Splendid Slippers: A Thousand Years of an Erotic Tradition

by Beverley Jackson

An extraordinary exploration of footbinding that encompasses Chinese art and mythology, social and political history, and truly exotic eroticism. The author's vast collection of historical and contemporary photographs, plus 40 full-color "portraits" of her most prized slippers, creates a uniquely poignant and evocative panorama.

Genres: Nonfiction, China, History, Asia, Art, Cultural, Asian Literature

183 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

Reviews

[Nefertari · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent exploration of the cultural phenomenon of footbinding, along with beautiful photographs. To be honest, I hadn't really thought much about it until reading Lisa See's "Snow Flower and the Secret Fan." Not only does Jackson explore the horrific pain of footbinding, she puts it in good context, exploring the cultural, social, and sexual standards that pushed mothers to break their daughters' feet. Additionally, she remarks upon the different cultural standards of beauty and what people are willing to go through to achieve beauty - the quoted conversation between Empress Cixi and her Western female visitors is hilarious!

[Dee · Rating 1 out of 5]

It’s absolutely disgusting to frame horrific child abuse as “erotic tradition”. The author “delighted” in instruments of child torture, and came off as a fetishist and abuse apologist. She’s dead now, as is this disgusting practice.
Zero stars. One star so that this review can be recorded.

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short history of bound feet in China with lots of pictures of the shoes and some pictures of women wearing the shoes. The process of binding the feet of young girls is horrible to read about but the pictures of the shoes were interesting to see because of the beautiful fabrics they were made from.

[Serena · Rating 5 out of 5]

I must say, this book was an incredible look at Chinese culture and history in a condensed manner. It really helped me learn a lot about the tradition of foot binding and really provided a new way of viewing it and gave a stronger understanding of it and the significance it played in Chinese life. Not only this, but the photography and art included and the authors voice was so engaging!

[Donald J. Jackson · Rating 4 out of 5]

As an American living in China and a lover of fashion history, this was a great read. Well-rounded, informational, and personally-driven without being too opinionated or skewed. I find the other reviews that say she glorifies the practice of foot binding to be poorly misguided. I like her writing style, mixing research with anecdotes and narrative storytelling, though I wish there was a bit more explanation about what exactly is happening. Is the Treasure storyline a retelling of a real person’s experience, or a product of Jackson’s imagination? If it’s the latter, it’s a bit strange to include orientalist historical fiction within a fashion history book, especially if it’s not framed as such.

[Micebyliz]

The slippers are beautiful, but the tradition is not. I am glad to have learned more about the tradition through the explanations in this book because i could never quite get it. I do appreciate the artwork and the skills and the artistry, of course, but the terror of the mashed-up feet? not at all.
The photos of the women are moving. You wonder what they are really thinking and feeling and what they would have done with their lives given a chance?

[June · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every year while teaching global studies we'd get to the part about footbinding. I'd use this superb book to introduce the culture and fashion of this time in history. This book is magnificent in scope, photos, language and true understanding of the requirements and Drive for perfection of the Lotus.

[Maggie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a gift. A subject I never thought I wanted to know and yet enjoyed it tremendously.

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This topic has always interested me. I tried to find some real lotus shoes on a recent trip to China but was unsuccessful. All I found was a pair made of porcelain. There is a section of the book Wild Swans about the foot binding procedure and I used to read it to my students when they studied China. Splendid Slippers has much information on the binding process plus photos of the actual bound feet. (Many women did not want their faces shown) It also includes pictures of many gorgeous little Lotus Shoes. Thank heavens this cultural ritual has ended but the history of it is preserved in this book.

[DashofDaisy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting read. I wanted to learn more about foot binding after seeing the film version of Snow Flower and the Secret Fan. Gorgeous photos, art, and illustrations accompany the history. The tradition of foot binding was interesting, albeit inhumane, and truly an art form. The skill described and shown to not only bind the feet but dress them in these tiny, delicate shoes blows me away. It repulses me and fascinates me at the same time. This book is a great choice for those that want to learn about this ancient tradition.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very informative book with more pictures of the *golden lily* shoes that I've even seen.
NOTE* there is one paragraph, if your children wish to read it, of which you should be aware...it deals with the marital intimacies that are historical to the slippers.
The rest of the book is quite safe, and very informative. I learned a great deal about the various cultures, reasons, etc. in regards to foot-binding. I had no idea that even some boys had theirs bound. A fascinating history.

[Kitchengrrl · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was really interesting and gave great insight into the Chinese tradition of foot binding. The phots of the shoes were absolutely gorgeous, and I liked that the author wove a fictional tale in and out of the reference material. It gave impact to the information. And for heaven's sake! SO TINY!

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating and beautiful look into a Chinese fashion thousands of years old. There are woman alive to this day in the orient with bound feet (illegal or not) I myself once saw a woman with unbound feet here in the U.S.

[Danielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

A look into foot binding in Chinese history. Picked this up after reading "Snow Flower and the Secret Fan" to learn more about the foot binding discussed in the book. Satisfied my curiosity and learned a lot of things I didn't know!

[Edwina Book Anaconda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating and incredibly heartbreaking.
Hard to understand how women could allow this type of thing to go on for a thousand years.
I loved the pictures. The shoes are so delicate and breath-takingly beautiful, and yet, I couldn't help but cringe when looking at them.

[Lynne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jackson does a fine job illuminating the ancient Chinese custom of foot-binding, including illustrations, both of the feet and the slippers. It's a sort of melancholy journey - foot-binding was painful and crippling, but the shoes were amazing - extraordinary embroidery to cover the pain.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely the most interesting historical information pertaining to footbinding in Chinese culture. This is a work of nonfiction.

[TurtleneckGirl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm reviewing this fascinating title in preparation for our January Adult Book Discussion Group when we'll be discussing Lisa See's novel, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan.

[Myersorchard · Rating 5 out of 5]

i loved this book! i knew practically nothing about foot binding except a vague memory of some western tv show. this book was fascinating!

[Janell P · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent book on the subject of foot binding. The photos are lovely too if not kind of creepy in some cases.

[Shannon Bromo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great, informative book about Chinese Foot Binding!! If you want facts along with great photos, read this book!

[Jill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Extremely interesting accounting of the traditional practice of foot binding in China. The pictures of the shoes were beautiful and the information was well researched and presented.

[Erin Newton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book! Gives history and detail about the ancient Chinese art of foot-binding, with pictures (some are rather disturbing). This was really fascinating.

[Gail · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's not often a focused ethnography makes one cry.

[Erica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating! Gorgeous photographs.

[Terri Klemetson · Rating 4 out of 5]

2 inch golden lady is the lure of footbinding