Monday, March 31, 2008

10 Days of Starvation?!


The ancient Chinese had many weird rituals and customs during weddings, and usually i can see the meaning behind it, for they made sense somewhat. However, this one particular ritual really made me felt bad for the bride; she couldn't eat during the final 10 days of her wedding festivities. That's TEN days of starvation?! The most weird part is that there is no specified reason for doing this, some people believed it was was done to make the bride sadder for leaving her natal family, to make the bride more yielding to her husband's family, or to make the bride appear more pure. Whatever the case, I think this is completely absurd, and unnecessary. They are hurting the bride's digestive system, which could affect the potential risks of a miscarriage and other baby-related issues, since they prized it as the most vital anyway. On a side curiosity, wouldn't they be scared if she fainted in her fragile state from hunger and nervousness, that would be bad luck for them. Already, her feet is binded and only the length of 7 cm, how could she have the strength to totter in them from 10 days of starvation? I swear, these people can be so ignorant long ago.

1 comment:

Ms. Clapp said...

I like your examination of the cultural views and practices, but I'd like to see a little more reference to the text.