Truly Femme Fatale: Blog

When in Rome do as the Romans. When in China... Wait would you do that?

Continuing with my reading of the book entitled Femininity, by Susan Brownmiller, I came to the slightly recongized but never really emphasized point of foot  binding practiced by the Chinese. It is explained by Wikipedia as follows:

       ...was a custom practiced on young girls and women for approximately one thousand years in China, beginning in the 10th century and ending in the early 20th century.

The Chinese custom of foot-binding is commonly cited by sociologists and anthropologists as an example of how an extreme deformity by contemporary western standards could be viewed as a source of pleasure in other cultures and of how immense suffering can be inflicted on women and girls in the pursuit of so-called beauty.

Foot-binding resulted in lifelong disabilities for most of its victims, though as the practice waned in the early 20th century, according to a study conducted by the University of California at San Francisco, "some girls' feet were released after initial binding, leaving less severe deformities." However, some effects of foot-binding were permanent, especially if a girl's arches had been broken or other drastic measures taken in order to achieve the desired smallness. In the 1990s and early 2000s, some elderly Chinese women still suffered from disabilities related to bound feet...

to view images and read more click here

Susan has this to say about the toturous art:

    To envision a Chinese nobleman's wife or courtesan with daintily slippered three-inch stubs in place of normal feet is to understand much about man's violent subjugation of women; what is less clear is the concept of exquisite feminine beauty contained within the deforming violence: the sensuous incapacitation and useless ornamental charm perceived in the fused, misshapen bones.

What can one say? Is this beauty?  Is it fair to even judge age old cultures on their practices and beliefs. Live and let live, by all means is one of my motto. For futhering self introspection for all Femmes, I just would like to know what type of painful near torturous practices do you subscribe to for beauty? This is not a surface game, Femmes. We are trying to get to the root of some of our beauty beliefs. So, I want to hear why you even started which ever personal pain beauty regimen you practice. Was it just from watching mom in the mirror? Was it from reading an article in a magazine or a friendly suggestion from a friend? Whatever the cause or the action, please share with us. Self acceptance is born from self understanding.

Other Links

hvattum.net/index.php/2007/05/19/chinese-foot-binding
www.ccds.charlotte.nc.us/History/China/04/hutchins/hutchi...
starbulletin.com/98/03/10/features/story1.html
library.thinkquest.org/J0111742/footbinding.htm
www.sfmuseum.org/chin/foot.html
www.josephrupp.com/history.html

Why does society dare to limit the physical beauty of multi-magnificent women?

What would anyone have to gain from such an unrealistic emphasis on something as minuscule to the trials of today as looks? Capitalization!! $$ ching! $$ ching! $$ how much money can be made by the cosmetic industry?

Over 32 billion dollars are spent on cosmetics each year alone!

The cosmetic industry capitalizes greatly on this forced concept of imperfection. FEMMES!! We have the right to set our own standards of beauty. We are our own women. We have giving up so much to the whims of society.

    How we eat.
    What we teach our children.
    How the country is ran.
    Where we shop.
    When we speak.

Shouldn't we have control over what we feel about what we see in the mirror. (Not to mention control over every point mentioned above.) Empower yourself with the love of and for yourself in whatever your physical state of being is. We are all beautiful.

Femininity?!!

Well, I wanted to know so I bought the book. Not to say that the book has all the answers, but I would like to know what has been said about the subject over time. I did, literally, buy the book entitled Femininity, by Susan Brownmiller. It cost me minimal dollars on Amazon, as I purchased a used form of the book. While reading through it, I was captivated by a few lines at the top of page 33.

She writes:

    ...Furthermore, breasts, hips, stomach and thighs, the familiar places where fat cells collect, do not necessarily expand in uniform proportion; genetic differences among women are rife. Yet nearly every civilization has sought to impose a uniform shape upon the female body...

Truly, Femmes I empathize with these words. There is a box that the world is trying to shove our physical individuality into and, in all truth, it is never going to happen. We are women of many walks of life and from many lines of Femmes. No two Femmes are the same. So, why does society dare to limit the physical beauty of multi-magnificent women?

Lets Start This Drama Out Classy.

So ladies, I am dying to hear your opinions of what is or should be based on your own interpretation. The goal here is not to compete for "America's Next Best Definition". This is just to get the juices flowing about two main things?

What do women think women are supposed to be? No, not that. I want to know what women think of the "femme", of the Femme Fatale. What is it to TRULY be Feminine? What is this mysterious thing called femininity? Obviously, it is not considered by the masses to be everything that any woman anywhere at any time chooses to do. There is something else to it. And LADIES this is the question.

What is Femininity?

And lastly please include where your understanding of Femininity ( in any form or aspect ) was derived from?

Where is Femininity found/learned?

This is a true test of self. To face one's self and ask " Why am I this way?" can be a feat deserving of an audience. Take the stage my bold Kinswomen. Fear not ridicule. This is the hour of sharing and understanding. Let the wisdom of all generations come together for the greater good of the Female Race that we might come to know ourselves as other and through others.

We Are Women. LE FEMME FATALES. Now and Forevermore.