Previous studies of the practice of footbinding in imperial China have theorized that it expressed ethnic identity or that it served an economic function.�By analyzing the popularity of footbinding in different places and times, Footbinding as Fashion�investigates the claim that early Qing (1644�1911) attempts by Manchu rulers to ban footbinding made it a symbol of anti-Manchu sentiment and Han identity and led to the spread of the practice throughout all levels...
