Abstract
Examination of direct forms of control in the bioarchaeological record has been limited to physical violence identified as traumatic bodily injury, and seen on the skeleton as healed defensive fracturing, cut marks, blunt force trauma, and in some cases, burial position. But there are indirect modes of control that present as skeletal deformation that occur over long periods of time, but are not often included in the suite of bioarchaeological indicators of violence. This “chronic violence” manifests as both physiological and psychological control, and when read properly can reveal structural inequalities that are often disguised as either expected social performance as dictated by the elite or ruling class or as social control over those on the margins: purposeful pain. Until recently, these markers of social control have lacked a strong framework for consideration in bioarchaeology. This chapter explores how purposeful pain can be read in the subornation of females, as reflected in the cultural performance of beauty. Weaving together skeletal markers of deformation, ethnology, and historic contexts, the structural violence inherent in the performance of beauty, through the binding and shaping of the female body to fit social standards, is revealed. Examples of indirect cultural violence that asserts control over female bodies, specifically foot-binding, neck rings, and corset use, are examined through the physical body as well as the narratives of mothers who engage in these practices to assure that their daughters adhere to social expectations. These examples also offer a new way to consider how androcentric typological approaches have been widely accepted as truth and continue to be used to support the notion that females are truly problematized by their physical body, instead of considering the complexities of social performance and identity. Weaving embodiment and gender theory with structural violence theory, bioarchaeological analysis can reveal how indirect cultural violence that asserts control over female bodies forged in the industrial era has influenced how females in the archaeological record have been, and continue to be, assessed.
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Notes
- 1.
I am limited here, as I could not find published work from Chinese excavations that talks about footbinding that has been translated into English. Recent research by Berger et al. (2018) is changing this, with their analyses of skeletal materials from 13 tombs.
- 2.
Traditionally, the rings are not removed. But more recently, women have been considering their increased mobility if they are removed, particularly as the Kayan tribe of Burma are being displaced, making them refugees. While not in the scope of this work, for more information on their political situation, see: Promchertchoo 2016.
- 3.
It is unclear if there is an archaeology of the Padaung or of the Kayan tribe. Google Scholar searches (2018) turn up little to no information. However, one would expect the presence of the rings as they are not removed at death, as one woman noted: “I’ll wear them until I die and have them buried with me” (Promchertchoo 2016). https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asia/ancient-tradition-of-long-neck-women-fades-as-myanmar-develops-7675612
- 4.
It is not a coincidence that fainting couches and smelling salts are often associated with Victorian era homes and female experiences.
- 5.
While not in the scope of this chapter, there are additional factors that further increase the risk of obstructed labor and of maternal deaths that are linked to the shift of childbirth into hospitals at this time; for more on this, see Pamela K. Stone 2009, 2016, and Vania Smith-Oka et al. (Chap. 8, this volume).
- 6.
I am only offering a tiny glimpse here of the vast research done in these areas of direct assessments of trauma on the skeleton, and each of these overlaps.
- 7.
Women across classes wore corsets; however, middle and upper class white women are the ones that mostly tight-laced and suffered from the impacts of this practice and are captured in the literature. In addition, their bodies are not found in museum collections, as they were interred in church grounds. This is a topic I will be writing about in a forthcoming text on structural violence.
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Acknowledgments
I want to acknowledge and thank the women who have been bound by culture, bound by beauty, and presented on these pages so that we may consider the complex relationships of bodies, culture, and the lived experience in the past and in the present. I would also like to thank Ellen LaFleche for her wonderful writing support. Susan Guise Sheridan and Lesley Gregoricka, thank you for including me in this volume.
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Stone, P.K. (2020). Bound to Please: The Shaping of Female Beauty, Gender Theory, Structural Violence, and Bioarchaeological Investigations. In: Sheridan, S.G., Gregoricka, L.A. (eds) Purposeful Pain. Bioarchaeology and Social Theory. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-32181-9_3
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