification include but are not limited to piercings, tattoos, scarification and implants. Individuals engage in body modification for health benefits, cultural expectations and the ever changing standard of beauty. Sociologist are interested in studying body modification because by researching the types of body modifications individuals, groups and cultures engage in, in specific areas they will can better understand society. With social imagination sociologist can connect body modification to social folkways and mores in a given society. Social imagination allows connections to be made between what people believe is an individual choice, want or desire to social standards and norms. Sociologist may also find body modification interesting because they can study how societies such as the United States can influence the different cultures within the society. United States societal norms are easy to get wrapped up in especially with cultural imperialism planting seeds of what beauty is. United States though created of many cultures and

“Bound Feet”, by Jung Chang, explains that women in China who had bound feet brought happiness to themselves and their family, it was, also, very attractive to men. Chang says in the essay that her grandmother had to go through the long, painful process of having her feet be bound. As much as she begged and pleaded her mother to stop, she had not. Her mother would only loosen the cloth to go to bed, but it was never removed. The cloth, says Chang, when taken off was “covered in rotting flesh and stank”. It was said that women in China who did not have bound feet when they got married, the groom’s family would disapprove of the bride, and it would bring shame to the bride and groom’s family. Chang’s grandmother was the last in her family to

Even peasent women had to have their feet bound, so this meant while they were working in the fields, they basically had to crawl. Foot binding was not only for the sake of beauty, but it also served the purpose for the Chinese young girls to be restricted from going out of their houses. This practice lasted for about a thousand years. Thus this unhealthy practice prevented Chinese women from going beyond their homes and thus limited their freedom to gain knowledge from the outside world.

Foot-binding was considered a symbol of beauty. Women in the upper class practiced foot binding for the reason that men found small feet sexually appealing. Generally, women in the upper class practiced foot binding; however, those of lower class also craved it. Women in the lower class would bind their daughter’s feet at a young age with hopes that she would marry into money. Bound feet were not only an indicator of social standing but wealth as well.

In the article, Ko highlights the many misconceptions modern people have on footbinding such as keeping a woman’s foot bound, kept them in a hobbled and subservient domestic state or as sex objects . Afterwards, she states that our “certainties may turn out to be dead wrong” suggesting to readers that she is going to shine a positive light on footbinding. Ko goes more in depth about the three things men believed footbinding was, and why the tradition of binding ones foot was important at that time. The Chinese believed that wearing shoes differentiated and distinguished them from beasts as well as savages

In recent years plastic surgery is something that has become a very popular trend, and also where many young people are even lining up for it. Plastic surgery is to reconstruct or repair parts of the body, especially by the transfer of tissue it can be used for treatment of injury or cosmetic reasons. It enhances one’s physical appearance, allowing him or her to achieve a look he or she desires. For example, a women’s buttocks can be enlarged or reduced, or a nose can be straightened or lifted. Many people find themselves changing their bodies and wondering if perfecting their appearance would make life a bit more perfect. Plastic surgery can enhance someone’s level of confidence and boost their self-esteem, but it is something that can have very serious consequences people need to be aware of.

When coupled with the line "the bound feet" (Piercy, 20), the poem appears as if it were a comment solely about the injustice forced upon Chinese women from 934 until 1949. Foot binding is a painful process which includes breaking all of the toes and arch of the foot to grossly alter the shape of the foot, so that the foot, when mature would be no more than four inches long.  The first break was usually made when a girl was three to five years old, then the feet were wrapped in yards of cloth to prevent them from growing or reshaping. The pain from the initial break was nothing compared to the enduring pain the women experienced for the rest of their lives. The pain was caused by the drastically deformed feet. (Chinese foot binding- lotus shoes)