Chapter 3 opens with the women of the family coming for Ailin to bind her feet. She is in school when they come for her so she hides in the bushes until they are finished looking for her. She is then sent to her grandmother who scolds her for not yet having her feet bound. It is clear the other characters have great concern for Ailin's future as a woman and as a wife. The grandmother convinces Ailin to have her feet bound and the others proceed in the necessary steps to have the work done. After her feet are wrapped someone says she will have to learn how to walk again. This upsets Ailin and she reacts in a frenzy, trying desperately to escape and get away. The adults contemplate tying her down but her father steps in and allows Ailin to not have her feet bound. This upsets the women in the family but the father silences all of them.
In chapter 4, the chaos that had ended in chapter 3 has seemingly died down, however everyone's displeasure and concern for Ailin is still apparent. She speaks of the changes in government into a republic and the debates her father and uncle share over these changes. Her father decides to enroll Ailin into a public school which angers the elders in the family. Before she is accepted into the public school she must pass a few tests. Her first impressions of the people are very interesting and the first thing she looks at in the woman are their feet. She gets accepted into the school and excels in speech classes as she has a speciality in hearing and repeating sounds. The chapter does not end on an optimistic note, rather it points out that Ailin's grandmother is getting weaker and weaker.
I would have thought from the previous readings that Ailin would never accept the idea of her feet being bound. I was shocked when I saw her give in and allow her feet to be wrapped. After she tried to walk on her painful wrapped feet, Ailin decided enough was enough and took the bandages off. Now I'm thinking to myself how can you become upset because your feet hurt I know you didn't expect it to be pain free. I don't know what she was thinking but I'm happy she had her father there so she could take the bandages off. This also reminds me to the statement her mother made that her the process didn't hurt, liar. It caught Ailin's attention as well when the amah first told her not to walk on her feet for a while and that her stride would change. I think at that moment Ailin realized for the first time without a doubt this was absolutely not for her.
ReplyDeleteI think Ailin wants very badly to fit in somewhere and have a happy life somewhere, so that is why she conceded to having her feet bound at first. It didn't hit her until they mentioned that she would eventually get used to bound feet and she would learn how to walk again that her life would be drastically out of her control if she let her feet be bound. She wanted to fit in and be accepted, but she also wanted to be free to do what she pleased and be successful in her own way, and she realized that by having the pain and burden of bound feet, she couldn't have what she needed.
ReplyDeleteI think the moment that stood out the most to me in chapter four is when Ailin asks if she could be a teacher. I have never had to ask if I could grow up to do something. I've simply decided what I wanted to do and then gone for it. I can't imagine a life where important decisions were made for me before I was even born, like my husband, body, and education. Ailin's entire life was planned out for her and I think its empowering to see her break free from that and forge her own life and her own path. I sort of admire her strength and wish I could see more of that in myself.
ReplyDeleteI am not surprised that Ailin's father suggests that she goes to public school. Since the beginning, he has always had this progressive ideology about the culture of China and the benefits of the introduction of foreigners. I believe that her father knows that it is to her benefit to get a head start on the changing times and that she will be accepted "somewhere." Ailin does not have her feet bound so she obviously doesn't fit in with tradition. Therefore people don't respect her, including her mother and grandmother, but her sister admires her for everything she is doing. Ailin will have to face a lot of scrutiny and I am very curious to see how she overcomes being an outsider of her own culture submerged in a new westernized culture.
ReplyDeleteI had the same reaction that Tierra had when Ailin gave into getting her feet bound. I tend to forget how old she is because her thoughts seem to reflect a girl who is older. She is very curious and open-minded and I think that is why she allowed herself to get her feet bound. Like Sarah said Ailin probably just really wants to fit in and got caught up in the moment thus forgot how much she hated feet binding. I really respect her father and the way he stepped in to allow Ailin to pass on the "feet binding experience." Until that point he was very soft spoken and almost seemed to be pushed around by the grandmother and his brother. His optimism gives Ailin a huge opportunity that many other girls her age did not have.
ReplyDeleteI did not think Ailin would ever give in to having her feet bound. I was surprised that she gave in but I did not think that would last long. I cannot imagine going through that pain for the rest of my life and having to learn how to walk all over again. However, this decision did cost Ailin her future and a marriage. I am eager to see where her life takes her after this major decision is made. I am also glad that her father had her go to a public school since she was so interested in it the past few years. She was able to learn about other cultures outside her own and excelled at language. There were a few other girls who did not have their feet bound so I feel this gave her a since of belonging because she was no longer alone with her decision.
ReplyDeleteI loved the part where Ailin gets to go to school because I can't help but feel like it's going to be a big turnaround for her in the long run. Her family talks about how she's dishonored their family and that she'll never amount to anything because she won't bound her feet, but I think going to school will help her pave her own way. I know that her family will not be in favor of it (most of them, anyway), so I will be curious to see if this will alienate Ailin from her family even more now. I feel like her refusal to bound her feet has started that.
ReplyDelete