Like China's ancient foot-binding, Europe's waist-binding is also a deformed aesthetic. Ancient European aristocrats believed that a woman's chest was full and her waist was slender, which was a perfect curve. In order to cater to this aesthetic taste, some women began to shape this perfect curve by girding their waists.
There is also a legend about girding the waist. In Yang Wenli's book Crazy Fashion, it is mentioned that the earliest belt in ancient Europe originated from Queen Josephine of France. It is said that Queen Josephine had an affair with others. In order to prevent pregnancy, she tightened her abdomen. However, one effect of this is that the queen's chest is raised and her waist is slimmer, showing a graceful curve beauty. And this practice of girding the waist is slowly spreading among aristocratic women.
At first, the waist was not so cruel. However, with the aesthetic deformity, girding brings more and more harm to women. In the French corset, even corsets made of whale bones, ivory, animal horns, wood or metal are placed to force women to straighten their waists, and at the same time, with the help of straps matching the corsets, the parts below women's breasts are tightened, showing a slim effect.
In Europe in the19th century, this cruel waist-binding behavior was very popular. At that time, when women were just beginning to develop, they would be imprisoned by girdling, and girls even had to sleep in these girdling underwear and suffered unbearable oppression. This kind of waist-binding often causes skin damage, rib deformation and even fracture. However, these girls are willing to endure such devastation in order to have slim bodies.
As the saying goes, extremes meet, and the deformed aesthetic in Europe makes women's waist tighter and tighter. Sometimes a broken rib can pierce the internal organs and lead to death. Such a plot can also be seen in some film and television dramas. For example, in the movie Gone with the Wind, there is a scene where a maid helps a girl gird her waist.
Fortunately, girdling did not last long in Europe. After entering the 20th century, with the awakening of women's consciousness, people pay more attention to their own health problems, and gradually move away from the kind of waist-binding that harms their bodies and minds. However, the aesthetic preference of girdling has not disappeared, and then the bra has become a substitute for girdling.